PT-1 Pedals Discussion

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Hey guys,

Just so all of you are aware, we've decided to change circuit boards. This decision in no way reflects the functionality or performance of the DSD circuit board we've been using since batch #1. The DSD board has served us well, and has been flawless in every way imaginable.

This decision was based solely on costs. While we are able to continue to do business, recently we've been discussing (internally) ways that we can save money. Our product isn't going to continue to sell forever, and we don't have any other products in the pipeline just yet to help offset the costs.

The circuit board we've chosen is the Bodnar board. More specifically, the BU0836-LC. This is a very well known circuit board, and has served the DIY community for a number of years. Recently, they began offering bulk discounts, and we've been able to take advantage of that.

This does bring up a couple of important issues.

One, this board does not come with a sensitivity adjustment. This isn't a deal breaker, as our pedals have the ability to manually adjust the load cell's position in order to tweak sensitivity (I'll be doing a video on this). You can also tweak the numbers within DIView as well.

And two, we don't currently have calibration instructions for this circuit board on our website. This will be rectified before batch #5 goes on sale. The calibration is quite a bit different. For example, if you decide to adjust the angle of your pedals, you may need to physically adjust the potentiometer in order to utilize it's working range. The Bodnar board has a feature called "zoom". Essentially, this allows you to use less of the potentiometers range of motion while maintaining the resolution. I'll be going over this in detail in the video. In fact, I may just video the entire calibration process to make things easier.

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask.
 
Hey guys,

We will be starting assembly on batch #5 next week. Assembly usually takes about 2 weeks, but we will continue to keep you updated, as always ;-)
 
Hey guys,

Batch #5 will be released on June 13th. We wanted to release it a bit earlier, but we're taking some time to make sure things go smoothly during the testing phase, which should begin shortly. We're using the Bodnar board, and it's something we'd like to test thoroughly so that we can give accurate calibration instructions. We'll be making a video of these calibration instructions to make things easier.

As always, if you have any questions, please feel free to let me know ;-)

z4BevWn.jpg
 
Just to confirm, the calibration video is still coming before the pedals go on sale?

I'm slightly concerned (probably needlessly) with the change to the board and the loss of the physical adjustment nob, so I'm rather eagerly awaiting the video to see how things work with the Bodnar board, before I order the pedals. Being in batch #5, the matter is rather topical to me :)
 
aardvark
Just to confirm, the calibration video is still coming before the pedals go on sale?

I'm slightly concerned (probably needlessly) with the change to the board and the loss of the physical adjustment nob, so I'm rather eagerly awaiting the video to see how things work with the Bodnar board, before I order the pedals. Being in batch #5, the matter is rather topical to me :)
Click to expand...

Yes, the video will be just before the release. The adjustment knob is certainly a valid concern, but you will still be able to adjust the load cell physically if you want to adjust how it performs. Adjusting the numbers within the sim was always possible, as well. For example, if you want the load cell to be more sensitive, you can just edit the numbers within the sim in order to make it more sensitive.

While the adjustment knob was convenient, we feel that the absence of it won't be much of an issue.
 
Hey guys,

It looks like I'm going to have to delay the batch #5 calibration video by at least a few days. We should have it ready by the time these pedals are in your hands, but I need a little more time to implement a feature that we thought wouldn't be available to you.

The Bodnar board does not come with a sensitivity knob. This presented a problem for us, as the physical load cell adjustments on the brake itself offered only minor tweaks to the overall sensitivity.

The DSD board was perfect in this regard, as it offered a way to adjust the sensitivity of the load cell by just turning the knob.

As we were wiring up the pedal sets to the circuit boards, we quickly realized that without the sensitivity knob, the load cell was a bit too sensitive. By that I mean, you could press on the brake pedal, and it would reach it's maximum threshold just a little too quickly - even with the minor physical tweaks (which I will go over in the calibration video).

We've managed to solve this issue by installing our own sensitivity adjustment knob inline between the load cell and circuit board.

