No joy with mini-joy

[Thomasew2004]

Hi


Received my Pro-Throttle this morning, and to my dismay, found that the Mini-Joystick is as floppy as .... well, it ain't got no spring in it's step, .. and Viagra ain't gonna help either ... :)

BTW, it has absolutely no tension, ... in any axis.

Suffice to say, .... I'm a wee bit :(

I received my CH Yoke and Pro-Pedals a few days ago, and everything worked flawlessly. I have been grinning foolishly to myself since then. :luv:

Based on that experience, ... I decided to sell the wife and kids, and purchase the Pro-Throttle and Fighterstick.

Unfortunately, the local distributor in South Africa, doesn't keep the Fighterstick .. dunno why, ... but rather, ... keeps the Combatstick. I think it's primarily due to cost considerations, as these things tend to work out quite pricey once they reach our fair shores.

Just to give you an idea, with the current exchange rate, ... I paid the equivalent of $750.00 for the Yoke, Pedals and Throttle.

Apparently, he can't order me a Fighterstick, as he can only order them in cartons of 4 units.!!! :wacko: What's with that ?... just as a matter of interest. Also, he wants to sell some more of his stock, before he would be in a position to place another order with CH. He 'had' just received a big shipment last week, ..the day before my order.

So, my Fighterstick is a couple of months away ..... :( .... perhaps it will arrive with my .... 'Throttle Quadrant'. :thumbsup:

I'm sure that the Combatstick is a great unit, ... but, I really don't want to have to compromise. I want ALL the bells and whistles. :w00t:

Obviously, I'm gonna have to ship the Throttle back the 1000 Kms from whence it came. I'm sure (I hope), the local guy will ship me out a new one.

However, I'm wondering if I shouldn't order a spare 'gimbal/springy-thingy/mini-joystick' ... and keep it as a spare. Just from looking at it, ... and trying to determine what's inside, ... it does seems a wee bit ... 'fragile'. Well, certainly the most 'finicky' bit I've ever seen on a CH Product, .. and I've been using CH stuff since the Flightstick first came out. Still have a couple of those, plus the Pro versions, plus my CH driving setup .... all basically retired now.

I also get the 'feeling' ... that wherever the 'springs' are .... they aren't 'user' accessible ..... i.e. it's a sealed unit.

Any thoughts on this.? ... i.e. having a spare 'whatsit'? I very much doubt, that the local chap would keep these spares, or any spares, for that matter. I assume he would just RMA any faulty units back to CH. Although he may replace the Throttle for me now, ... what's his position gonna be in a years time, .... that's if he is still the CH Distributor. Distributors in this country tend to change with the seasons. So, maybe I need to get him to order me a couple of spare pots, .. and a mini-joystick 'spring' thing.

Anyway, ... I won't be able to get my Throttle replaced until next week. I did read in another thread, that someone mentioned that the 'spring' popped back in again. Is it possible? Is there something I could try that may 'prompt' the springy bits to pop back into place. Thus far, .. I have tried some harsh language, ... to no avail.

.... any other ideas.. :idea:


EDIT: I have just spoken to the Local Distributor. I had been trying to get hold of him, since I received the Throttle, .. this morning. He tells me ... "he has 3 other units with exactly the same problem" .... :unsure: .... this does not bode well. Is the Mini-Joystick the 'Achilles Heel' of the Throttle..???

What resolve is there ... ?



In summing up, .... it does feel good to have CH Products ... at my feet, ... between my legs :unsure: , .... and in my hands ( well, my left hand anyway ), ... again. :luv:

.... just not sure what to do with my right hand, 'til my Fighterstick gets here :(
.... maybe I'll just suck the thumb on it ... :thumbsdown:


Oh, ... and BTW, .. nice forum. :D


Happy Flying .... :thumbsup:


Cheers :cheers:


Tom
Port Elizabeth
South Africa

[MichaelCHProd]

That is not cool. :( I have seen a few with mini joysticks that go bad but I did not believe it was an epidemic. Send me an E-mail and I will make this right as soon as I get to the shop on Monday. :salute:

[Thomasew2004]

Hi Michael


Thanks for your response, and your obvious willingness to resolve my dilemma.


However, I have reason to believe that the wee bugger ( i.e. mini-joystick ), may well be on the road to a full and complete recovery. :thumbsup:

Yesterday, no matter what I tried, ... I just couldn't get the m-j to work ... it just, sorta hung there. I resigned myself to the fact, that I would have to ship the Throttle back ... for a replacement. :(

This morning, when I walked into my computer room, and saw my Throttle, with 'this' protuberence just hanging there .... I decided that I would try to do something, albeit temporalily, just to keep the m-j centered, and hopefully, provide me with some limited functionality.

I had some small rubber feet, .. in fact, very similar to the ones on the base of the Throttle. I drilled a small hole through one of them. The idea was to slide it over the shaft, ... which would keep it centred, .. and being self-adhesive, would stick up nicely against the housing. Hopefully, the rubber would allow some degree of flexibility, and allow some use of the m-j.

Anyway, I did drill the hole a little small ( 0.5 mm ) which, obviously, in that sort of density rubber .... means the hole ends up being a lot smaller that 0.5 mm. The end result was that I had to use a wee bit of force to slide the rubber over the shaft. As I was doing this, ... I felt a click/pop. :oops: When I let go the rubber, ... the m-j just centred itself, ... and had tension on it. :D

I couldn't believe it .... it was working ... :thumbsup: However, that didn't last long, as moving the m-j around ... it just went floppy again. I decided to take a more scientific approach .... so, I hit it with a Hammer. ;) ... just kiddin' :D

I realised that as a result of 'forcing' the rubber over the shaft, that I must have 'popped' something in, or out.

