Virpil MongoosT-50

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Von Archie
Posts: 1868
Joined: Thu Feb 20, 2014 9:30 pm
Location: Stratford Upon Avon UK

Virpil MongoosT-50

Post by Von Archie » Fri Jan 19, 2018 10:28 am

Following on from Paddys thread about the VKB here: http://aircombatgroup.co.uk/forum/viewt ... =74&t=8321 this is the alternative joystick system offered by a new player on the market, Virpil (VPC) based in Belarus.
The system consists of a base, with a metal gimbal and for now the grip based on the new Russian fighter the T-50/PAK-FA. In future Virpil plan to offer other grips to use on the base.
The Warthog grip fits directly on the base with no adaptors needed.
Now, ordering...
As Paddy alluded to, you're not dealing with Amazon here. You order direct from the company in Belarus, and then wait...
I ordered on the 28th December, and the T-50 went into the Belarus postal system on 12th January.It got out of customs in Minsk on the 16th January and arrived at the import office two days later.

TBC...
i5 4690k / MSI Gaming 5 / 2 x 8 GB Crucial Ballistix ram / Zotac AMP! 980Ti / 2 x 250 SSDs
VPC MongoosT-50 joystick / MFG Crosswind pedals / GVL 109/111 Throttle / Oculus Rift

Von Archie
Posts: 1868
Joined: Thu Feb 20, 2014 9:30 pm
Location: Stratford Upon Avon UK

Re: Virpil MongoosT-50

Post by Von Archie » Sat Jan 20, 2018 12:19 pm

The sticks arrived. Very well packed in two boxes (I've seen some peoples boxes arrive battered!). One box has the grip, extension, base and spare springs/cams, the other contained the table mount.
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No mention of Cliffs...
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Grip with extensions. They can be used individiually or all together. Other bag contains a spare handrest.
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i5 4690k / MSI Gaming 5 / 2 x 8 GB Crucial Ballistix ram / Zotac AMP! 980Ti / 2 x 250 SSDs
VPC MongoosT-50 joystick / MFG Crosswind pedals / GVL 109/111 Throttle / Oculus Rift

Paddy
Posts: 1386
Joined: Wed Sep 16, 2015 10:47 pm

Re: Virpil MongoosT-50

Post by Paddy » Sat Jan 20, 2018 7:14 pm

Planning on adding a bit more info? Eg. Number of buttons, sw setup, how to construct it etc.
Cheers,

Paddy
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Group Captain John 'Paddy' Hemingway, we salute you

Von Archie
Posts: 1868
Joined: Thu Feb 20, 2014 9:30 pm
Location: Stratford Upon Avon UK

Re: Virpil MongoosT-50

Post by Von Archie » Sat Jan 20, 2018 7:51 pm

Yep will update as I go along! Spent a while working out how to mount it today as it is a heavy beast and I can't risk fitting the table mount to the table top I had originally planned ( ie I got told in no uncertain terms...)
Ran the software configurator and got the axis sorted, but there is an issue with the buttons not being recognised. I hope it's just a bad connection (using three extensions and wires, the wires all have the tiny Warthog pins on the end...) but ran out of time so will have another look at it tomorrow.
The stick feels really nice on the axis though.
i5 4690k / MSI Gaming 5 / 2 x 8 GB Crucial Ballistix ram / Zotac AMP! 980Ti / 2 x 250 SSDs
VPC MongoosT-50 joystick / MFG Crosswind pedals / GVL 109/111 Throttle / Oculus Rift

Von Archie
Posts: 1868
Joined: Thu Feb 20, 2014 9:30 pm
Location: Stratford Upon Avon UK

Re: Virpil MongoosT-50

Post by Von Archie » Sat Jan 20, 2018 10:12 pm

OK, stripped the extensions down and reconnected the wires. everything works perfectly!
This is how it looks now, the three extensions together are 225mm, and that feels really nice with the springs and cams the base ships with. You can fit the grip at any angle, mine is effectively reversed in this picture
Image
Last edited by Von Archie on Sun Jan 21, 2018 10:35 am, edited 1 time in total.
i5 4690k / MSI Gaming 5 / 2 x 8 GB Crucial Ballistix ram / Zotac AMP! 980Ti / 2 x 250 SSDs
VPC MongoosT-50 joystick / MFG Crosswind pedals / GVL 109/111 Throttle / Oculus Rift

Von Archie
Posts: 1868
Joined: Thu Feb 20, 2014 9:30 pm
Location: Stratford Upon Avon UK

