Fanatec CSP V3 - Brake Performance Kit or Damper Kit?

[Kayumi]

Hey Guys,

last summer I bought the Fanatec CSP V3 and as I got used to the upgrade over my good old G25 Pedals Im not happy with the feel of the brake pedal anymore.

So I thought about getting a kit for the brake. Which kit would you recommend more?

Thank you for your help

 

[Furnace Inferno]

BPK.

 

[raptor1958]

BPK.

+1

 

[Full_Ninja]

Hey Guys,

last summer I bought the Fanatec CSP V3 and as I got used to the upgrade over my good old G25 Pedals Im not happy with the feel of the brake pedal anymore.

So I thought about getting a kit for the brake. Which kit would you recommend more?

Thank you for your help

What is wrong with the feel? Which sim are you using? Did you set the gamma for the pedals in the sim?

 

[Elaphe]

I also have the Clubsport V3. Although I like the stock brake pedal feel very much, I wonder if these addons are worth. Could anyone explain what they do, what are the benefits and the changes from the stock brake?

 

[Kayumi]

What is wrong with the feel? Which sim are you using? Did you set the gamma for the pedals in the sim?

I don’t have the smooth progression of the pedal throw anymore. And in some moments the pedal is too soft for me. I’m gonna order the BPK tomorrow.

 

[Furnace Inferno]

I also have the Clubsport V3. Although I like the stock brake pedal feel very much, I wonder if these addons are worth. Could anyone explain what they do, what are the benefits and the changes from the stock brake?

The stock brake is quite vague in feel I found, nice enough if you are only used to standard potentiometer based ones though. It never really felt all that different from a light press to a hard press other than how much force you were using. There also isn’t all that much resistance until you hit the end of the pedal travel.

The damper which I had adds some much needed resistance to the first part of the pedal depression so that it feels like you are pressing against something the whole time.

At that point I switched to Heusinkveld Pro’s which use elastometers rather than the foam in the stock V3’s. Inifinitely better in feel and based on what everyone else has said about the BPK it improves the V3’s in the same way. Like you I was sceptical but now I’ve tried them they just feel so right.

Instead of remembering how much brake pressure you need you can really just feel for it as the elastometers give distinctive feedback depending on how much they are squashed by your pressure. It’s pretty much the equivalent to feeling the brake pad pressing harder on the wheel in a real car.

You lose some pedal travel but it really isn’t a problem like I thought it might be. For me at least it just makes braking a lot more natural as I’m doing it subconsciously in feel rather than needing to learn.

 

[Elaphe]

And why do you recommend the brake performance kit over the damper kit, when the latter is much more expensive than the former?

 

[Furnace Inferno]

And why do you recommend the brake performance kit over the damper kit, when the latter is much more expensive than the former?

Because elastometers feel much better than the stock brake even with a damper, they also make the damper redundant because of the reduced travel.

When I got my Heusinkveld Pedals, Niels (the owner) even told me I wouldn’t really be able to feel the damper on the brake on the Ultimate pedals when I was deciding between them and the Pro’s.

Cost is not the important factor, the damper came first as an improvement and is more expensive simply because it’s harder to manufacture and has more parts whereas the elastometers are literally just rubber/plastic inserts. Just because they are simpler and cheaper though doesn’t mean they are worse, there’s a good reason the higher end and better rated pedals use them.

 

[Elaphe]

Understood. Is the install of the performance kit any difficult?

 

[Kayumi]

Understood. Is the install of the performance kit any difficult?

Not really, just have a look at this video for example, it is pretty simple

 

[Steve D]

I've literally just carried out the brake performance kit mod and for me it has immediately and completely transformed the pedal feel compared to stock and is so much more natural and progressive. So I can highly recommend it and wish I had done it many months ago when I first bought the V3s.

However, whilst taking everything apart and fitting the BPK is very quick and easy, getting the pedal assembly back together again is pretty fiddly and awkward and not necessarily as straightforward as the video above, or indeed Fanatec's own instructions, would indicate.

This is because the very thin cable that connects to the brake pedal's vibration motor, (which the video does not mention or show), runs in the same channel that the base of the brake pedal has to be pushed back in to before it's possible to re-seat the pin. (See around 1:55 in the vid) And when you are trying to do this under the heavier load, which the BPK introduces, it's a very tight fit and very easy to damage the cable because the base of the brake pedal is in constant contact with it whilst you are sliding the base back in to position. And there is no warning about this anywhere.