We've already purchased the potentiometers and knobs that we need, so it's just a matter of installing them. This may take a couple of days to complete, and may delay delivery of the pedals by a few days (at most). And, as I said above, this will also delay the calibration video, as I need to have the sensitivity knobs installed in order to give you correct instructions.

I do apologize for any inconvenience this causes, but we'd like to ensure that you guys get the best product we can possibly offer. I will keep you guys updated on the progress as best I can. It's going to be a busy week, but I'll do my best to keep you informed.
 
Hi Chris.
Just jumped back on to the forum in months to see progress. Only to see that you have switched boards and done away with a deal breaking feature that I was looking forward to....the sensitivity adjustment.

Having got to your latest post I am glad to see you are fitting the adjustment knob back in to the system. They are a great feature (imo) as I use it as a adjustment for brake pressure/sensitivity when on cold tyres. This was/is on my Fanatec V2s.

I also have a set of CST F1 pedals which use the same Bodnar board and are very good but miss the remote sensitivity dial of the Fanatec pedals. Hence looking to purchase yours.

Not sure if my opinion of loosing the sensitivity dial is the same for others, but I would certainly like the feature to stay.

With regards to the in-line sensitivity knob. Could it be made so that an extension lead (loop) could be installed so the knob could be mounted in the cockpit/rig? Basically have connectors rather than solder in place so we can add our own extension to mount the knob close to the steering wheel?

Calibrated my CSTs which use the same board easy using diview and another program to make sure each axis was set to zoom mode as can change.
Used Calibration Guide from http://www.teamtortoise.co.uk/?page_id=366 which use the same board.
(sorry for other sim racing pedal firm, but they no longer exist).

kwaka.

ps any images of the heel plate yet that go with the mounting plate?
 
KWAKAMAN
Hi Chris.
Just jumped back on to the forum in months to see progress. Only to see that you have switched boards and done away with a deal breaking feature that I was looking forward to....the sensitivity adjustment.

Having got to your latest post I am glad to see you are fitting the adjustment knob back in to the system. They are a great feature (imo) as I use it as a adjustment for brake pressure/sensitivity when on cold tyres. This was/is on my Fanatec V2s.

I also have a set of CST F1 pedals which use the same Bodnar board and are very good but miss the remote sensitivity dial of the Fanatec pedals. Hence looking to purchase yours.

Not sure if my opinion of loosing the sensitivity dial is the same for others, but I would certainly like the feature to stay.

With regards to the in-line sensitivity knob. Could it be made so that an extension lead (loop) could be installed so the knob could be mounted in the cockpit/rig? Basically have connectors rather than solder in place so we can add our own extension to mount the knob close to the steering wheel?

Calibrated my CSTs which use the same board easy using diview and another program to make sure each axis was set to zoom mode as can change.
Used Calibration Guide from http://www.teamtortoise.co.uk/?page_id=366 which use the same board.
(sorry for other sim racing pedal firm, but they no longer exist).

kwaka.

ps any images of the heel plate yet that go with the mounting plate?
Click to expand...

I'll try to answer your questions the best I can...

With regard to the sensitivity knob, there are a couple things you need to know.

1) The sensitivity knob only gives you either full input (as if the load cell was by itself with no knob), or zero input. You can adjust the knob anywhere in between. This means that you can turn the knob so that you have to press harder on the brake pedal in order to reach maximum pressure. If you want more sensitivity, you can tweak the numbers within DIView, or calibrate the brake pedal differently within iRacing. Other sims can probably be calibrated similarly.

2) We attached the sensitivity knob inline with the load cell, so simple adding an extension of wires could give you what you're looking for, if you wanted to move the knob elsewhere.

3) We set our potentiometers to "zoom" mode be default. This is because of the way our pedals are set up.

4) The sensitivity knob is here to stay, no matter which board we use ;-)

I hope the answers your questions. If you have any further questions, please feel free to let me know ;-)
 
Hi Chris.
Thanks for reply.

May I urgently request an image of batch #5 pedals mounted on the mounting plate with the HEEL PLATE installed as have no idea what it looks like.

Waiting to hit PAY now but like to see images of changes wiring etc. please please please asap as don't have long left to order as only picked up email today and was sent yesterday.

