Yet another wheel post; this time the expensive kind

Considering theres been a few threads recently about wheels I thought I'd
offer up my impressions of a recent purchase from the extreme of the subject

It started for me a couple of months ago. My Logi Momo was on its last legs
and I looked into the closet-where-old-computer-stuff-goes-to-die (hey is
that the old DX386/33 in the back?) hoping to find a solution. Instead I
found the remains of 3 wheels & pedals with a 4th about to join them. Firing
up my trusty copy of Quicken I realized that I'd spent over $800 and all I
had left was a sad pile of plastic/metal that even the recycler box wouldn't
take. Maybe it was time to get serious and get something that would last.

So I went looking. Man this serious stuff was, well, serious, at least as
far as wallet action was concerned. After all taxes , duties, shipping etc
was added in I would be anywhere from the mid $800's to near $2000 for the
models I was interested in. What's worse was that the one I *really* liked
was at the upper end of the scale. Now I can rationalize spending money on
new toys as fast as the next man (getting good tax rebate, present computer
is stout enough for forseeable future, a decent real car costs a whole bunch
more, I'll swear off liver and brussel sprouts, etc.,etc) but $2 grand
exceeds my definition of walking around casual money by a fair margin.
Fortuneatly about that time a fellow in BC decided to sell his used ECCI
6000 GTS unit for a much more reasonable price of around $1200. Still
expensive but what the heck, its such a bargain

What I got was 3 really heavy boxes stuffed with the pedals , wheel and
various odds'n'ends. Barely any non metallic parts and most of the metal
parts appeared to have been carved out of an ingot. Very impressive bit of
gear and solid enough to impress the most discerning blacksmith/jeweler.
Everything is connected securely to everything else its suppossed to be
connected to. There is *no* looseness or slop to be felt. Think good quality
watch. Despite the previous owner being an avid racer there was almost no
sign of the units used status apart from a couple of delibrate user made
minor modifications.

Whats it like to use, you ask? In a word; great. I will never be mistaken
for any sort of sim racing alien and my middle aged reflexes will pretty
much guarantee a mid pack status. What this wheel and pedals have done is to
allow me to stop my many mistakes from turning into complete disasters.
Before I'd put a wheel off the road and the car would be gone in less time
than it takes to tell about. Now theres a very good chance that I can catch
it and continue on with only a second or so loss. This does wonders for the
confidence and that, in turn, means that I can push harder all around the
lap knowing that the car is going to behave in a predictable way.

One thing I was concerned about before going into this deal was the loss of
force feedback. I'd had FF wheels since GPL days and am definitly used to
the wheel talking back to me. There was a short period of adjustment but I
quickly found that what I'd gained in precision more than made up for the
loss of vibration and kickback. The pressure sensitive brake pedal is a much
better braking solution than the old angle-the-ankle-just-so of the old
units. In fact I'd have to say that the pressure sensitve brake is the
single most valuable feature of the unit

So is it worth it? The answer for me is an unqualified yes. The money was
well spent and I can see this unit lasting me many years into the future. If
funds are limited at least try to get yourself a decent set of pedals

Dave

"Uwe Schürkamp" > wrote in message
...
> On Mon, 15 May 2006 19:43:49 -0400, Dave Erb wrote:
>> Fortuneatly about that time a fellow in BC decided to sell his used ECCI
>> 6000 GTS unit for a much more reasonable price of around $1200. Still
>> expensive but what the heck, its such a bargain
>>
>
> Did you buy Don Scurlock's setup? I wonder what he's been able to sneak
> pass the missus for his new "setup"
>
> Cheers, uwe
>

No It wasn't Dons setup though I doubt I would have been able to complete
the deal without Dons considerable help. He was able to view the wheel and
re-assure me that it was as the seller claimed it to be. As you can imagine
sending $1200 to the other side of the continent to people you've never met
for a product you haven't seen requires a great deal of faith in basic human
goodness. Fortunatly Don was there to help out

Dave

Dave,

I'm going through that exact decision process now in regards to FF or
not. I have a Red Logitech MOMO with ECCI E-3000 pedals and really have
thought about going with a GTS 6000 setup. We have a little thread
going over on RSC about this matter of fact.

Get yourself a buttkicker for under your chair to get the rumble strip
feelings back.

Scott

Dave Erb wrote:
> "Uwe Schürkamp" > wrote in message
> ...
>
>>On Mon, 15 May 2006 19:43:49 -0400, Dave Erb wrote:
>>
>>>Fortuneatly about that time a fellow in BC decided to sell his used ECCI
>>>6000 GTS unit for a much more reasonable price of around $1200. Still
>>>expensive but what the heck, its such a bargain
>>>
>>
>>Did you buy Don Scurlock's setup? I wonder what he's been able to sneak
>>pass the missus for his new "setup"
>>
>>Cheers, uwe
>>
>
>
> No It wasn't Dons setup though I doubt I would have been able to complete
> the deal without Dons considerable help. He was able to view the wheel and
> re-assure me that it was as the seller claimed it to be. As you can imagine
> sending $1200 to the other side of the continent to people you've never met
> for a product you haven't seen requires a great deal of faith in basic human
> goodness. Fortunatly Don was there to help out
>
> Dave
>
>


--
Scott B. Husted®
http://www.Husted.cc
ICQ# - 4395450 | AIM - Hylander12871 | Yahoo - sbhusted
MSM - | Google Talk -

Uwe =?iso-8859-15?Q?Sch=FCrkamp?= > wrote in
:

> On Mon, 15 May 2006 19:43:49 -0400, Dave Erb wrote:
>> Fortuneatly about that time a fellow in BC decided to sell his used
>> ECCI 6000 GTS unit for a much more reasonable price of around $1200.
>> Still expensive but what the heck, its such a bargain
>>
>
> Did you buy Don Scurlock's setup? I wonder what he's been able to
> sneak pass the missus for his new "setup"
>
> Cheers, uwe

No way, mines a keeper. Even though I've backed of simming for the summer
as real life kicks in(golf and riding the CBR929) I enjoy just coming into
the computer room and seeing the gear, it's so well made it's like looking
at a little bit of motorsport exotica every morning.

I don't have to sneak anything past the "significant other". Get this, my
86 VW GTI is getting on, I'm trying to talk myself into blowing my load on
a new GTI (2006 2.0 turbo with the DSG tranmission) but I can't make myself
spend the money. The wife says if I really want it she will let me trade in
her 03 Honda Civic, which she paid for completely, and we will be a one car
family, as long as I'm willing to drive her to work in the morning(10
minute return trip). Did I get lucky or what

Don