anyone use MFG Crosswind pedals?

jmg · Apr 9, 2015

just picked up a warthog.. holy sweet jesus that is a nice hotas. but coming from keyboard and mouse, I'm missing yaw. and the little hat thingy on the throttle isn't doing it for me.

I've been doing some research, and so far not impressed by much -- Saitek / chpro reviews all basically say the same things, good for the money, but ;plastic and creaky.

I'm seriously contemplating a set of the mfg crosswinds ... the warthog/crosswinds will be my setup for Elite, Sc, and (if they EVER get controllers to work) MWO.

Anyone have any experience with these? From the reviews they seem fantastic, but before I mail a furniture maker in Croatia a check for $400, wanted to get some opinions.

Edit: guess it would help if I posted a link... looks like he's backed up until june/july on orders:

http://mfg.simundza.com/mfgcrosswind.php

Exluna · Apr 10, 2015

I'm one of those March orders.

Build looks really solid and reviews have nothing but good things to say about it. There's an alternative to the MFG's though. Look up "Slaw device."

More expensive, but an almost completely metal build.

Aussiedroid · Apr 10, 2015

They look good!

Would love to hear some feedback on how it performs in ED too!

furrycat · Apr 10, 2015

Mine arrived a couple of weeks ago ... after I ordered in October last year.

Believe the hype. They are that good. An excellent match for my Warthog.

I used the Saitek Pro Combat pedals while I was waiting. They were OK and I shifted them on eBay when the Crosswinds arrived so I got some money back. If I'm just trading or exploring and don't need yaw and roll at the same time I use the stick lever button mapped to Yaw To Roll.

hebi · Sep 18, 2015

Got mine a while back too also saved up a bit cuz I use it in other games also , in here its rudders is sadly nerfed to crap but that's another discussion

.
Very very good stuff indeed , solid quality and performance wise super.
Got shipped packed very carefully.
One very happy dude here now

Windscreen Smudge · Sep 18, 2015

I use the Saitek pedals. Slaws and Crosswinds are on my wish list.

I can't really complain about the Saitek's though, and I have a Warthog stick myself so I am comparing to quality. The plastic doesn't bother me, they're under my feet, not in my hands, but I think they fit my feet better than most people also. I'll have to pull them apart and clean them eventually if I use them long enough, that's the biggest advantage that the Crosswinds and Slaws have.

A fair forewarning: Going from using KB/M to using a HOTAS and pedals starts off awkward. It just ain't natural doing all of these gymnastics after spending a couple decades gaming with your fingertips.

dementia · Sep 18, 2015

The build quality is excellent although I'm struggling a bit to find their real use in ED. The pedals are analogue but the controls in ED are looking for digital so using the pedals is awkward (full deflection is required before ED recognises the movement which is rubbish).

Maybe I'm just misconfiguring it so I'd appreciate if anyone can correct me and give me some setup tips.

Windscreen Smudge · Sep 18, 2015

dementia said:
The build quality is excellent although I'm struggling a bit to find their real use in ED. The pedals are analogue but the controls in ED are looking for digital so using the pedals is awkward (full deflection is required before ED recognises the movement which is rubbish).

Maybe I'm just misconfiguring it so I'd appreciate if anyone can correct me and give me some setup tips.

All I had to do was use it as an axis control like you do your stick or throttle.

dementia · Sep 18, 2015

Windscreen Smudge said:
All I had to do was use it as an axis control like you do your stick or throttle.

Can't say I've ever looked at that as my Warthog just worked out of the box. I'll take another look at such things. Mind you I do feel that if you use gimballed weapons then yawing is not necessary IMHO. You can get a much faster response and turn rate by using your lateral thrusters instead I find.

CATPAIN KIRK · Sep 18, 2015

dementia said:
Maybe I'm just misconfiguring it so I'd appreciate if anyone can correct me and give me some setup tips.

I'm pretty certain you misconfigured them as ED recognised my pedals as an analogue yaw axis without any problem. I use Slaws because I wanted metal pads to better match with the Warthog, so I can't say what exactly the problem is. Have looked at the Crosswinds though and I know they work as analogue axes in ED.

Are they recognised as analogue axes in Windows?

[edit]: didn't read your previous post as I was typing - there's your problem: You need to bind them...

Nicou · Sep 18, 2015

I received mine today, finally!
Oh gosh it stinks so much, I feel like being in a farm. Milan told me it's because of the glue they used too.

Am I the only one?