Been requesting images for a while now.

EDIT....found some heel plate images on Facebook. Still wouldn't mind seeing picks of latest batch wiring/adjuster box etc.
 
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KWAKAMAN
Hi Chris.
Thanks for reply.

May I urgently request an image of batch #5 pedals mounted on the mounting plate with the HEEL PLATE installed as have no idea what it looks like.

Waiting to hit PAY now but like to see images of changes wiring etc. please please please asap as don't have long left to order as only picked up email today and was sent yesterday.

Been requesting images for a while now.

EDIT....found some heel plate images on Facebook. Still wouldn't mind seeing picks of latest batch wiring/adjuster box etc.
Click to expand...

If you are the one that emailed me about the images, I believe you mentioned that you found some already. I also sent you three images of the pedals themselves. This should be sufficient to get an idea of what the current batch looks like.
 
GeniFx
All pedals in curent bash sold?
Click to expand...

Are you on the waiting list? If not, you'll have to opt-in to our waiting list in order to reserve a set for future purchase.

Take a look at our home page. It lists instructions on how to buy them, and rough estimates on batch times.
 
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ProtoSimTech
Are you on the waiting list? If not, you'll have to opt-in to out waiting list in order to reserve a set for future purchase.

Take a look at our home page. It lists instructions on how to buy them, and rough estimates on batch times.
Click to expand...

Edit : pedals ordered.
 
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Hi there Chris,
I ordered a set of pedals on sunday. I was just wondering what the usual time-frame is from placing an order to the pedals being shipped... and can we expect tracking info?
 
dcyoung
Hi there Chris,
I ordered a set of pedals on sunday. I was just wondering what the usual time-frame is from placing an order to the pedals being shipped... and can we expect tracking info?
Click to expand...

I'm not Chris, but since I was in the latest batch I'll answer anyway based on my experience.

I was queued as #6 before the batch launched, ordered on 14th, received a shipping notification on 16th and got a tracking number for USPS since I live outside the US. I would expect there to be a FedEx tracking number for US customers. :)
USPS got the package moving in the morning of 17th, according to the tracking.

You can also find info on the shipping procedures here:
https://protosimtech.com/en/TOS

"There will be a 3-4 business day handling time for each batch. That means that once your order has been completed, we will send you a shipping confirmation within 3-4 days."

Though if you ordered on last Sunday (i.e. 19th), you've probably got the spot of someone who decided not to get the pedals when their number came up (despite staying in through the recent waiting list purge... -_- ), so Chris might be slightly busier than normal with sorting the orders.


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


On a different note, in case any Finns are browsing this thread and thinking of buying the pedals, I'll drop some info here.

The package arrived in Finland yesterday (22nd) and I'm currently waiting for customs to get their act together and pass the package back to the postal service since I paid the necessary VAT couple hours ago. End price after shipping (126$) and customs (~125€) was ~645€ (~690$), which is a bit steep considering the 440$ actual price for the pedals (*shakes fist at import costs*), but basically the only pedals competing with these (that I know of) are the Heusinkveld Pro's, which are 720€ + 50€ shipping to Finland, so the Protosimtech PT-1 is still over a 100€ cheaper. :)

*cutaway shot* Nice.


Oh, and so that you don't have to bang your head to the wall like I did... the EU TARIC # should be 8471 60 70 90 (basically: computer - input device - that is not a keyboard - and not for aircraft (who comes up with this stuff?))
 
Thanks aardvark

Edit: actually, i received a shipping confirmation email this morning. Can't wait to see em
 
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aardvark
I'm not Chris, but since I was in the latest batch I'll answer anyway based on my experience.

I was queued as #6 before the batch launched, ordered on 14th, received a shipping notification on 16th and got a tracking number for USPS since I live outside the US. I would expect there to be a FedEx tracking number for US customers. :)
USPS got the package moving in the morning of 17th, according to the tracking.

You can also find info on the shipping procedures here:
https://protosimtech.com/en/TOS

"There will be a 3-4 business day handling time for each batch. That means that once your order has been completed, we will send you a shipping confirmation within 3-4 days."

