Honeycomb yoke - is it worth it? If so best place to buy

[fppilot 4,371]

On 12/24/2019 at 2:03 PM, tttocs said:

I'm personally inclined towards the Honeycomb as it's available today, affordable and, while not perfect, is by most accounts a substantial improvement over the Saitek gear.

Scott,
Opened mine as a gift from my wife.  I have mounted it to my desk. Solid as a rock.  The feel is much like I have experienced in pressure for a C310 that I have flown right seat ride-along and allowed at times to handle the controls. 

The vertical axis feed (spring/rebound) back to center is not perfect, but more closely simulates what happens with aerodynamics back pressure than my Saitek Pro Cessna yoke.

I was able to easily mount my Saitek Multi-panel.  Just had to remove a pair of  fasteners that were in place.  Took a T10 screwdriver bit, which I believe is Torqx 10.

Will be a couple of days until I actually fly with it.  Will report back.

On 12/24/2019 at 3:35 PM, Ray Proudfoot said:

The Honeycomb still uses pots which will eventually wear out.

Ray. Understand this soap box you have used as a pulpit for hall effect sensors, but I can buy two of these for the price of the most affordable yoke with that feature. In 20 years I will be 92 years of age,  Nuff said!

I use my desk also for everyday personal business and communication and have at most 19 inches to work with from front desk lip to monitor base.  The higher priced yokes all appear to be behemoth and just will not fit.  Not to mention that extending that far to the rear they have case height that would also at the bottom conceal about three inches of my monitor.

There are quite a number of purchase criteria other than hall effect sensors.  We each face different factors.

My Saitek Pro Cessna has lasted me now 10 years and still performing well.  I am replacing it because I like the overall design of the Honeycomb yoke and the quadrant that follows.

[Ray Proudfoot 8,961]

6 hours ago, fppilot said:

Ray. Understand this soap box you have used as a pulpit for hall effect sensors, but I can buy two of these for the price of the most affordable yoke with that feature. In 20 years I will be 92 years of age,  Nuff said!

I use my desk also for everyday personal business and communication and have at most 19 inches to work with from front desk lip to monitor base.  The higher priced yokes all appear to be behemoth and just will not fit.  Not to mention that extending that far to the rear they have case height that would also at the bottom conceal about three inches of my monitor.

There are quite a number of purchase criteria other than hall effect sensors.  We each face different factors.

My Saitek Pro Cessna has lasted me now 10 years and still performing well.  I am replacing it because I like the overall design of the Honeycomb yoke and the quadrant that follows.

Frank,

The reason I hate potentiometers so much is because I have already thrown away two Saitek throttle quadrants because fo failing pots and the Saitek Yoke will probably follow them should I keep it long enough. They are built in such a way that pots cannot be replaced which I find disgraceful in this age of plastic ruining our planet. So yes, I will refuse to buy any flight sim hardware that uses pots and maybe the manufacturers will change their attitude.

As for physical space that is a personal thing with available space. The Fulcrum is narrower than the Saitek, about the same height but a few inches deeper so I'll need to work out how to fit everything in.

[fppilot 4,371]

12 hours ago, Ray Proudfoot said:

The reason I hate potentiometers so much is because I have already thrown away two Saitek throttle quadrants because fo failing pots and the Saitek Yoke will probably follow them should I keep it long enough.

Ray. I have understood your complaints for a long time. Just the constant soapbox......

Best Regards, Frank 

[Ray Proudfoot 8,961]

Hardly constant Frank.

[tttocs 301]

On 12/25/2019 at 8:04 PM, fppilot said:

Will be a couple of days until I actually fly with it.  Will report back.

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts Frank.  Thanks much!

On 12/26/2019 at 2:41 AM, Ray Proudfoot said:

The reason I hate potentiometers so much is because I have already thrown away two Saitek throttle quadrants because fo failing pots and the Saitek Yoke will probably follow them should I keep it long enough.

But that's the thing Ray.  The pots in the Saitek throttles are about as cheap as you can get.  One of my former hobbies was restoring old radio transmitters and receivers and some of those have pots older than I am that are still serviceable.  All things being equal, I'd prefer HE sensors to pots as well but it's not necessarily the showstopper for some of us that it is for you.

I hear you (and honestly respect your opinion as well) especially as it comes to things like throw-away plastic.  That said, my main issue with my Saitek yoke is that it was a compromise from the get-go.  It was never great.  But it's actually held up very well in its mediocrity for the years that I've had it.  It's only now that the (never great to begin with) pots are beginning to cause additional problems.

BTW as an aside for those struggling with spikey Saitek throttles, a shot of contact cleaner actually works wonders for extending the life.  I often hear simmers claim that this "can't possibly work" as the pots are, supposedly, sealed.  I'm afraid they're not as sealed as they should be, and that's likely part of the problem.  For all that this technique isn't supposed to work, it's extended the life of my throttles for several years.  Don't be afraid to try it as a workaround until you (and I!) can afford/justify a better replacement.

Scott

[Ray Proudfoot 8,961]

@tttocs, if you’re able to disassemble a Saitek throttle quadrant and clean the poorest quality pots then well done. I watched a video on YT and got as far as removing the screws that hold the case together and then realised the video never explained how to get to the pots. So that was a useless video.