I have a small rubber hammer, and I gently started tapping on the end of the shaft. Once again it popped out, .... and, once again, ... when moving it around, ... it went floppy again.

I repeated this procedure a few times, ... and, also applied a drop of Synthetic Oil ( Made by Robbe for their range of mechanics for R/C Helis), ... to the base of the shaft, .. where it mates with the gimbal. Definitely getting better.

Well, some two hours later ... and after much use, the m-j is still working fine, .. or seems to be. :D

What I found initially was, that if I moved the m-j around it's extremities ... in a circular motion ... it would just go floppy again. A couple of taps with my rubber hammer, and it would pop out. Eventually, it got it to the point ... where although it 'sometimes' went floppy ... it would pop out by itself. Right now ... it hasn't gone 'floppy' in the last 2 hours or so. :D

So, if I had 0% situation yesterday, ... I think I'm at 90% today. I say 90% because I am uncertain about one thing, and perhaps you could clear it up for me. Yesterday, when I would press on the m-j to change 'modes' there was only one 'definite' click as the Mode lights changed. Now, I have 2 clicks, .. although the first is more subtle than the second. If I apply gentle pressure on the m-j I can feel a slight click, .. and if I increase the pressure I can feel a second, more definite click, ... which results in the Mode switching.

Now, if you say that the 2 clicks is the norm, ... then that would suggest that the shaft was binding in it's vertical axis, .. and, if stuck down, would not allow the 'spring' to do it's job.

It may well be, that the tolerances used in the manufacturing of this gimbal/m-j assembly are perhaps a little on the tight side. If any unit was not used within a short period of it's manufacture, it may well cause some components to bind.

Alternatively, it may just be a bit of flux, or resin, or something, that is causing the binding, ... and just needs to be 'jarred' loose. It could also be that they are using some lubricant in the assembly, that is a wee bit too viscous ... and if the unit was standing around for a while, ... it may well cause the gimbal etc., to gunge up.

Of course, all this is purely speculation on my part .... :wacko:

There's obviously nothing broken here, ... as the more I use the m-j, ... the better it is getting, .. and feeling.

I've been burning up the sky in 'Lock On/LOMAC' ... using the m-j as my primary joystick. What a blast. I've been able to do take-offs, shoot down the bad guys, ... and do perfect 3-point landings .... all using my left thumb. :salute: What control ...

Prior to getting my CH gear, the only joystick I have been, sorta, able to use, ... was a Logitech 3D thing, with a Twist Rudder. Using it in LOMAC was a mess ... just didn't feel right. My m-j on my Throttle is much better. :thumbsup: ... not forgetting the Rudder control I have now, .. with my new Pro-Pedals. :thumbsup:


..... now, I just gotta wait for a Fighterstick .. :(


Anyway, my apologies for rambling on ... :unsure:


Mickey, the local distributor here, is going to contact me tomorrow, about a course of action to resolve my Throttle issues. I'll be happy to tell him that it all seems ok now, ... and perhaps assist him in resolving the problems with the 3 other 'faulty' units he has there.


If you could just verify the 'click' issue for me, I would be more than most appreciative .... and, .... any other thoughts you may have.


BTW, the CH software is great fun. I've tried them all ... I used to have a Saitek X-35 a few years ago, which literally fell apart in my hands. Also used Foxy for my old TQS/FLCS/RCS setup, ... before I retired them.

CH Manager rocks .... :thumbsup:


Thanks Again

Cheers

Tom
Port Elizabeth
South Africa

[MichaelCHProd]

Thanks for the details but there should only be ONE click and that is the mode switch button underneath the Mini Joystick. That second click has me concerned.

[MichaelCHProd]

Stand By....

I got the Director of Marketing and Sales in on this. Give us a few to fix this. ;)

[Thomasew2004]

Good Day Michael


Thanks very much. :)


Yesterday, using a syringe and needle, .. I injected a couple of drops of Iso-Prophyl alcohol into the gimbal area, .... and worked it around a bit.

The resolution on both axis is much better. Also, the clicks on the m-j button are both gone. I have a small tactile feedback, and the pressure required to change modes is less severe.

Unfortunately, .. as my Throttle was u/s from the start, ... I have no frame of reference to determine what the m-j should feel like, as well as the pressure required to change modes.

The local distributor contacted me last evening. One of his 3 u/s units started working again. The other 2 are still floppy/stuck/jammed. I suggested he obtain some Iso-Prophyl alcohol, and inject small quantities into the gimbal area, .. and see if that resolves the problem with the others.

I have also mentioned to him, .. that you are looking into problem. He intimated that he had sent/would be sending, .. an e-mail to Debby.


Thanks again for your efforts in getting this matter resolved. It is much appreciated.


I'll be standing by .... B)


Regards
Tom

[MichaelCHProd]

I spoke with Debby and she tells me she is talking with you now via e-mail to resolve the problem.

[Thomasew2004]

Hello Michael


Yes, ... Debby has been in contact with me by e-mail, and has put forth a resolve to my Throttle issue, ... which I am genuinely impressed with. :D


Based on what I have read in this forum, and on many other forums, and, of course, my own experiences over the years, ... not to mention, my most recent problem .... the level of support, and after sales service that you guys at CH Products provide .... is second to none. :thumbsup:

I've been in the Computer Technical field for nigh on quarter of a century, .. so, I do acknowledge and appreciate how important 'Quality of Service' is ... in any Pre-Sales and After-Sales situation.

... you guys really do raise the bar. :)


I would also just like to thank you personally, for any and all efforts that you have made in this regard.


Have a great day .... B)

Best Regards

Tom

[Revvin]

Good to hear, this just re-affirms CH's reputation of great customer support , something other manufacturers should take heed of.

[MichaelCHProd]

Thank you both B)