Though if you ordered on last Sunday (i.e. 19th), you've probably got the spot of someone who decided not to get the pedals when their number came up (despite staying in through the recent waiting list purge... -_- ), so Chris might be slightly busier than normal with sorting the orders.


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


On a different note, in case any Finns are browsing this thread and thinking of buying the pedals, I'll drop some info here.

The package arrived in Finland yesterday (22nd) and I'm currently waiting for customs to get their act together and pass the package back to the postal service since I paid the necessary VAT couple hours ago. End price after shipping (126$) and customs (~125€) was ~645€ (~690$), which is a bit steep considering the 440$ actual price for the pedals (*shakes fist at import costs*), but basically the only pedals competing with these (that I know of) are the Heusinkveld Pro's, which are 720€ + 50€ shipping to Finland, so the Protosimtech PT-1 is still over a 100€ cheaper. :)

*cutaway shot* Nice.


Oh, and so that you don't have to bang your head to the wall like I did... the EU TARIC # should be 8471 60 70 90 (basically: computer - input device - that is not a keyboard - and not for aircraft (who comes up with this stuff?))
Click to expand...

Very interesting post. Good info here ;-)

I just wanted to let everyone know that all pedals in batch 5 have now been sold. We'll be starting production on batch 6 very soon ;-)
 
Hey guys,

Batch #6 will be released on September 5th!

As you know, we'll be taking a small break after batch #6 is released in order to get our new, larger CNC machine up and running. Once the machine is running, we'll start on batch 7 immediately.

Also, just so that you are aware, we've decided to make one minor change to the pedal sets moving forward. We're no longer going to be making our own custom washers for the pedals. These washers, when compared to regular stainless steel washers, cost more than twice as much to produce. Therefore, we'll be using stainless steel washers going forward. The aesthetic difference is minimal, and functionality is exactly the same.

And finally, there's one more item I'd like to discuss.

We're going to be placing a set of our pedals on eBay. There are two reasons for doing this. One, it allows you to purchase a set of our pedals early if you happen to have a rather high number of the waiting list. And two, it will give us a little bit of extra income, which will help us to improve the shop over time.

There will be no "buy now" option on this auction. Therefore, the pedals will go to the highest bidder ;-)

DffE1eU.jpg
 
Hey guys,

How would all of you feel if I abolished the waiting list, and just released the pedals for everyone to buy all at once?

Here's the problem...

As it is now, we don't have a deposit system, and a deposit system has it's advantages and disadvantages. With each new release, less and less customers are rushing to purchase their set. As it stands, we still have eight customers that have yet to complete their purchases. To put it another way, we have eight sets still waiting to sell. This doesn't necessarily mean that we don't have eight customers ready to buy them, it's just that the waiting list is making it difficult for customers that DO want to buy them.

Eventually, the list will move forward, and all 40 sets will be sold. With that said, we'd like to simplify this process, if possible. We'd really like to just place the pedal sets on the original order page, and let customers buy them without going through the hassle of joining the list.

This could potentially lead to another mad rush to order them all at once, but we've already sold quite a bit of these, and we feel that the "mad rush" is more or less over. Therefore, removing the waiting list just makes more sense.

What do you guys think?
 
Having already bought my pedals I can't really speak for sure how I'd feel if I was still in the queue, but maybe you could do a split run to test the waters. Have 20-30 sets of a batch go according to the waiting list, and release the rest outside the list, or something like that.

That way if there is a rush, the people who were on top of the waiting list will still get the pedals and wont feel "cheated" or something, which they might if the waiting list was nuked and they happened to miss the rush for the pedals.
Or if there isn't a rush, you'll know it should be safe to move away from a waiting list system without too many ruffled feathers. :)

Not that I have any idea how long/short the waiting list even is at the moment, that might factor into things :)
Nor if it's even feasible on the technical side.. might cause issues if people just above the 20-30 spots on the waiting list get them in the rush thinking they're out of the batch, and then people that were in the waiting list portion of the batch skip buying the pedals... :odd:

Anyway, that's my two cents, make of them what you will. :D
 
aardvark
Having already bought my pedals I can't really speak for sure how I'd feel if I was still in the queue, but maybe you could do a split run to test the waters. Have 20-30 sets of a batch go according to the waiting list, and release the rest outside the list, or something like that.

