Sorry Dave K.....but I can't buy your enthusiasm for these pedals!
At $79 (USD) they are still plastic toys! And, while they may be good for
entry level sim racing, and will probably give the TM NASCAR Pro Digital-2
pedals a run for their money, they are still a toy. Most entry level sim
drivers still drive at a desk in an office chair. These pedals clearly are
designed for use in a seated position ergonomically equivalent to that. I
seriously doubt you can actually "heel n toe" with these pedals. The pedal
throw and movement is not correct to do this except in some sort of a
"playing around" fashion. Go to High Gear, look at the "overhead pedals"
video again (its in the News Archive) - tell me you can use that kind of
"heel n' toe" driving technique with these AL pedals - I'll eat my hat soon
after!
How about some sort of a seating position that resembles (ergonomically) a
real race car? Can these pedals be used? I doubt it.
Here's a test for you Dave:
Put a 4" phone book on the floor. Sit on it. Have a friend stand behind
you and lean back into his knees about 20 degrees. Have another friend put
your AL pedals under your heels, and tell me you can depress all of the
pedals easily without hyper-extending your foot (which will give you shin
splints in about 5 laps). You can't. By the way, I've just described the
seating ergonomics of a Winston Cup race car (and most stock car and sports
cars I've measured). WC cars and most stock cars have the driver's ***
about 4" above the heel plate at the pedals.
Want to test an ergonomic seating position for an open wheel race car? Take
the phone book out from under your butt. Have your friend behind you move
back a little and now lean back to about 40 degrees. Leave the pedals under
your heels where they are. Can you even press them at all? Most open wheel
race cars have the driver's ***at equal height to the heel plate at the
foot pedals.
Want to test an F1 ergonomic seating position? Take the phone book and put
it under the pedals, leave your ***on the floor and have your friend move
back a few more inches so you are now at about 60 degrees. My guess is the
only way you could press those pedals is with your heels! Most F1 cars have
the drivers ***approximately 4" below the heel plate at the pedals.
Come on! Everyone gets e***d about getting something new. I do to. But
please, let's put these new AL pedals in perspective. They are plastic toys
meant for mass consumption at the CompUSA's of the world! Nothing more. If
you want the realistic look and feel of real racing pedals and allowance for
sim driving in realistic ergonomic positions (with home built race frames or
professionally built frames and***pits) then you still need to have
something along the lines of the Red Line, TSW or BRD pedals. These are all
steel and/or aluminum products and you can't reproduce that feel with
plastic in any way shape or form.
By the way, my hat's off to AL for "building a better mousetrap!" I have a
set of these pedals coming too. But I won't be using them for my personal
sim racing. I want the real deal! And, for $110 more, I get it - no
plastic!
BRD's new pedals system with adjustable gas-shock dampening on all three
pedals, side to side adjustment of the pedal face (on all three pedals) and
pedal shaft rake adjustment (on all three pedals), sealed ceramic "military
grade" potentiometers - will be out in 30-days! If you think these AL
pedals are the "read deal" - think again! By the way, with a***driver
and a small crescent wrench and 10 minutes, you can turn the BRD pedals
upside down and use them as overhead, stockcar/sportscar style pedals too!
Regards,
Tom P
Disclaimer: I don't work for BRD. But I do know all of the employees at
BRD who build their rigs, and all of the real-world race car drivers who
helped test them for BRD. And, my reputation is on the line if I recommend
them since I'm going to be their USA Distributor. So, I can't afford to
give out some giddy "these are my new pedals and aren't they cool" BS about
them.