Soon after I bough two new ones and threw my old ones away even though they worked fine apart from the pots that couldn’t be replaced. Great for the environment eh but good for Saitek / Logitech? 😢

The pots in your older kit were of better quality as is a lot of older equipment. Nothing is built to last these days. We live in a throw-away society.

My yoke is still fine so I will either sell it for a few quid or give it to another simmer.  I’m not sure how you managed to get cleaner fluid into the pots. They looked pretty well sealed to me. Maybe your expertise made the difference. For the average user it just isn’t possible without probably wrecking the unit.

I really have nothing more to add to this debate as some are tired of me being on my soapbox. But if you really believe in something then why not.

[HighBypass 2,339]

Ray, I quite enjoy you getting on the soapbox, given that my setup is a TM HOTAS X throttle & stick and, thanks to a family Christmas present, a set of TM TFRP pedals (the last time I had any rudder pedals, they were on a SERIAL interface to my 486!). All these have pots in them. In fact I can see the toe brake pots on the underside of the pedals . So.. yes the pots will let go one day and I can lament that fact, then try and bodge them back into life. Then you can tell me "Told you so!" 

You never know, one day a peripheral manufacturer may listen and provide controllers with HE sensors at a budget price. Keep fighting the good fight.

[Ray Proudfoot 8,961]

@HighBypass, the Thrustmaster TPR Pedals have HE sensors. But they are very expensive.

In reality the cheaper option long term is to buy kit with HE sensors. Otherwise you will probably have to buy twice. If I was in charge of the world I’d ban potentiometers. 😁

Having said that I hope you get many years of service from them. TM are a reputable company.

[pegruder 65]

4 hours ago, Ray Proudfoot said:

@HighBypass, the Thrustmaster TPR Pedals have HE sensors. But they are very expensive.

In reality the cheaper option long term is to buy kit with HE sensors. Otherwise you will probably have to buy twice. If I was in charge of the world I’d ban potentiometers. 😁

Having said that I hope you get many years of service from them. TM are a reputable company.

Ray did you ever end up getting these pedals?  I saw in another thread you were debating. Since I'm looking at quality yokes I can't keep using my saitek pedals from 6 years ago now lol. Time for Mass upgrades I think.

[tutmeister 710]

The thrusmaster tpr are superb and while they aren't cheap they aren't crazy money. They are not perfect but are very good.

You can get better but you are looking at more like a grand for an incremental improvement depending which of the higher priced ones you go for.

[fppilot 4,371]

10 hours ago, tttocs said:

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts Frank.  Thanks much!

 

I'll PM you in a few days. Cannot read more of the continuous soap box that is present in this topic. Hope you and others understand. 

I spent this afternoon setting up profiles for my most often flown aircraft.  Had to detect and overcome duplication and conflict between FSX, the Honeycomb software, and FSUIPC.  I Finally got to all FSUIPS but the hat switch.  All work in the hangar shop so far.   Have not flown yet. 

Do have to say the build quality and presentation is there.  Considerably heavier than the Saitek Pro Cessna yoke I am replacing.  And the feel is consistent with that.  And much more attractive than the "big metal box" alternatives. 

Since the days long ago of the cheesy TPM controls on my early CH yoke, I have long been skeptical of peripheral switches and other additions and such on the body of a yoke.  I have to say after setting up my profiles today that this one is different.  The toggle switches and ignition switch are not comparable to RW aircraft, more in keeping in quality with Saitek, but they are certainly legitimate for simulators and well placed on the body.  The yoke handle switches provide more useful flexibility than I expected.  I found me arguing with myself on just what uses to put some of them to.  And I expect when I have completed a couple of flights I may make some changes.

[Ray Proudfoot 8,961]

7 hours ago, pegruder said:

Ray did you ever end up getting these pedals?  I saw in another thread you were debating. Since I'm looking at quality yokes I can't keep using my saitek pedals from 6 years ago now lol. Time for Mass upgrades I think.

Not yet. Icing on the cake when other kit has been aquired.

[tttocs 301]

On 12/27/2019 at 10:21 AM, Ray Proudfoot said:

@tttocs, if you’re able to disassemble a Saitek throttle quadrant and clean the poorest quality pots then well done. I watched a video on YT and got as far as removing the screws that hold the case together and then realised the video never explained how to get to the pots. So that was a useless video.

Ray, you misunderstand me.  I don't disassemble them.  I stick the "straw" on my contact cleaner through the slots so that it's spraying right where the <cough> "sealed" pot is.  I then cycle that lever several times and voila!  Major spikes are gone.  Note that minor noise is still there, but that was there when the throttles were brand new.  As noted before, the biggest issue is that these pots are junk from the get-go.  You're blaming a technology that can actually be quite serviceable (again I have pots that are older than me that work just fine), based on an implementation of that technology that was of poor quality from the start.

Scott

Edited December 29, 2019 by tttocs

[Ray Proudfoot 8,961]

@tttocs, glad that works for you. I’m surprised spraying into the slots manages to reach the pots. How long before you have to repeat the action?

[tttocs 301]

On 12/29/2019 at 12:14 PM, Ray Proudfoot said:

How long before you have to repeat the action?

Honestly, I don't really know.  I haven't done it since at least sometime early last summer that I can recall.  I guess the answer is, not often enough that I have to think about it. 🙂

Scott