Aces High Bulletin Board
General Forums => Hardware and Software => Topic started by: xanax on March 10, 2026, 01:10:22 PM
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No tariffs, no outlandishly high shipping fees as they have moved most of their product line to a US location. It looks like they are trying to get the entirety of their product line over here. Thus far, all the "important"stuff is here.
I just ordered something and it's coming from San Berdoo (San Bernardino, CA) and being shipped via Amazon for free.
https://vkbsimcontrollers.com (https://vkbsimcontrollers.com)
Virpil has a bunch of stuff in the US but those crazy-long wait times still persist.
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I have two Gunfighter Mk 2 sticks updated to Mk 3 and all of their grips. The MCG Ultimate is the stick grip I primarily use. Over the years I have worn some of the coating off of the metal grip. But everything still works 100%, so I saw no need to upgrade to a Mk 4. I have found this stick to be the best I have ever used (but I haven't tried Virpil). I would recommend this stick/grip combination to anyone wanting smooth precision and a wide range of controls to adapt various types of aircraft. A key feature being the analog wheel brake lever that replicates the functionality of many Soviet aircraft and the Spitfire.
However, I am probably going to get a force feedback stick. The unique connector for the Gunfighter series grips makes them incompatible with all of force feedback options. Most are compatible with the Thrustmaster style connector (also used by Virpil). I hate to give up using the VKB Gunfighter Mk 3/MCG Ultimate, but I would really like to have force feedback.
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I used to have FFB on my Logitech...it's cool, but really just rumbles....what i mean by that is, for me, it's not a worthwhile investment. Especially if you already have good stick
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I have two Gunfighter Mk 2 sticks updated to Mk 3 and all of their grips. The MCG Ultimate is the stick grip I primarily use. Over the years I have worn some of the coating off of the metal grip. But everything still works 100%, so I saw no need to upgrade to a Mk 4. I have found this stick to be the best I have ever used (but I haven't tried Virpil). I would recommend this stick/grip combination to anyone wanting smooth precision and a wide range of controls to adapt various types of aircraft. A key feature being the analog wheel brake lever that replicates the functionality of many Soviet aircraft and the Spitfire.
However, I am probably going to get a force feedback stick. The unique connector for the Gunfighter series grips makes them incompatible with all of force feedback options. Most are compatible with the Thrustmaster style connector (also used by Virpil). I hate to give up using the VKB Gunfighter Mk 3/MCG Ultimate, but I would really like to have force feedback.
I used ms FFB2 for years.... years... and the ffb amusing but more unhelpful than helpful... the only forecs I used were trim to give the stick more stability and stall for the stall shudder (set very low)...
bottom line: not worth it for the effects - but i did love the FFB2 optical sensors over tm pots
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+1 for the Gunfighter/MCG Pro. I've had that setup for years. Butter smooth and built to last. Also built to be serviced which is important to this mechanical type guy. I have a Virpil Throttle as I was tired of waiting on VKB to come out with theirs. It's also quality stuff. I ordered a Virpil collective setup a few weeks back thinking I might mess with helos a bit. Even so, I don't get many hours in these days.
Thing with these is, while it's quality equipment, its not like there's a hundred of them laying on a shelf to be sent out. They're making this stuff pretty much to order. I waited a long while for the VKB stick and Virpil throttle. I don't expect to see the collective and grip until late spring really. Once the VKB stuff shipped--that took months, it came by air from their factory in China and got to me in a few days. The Virpil stuff at the time did the same from the other direction across the EU out of their plant in Lithuania. They both have US distributors now but they still need the items in stock to distribute. Just glad the tarriff thing is fixed else I wouldn't have ordered that collective! That is what it is.
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I have never gotten around to getting a collective. I have the WinWing Super Taurus F/A-18 dual throttle which has a relatively long throw allowing me to use it as a decent alternative to a proper collective. But modern helos have specialized collectives with tons of controls on them: the Apache collective is like two different stick grips. I might eventually get one.
As for the VKB throttle, they originally promised a linear slide type throttle matching the MiG-29. I was interested in that. But what they finally released was nothing special. I still have two Thrustmaster Warthog throttles plus a WinWing Orion dual throttle with the hardware to use it as an F-16 throttle or an F-15E. But I almost always stick with the Super Taurus with its attached Hornet Startup Panel.
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No tariffs, no outlandishly high shipping fees as they have moved most of their product line to a US location. It looks like they are trying to get the entirety of their product line over here. Thus far, all the "important"stuff is here.
I just ordered something and it's coming from San Berdoo (San Bernardino, CA) and being shipped via Amazon for free.
https://vkbsimcontrollers.com (https://vkbsimcontrollers.com)
Virpil has a bunch of stuff in the US but those crazy-long wait times still persist.
Good to know! Thanks for the info.
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I like their pedals even without toe brakes...
Eagler
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I like their pedals even without toe brakes...
Eagler
I love mine!! :aok
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I like my brakeless VKB rudder pedals too. Toe brakes weren't in my budget at that time. Much better pedals than the CH Pro pedals I used for over 20 years.
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Toe brakes would be nice on the VKB pedals, but fortunately the STECS has some paddle buttons that are perfect for left and right brakes.
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I love my VKB pedals. Most pedals use a slide motion which means you use your legs to move them back and forth, much like real rudder pedals. VKB are a lower profile and I only need to use the ankle, balls of my feet to use them.
Legs = big muscles, hard to be precise
feet= small muscles much easier to be precise
They are smooth and it is easy to be very precise