Strange area of low resistance/notch when wheel crossing midline

Ryan RodeRyan Rode Member
in Wheel Bases (and Racing Wheels)

Hello all.

I just received my brand new Clubsport 2.5 wheel base in the mail yesterday. During setup, I noticed that the longitudinal recess on the output shaft of the wheel base where you slide on the quick release adapter was off center 5-10 degrees to the right. I thought nothing of it initially. However, I noticed that there was resistance to turning the output shaft in either direction from that position. If I turned it some, the wheel would naturally want to settle back to that area 10 degrees clockwise from center when I let go of the wheel. When turning the wheel harder, left and right, I could feel a very defined notch/lump there at that position at two more areas through 900 degree rotation.

These 3 lumps in the resistance of the wheel are present with the wheel powered on or off and within games as well. I tried in assetto corsa and project cars 2 only so far. It feels like slop or "play " in the steering just right of center. I can't imagine this is normal. At this time I'd say my logitech g27 wheel has better feel than this new wheel. I've re-calibrated center point in the driver software with no change in this feeling. Has anyone ever come across anything like this before?

Comments

  • Dominic BrennanDominic Brennan Member, Administrator

    Hi Ryan,

    I believe what you are describing is a characteristic of belt-driven wheel bases when the mechanism has been stored in one position for a long period. Due to the high tension of the pulley system, the belt will begin to conform to that particular shape, meaning that you could feel a slight 'hump' during initial use (when the rotation returns to this position). This feeling should disappear over time as you use the device.

  • Michael PfeifferMichael Pfeiffer Member
    edited September 2020

    Hello Dominic,

    i think this should be plainly communicated when unpacking the wheelbase (maybe with a paper hanger on the shaft). Because it will most likely lead to irritation, bad first day experience or people strait returning the product. I'm writing this before i have even switched the wheelbase on. My lesson learned is to turn the wheel to a different position every time it's switched off.

  • Ben WearneBen Wearne Member

    Hi Dominic,

    I second the above, just received a CS2.5 base and this exact feeling (though 10deg counterclockwise in my case) was the first thing I noticed when I took it out of the box. Googling led me here, and while I'm happy to let the unit bed in, and will not leave it in the same location as suggested above, I had a bit of a stomach turning moment when I though I might be a warranty claim victim... A label or tag highlighting this is normal, would have had me at ease, and enjoying rather than stressing over my new gear.

    Cheers,

    Ben

  • Ben WearneBen Wearne Member
    edited October 2020

    A follow up for anyone else who has this same experience:

    By rotating the wheel shaft away from the notch, the feeling reduced significantly after being left overnight, and a new smaller notch feeling could be felt at the new angle. This feeling was all without a wheel attached to the base.

    I received my wheel the day after, and once the wheel was mounted on the base I could 'maybe' just feel the spot, if I tried hard to just lightly move the wheel where I knew the spot was.

    The important part; once mounted, plugged in and playing, there is absolutely no notch feeling whatsoever, especially given the power of this wheelbase, any slight belt-settling feeling isn't even near the order of magnitude that the intended force feedback is at. Even during menus with no force feedback, I completely forgot about the notchy initial impression, it was just gone.

    So in summary it seems like nothing to worry about at all, the reason Dominic gave above makes perfect sense (belt settling due to storage), and in my experience it isn't noticable with a wheel attached, and goes away completely once used. Finally, this wheelbase/system is just awesome, so smooth, so adjustable for personal preference, I'm very happy to have dropped the $$ on this kit!


    (Final edit - the OP indicated they felt the notch during games, and the wheel still wanted to settle in the spot, but it's unclear if they used the system much to let it bed in, or this was during initial setup only. I'd contact Fanatec if the problem persists past the first use, as for me it just went away completely)

Sign In or Register to comment.