Episode 78 - GT5 @ Gamescom Pt1, GTv Racer Reviewed

[Darin Gangi 1,074]

Although this is only a few minutes of our GT5 coverage, stay tuned during the next week for a full GT5 special and stand alone videos of a varity of things.. For now, Here's episode 78 of Inside Sim Racing for you to enjoy.

"On todays show"..

We start things by looking at the GTV Racer a new lightweight and easy to put away wheel stand.

Then we do another segment of Top Sim Cars - Tracks Edition. See if you have what it takes to beat the ISR guys at Montreal in CartFactor.

Then we are off to Germany for Gamescom 2010 with Andreas Nie as he starts his coverage with a post Sony press conference briefing.

Here it is, hope you enjoy the show !

[GT VIRUS 0]

When waving flags, use more wrist /marshall

Was a good episode. Would love more detail on how the GT5 cars handled, but overall it was good. Looking forward to the next episode with more GT5 stuff

*edit* Nice touch of using the rev burner for the rev scale

[lilbro209 0]

Hey guys you linked the track for the HotLap Challenge but the one on the show looks completely different from the one you linked.. The signes are different and everything.. I would assume if it is a different build of the track there will be differences in the road itself. Anyone else notice that?

[CaTaPulT 658]

Hi guys, as always, great episode but man oh man I had a huge laugh at the GTV racer wheel stand.

As I previously mentioned when I first joined the forum, I am a electronic drummer.

Now I'd be willing to bet the aluminum tubing being used on the GTV Racer is 1.5 inch in diameter.

Looks like all the parts of the GTV Racer are made from the same parts used to build eDrum racks, especially Yamaha eDrum racks. The plastic mounts are almost identical, the tubing is almost identical to those Yamaha used to use, they now use ridged tubing (prevents the slipping Shawn "The Saw" experienced LOL ).

Darin and Shawn, maybe if you can get a hold of the designer and tell him to use ridged tubing for the horizontal tubes of his GTV racer, it would seriously strengthen it as far as slipping as Shawn showed in the show.

Here's a picture to prove my point, this picture was when I was in the process of rebuilding my large drum kit and was down to pretty much bare rack, as you'll notice, the plastic clamps and tubing look familiar to that of the GTV Racer!

Please don't get me wrong, the GTV racer is a great design and has great potential since it's so adjustable and I can vouch for the strength of both the plastic clamps and the aluminum tubing since on my large drum kit, I have a considerable amount of weight on the rack made up of pretty much identical parts as the GTV racer.

Take care

Regards: >>>> Jack <<<<

[CaTaPulT 658]

Here's a closeup picture of the ridged tubing, as you can see, with those ridges, the plastic clamps grab onto them better and do not slip as easily.

The clamps pictured here are metal ones and not the plastic ones as with the GTV Racer.

Take care

Regards: >>>> Jack <<<<

[Shaun Cole 10]

That change would make the GTv practically a 10/10. It was its only flaw that couldn't be cured without major adaptions.

Great pics of the drum throne.

[Draygonn 20]

That change would make the GTv practically a 10/10.

plus international shipping...

[Brooksy68 0]

Hi team, Love the show as always. Think you may have made a typo though!

The Montreal track you list states a 1998 version..Should this be 1988?

Can't find '98

[Darin Gangi 1,074]

Hi team, Love the show as always. Think you may have made a typo though!

The Montreal track you list states a 1998 version..Should this be 1988?

Can't find '98

1988 version

[Shaun Cole 10]

Thank You very much Brooksy68 for catching the typo on the website. I have fixed the banner and pages to reflect the corrected track.

As Darin stated Montreal 1988

[GeorgeO 0]

Darin, Shaun, Jessica-

Thanks so much for the opportunity to have the GTv Racer reviewed in Episode 78 on InsideSimRacing. I truly appreciate your thorough and unbiased assessment, and am pleased to receive your overall recommendation.

You noted many Pros, and a few Cons, in your review, and I'd like to take a moment to address them.

First, the Pros: You found the GTv Racer to be lightweight, stable, easy to setup, easy to adjust, easy to fold down, and low cost. I believe the GTv Racer's patented tubular dual-post design provides the most efficient and effective solution to the adjustable, portable wheel stand concept.

In response to the Cons: As advertised, the GTv Racer was specifically designed for the Logitech DFP and G25/27 wheel sets, and has not been extensively tested with other controllers. In all fairness, I believe that the Fanatec wheel that you used for the review may be a bit heavier and has more resistance to turning than the Logitech units, and may have contributed to some of the concerns you experienced. However, it's great to know that the GTv Racer functions so well when using the high-end Fanatec controllers, so thanks for the R&D!

In any case, slippage problems with the fittings can usually be cured by simply removing the fitting, cleaning the tubing and the inside of the fitting with rubbing alcohol, and reassembling. With custom heavier wheel sets, a sure and very inexpensive fix would be to simply drill a 3/16" hole through the fitting and tubing, and insert a locking pin, similar to item 98485A020 available at McMaster–Carr, through the hole. This same technique is already used on the GTv Racer's pedal platform angle fitting and absolutely cures the slippage issue. The pin can then be easily removed for folding the device.

In regards to the back feet lifting under extreme wheel-sawing maneuvers, ideally it would be best to work on smoother inputs - but an easy fix would be to pop the rubber feet off the lower tubes, fill the tubes with sand or shot, and replace the feet. The additional weight will add considerable mass to the lower frame, and should cure any movement during extreme maneuvers.

Thanks again for the opportunity and the recommendation - and keep up the great work!

Best regards-

George Oswald

Designer, the GTv Racer

http://www.gtvracer.com

[PAPA 1]

Surely these are things YOU should resolve, are you really expecting an owner to drill holes and load it with sand his shinny new rig. My wife would be well impressed with sand leaking round the house. I think it's unrealistic to expect customers to do this to make it more stable.

[GeorgeO 0]

Hi Papa-

I appreciate your input. To put the issue into perspective, I have not received any other reports that users of the GTv Racer have experienced any significant issues with stability, so there's really nothing to resolve. As there could be a few drivers out there that have a considerably heavier steering technique than the norm, I was simply offering an easy solution for those select few. This same sand-filling technique is regularly used to add mass to audiophile speaker stands.

Check out this note I received from a recent customer:

"Everything is great! ... I actually have installed the Fanatec GT3 RS wheel and ClubSport Pedals to the GTv Racer. It all works very well together. The modifications (ie, drilling of holes) was simple. I've had none of the issues exemplified by insidesimracing. ...but, I'm also not attempting to throw the wheel and GTv through my wall. I only gently rib as their review sold me on your stand.

The qualities I like best are, without ranking intended: 1) lightweight, 2) no central column, 3) easily adjusted, 4) great lateral stability, and 5) looks ace. So, I like pretty much everything concerning the GTv! To my mind, it's a better value (and solution) than the many permutations of a simple folding, single column wheel stand. Also, it's a lower financial and space investment than a permanent wheel stand configuration.

Thanks again, George! Completely satisfied!"

PJ, Alameda CA

Thank you too, PJ!

Hope this helps put the issue in a better light.

George

Designer, the GTv Racer

http://www.gtvracer.com