Preview: High-end GT Wheels

[SIMON]

Hello Everyone,

I've been working on a line of custom GT wheels, and it's now time for me to show them to you all and get your thoughts and feedback. I'd like to gauge the level of interest in these wheels so I can tailor the production plans accordingly.

Please bear in mind that these are still prototypes and as such I don't have any concrete prices yet, but I'll let you all know them as soon as possible.

My plan is to have them compatible with the Logitech G25 and G27, the Thrustmaster T500, and possibly Frex and ECCI wheels as well if there is the demand.

In the mean time have a good look at them and let me know if they pique your interest!

There will be three models to choose from:

GT3 Wheel:








Here's the complete photo set on Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/89928288@N08/sets/72157631966467211/


GT2 Wheel: (Preview Renders)






Featuring Leo Bodnar's (unreleased) Sli-F1 display.


GT1 Wheel (Preview Renders)





Featuring a 4.3" LCD touch screen display running Russell Hodgson's Z1 display software.


All of the wheels will feature the following:

-6 Knitter Buttons, 2 Toggle Switches, and 2 rotary encoders with custom Aluminium knobs.

-Genuine carbon fibre face plate.

-Aluminium paddle shift units.

-Anodised Aluminium enclosure and wheel spacer.

-Wired USB Quick-release and wheel adapter.


Here's a quick video of the paddle shifters, I'll do a more in-depth one soon...

Thanks for checking them out, if you have any questions please feel free to ask them here or PM me.

I'll update this post as things develop...

 

[Kasper Stoltze]

That right there, must be one of the greatest GT rims, on the worlds best Wheel/Motor combo! Great job Simon! So how did the rim/attachment cobe with that power steering motor? I suspect there was no problems, it seem you have made a very solid product! Cudous. What did you think about that great Bodnar Wheel yourself?

 

[SIMON]

@ Kasper Stoltze: The Bodnar Wheel is an absolute animal, but in a good way. If you're not used to it then it feels very violent at first. You soon learn to understand what it's telling you, and then it feels fantastic...

 

[Nicholas Chong]

Kasper Stoltze I'm really enjoying what you did with your FFB wheel seems like competition for the Leo Bodnar FFB wheel! How is the progress of that? I wonder how much is bodnar selling that wheel for.

 

[William Geuze]

Did you need to do a lot of adjusting to your drawings to make sure the SLI-F1 fits in there?
Also, were you able to pry some more information off of them?

 

[SIMON]

@ William Geuze: It's exactly the same as the McLaren enclosure except for the large chamfered section at the bottom. On the original unit this section houses the data cables, but on Leo's version they've shrunk it down to make the SLI-F1 more space efficient and to reduce machining costs. If you check out my rendering of the GT2 wheel you'll get an idea of how it looks...

 

[William Geuze]

Oh cock that is bad news to me!
Thanks for answering though

edit:
I really cant see how they can save costs by removing more material than the original piece, in fact I think this only takes more time. If this is just a ruse and the real reason for this is legal action, I wouldn't be surprised at all

 

[Søren Mogensen]

I have a question, how big will the diameter of the wheels be?

 

[Kasper Stoltze]

Kasper Stoltze I'm really enjoying what you did with your FFB wheel seems like competition for the Leo Bodnar FFB wheel! How is the progress of that? I wonder how much is bodnar selling that wheel for.

Nicholas, you must think of me as someone, cause I havent been doing anything regarding a FFB wheel yet. IMO there really is no competetion to the Bodnar wheel, and I have a hard see there will be any.

SIMON: Thanks man, I somehow knew that
How did your wheel cobe with those forces?

 

[SIMON]

@Soren Mogensen: The wheel is 310mm in diameter. Thanks

 

[SIMON]

Kasper Stoltze: The wheel was great, thanks. It took a bit of fiddling to get the adapter working correctly as the Bodnar wheel uses a standard 70mm bolt pattern, (The G25/G27/T500 adapters I have made all use different bolt layouts), so I had to improvise an adapter to fit it. However, once that was sorted everything work as intended...

 

[Kasper Stoltze]

SIMON Aaarh yes offcause, silly me was for a little while thinking, that the QR you use already sat on Leo's wheel But I guess he just have a hardmounted wheel? I sure hope you did take some video footage of the test!

Looking forward to a price.

 

[Vito Lombardi]

How we going here Simon......any more progress pics/info for us. I keep looking at that GT3....wish I had it for Xmas...ha ha ha...I know, I know...these things take energy and concerntration...and I respect that.
So...Simon, I went to your profile........and your backround is.....