That way if there is a rush, the people who were on top of the waiting list will still get the pedals and wont feel "cheated" or something, which they might if the waiting list was nuked and they happened to miss the rush for the pedals.
Or if there isn't a rush, you'll know it should be safe to move away from a waiting list system without too many ruffled feathers. :)

Not that I have any idea how long/short the waiting list even is at the moment, that might factor into things :)
Nor if it's even feasible on the technical side.. might cause issues if people just above the 20-30 spots on the waiting list get them in the rush thinking they're out of the batch, and then people that were in the waiting list portion of the batch skip buying the pedals... :odd:

Anyway, that's my two cents, make of them what you will. :D
Click to expand...

This could be handled the exact same way that the waiting list "purge" was handled. Those that wanted to remain on the list had a couple weeks to respond. Those that replied remained on the list. The same can be true for those that reply to the mass email regarding the deposit.

Those willing to place a deposit (say, $50 - to be applied to the purchase price) would be placed in line to purchase them once the next batch is released (batch #7). We would use the current waiting list as a priority system. Those willing to put a deposit down (and have the lowest numbers on the list) would be given the first chance at buying them, once available.

Based on the drop-out rate with batch #6, it's looking more likely that putting them up for immediate sale would be the way to go after we take the deposits fro batch #7.

Does this sound like something you could all live with? I'd certainly be willing to give those on the current list priority, and this deposit setup seems like a decent solution. It would also let us know who was serious about buying them right away.
 
Pretty bad ass! Anyone in the UK bought them? I must admit on a personal view I don't like the sound of the stiffness of the clutch due to causing bad habits to occur since you can rest your foot on the clutch. Learning bad habits can be hard to undo. They still sound fantastic though. I wish something like this was available for both consoles and PC rather than just PC.
 
ProtoSimTech
This could be handled the exact same way that the waiting list "purge" was handled. Those that wanted to remain on the list had a couple weeks to respond. Those that replied remained on the list. The same can be true for those that reply to the mass email regarding the deposit.

Those willing to place a deposit (say, $50 - to be applied to the purchase price) would be placed in line to purchase them once the next batch is released (batch #7). We would use the current waiting list as a priority system. Those willing to put a deposit down (and have the lowest numbers on the list) would be given the first chance at buying them, once available.

Based on the drop-out rate with batch #6, it's looking more likely that putting them up for immediate sale would be the way to go after we take the deposits fro batch #7.

Does this sound like something you could all live with? I'd certainly be willing to give those on the current list priority, and this deposit setup seems like a decent solution. It would also let us know who was serious about buying them right away.
Click to expand...
I am eager to purchase these as soon as possible. Without a prior pre-order placed, will the first run I am able to purchase straight out be from Batch 7 or Batch 8?

Thanks in advance.
 
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crowhop
I am eager to purchase these as soon as possible. Without a prior pre-order placed, will the first run I am able to purchase straight out be from Batch 7 or Batch 8?

Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...

We may have a few pedal sets left over in batch #7. If that's the case, we'll make an announcement to that fact, and they will go one sale on our "Order" page on a first come-first serve basis.

Batch #8 will be entirely first come-first serve, as well as all batches after that. We're currently shooting for the end of January as a release deadline for batch #7. It's not set in stone yet, but that's our current goal. We should have all parts completed by the 15th, and that will give us at least 2 weeks for assembly, which is plenty of time.
 
ProtoSimTech
We may have a few pedal sets left over in batch #7. If that's the case, we'll make an announcement to that fact, and they will go one sale on our "Order" page on a first come-first serve basis.

Batch #8 will be entirely first come-first serve, as well as all batches after that. We're currently shooting for the end of January as a release deadline for batch #7. It's not set in stone yet, but that's our current goal. We should have all parts completed by the 15th, and that will give us at least 2 weeks for assembly, which is plenty of time.
Click to expand...

:cheers:

hjvcI.jpg
 
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