Hi Anthony, I'm a disabled sim racer who has been racing since about 2009. I went from starting on a keyboard, moving to a gamepad, then to the Thrustmaster RGT which many here have already mentioned. I now use an adapted G27 wheel which I spent a lot of money on, and while it's a great wheel, it's not something I'd recommend spending on for a new sim racer, or even an experienced racer, as it took a long time for the wheel to arrive. That's for another day though.
Good to see the RGT is still doing the rounds on Ebay.
GREAT starter wheel for any disabled sim racer if you need to use the paddles for throttle and brake, as I did. However, the build quality is poor at best, so with extended use, the paddles tend to wear out. That includes both the gear shifter paddles and the analog paddles sadly.
Thrustmaster have been pretty good about sending out spare parts and were always willing to do that, but I've heard it's quite a difficult job to replace the paddles. I can't speak from experience as I used the wheel when it was still on general sale from Thrustmaster. They were always understanding about sending me out a new wheel at no extra charge. Of course this is no longer an option now the wheel is no longer on sale.
If you're more of a casual racer and will just race once or twice a week, I think the wheel should last a fairly long time for you. If you plan to race most days of the week for extended periods like I used to do, then I don't think the wheel would last much longer than 4-5 months before you start experiencing not getting full throttle/brake, or double downshifts, or whatever else the paddles decide to not do! It's a shame really, as the wheel itself is pretty damn good. I enjoyed using it for a couple of years before I spent money on the adapted G27 wheel. The sad part is, I went through at least five wheels before finally deciding enough was enough. As I said, Thrustmaster were very understanding and always replaced the broken wheels for me, but it shouldn't be that way in the first place. I still commend them for making a wheel readily available for disabled sim racers though.
I have pestered Fanatec many times through the last few years, but as yet show no interest in adding clutch paddles to future wheels. I'll keep trying!
