Fanatec Announcements: CSW V2 Reviews Out

[LogiForce]

Logi, don't believe he even has one, his posts to-date refer to the standard CSR wheel both here at GTP, and over at f-wheel.com under the user name RacerX. Stan always seems to have a plan.

I reckoned by his post that he doesn't have one. It might or might not be easy to change belts in the CSR. Never owned one, so can't judge. I just don't want to confuse people here when someone says it's easy to do if you're a bit handy.

On a separate note... I'd love to get some spare parts myself since it is doable, but with only with care. patience and experience/knowledge of what you'll be doing.

If I had to redesign the CSW i'd introduce a metal plate on the rear and thus put the motors and pulleys on the other side. So that by removing the metal backplate you could easily remove the belts from the pulleys. Also I'd probably would make the motor pulleys sit on their own bearings on a metal plate (almost identical to what is used now to attach the motors to the fromt plate) and thus offload the stress of tension from the belts on the motor bearings/axles. The motor would then simply insert into the pulleys and be tightened by the same screw as they are now.

 

[JogoAsobi]

I reckoned by his post that he doesn't have one.

LOL, I guess by that token, if you opened up your Mazda Miata, took pics with your Nikon, you would then be qualified to offer Lotus Elise owners advice as well.

 

[RacerXX]

I reckoned by his post that he doesn't have one. It might or might not be easy to change belts in the CSR. Never owned one, so can't judge. I just don't want to confuse people here when someone says it's easy to do if you're a bit handy.

On a separate note... I'd love to get some spare parts myself since it is doable, but with only with care. patience and experience/knowledge of what you'll be doing.

If I had to redesign the CSW i'd introduce a metal plate on the rear and thus put the motors and pulleys on the other side. So that by removing the metal backplate you could easily remove the belts from the pulleys. Also I'd probably would make the motor pulleys sit on their own bearings on a metal plate (almost identical to what is used now to attach the motors to the fromt plate) and thus offload the stress of tension from the belts on the motor bearings/axles. The motor would then simply insert into the pulleys and be tightened by the same screw as they are now.

Also worth noting is how power tools, even cheap ones like this disposable "Horror Freight" dremel use bearing-supported shafts.

 

[RacerXX]

LOL, I guess by that token, if you opened up your Mazda Miata, took pics with your Nikon, you would then be qualified to offer Lotus Elise owners advice as well.

I had an Elise for years, and two prior Loti. Fanatec CS pedals kind of remind me of Elise pedals BTW. I came up with many mods for Elises, datalogged them extensively, and helped Ohlins develop their damper setup for the US cars. That setup won an SCCA National Championship. One of my Elise mods, a clutch stop, received Kudos from Lotus themselves. I used one of the bolts that retain the steering rack to also act as an adjustable clutch stop. So this was very effective weight-wise.

Here is a datalog I made showing shift time benefit:

 

[LogiForce]

I reckoned you'd advice me something like that, mailing Gates.

These are the belts on my CSW Beta wheel:

Gates Micro-V 4PJ408
Gates Micro-V 2EPJ584

(I'm sure the first 4 and 2 stand for the amount of V strands. The J stands for an RPM figure of 4200 ish according to Gates)

 

[mrbasher]

bleh.. nevermind it won't let me link for some reason

 

[RacerXX]

I reckoned you'd advice me something like that, mailing Gates.

These are the belts on my CSW Beta wheel:

Gates Micro-V 4PJ408
Gates Micro-V 2EPJ584

(I'm sure the first 4 and 2 stand for the amount of V strands. The J stands for an RPM figure of 4200 ish according to Gates)

Yes, emailing would be my suggestion. Gates got back to me in about an hour. They found me a nearby supplier to save me time and shipping cost. Called the local guy, got it done.

Folks these are not parts you'll find in a glossy catalog with a 1-800 number and operators are standing by capability. Think of them like industrial parts. If you want to try out different belt widths as I did, add on an extra day or so.

If you email Gates your name, address and phone number (which I cannot do for you) along with the part numbers I am sure they will get back to you promptly with a local source that they recommend as qualified. They are setup by sales territories so you can see why this would help. I contacted the Gates Sales Department and suggest doing the same since you have the part numbers.

 

[mrbasher]

I had an Elise for years, and two prior Loti. Fanatec CS pedals kind of remind me of Elise pedals BTW. I came up with many mods for Elises, datalogged them extensively, and helped Ohlins develop their damper setup for the US cars. That setup won an SCCA National Championship. One of my Elise mods, a clutch stop, received Kudos from Lotus themselves. I used one of the bolts that retain the steering rack to also act as an adjustable clutch stop. So this was very effective weight-wise.