Re: Virpil MongoosT-50

Post by Von Archie » Sun Jan 21, 2018 9:21 am

The current Virpil range of grips, table mounts and base. The throttle unit has not been released yet. They even do a L/H grip, probably aimed at space sims but perfect for lefties!
https://virpil.com/en/shop

I chose the 'standard' grip. I don't need cyrillic labels or to pay extra for black buttons:
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The grip itself is made of plastic, but it feels really nice. It has an adjustable handrest to cater for manly Russian hands or effeminate Westerners girly hands. All the buttons have a nice click when pressed and use OMRON switches. I miss having a 4 way hat on the thumb button, I believe VKB have one there and my old Fighterstick had one as well, and it was useful for prop pitch. I'm just using it for teamspeak now, and the pinky button for centering TiR. Dual stage trigger is really good, not had one before. Set up for guns on first press, cannons on second press.
1 x Dual-stage Trigger
1 x Folding Trigger
5 x Buttons
3 x 4-way Hats
1 x 2-position Switch
1 x Analog Brake Lever

The extensions are steel and very well made. Each one comes with its own wiring set based on the Warthog connectors. There are three in total, 50mm, 75mm, and 100mm. They can be bought and used individually, or combined as I have done to make a 225mm extension.
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The base unit comes with three cams, and three sets of springs so it can be set up how you want it. I am using the ones pre fitted in the base which work perfectly with the 225mm extension. As standard the base is fitted with the medium strength springs and the soft-center cams.
The springs:
Aerobatic (light)
Standard (medium)
Hardcore (heavy)

Also included are 3 different cams:
Hard center
Soft center
No center
Each axis's spring tension can then be fine tuned on-the-fly through the access ports on the top plate, without the need to disassemble the joystick. Some users are reporting some major issues changing the cam for the first time as the small screws used are apparently thread locked in! As of the start of the year Virpil has changed to a low strength thread lock to stop these problems. Apart from the Virpil grip you can use a Warthog or Cougar grip on the base. Because of that the base on its own may be an option for people with buggered Warthog bases, the Warthog grip screws straight on.
The base is a pretty neat bit of engineering, unlike the famed Warthog it comes with metal gimbals, and internally looks similar to the VKB offering. It is definitely not designed to sit on a table, but needs fitting, either using the available mount or devising your own method.
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VPC have released their beta software, which can be used to calibrate the stick and update the firmware. It's a bit clunky but usable. It's not recommended to calibrate using windows.
They plan to make more grips in future, and I would be tempted by a KG12, but the lack of buttons would be a bit of a pain after getting used to all the buttons on the T-50 grip.
i5 4690k / MSI Gaming 5 / 2 x 8 GB Crucial Ballistix ram / Zotac AMP! 980Ti / 2 x 250 SSDs
VPC MongoosT-50 joystick / MFG Crosswind pedals / GVL 109/111 Throttle / Oculus Rift

Von Archie
Posts: 1868
Joined: Thu Feb 20, 2014 9:30 pm
Location: Stratford Upon Avon UK

Re: Virpil MongoosT-50

Post by Von Archie » Fri May 18, 2018 3:33 pm

Just pulled the trigger on this, a KG13 grip to fit the Virpil base, made by Baur, who was one of the first to make a copy of the original!
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http://avia-sim.ru/forum/viewtopic.php?f=27&t=806
:fap:
i5 4690k / MSI Gaming 5 / 2 x 8 GB Crucial Ballistix ram / Zotac AMP! 980Ti / 2 x 250 SSDs
VPC MongoosT-50 joystick / MFG Crosswind pedals / GVL 109/111 Throttle / Oculus Rift

Mezza
Posts: 119
Joined: Thu Jul 27, 2017 8:04 pm

Re: Virpil MongoosT-50

Post by Mezza » Thu May 24, 2018 12:18 pm

i hate you all... I've seen some videos on this and it looks buttery smooth.

Von Archie
Posts: 1868
Joined: Thu Feb 20, 2014 9:30 pm
Location: Stratford Upon Avon UK

Re: Virpil MongoosT-50

Post by Von Archie » Sat Jun 09, 2018 1:12 pm

Baur KG13 for the Virpil base has turned up. Nerdgasm!
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i5 4690k / MSI Gaming 5 / 2 x 8 GB Crucial Ballistix ram / Zotac AMP! 980Ti / 2 x 250 SSDs
VPC MongoosT-50 joystick / MFG Crosswind pedals / GVL 109/111 Throttle / Oculus Rift

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