I've been using a microsoft sidewinder precision pro 2 for more than a decade now. I too was thinking of getting a hotas set a couple of years ago, but the sidewinder is not only reliable but also has a certain build quality and feel, so i ended up spending on a trackIR 4 instead.

Well, recently my trackIR camera died after a power failure, the trackclip pro with the LEDs works fine though and i've been experimenting with freetrack, trying to decide if it suits me or i should buy a used trackIR4 set.

I too have been thinking of upgrading my stick options, but a combination of my trackIR throwing a spanner in the works financially speaking, the value of the sidewinder stick i already have being so well proven after all these years and the issues with the rest of the hotas sets available currently (it looks like it's a choice between flimsy construction, bugs or extra high cost and even the not so top of the line options are not exactly cheap), i have been increasingly thinking of going for a customized solution.

Recently i got a friend of mine back into flight sims after a long break, he started flying IL2 and we are eagerly expecting CoD. He had an old saitek X35 hotas that uses a gameport interface, so i suggested to him Leo Bodnar's BU0836 USB joystick controller.
For those of you that might not know it, it's a USB capable joystick controller that comes in a few different versions (have a look here:http://www.leobodnar.com/ ). He opened up the hotas cables, rewired it all through the BU0836 and can now use his old set just fine.

Naturally, after seeing the small size of the chip and already knowing its capabilities i started getting ideas of myself. I don't have a lot of spare room where i keep my PC, so even if i were to spring for throttle quadrants and rudder pedals i'm not sure it would be a comfortable fit for my available space.

I talked to my buddy about it and we might start if off by building a set of pedals first (he put it in a somewhat funny way too, he said "sure why not, i'm not going to pay $200 for a glorified seesaw with a potentiometer in the middle :-P )
He's well versed in tinkering with electronics which i'm not exactly an expert on, but on the other hand he's clumsy and not really comfortable with the mechanical part. However, after many years of helping my father with small, improvised home improvement jobs i think i could pull it off, so we would have a good synergy going.

The good thing about it all is that i can start as simple as bolting 3-4 pieces of flat wood together as proof of concept and then start improving gradually as i go from there. However, my main aim would be to make something of metal construction at some point and use hall effect sensors instead of potentiometers. I think i'm going to keep the stick and maybe just modify it with hall effect sensors and rewire it through the BU0836, i'd really like to make an elongated modification but it won't fit anywhere near my desk. However, what i'm mainly aiming for is building a set of pedals, plus a throttle quadrant with a small bank of switches that i can bolt on to my desk with some sort of clamp assembly.
Some family friends run an auto repair shop which i think would be a prime spot to search for spare levers, mounting joints and what not instead of having to pay for custom machined parts that would increase the cost.

The way I looked at it is wanting a new flight sim experience in general, rather than spending all this money just for CoD. In reality, CoD is what drove me to buy the new gear. In some crazy chance that I end up hating the game when it comes out, at least I know I'm still going to have a stellar experience playing IL-2, or something from DCS, or whatever strikes my fancy.

The warthog hotas is nice, but it seems overkill to me at $500 for the average flight simmer. I ended up with the CH Hotas setup including pedals which was a smidge over 300 total and sprung for TrackIR 5 with the Pro Clip. All together I spent around 500 which was just the cost of the warthog without pedals. I normally wouldn't have spent that much on gaming at once, but I had worked a ton of overtime last pay due to snow and had the money to spare.

The point I'm making is it's not like the equipment you're buying is only going to work with CoD. It's going to make youre experience better with any sim you fly, and because of that, I think it's worth the investment if you're into sims as much as most of us are.

-b

After months of thinking about what to get i have bought a full CH setup.

CH Throttle Quadrant
CH Pro Pedals
CH F-16 Fighterstick & Pro Throttle Bundle

If i really really like the stuff i will buy a CH yoke later this year to fly the bombers in IL2

Where did you buy the stuff?

http://www.simw.com/hardware.html?di...r=65&mode=grid

Normal price 458 euro
I got it for 366 euro
:cool:

And now i need to sell my saitek x45 + saitek throttle quad
and my Cougar.

I hope you get the gear soon.I have been waiting for 2 weeks for the items to be shipped :( Emailed CH Products but they havent answered yet.

Not sure of your location, but i ordered the CH Combat Stick and Throttle from Amazon UK and it arrived within the week (free postage too)

CH Throttle and Pedals are out for delivery from my order with Amazon. Fighterstick from TD is still pending just like your stuff, roy. I don't know what the problem is, but frankly I'm thinking TD is full of bologna. Especially with the quickness that Amazon got my stuff shipped.

Thought about canceling my TD order and getting it elsewhere, but I hear that they can't seem to do that correctly either.
After losing my cool with them via e-mail, they finally gave me a correct tracking number for the thrustmaster joystick i bought/shipped to my buddy. Why the correct one was different than the one in the e-mail they sent me I have no idea. Never shopping TD again :P

Here's hoping you get your shipping notification tomorrow. You've been waiting far too long. :evil:

I contacted CH and they dont know why is it taking so long either.Maybe they are not in stock.Anyways they should notify me what exactly is happening.Im really upset.:evil:

Edit*Went to check the status of my orders, and after 2 weeks one of them got canceled.Im so freaking pissed!!

Who says CH Products is the factor for the slow delivery?
Tigerdirect is not even on the official "where to buy" list / Distributors list.

I will keep you guys updated on the delivery speed of my CH Products order at Simware (I could not go to the shop itself. Closed on Saturday, and on week days i work. So i did a post delivery order)