Here is a datalog I made showing shift time benefit:

Who is sjmarcy? http://i583.photobucket.com/albums/ss280/sjmarcy/EliseClutchStop_zps2497b0fd.png

 

[LogiForce]

bleh.. nevermind it won't let me link for some reason

Link to the CSW image?

Try this:

 

[mrbasher]

Link to the CSW image?

No it was a website. It's blocked for some reason, no big deal though

 

[JogoAsobi]

.

 

[LogiForce]

I guess its back to the G25 for now as dad has my T500. Although he said I could take it if I wanted.
Maybe I will do this if I can't fix the CSW's slippage issue soon. The G25 is a big step backwards and boring to play with, so I don't wish to use it as backup for too long.

 

[Cote Dazur]

Took a picture of my CSR-E, very recent
Big belt is 4PJ408
Small Belt is 2EPJ584
Seems identical to Logi CSW

 

[fatkrakr]

Just to add to the conversation. My CSW I ordered a little over a month ago has different belts than what you guys have. Mine are optibelt-RB. One is a pj414 and the smaller pj 584. So at some point the belt manufacture was switched.

 

[Cote Dazur]

Just to add to the conversation. My CSW I ordered a little over a month ago has different belts than what you guys have. Mine are optibelt-RB. One is a pj414 and the smaller pj 584. So at some point the belt manufacture was switched.

Might be only on the CSW, I received my CSR-E last week.
PJ584 seems to be the same?
Anyone else with a recent CSR-E?

 

[LogiForce]

Just to add to the conversation. My CSW I ordered a little over a month ago has different belts than what you guys have. Mine are optibelt-RB. One is a pj414 and the smaller pj 584. So at some point the belt manufacture was switched.

That's the full number? No definitions for the amount of v-strings on the belt?

This data sheet doesn't speak about the belt width/amount of v strings at least.

Sheet: http://www.optibelt.de/fileadmin/bilder/produkte/industrie/Rippenbaender/RB.pdf

 

[fatkrakr]

That's the full number? No definitions for the amount of v-strings on the belt?

This data sheet doesn't speak about the belt width/amount of v strings at least.

Sheet: http://www.optibelt.de/fileadmin/bilder/produkte/industrie/Rippenbaender/RB.pdf

The only other thing it says on the belt is Made in Germany.




Edit:
There is a small white box, Bigger belt has 0 7, smaller belt says 0 6. Zero is ontop of the other number.

 

[LogiForce]

The only other thing it says on the belt is Made in Germany.

Edit:
There is a small white box, Bigger belt has 0 7, smaller belt says 0 6. Zero is ontop of the other number.

Hmmm, ok. The other numbers must relate to manufacturing lines or something.

 

[Vinceton]

Thank your stars that the elite/csw is easier to take apart than gt3rs/csr.

I've opened both, gt3rs was a pain in the neck. Everything from the rim, base, electronics, motor housing, cabling... were all a pain. Even trying to take off a screw, the plastic threads just completely broke off. Not stripped, just broke off still attached to the screw. Elite/csw is just so clean and straight forward in comparison. Metal threads are nicer.

My elite also says Optibelt on it. Got it in march 2012. Hmm... I wonder which one is better, and why they decided to switch.

 

[LogiForce]

All metal is certainly a big 👍 for sure.

What I'd also like to know is if there is a difference in pully design. You can't just lay an optibelt v-belt on pulleys of a gates v-belt if there is a difference in groove design of the belts/pulleys. A mismatch would mean squeaking belts and a lot of slippage no matter the tension as the belt just won't grip properly.

 

[Vinceton]

Judging by your photograph, they look exactly the same.
But yeah, I can't be certain

 

[RacerXX]

All metal is certainly a big 👍 for sure.

What I'd also like to know is if there is a difference in pully design. You can't just lay an optibelt v-belt on pulleys of a gates v-belt if there is a difference in groove design of the belts/pulleys. A mismatch would mean squeaking belts and a lot of slippage no matter the tension as the belt just won't grip properly.

By all means look into it, however I am not concerned. Both belts are produced to ISO / DIN pulley specs.

Gates 4PJ408: 408 mm length, 2.34 mm pitch, 3.50 mm height per PDF catalog from mfr.