I managed to avoid any damage by placing two 2.5mm Allen keys in to the channel, (in parallel), to act as rails / risers and as suggested in post #6 of the topic I've linked below. This allowed the base of the pedal to ride up and over the top of the cable to avoid crushing / pinching / breaking it. Once the pin holes were more or less lined up at each end, I then used a bigger Allen key as a lever inside the pin-hole, to make the final, tiny adjustment needed before I could push the fixing pin through. (Although this might not be required if everything lines up perfectly in the first place)

http://www.racedepartment.com/threa...e-performance-kit-installation-issues.142859/

So if you do go down this route, go careful and take your time.

 

[wajdi]

I bought the V3 month ago and I used them 3 days and I didn’t like them at all then I ordered the Heusinkveld Pro and it’s another level.
Now I’m selling the V3 .

 

[Gregkar13]

i have the V3's and the BPK and the damper kit.
There is NO WAY that v3's load cell is 90kg. 45kg? maybe, 90kg? no way.
V3's with stock PU foams, max preload screw and damper at number 4 feels almost the same as 2x13mm green (that's the hardest combo) bpk elastomers with min preload screw and damper kit also at 4.
preload screw doesn't make you pedal harder, it adjusts your pedal travel.
all in all i think you must buy both of them if you want to make them barely good. i am using the combo above with the 2x13mm green elastomers plus minimum sensitivity on the drivers and max gamma settings on each sim and i am still fighting not to apply 100% force in sim. i wish i had gone for the HE's...
i can't imagine how it would be without the damper kit, it gives that extra resistance plus the hydraulic feel.

 

[Kayumi]

I've literally just carried out the brake performance kit mod and for me it has immediately and completely transformed the pedal feel compared to stock and is so much more natural and progressive. So I can highly recommend it and wish I had done it many months ago when I first bought the V3s.

That is what I wish to feel when I installed the BPK. My brake somehow lost the smooth progression and I really hope the BPK brings it back

 

[manc0ntr0]

The best way -for me- to move the pedal out and in its position is using that:

With it you will be able to pull the cilinder and move it without touching the cable

 

[Furnace Inferno]

i have the V3's and the BPK and the damper kit.
There is NO WAY that v3's load cell is 90kg. 45kg? maybe, 90kg? no way.
V3's with stock PU foams, max preload screw and damper at number 4 feels almost the same as 2x13mm green (that's the hardest combo) bpk elastomers with min preload screw and damper kit also at 4.
preload screw doesn't make you pedal harder, it adjusts your pedal travel.
all in all i think you must buy both of them if you want to make them barely good. i am using the combo above with the 2x13mm green elastomers plus minimum sensitivity on the drivers and max gamma settings on each sim and i am still fighting not to apply 100% force in sim. i wish i had gone for the HE's...
i can't imagine how it would be without the damper kit, it gives that extra resistance plus the hydraulic feel.

Are you sure you’ve calibrated it right? I had to switch from manual to auto calibration to get it to register properly after changes and then adjust the brake force. On 100% BrF it definitely took more force than the HE Pros I now have.

The real difference is it takes very little brake force before you hit maximum brake travel on the V3’s. With the brake mod it should feel pretty similar you just need to set up the right brake force which should be around 85-90% to match the HE Pro’s on max.

 

[Kayumi]

Hi again,

I got my BPK today and installed them. I went for the medium settings and the result is great! Much smoother, way better brake feel.

Thank you again for your help and tips regarding the installation

 

[Steve D]

Hi again,

I got my BPK today and installed them. I went for the medium settings and the result is great! Much smoother, way better brake feel.

Thank you again for your help and tips regarding the installation

Good man! 'Night and day' versus the stock pedal feel isn't it!

 

[Gregkar13]

Are you sure you’ve calibrated it right? I had to switch from manual to auto calibration to get it to register properly after changes and then adjust the brake force. On 100% BrF it definitely took more force than the HE Pros I now have.

The real difference is it takes very little brake force before you hit maximum brake travel on the V3’s. With the brake mod it should feel pretty similar you just need to set up the right brake force which should be around 85-90% to match the HE Pro’s on max.

Oh didn't know that they were so close to the HE's. Actually i had a big problem with the pedals which took me and fanatec months to solve. the brake cylinder was stuck and not moving inside the black housing. after they sent me a new part everything was fixed except that the brake felt too sensitive, so i sent them back my LC to check it and they told me it is working as it should.. there is nothing else that could be faulty. i have calibrated them multiple times both in auto and manual. there is 0 difference.

to get an idea how much sensitive they are, i now use:
100% setting in auto mode in fanatec CP
2x13mm green BPK elastomers
Damper kit: 4
preload screw: max (3)
and maximum brake gamma in every sim (5 for iracing, 5 for AC, 0 brake sensitivity for pc2 and 0 brake sensitivity for RRE)
In this way, yes i can barely skip applying 100% input in sim.