Posted by:
Atle Dreier
Ok, so my wheel is getting old and it started to rattle slightly, and I could feel some play in the mechanism. I read somewhere that this wheel has belt tension adjustments, but google failed to give me a guide. So I set off into uncharted territory, and I photographed as I went along.
Before I started. Wheel in my simpit, a little tired and unhappy.
Took it off the rig and into better light. Make sure you have ample space to move around and place parts and screws. Always put screws near the part they came off so you remember where everything goes when you are putting it back.
Flip the wheel over, and remove the seven screws in the underside. 5 black screws and two bare steel screws need to come off. Be careful when removing the back plate so you don't rip any cables (USB and pedals notably, the power cable is screwed to the chassis.
There are five steel screws in the plate that needs to come off to remove the top cover . Two underneath the large circuit board (no need to remove the board, they are easily accessible) and three on the opposite side.
Note this grounding cable and remember to put it back when reassembling. Remove this and the opposite screw.
Now remove the two little screws behind the paddles.
Flip the wheel over and remove the cover on top. It should come off with a little bit of force. Remove the screw that becomes visible. BEWARE! There is a tiny nut that this screw goes into, and it WILL come loose when you remove this screw. You'll see what I mean when you look in there, just make sure you don't lose this nut.
You can now remove the top cover and have access to the fan. If you are going to replace it it's straight forward, unplug, unscrew, replace, and put everything back together.
However, I noticed my fan was fastened with only three screws, and the fan is mounted plastic on plastic. It doesn't take a genious to imagine that this will cause unnesessary noise, so I decided to try a little trick. Just put some material between the fancase and the top cover to damp out any vibration from the fan. Worth a try, right?
Reassemble the fan to the top cover at this point.
Now for the belt tension:
You need to remove the rim of the wheel. Six hex screws around the GT logo in the center of the wheel.
Remove the rim, be careful when disconnecting the plugs for the buttons. I used a snall flathead screwdriver to avoid pulling the cables.
Next it's the paddles that need to come off. Six steel screws for the cover first. This cover is clipped on in addition to the screws,and require a firm hand to come off.
Four steel screws hold the paddles in place. Unscrew and remove the paddles. Note the plugs, be careful when unplugging!
The front plate should now come off.
And finally we're at the core of the wheel! The two screws that can slide are the tensioners. The bottom one for the belt on the motor to the reduction gear, the top one for the second belt that goes from the reduction gear to the wheel hub. Note which detent they are on and don't overtighten. I moved the tensioners two clicks since my wheel is fairly old. make sure the screws are noce and tight, but remember it's only plastic, so don't shred the threads!
You are now done, and "all" you have to do is reassemble everything. A few notes on that process:
While you have the rim off the hub, make sure you go over the three screws that hold the cable cover on the back of the wheel.
When putting the front cover back on make sure you note the plugs for the paddles, they can easily slide away and become inaccessible for reconnecting.
When you replace the wheel to the hub, not the different length of the screws. Only three long screws actually fasten the rim to the hub, the other three are merely holding the logo cover on and making the wheel look cooler.
Also make sure you remember to reconnect the fan!
Getting the covers back on and aligned can be a bit of a pain. It's easier with another set of hands and eyes to help align everything. It should click into place and look nice and snug when everything is aligned. Use a little bit of force on the bottom cover in particular, it should snap into place with a satisfying click.
When replacing the top cover make sure you don't pinch any wires around the plugs, the all need to go in their apropriate place and alignment for the cover to snap into place. It's helpful with some pictures to help remember how everything was before you fiddled with it.
That's it! Enjoy the as-new feel and hopefully less noisy T500RS wheel!
