rec.autos.simulators

Help me, I am a desperate man.  First the facts:

P200
64 MB EDO RAM
Intergraph Intense 3-d (Rendition)
Monster 3-d
Using Thrustmaster Propanel to Calibrate
GP1 plugged into Soundblaster 32 awe pnp sound card

I am having problems with my accelerator I think.  I drive Dega a lot
and always run 194-195 mph by lap 3.  Now I am only running like
190-191.  I have calibrated with TM Propanel and also have tried to
calibrate in the game.  No luck.  I have noticed when using the TEST
feature in propanel that there is now a slight switching going up and
down when I push the accelerator.  Like it will stay all the way on
for a second and then will twitch and go down a little.  I guess that
this would result in a loss of acceleration.  I have unplugged the GP1
and plugged it back in with no luck.  The only thing that has changed
on my system is I downloaded CFrediricks new 98 WC car set.  I have
had the GP1 for a year and never had any problems before.  It feels no
different either.  And yes, I am using the adapter from TM.  Any help
would be greatly appreciated.

ps:  Does the T_player skills ratings affect anything?  I don't think
so but was just reaching for anything at this point?  Maybe they were
changed or something?

Do you have DirectX5 on your system? If so, the problem could be caused
by the "poll with interrupts enabled" feature... Go into the game
controllers control panel and hit the "advanced" tab, and see if the
"poll with interrupts enabled" checkbox is checked. If it is, uncheck it
and "ok" out of the control panel. Go back in and make sure it stayed
unchecked... sometimes you have to uncheck it twice to make it "stick".

When "poll with interrupts enabled" is checked, you'll often see some
intermittent spiking in the analog controller axes. That could be the
culprit here. If you don't have DirectX5 on your system, none of this
applies...

Trips

Had the same thing happen to me in December after only 7 months of use.
It turns out the pots were wore out.  What I did for a while was to
reverse the gas & brake inputs (I run ICR2 & N2, don't know if other
sims will let you), & it worked while I contacted Thrustmaster & told
them of my problem.  They sent a whole new wheel assy, free of charge.

Hope this helps!

Chuck Kandler  #70
K&S Racing

http://www.geocities.com/MotorCity/Speedway/3794

Chuck, thanks for the help.  How do you go about reversing the brake
and gas inputs?

Thanks,

Richard

You might try re-calibrating and only pressing down the pedals about 3/4
of the full travel.  This will reduce the sensitivity of your pedals but
may get you past any dirty areas of the potentiometers.

--------

"NASCAR is the Professional Wrestling of Motorsport."
                                    -Me-

How do you go about cleaning potentiometers?  What do they look like?
Where can you get contact cleaner?  Excuse me if these are dumb
questions but I am not the most mechanically inclined person in the
world.

Richard

To reverse your inputs in ICR2, go to the Controls menu, select Set
Controls, and use the appropriate input for brake & acceleration.  In
N2, when you are looking at your car on jacks, select Options, then
select Controls.  Once again, use the appropriate input for each & get
racin!!  

Now if only I could get this darn F1RS demo from the Boot disc to
work!<f>

Hope that helps!

Chuck Kandler  #70
K&S Racing

http://www.geocities.com/MotorCity/Speedway/3794

I purchased my GP1 in Feb 97.

In Nov 97 (just as NROS opened) my brake pot began malfunctioning.  It
wouldn't consistantly release so I was going slower than normal and was
a road hazard.

I sent an e-mail to Thrustmaster.  They did send a replacement
wheel/base unit free of charge.

About 2 weeks of the new one, and the gas pot got flakey.  I used some
WD-40 to cure the problem short term, but decided to get some CH Pedals
to eliminate the GP1 gas/brake problem.

At this point I think I should have got the pedals right away.  Much
less wear and tear on my index finger. (mashing the gas lap after lap).
Also having independant gas and brake is better too.

mykey

--------

"NASCAR is the Professional Wrestling of Motorsport."
                                    -Me-

<snip>
% I am having problems with my accelerator I think.  I drive Dega a lot
% and always run 194-195 mph by lap 3.  Now I am only running like
% 190-191.  I have calibrated with TM Propanel and also have tried to
% calibrate in the game.  No luck.  I have noticed when using the TEST
% feature in propanel that there is now a slight switching going up and
% down when I push the accelerator.  Like it will stay all the way on
% for a second and then will twitch and go down a little.  I guess that
% this would result in a loss of acceleration.  I have unplugged the GP1
% and plugged it back in with no luck.  The only thing that has changed
% on my system is I downloaded CFrediricks new 98 WC car set.  I have
% had the GP1 for a year and never had any problems before.  It feels no
% different either.  And yes, I am using the adapter from TM.  Any help
% would be greatly appreciated.

Sounds like you have a dirty pot.  Get some Tuner/Switch
Cleaner/Lubricant at an electronics supply store and spray it inside the
pot.  Work the lever several times to get the cleaner over all of the
contacts.  You may need another good squirt to really get it clean.
Cleaning your pots is a heck of alot easier than replacing them.

--
**************************** Michael E. Carver *************************
     Upside out, or inside down...False alarm the only game in town.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=<[ /./.  [-  < ]>=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

% How do you go about cleaning potentiometers?  What do they look like?
% Where can you get contact cleaner?  Excuse me if these are dumb
% questions but I am not the most mechanically inclined person in the
% world.

To clean the pots on Thrustmaster products, get some Tuner/Switch
Cleaner and Lubricant from an electronics supply store. Open up the
housing on the unit and spray the insides of the pot (short for
potentiometer). I usually direct the spray (via the tube extenstion for
the spray nozzle) into the openings of the pot where the solder lugs
are. Then move the wheel or pedal through its full range 4-6 times to
work the cleaner over all the contacts. If the unit was acting up quite
a bit, you may want to give it a second "cleaning" before sealing up the
unit and heading back out to the track.

There are pots for each pedal and for each lever on the back of the GP1
wheel. The latter can usually be cleaned by finding a "squarish" hole on
the pot and directing the spray through the hole. You should be able to
clean the pots for the levers without disassembling anything on your
GP1, however to get to the steering wheel pot you will need to remove
the housing cover of the wheel.

[For the non-electronics or non-mechanical racers out there, the pot is
the "silver" cylinder that the is directly behind the wheel inside the
housing. It should have some wires connected to it and the wheel is
connected its plastic shaft. There should be a "shaft" coming out of one
end of the cylinder.]

--
**************************** Michael E. Carver *************************
     Upside out, or inside down...False alarm the only game in town.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=<[ /./.  [-  < ]>=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Of course its a band aid solution...