Saitek Throttle Quadrant Movement

[l3ubba 16]

I have had the Saitek Pro Flight Yoke and throttle quadrant for about 3 years now and it has been working fairly well up until a few months ago. The issue is the X Rotation will not retract all the way. I will have the lever all the way in the up position but as you can see in the screenshots below it is showing it as partially down and will bounce back and forth rapidly. This is the axis I use for my flaps and it makes it next to impossible to retract my flaps all the way. When I advance my throttle (Z Axis) the bouncing usually stops once it reaches the 50-75 mark.

 

I tried reinstalling the drivers and calibrating the yoke and throttle quadrant but nothing seems to fix it. I have a registered copy of the latest version of FSUIPC 4 and have tried calibrating it through that as well but still run into the same issue. Is there anyone that can help me fix this? I want to fly but it kind of takes all the fun out of it when your equipment isn't working properly.

 

 

[Glynn 405]

What I do when mine gets flakey like this is get an aerosol of contact cleaner that has a long straw on the nozzle and direct the nozzle right down into the lever towards its pivot point. Spray whilst moving the lever back and forth.

Works every time, its just dust on the tracks of the tiny trim pots they use as potentiometers.

Don't get any cleaner further up as it spoils the grease that saitek use to give a smooth action to the lever.

[l3ubba 16]

What I do when mine gets flakey like this is get an aerosol of contact cleaner that has a long straw on the nozzle and direct the nozzle right down into the lever towards its pivot point. Spray whilst moving the lever back and forth.

Works every time, its just dust on the tracks of the tiny trim pots they use as potentiometers.

Don't get any cleaner further up as it spoils the grease that saitek use to give a smooth action to the lever.

Thanks, I'll give that a try and post the results.

[Glynn 405]

Let us know how you get on, It works for me.

Some crazy folk on Youtube will have you pulling the thing apart, absolutely no need.

[l3ubba 16]

What I do when mine gets flakey like this is get an aerosol of contact cleaner that has a long straw on the nozzle and direct the nozzle right down into the lever towards its pivot point. Spray whilst moving the lever back and forth.

Works every time, its just dust on the tracks of the tiny trim pots they use as potentiometers.

Don't get any cleaner further up as it spoils the grease that saitek use to give a smooth action to the lever.

Unfortunately no luck with that solution.

 

Any other ideas anyone?

[Glynn 405]

There is always the crazy folk on Youtube, you have nothing to lose.

[FreeBird(Josh) 314]

Calibration Fix

Do the second fix

 

If you are finding that the axes on your controller are not travelling through their full range of movement and/or are not centering correctly then try these fixes. The first fix deals specifically with Flight Sim. The second fix deals directly with the controller in Windows and should resolve any issues detected in Control Panel > Game Controllers > Properties.

 

If you are having trouble with calibration in Flight Sim then you might need to rebuild the config (cfg) file.

 

To rebuild the Flight Simulator config file, press and hold down CTRL+SHIFT as you start Flight Simulator and start a new flight. Continue to hold down CTRL+SHIFT until the game is in Cockpit view. Note - When you rebuild the config file, some of your joystick settings may change.

 

This should work for FS9 and FSX. Once you have got in to the cockpit - make sure you move the controller in the full range of all its axes 4 times to make sure the calibration data is recorded properly.

 

To recalibrate in Windows, first remove the USB plug for your controller from the PC.

 

Press and hold the Windows key on your keyboard and then press the letter R. This will open the Run box. Type regedit and then click ok.

 

The Registry Editor will have a list of folders on the left hand side. Go down into the following folders in order by clicking the + next to the folder name.

 

+HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE (CURRENT_USER if on Vista)

+System

+CurrentControlSet

+Control

+Media Properties

+Private Properties

+Direct Input

 

Delete any folder inside the Direct Input folder that begins VID_06A3.

 

Once deleted, close the editor, then plug the USB back into the original port. Move all the axes of the controller through their full range of movement four times.

 

Now go to Control Panel > Game Controllers > Properties to check the axes on the test screen. If the issue persists then test the controller on another PC to see if the issue is replicated. If it is replicated then it is most likely a fault with the controller which will need to be replaced if it is still within warranty.

[KingGhidorah 209]

I've done the thing where you pull the saitek throttle apart to clean the potentiometers with rubbing alcohol. It worked, but it was a pain. For future reference, what kind of cleaner, that you can just spray in there, do you recommend, Glynn?

[Glynn 405]

what kind of cleaner, that you can just spray in there, do you recommend, Glynn?

 

I use this one as it has a long nozzle that can get down to the little pots and flood them out

 

WD40 Fast drying contact cleaner

 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/WD-40-Specialist-Drying-Contact-Cleaner-x/dp/B006UCJ5WQ/ref=sr_1_1/278-3151214-4581124?ie=UTF8&qid=1435999260&sr=8-1&keywords=wd40+contact+cleaner

[l3ubba 16]

Calibration Fix

Do the second fix

 

If you are finding that the axes on your controller are not travelling through their full range of movement and/or are not centering correctly then try these fixes. The first fix deals specifically with Flight Sim. The second fix deals directly with the controller in Windows and should resolve any issues detected in Control Panel > Game Controllers > Properties.

 

If you are having trouble with calibration in Flight Sim then you might need to rebuild the config (cfg) file.

 

To rebuild the Flight Simulator config file, press and hold down CTRL+SHIFT as you start Flight Simulator and start a new flight. Continue to hold down CTRL+SHIFT until the game is in Cockpit view. Note - When you rebuild the config file, some of your joystick settings may change.

 

This should work for FS9 and FSX. Once you have got in to the cockpit - make sure you move the controller in the full range of all its axes 4 times to make sure the calibration data is recorded properly.

 

To recalibrate in Windows, first remove the USB plug for your controller from the PC.

 

Press and hold the Windows key on your keyboard and then press the letter R. This will open the Run box. Type regedit and then click ok.

 

The Registry Editor will have a list of folders on the left hand side. Go down into the following folders in order by clicking the + next to the folder name.

 

+HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE (CURRENT_USER if on Vista)

+System

+CurrentControlSet

+Control

+Media Properties

+Private Properties

+Direct Input

 

Delete any folder inside the Direct Input folder that begins VID_06A3.

 

Once deleted, close the editor, then plug the USB back into the original port. Move all the axes of the controller through their full range of movement four times.

 

Now go to Control Panel > Game Controllers > Properties to check the axes on the test screen. If the issue persists then test the controller on another PC to see if the issue is replicated. If it is replicated then it is most likely a fault with the controller which will need to be replaced if it is still within warranty.

No luck with that solution either. However while messing around with it I found that if I leave the lever about half a centimeter back from the full up position it shows the axis as full up without bouncing around. So I guess the temporary solution I will use is sticking something at the top of the quadrant to stop the flaps lever from advancing past that point.

 

I also forgot to mention that I am running Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit.

[FreeBird(Josh) 314]

It has always worked for me but sometimes I had to delete the standard XML file and let it make a new one. You will have to re assign your controllers after that. If none of these thing fix it then its a bad controller. I have two Saitek quadrants and there both faulty. This cheep stuff just doesn't last.

[l3ubba 16]

It has always worked for me but sometimes I had to delete the standard XML file and let it make a new one. You will have to re assign your controllers after that. If none of these thing fix it then its a bad controller. I have two Saitek quadrants and there both faulty. This cheep stuff just doesn't last.

Yeah I have been planning on buying a PFC throttle quadrant and yoke, I just wanted to keep this Saitek working a few months longer until I have the money saved up to make the purchase.