 

[SIMON]

Vito Lombardi Hey, thanks for your patience, these are complex beasts and I'm working hard to ensure that I can deliver a solid and reliable product on time, every time. I'm working on the custom PCB that's going to deal with the button wiring. It'll eliminate the need for wiring a matrix on every wheel, and make the assembly quicker and more uniform over a large batch of wheels.

I also received the manufacturing samples for the paddle shifters this week, they're looking good. I might have some news on these in the next week or two, so anyone who's interested in just getting hold of the Paddle Shifters on their own should check back soon for updates.

Thanks again for your interest,
Simon

 

[Kevin Cordice]

Great new

 

[Deleted member 17730]

Would you be willing to make just the wheel plates for use with other wheels?

 

[SIMON]

Geran Brown Thanks for the question. The carbon wheel plate won't fit any other wheels I'm afraid, the shape and bolt pattern are unique to the Reiter Engineering wheel. However I'm think about releasing something more universal in the future, it won't be for a while though...

 

[Deleted member 17730]

SIMON: Why did you pick the Reiter Engineering wheels over like a standard Mod 78 or even a Indy type version (Mod 27c)?

 

[SIMON]

Geran Brown: The Reiter Engineering Wheel is much lighter than most standard GT sized rims, and it has thinner hand-grips. Both of these factors lead to improved transmission of FFB detail through the rim itself, which is crucial to the overall feel of the wheel system.

The Momo mod 27c is designed for Open Wheelers and Prototypes rather than the GT and Touring Cars that these wheels are designed for. I am planning on designing a Formula/Open Wheeler rim in the future, but it won't be based upon an existing stock rim.

Thanks,
Simon

 

[SIMON]

Hello again everyone, thanks for taking the time to peruse this thread, it's time for an update...

Firstly, for those of you in the UK who are attending the Autosport International Show at the NEC this weekend, you can try out the GT3 prototype wheel in person. It is being used by Motion Simulation LTD in their TL1 simulator, you can find them in Hall 20, Stand 2765. Their simulator is a fantastic piece of kit and you really should give it a try if you get the chance.

It's been a busy month, I've been putting the prototype through its paces in order to refine the design, both of the external and internal components in order to get the wheel performing the way I want it to.

The key issue for me is that of weight, and I've now been able to make the production version nearly 450g lighter than the prototype, whilst retaining the same strength and build quality. This means there will be less strain on the FFB motor, and better transmission of FFB information through the wheel-rim and into your hands. The production version is also 20mm shallower front-to-back than the prototype, which means it will be easier to fit it into your cockpit.

Here's a render showing the new layout, note the new spacer and quick-release boss...



As for the internal componants, Leo Bodnar is helping me design a custom PCB for the wheel, which will fit over and directly solder to all of the switch and button contacts, meaning that there will be absolutely no wiring needed to assemble the wheel. Hallelujah!

I've also added the option of foregoing the wired quick-release system in favour of a Motorsport-style coiled USB cable. This is perfect for people who don't want to run the wiring loom through their wheel-base. You can see the Gland where this cable will exit just below the Spacer in this render...



Paddle Shifters: I've had the first batch of paddle shifters manufactured and they work very well indeed. However I've decided that I'd rather have a system that doesn't use a mechanical push-button switch, as they're rather time-consuming to assemble and tune in order to ensure that the feel is consistant across a large batch.

So for the production model I'll be using a different design, but it does mean that I've now got 26 sets of working Paddle Shifters that will need good homes, so if anyone wants to purchase a pair then let me know. I'll start a thread with all the details on next week once they're all fully assembled.

Adapters: The adapters for G25/G27, T500rs, FREX and ECCI have all been finished, as I said earlier you can choose whether you want to run the wiring through the quick-release, or use separate coiled USB cable instead. The adapters will only take a couple of minutes to install and won't permanently alter you wheel-base in anyway. Here they are...

G25 / G27


T500rs


FREX


ECCI / Standard 6-Bolt


So there we are for now, bit of a monster post so thanks for sticking with it all the way to the end. Thanks also for your patience, as you can see these wheels are still in development, so I can't release pricing information until all the component parts are designed and the production plan is locked down. In the mean time I hope you enjoyed the pictures and rest assured there'll be more info as things develop.

Cheers,
Simon

 

[Hampus Andersson]

Wow this is some quality work here. Getting a bit annoyed with my static paddles on my T500 and upgrading the whole wheel would be ideal.

But just to make sure, the original contact on the T500, it stays but the "male" is integrated into the adapter there and in turn you have your own contact from your wheel to the adapter?

Let me know if that makes zero sense.

----------Wheel---------------------------Adapter------------------------------Base
Custom male-----Custom female and original male-----original female