I'll clean them and use it as soon as possible with my warthog and then... training!

Windscreen Smudge · Sep 18, 2015

dementia said:
Can't say I've ever looked at that as my Warthog just worked out of the box. I'll take another look at such things. Mind you I do feel that if you use gimballed weapons then yawing is not necessary IMHO. You can get a much faster response and turn rate by using your lateral thrusters instead I find.

Any binding option that has a deadzone slider next to it is an axis bind option, find the one for yaw and bind your pedals to it, then adjust the deadzone. You should be working then.

dementia · Sep 18, 2015

Windscreen Smudge said:
Any binding option that has a deadzone slider next to it is an axis bind option, find the one for yaw and bind your pedals to it, then adjust the deadzone. You should be working then.

I'll give it a shot. Thank you.

hebi · Sep 19, 2015

Nicou said:
I received mine today, finally!
Oh gosh it stinks so much, I feel like being in a farm. Milan told me it's because of the glue they used too.

Am I the only one?

I'll clean them and use it as soon as possible with my warthog and then... training!

Nah prolly not, it smelled a little here lol, but was gone after a day or so on its own.
And a warthog here also to complement it.
One of the good things on these (I assume the slaw is using same) is the use of the HAL effect chips instead of regular pots , that's what make these things rocksolid and jitterfree for life

who? · Sep 19, 2015

dementia said:
The build quality is excellent although I'm struggling a bit to find their real use in ED. The pedals are analogue but the controls in ED are looking for digital so using the pedals is awkward (full deflection is required before ED recognises the movement which is rubbish).

Maybe I'm just misconfiguring it so I'd appreciate if anyone can correct me and give me some setup tips.

There are options in the Control settings in ED for both analogue and digital, ensure you set the controls in Yaw Axis, not "Yaw Left" and "Yaw Right". Huge difference after that (yes, I did the same!)

The Crosswinds are coooool. Though they did take a lot of getting used to. I swapped the Cam 6 out for a Cam 4 - the default Cam 6 has a very noticeable detent in the middle of the rudder range, meaning when you go from one side to the other there's a noticeable "thunk" as you pass the middle. I found that quite annoying, the Cam 4 is much more smooth.

- - - Updated - - -

(Since there are a lot of Warthog owners here too...) anyone have problems with the Warthog's stiction? It's really starting to annoy me. I bought Silicon Grease and was about to open it up and re-grease it, but I"m not sure that's the right grease to use, and I don't know if it would require soldering work.

Caramel Clown · Sep 19, 2015

The price is...ouch. Those do look like a fine piece of engineering though. I guess if you're into serious simulators those are your best choice.
I'm doing it slightly casual, I really enjoy twist rudder on joysticks.

hebi · Sep 21, 2015

@ Who?

Yea well stiction here also on mine, think its quite common problem, before you go just regrease it you might wanna checkout a few youtubes like for example this link.
helps you to know what to expect if you pull it apart .
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQOOoPdmRl8
apparently the not so good finish of some surfaces is causing the stiction. So not just the grease.
And no soldering needed apparently.
Whenever I got time enough actually I'm gona go through this process too.
GL

who? · Sep 22, 2015

hebi said:
@ Who?

Yea well stiction here also on mine, think its quite common problem, before you go just regrease it you might wanna checkout a few youtubes like for example this link.
helps you to know what to expect if you pull it apart .
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQOOoPdmRl8
apparently the not so good finish of some surfaces is causing the stiction. So not just the grease.
And no soldering needed apparently.
Whenever I got time enough actually I'm gona go through this process too.
GL

Thanks! Several people posted suggesting the connectors to the board can be broken, and I don't have a soldering iron (or any experience soldering!) so I'm a bit wary of that. But it really needs to be fixed, very annoying.

Lumos · Sep 22, 2015

I've had my Warthog for going on eighteen months and have spent numerous days addressing the sticktion issues and slight deadzone wiggle that develops over time.
The unit does NOT perform as the pricepoint leads you to expect, in fact I do not believe it is ever able to give sticktion-free performance due to the friction between the spring platform poles and the rider. I take pains to recommend that people do not buy it unless they are fine with spending both time and money to get the unit to perform as you expect it to do when fresh out of the box. Tell your friends about your issues and be vocal, the Warthog keeps being referred to as top-tier despite being of shoddy design and construction.

As for the MFG Crosswinds, they're the best peripheral I've ever bought and I wholeheartedly recommend them.