Rudder Pedals for a Handicap Sim Pilot

This is the place where we can all meet and speak about whatever is on the mind.
new reply
DatDudeMIC
Senior Airman
Posts: 119
Joined: 21 Oct 2016, 22:00
Location: Pensacola, Florida

Rudder Pedals for a Handicap Sim Pilot

Post by DatDudeMIC »

I have been thinking about this for quite a while. I have been flying on the sim since 2006 and I taught myself how to fly. I finally started flight school in late 2014. I have the rudders bound to buttons on the yoke. However every since I started flying the T-6 and P-51, I find it hard to keep the plane on center-line during the take off roll. I do have some minimal function in both of my legs. My question is, is it a wise investment to buy some rudder pedals and start training myself to use them?
Keep The Blue Side Up,

Micah H.

Image
Image
Image

patful
Master Sergeant
Posts: 1072
Joined: 15 Jun 2017, 21:15

Re: Rudder Pedals for a Handicap Sim Pilot

Post by patful »

As long as your doc says the exercise is okay, it's well worth the investment. I never got the hang of using the keyboard for controls, and buttons must be just as difficult. If you can't find pedals you like, or are worried that your legs can't handle it, they do make joysticks with twist handles for the rudder. I used one for years before switching to pedals last year. I think there's a yoke with little paddles for the rudder as well. Any of these options is a huge step up from buttons.

Caldemeyn
Master Sergeant
Posts: 1101
Joined: 01 Feb 2011, 11:21
Location: Poland

Re: Rudder Pedals for a Handicap Sim Pilot

Post by Caldemeyn »

Also there is a thrustmaster hotas that has a rudder paddle just beneath finger tips on the throttle side.

User avatar
aonyn
Staff Sergeant
Posts: 342
Joined: 03 Mar 2015, 23:49
Location: Morgantown, WV

Re: Rudder Pedals for a Handicap Sim Pilot

Post by aonyn »

Hi DatDudeMIC,

I recently switched to VKB Gladiator MkII and VKB rudder pedals.
The reason I mention these is it sounds like they may be worth at least looking at as a slightly different alternative for you than most of the standard offerings.

The VKB pedals have a different motion than most PC rudder pedals, the motion is all in the ankle and foot, not full leg like most. Not knowing the nature of your medical issue, I don't know if this is better or worse for you, but certainly it is quite different than the others, so perhaps you should as least look and determine if these look better for you. Also, the action is very light and smooth, as well as adjustable resistance, so you could tune them so the strain is minimal to nothing.

Even if the pedals are not a good fit, the Gladiator MkII features a twist grip for rudder, so you could have full control with no need for pedals.
FYI, the Gladiator Pro DOES NOT have the twist grip, and would require pedals. It is basically the same as the Gladiator MkII, except it comes out of the box with the all metal gimbal upgrade. On that note, I am very happy with my MkII with standard plastic gimbal, it is a very smooth and precise stick, and very nice build quality.

https://vkbcontrollers.com

I hope this helps.

Regards,
Dave

[EDIT] Here is a video that shows the alternative motion of the VKB pedals well. [END EDIT]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4AEoNszaBo
Ron Attwood wrote:David, you'd be useless on Twitter. Too reasonable by half. :D

n421nj
Chief Master Sergeant
Posts: 3541
Joined: 17 Mar 2013, 18:01
Location: KCDW

Re: Rudder Pedals for a Handicap Sim Pilot

Post by n421nj »

If using the rudder pedals would help you almost like a form of unaware exercise then I say don’t let anything hold you back. However for ease of use I’d recommend a twist grip joystick.
Andrew

ASUS ROG Maximus Hero X, Intel i7 8770K, Nvidia GTX 1080, 32GB Corsair Vengeance 3000 RAM, Corsair H90i liquid cooler.

All Accusim Aircraft
Accu-Feel, 3d Lights Redux

User avatar
Bruce66
Staff Sergeant
Posts: 348
Joined: 02 Sep 2017, 09:38
Location: Hellfire Corner

Re: Rudder Pedals for a Handicap Sim Pilot

Post by Bruce66 »

I have mobility issues and used the Black Widow for years as it had a rocker control for the rudder on the throttle.

As I got into flying in Sims I got the Thrustmaster Warthog and Saitek rudder pedals. I am limited in flying time as I start to suffer if I sit at the controls for more than 20 minutes or so but the rudder pedals help with take off and landing so much that it is worth the compromise.

I make heavy use of the simulated autopilot for taking breaks from the controls and I rarely use the rudder in flight.

And if all else fails I just pause the flight.
Gaming Computer

AMD Ryzen 5 3600X Six Core CPU
Gigabyte X570 GAMING X: ATX
16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 2400MHz
Nvidia GTX 1050Ti Windforce2 4GB GDDR5
Display: 27-Inch Curved LED Monitor

User avatar
mgr
Staff Sergeant
Posts: 397
Joined: 07 May 2006, 03:18

Re: Rudder Pedals for a Handicap Sim Pilot

Post by mgr »

Hi,
DatDudeMIC wrote:I have been thinking about this for quite a while. I have been flying on the sim since 2006 and I taught myself how to fly. I finally started flight school in late 2014. I have the rudders bound to buttons on the yoke. However every since I started flying the T-6 and P-51, I find it hard to keep the plane on center-line during the take off roll. I do have some minimal function in both of my legs. My question is, is it a wise investment to buy some rudder pedals and start training myself to use them?
Is the logitech Wingman Extreme 3D a solution? The joystick can be twisted and this can be mapped to the rudder axe.
See: https://www.logitechg.com/en-us/product ... stick.html

Marcel
Image

User avatar
Lewis - A2A
A2A Lieutenant Colonel
Posts: 33284
Joined: 06 Nov 2004, 23:22
Location: Norfolk UK
Contact:

Re: Rudder Pedals for a Handicap Sim Pilot

Post by Lewis - A2A »

As others have mentioned, depending on your legs, you could always use a twist grip stick, some of even the cheaper sticks come with twist grip, so shouldn't be too expensive to give it a go.

thanks,
Lewis
A2A Facebook for news live to your social media newsfeed
A2A Youtube because a video can say a thousand screenshots,..
A2A Simulations Twitter for news live to your social media newsfeed
A2A Simulations Community Discord for voice/text chat

new reply

Return to “Pilot's Lounge”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 29 guests