VS

Optibelt PJ414: 414 mm length, 2.34 mm pitch, 3.50 mm height per PDF catalog from mfr.

Both meet ISO / DIN for that pulley series. Appear to be totally interchangeable. Slight length difference is handled during tensioning. Length difference may be due to each mfr having dissimilar normally stocked lengths. Happens with cars all the time, no biggie.

Gates 2EPJ584: This is a stretch fit belt intended to self tension itself to spec. 584 mm effective length.

VS

Optibelt PJ584 584 mm effective length. Apparently not a self tensioning belt.

Will have to look into this further, it sounds like there could be a slight difference here. Often on non-stretch-fit belts similar to these, it is a good idea to tension them to spec. And then run them for awhile at which point you then check/retension as required. Then the tension should remain stable for a LONG time. Again, not too concerned if I had either brand of belt I'm sure I could be happy. I'm sure I would keep it all in a fine state of tune, starting with some break-in use and then a tension check.

Have not looked into it for these sizes, but many Gates belts are available in a stronger Gates Racing version with a cool Blue color some of you may have seen on automotive timing belts. When I get me an Elite/CSW I'll have to look into that when I modify it.

 

[HoiHman]

New services offered for the CSW, here's the quote from Thomas Blog:

New Services offered for ClubSport Wheel

Submitted by Thomas on Wed, 01/16/2013 - 09:13.
The ClubSport Series is our state-of-the-art product line and our customers can expect to get outstanding service for it.

On top of the great service we already provide we will even offer an enhanced service for all simracers which depend on their product and want to be sure that they always have perfectly working equipment in order to participate in the competitions.

Therefore we will offer the ClubSport base and both wheel rims in version with included Premium Service Pack.

The premium service pack gives you high priority access to our support channels and we guarantee you that we will repair your product within 48 hours on working days. If it takes longer you will get a free replacement unit as loaner until you have your product back. You will get this service throughout the full warranty period.

The PSP is not available as a stand alone product so you have to decide during your purchase if you want to get it or not. You already have a CSW?

All existing customers of the CSW and the rims will get the PSP for free!

The second service we offer is the Maintenance pack. Basically you can send in the ClubSport base and we will make sure it works properly again. We will exchange all parts which can wear out and it makes sure that you have a working wheel long time after the warranty period is over.

Just like a real car, a mechanical unit needs some attention from time to time and we will make sure that you get all spare parts you need to keep the wheel running.

The ClubSport wheel is a long term investment and not a plastic toy which will be thrown away after a few years.

Both services are only available in Europe so far but we will extend it soon to other territories and products.

Nice to see that all excisting CSW owners get the PSP for free 👍

 

[Raitziger]

Great info but irrelevant if wheel still has warranty.

 

[Simracer92]

Great info but irrelevant if wheel still has warranty.

mhm it seems you misunderstood the Premium Service Pack..
Even if the wheel still has warranaty you get the premium access to the support team and also the guarantee that your wheel will be repaired within 48 hrs or if it takes longer you will get a replacement wheel for the time with this Premium Pack.

so it is not irrelevant...

 

[superbike81]

LOL, when I first saw the bolded portion I thought "why are they giving me a crappy Playstation Portable?"

 

[superbike81]

Just wondering, what does belt slipping feel like?

 

[HoiHman]

mhm it seems you misunderstood the Premium Service Pack..
Even if the wheel still has warranaty you get the premium access to the support team and also the guarantee that your wheel will be repaired within 48 hrs or if it takes longer you will get a replacement wheel for the time with this Premium Pack.

so it is not irrelevant...

In reality it's not as good as it looks:

This is a quote from the email i got from Fanatec about the PSP.

Shipping costs for the loaned unit will follow at customer’s expense

Al of us who have returned a wheel back to Fanatec know that the international shippingcost can really add up.

I think Fanatec in heading more and more in the direction of repairing wheels instead of simply replacing them. The PSP will give the customer the option to receiver a loaner incase of any back-orders in supplies, while it saves Fanatec from sending out a new wheel in case the parts to repair the wheel are out of stock.

 

[Snotgobbler]

Am I the only one still desperate to get hold of an Elite F1 rim!?

 

[AGP5000]

Well, I would like to have this done sooner than later.

However, I have no real complaints from my BETA CSW base & rims. There is a slight "cog" while on and waiting. This ONLY occurs when I move the wheel very slow. Under FFB load, NO issues, smooth as ice.

Happy CSW tester/customer here Many iRacers are not so pleased when I fly by them. Well, they too should get one!