VKB joysticks

[morfiend]

Many items are manufactured in China for companies from other countries, but getting them straight from the production line may not be the cleverest thing to do although it may save some bucks at that moment. For what I've heard, the workers often sell the products from the rejects bin as an addition to their small salary. They may even sell them as "new, unused items" on Ebay. Recently I bought a fan for an older MacBook via Ebay directly from China. The original Mac-part would have been a three digit sum even without mail, the Chinese company sent it me for about five bucks total! I must say the item wasn't shiny and unscratched like one would suppose... So be careful when buying something at the factory backdoor!

  Bizman,


  I know what you're saying but my friend didnt go to pick 1 up out the back door! He is an airline cpt. and flies all over the world. We were talking about joysticks because his warthog had messed up too and I mentioned the VBK stick to him and that I thought it was made in China.

  He said he was just there the week before and why didnt I tell him sooner///

   So he happened to be there on the weekend,maybe friday or thursday but since he was on a stop over he had time to check into the VBK,wearing his captian's uniform got him into the manufactors door and he got to check it out. So he asked if he could purchase a unit and was told no,they didnt have the rights for that.

 Too bad I thought we could both save some on shipping and maybe cut out a middle man or 3 but that was not the case. He wasnt looking to get a second,I'm positive he can afford to buy the best and money isnt an issue for him it was simply a fact of being there and giving it a shot!

  Personally I like the look of the VBK,I like that I can mount my warthog handle on it but I think I'll wait for awhile before I pull the plug and order one.


   

[Bizman]

Morf, think about you not getting those sticks without a middle man as a positive thing. Had they sold your friend one after saying they have no rights to sell, the item would likely have been from their waste bin. But of course it would have been handed in a nice box with a receipt saying it's a $20 sample given as a gift to fool the customs authorities.

Sounds like that Chinese factory was run by true Christians. And when you've all stopped laughing, I have to tell that Christian Asians have a much higher working moral than the so called Christian American or European workers. They live according to their religious standards like we did a few hundred years ago.

[morfiend]

Morf, think about you not getting those sticks without a middle man as a positive thing. Had they sold your friend one after saying they have no rights to sell, the item would likely have been from their waste bin. But of course it would have been handed in a nice box with a receipt saying it's a $20 sample given as a gift to fool the customs authorities.

Sounds like that Chinese factory was run by true Christians. And when you've all stopped laughing, I have to tell that Christian Asians have a much higher working moral than the so called Christian American or European workers. They live according to their religious standards like we did a few hundred years ago.

  I understand Bizman,it was one of those nothing ventured nothing gained things!

  My friend happen to be in China and had a layover so he had time to kill,I think if he didnt have his captains uniform on he likely wouldnt have gotten in the door!

  As I said,I think I'll wait awhile before I pull the trigger on buying 1,a couple bucks here or there wont make a difference. I would have still had to pay for my friend to ship it to me,we just thought since it was sold out it might be an easier or quicker way to grab a couple!


   

[hotcoffe]

well I ordered my ch rudder pedals today, so now i have enough time until april to deciede between fbm and x55 rhino...

btw i asked the pricing for vkb rudders and they come up with a price around 300-400 euro... way too much...

below is the response i got from them:

Dear sir,




This is a confirmation for your pre-order: [Fat BM, VKB rudder pedals]




No pre-payment is required. I will reserve the items for you and as soon as they arrives I will inform you.

Please, note that the price for VKB rudder pedals may vary. I expect that a  price will be between 300-400 euro for full-metal version with MaRS sensors and toe breaks. But it is still unclear and very much depends on production cost.




When items are available, you can pay via website using paypal or bank transfer.




Thank you !




Best regards,

Eduard

VKB FSC Europe

[Bizman]

  I understand Bizman,it was one of those nothing ventured nothing gained things!

  My friend happen to be in China and had a layover so he had time to kill,I think if he didnt have his captains uniform on he likely wouldnt have gotten in the door!

  As I said,I think I'll wait awhile before I pull the trigger on buying 1,a couple bucks here or there wont make a difference. I would have still had to pay for my friend to ship it to me,we just thought since it was sold out it might be an easier or quicker way to grab a couple!


   

I figured you knew it, but I just had to double check it as a warning for those who might fall for those back door bargains! 

[danny76]

well I ordered my ch rudder pedals today, so now i have enough time until april to deciede between fbm and x55 rhino...

btw i asked the pricing for vkb rudders and they come up with a price around 300-400 euro... way too much...

below is the response i got from them:

Dear sir,




This is a confirmation for your pre-order: [Fat BM, VKB rudder pedals]




No pre-payment is required. I will reserve the items for you and as soon as they arrives I will inform you.

Please, note that the price for VKB rudder pedals may vary. I expect that a  price will be between 300-400 euro for full-metal version with MaRS sensors and toe breaks. But it is still unclear and very much depends on production cost.




When items are available, you can pay via website using paypal or bank transfer.




Thank you !




Best regards,

Eduard

VKB FSC Europe

Toe breaks? Sound painful

[Fulcrum]

I've owned the Black Mamba for about 3 months now.  Great stick and an excellent compliment to my Warthog.  I do not as yet have the adapter to allow the Warthog stick to connect to the Mamba base but plan to order one when they come back in stock.

Some key points:

1.) Good quality product.  The handle is plastic but the base is aluminium and is well designed.

2.) The electronics are plug and play.  No drivers required.

3.) The gimble system used is excellent.  No center play at all to date and very smooth.

4.) The stick action is light and extremely precise even with the stronger springs installed (you get two sets of springs standard).  The action is so light and precise it may effect your gameplay until you get used to it.... especially if you are coming from using the Warthog stick.  I also found I needed to turn up stick damping significantly within Aces High for the X and Y stick axis to counter this.

Overall I'm very happy with the product.  I've been using it more in Rise of Flight lately but was happy with how it preformed within Aces High.

Hope that helps.

Fulcrum

[steely07]

Thanks for the report Fulcrum, I'm leaning towards this as my next upgrade.

Salute

Steely