rec.autos.simulators

On Sat, 01 Feb 1997 14:08:00 +0200, Antti Rauhala

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I have used the CH Virtual Pilot for as long as I've been driving
Papyrus simulators and I am very happy with its performance and also
the laptimes it has provided me with.

I assume you may have a defective wheel, your driving style isn't
suited for the Virutal Pilot (as mine wasn't for the Thrustmaster T2)
or your wheel lock settings in your setups aren't suitable for Virtual
Pilot (also check linear- vs. non-linear steering).

Greetings,

Pekka Heino
_____________

I have that setup and don't have a problem with it so I took some data
you may be able to use to see if yours is working.  I have Nascar2 and
ICR2 so I took the data from those programs.
N2: When I go to calibrate joystick 1, the initial values are at about
630 for the X and 125 for the Y.  When I go full left the value goes
to 68 on the X.  Full right the value goes to 930.  Full in the y
value goes to 19 and full back the value goes to 601.  If I repeat

ICR2: When I go to calibrate joystick 1, the initial values are at
about 295 for the X and 58 for the Y.  When I go full left the value
goes to 32 on the X.  Full right the value goes to 440.  Full in the y
value goes to 9 and full back the value goes to 284.  If I repeat this


        If I test in Win95 Control panel the cursor does not travel full to
the corners of the box initially but if I calibrate then repeat the
test then full travel on the yoke goes to the corners of the box.
        I like the setup. I thought since everyone in this group seems to love
the T2 wheel and pedal that that would be better so I tried them for
about a week.  I didn't like them and my times did not improve so they
went back to Best Buy.  The T2 wheel is much stiffer to turn than the
CH yoke and therefore it seemed less responsive to me.  I disliked the
T2 pedals even more.  The T2 pedals slide on the carpet (yeah I know
you can prevent that) and I like the way the CH pedals pivot more from
the center.  I do run the programs in non linear steering or joystick
rather than wheel or linear steering as is normal for a wheel
combination.    

As for the VPPro wheel, I have ran alot of good races with it but I'm
sure an ECCI or Thomas Super Wheel would be much better. First,
I had to add some hardware to get a decent angle and to secure it.
I can move the desk by using the wheel as a handle now. I use a hose
clamp to hold the yoke all the way back so it doesn't "telescope" when
I'm driving. It also has the "free play" at both ends of the turning
range. I don't know if it's exactly the same as yours or not but....
It has always required a real soft touch. In fact, I run linear
steering with 5 degree lock at almost every track (NCR1, I haven't
played NCR2 enough yet). When I ran NonLinear I didn't have to go all
the way down to 5 degrees but it was more difficult to recover a loose
race car with it set that way. The problem with 5 degrees is that if you
spin, it's very difficult to turn the car around on a tight track.
That's why my favorite feature in NCR2 is the wheel spin.

All in all, it sounds like your CH VPPro is acting like mine. It's hard
to say if it's worse or not. BTW, you forgot to mention the centering
notch. Try being super smooth with a light touch (big track like Dega)
going back and forth over that stupid notch! The extra buttons and hat
switches on it are nice. It would be pretty cool if you could use those
hat switches for pit settings etc...

yup you got it right.  It's basically a digital controler, that's how
low the deg of turning is.  Go with the T2 or the GP2+CH pedals.  The T2
has about 260 deg of turning and makes driving sims 100000X better abd
more fun.

I have the Virtual Pilot Pro/Pedals combo and I have no problems with it
.  The pedals are what make this combo though.  The only problem was
that they pivoted in the middle which I found annoying.  Heres my
"extreme fix".  I have a piece of plywood about 2.5 feet wide by 4 feet
long.  I bought a fiberglass racing seat with padding and it is bolted
at one end.  On the other end I have a smaller piece of plywood which
runs almost vertical up from the "Floor" I screwed my pedals to this
wood by going around the edge of the base of the pedals so as not to go
through the base (the***heads are what holds the pedals on on all 4
sides).  I mounted the pedals upside down though.  This gives a much
more realistic "hanging pedal" feel.  I then fastened a 2x4 running up
straight from the floor with another running horizontal on top of that.
Attached to this piece is a small rectangle of plywood which holds my
wheel and a keyboard and mouse.  I added plenty of bracing so there is
no flopping around during driving.  It is fairly easy to get in/out of
as I built it while out of work with a broken kneecap and could not bend
my leg at all (I'll stick to driving the virtual race cars thank you).
It is now very fun to drive and I have $100 in the whole thing which is
what I paid for the seat.
--
"You stick to driving your typewriter and I'll stick to driving the
racecars"-Freejack
David W. McFarland

'87 LX hatch