SO I am Buying a Warthog Anything i Need To Know??

Hello Fellow Pilots

I have finally saved most of the money for the Thrustmaster Warthog Joystick. IS there anything that one should know about before buying the Joystick?

I know that there is a problem with stiction, But is this problem worth not buying one over?

I have watched most youtube videos reviewing and confront issues with or benifits of the warthog.

The only 2 i know of are Stiction and plastic buttons. Are there any other issues with the warthog?

Thank you

Elijah

I have had mine for years since they first came out and have had no probs. I have cleaned inside and greased it up with new silicon grease. I was going to replace the rubber ring with a PTFE one.

So no major issues, I read there was a problem with some early throttles but all seems quiet now so I think it is sorted.

You'll be buying probably the best HOTAS combo available at present. A set of rudder pedals is a must with the Warthog setup in my opinion.

I have found the after sales support provided by Thrustmaster to be very good too.

I hope you'll get as much pleasure out of yours as I have mine.

u maybe tempted not to use it because it sooo perttty!

No issues at all that I have found personally. All you need to know is that you aren't just buying the best flight stick available, but a beautiful piece of engineering that will be a real joy to use every time you plug it in. It is very expensive, but I have never regretted paying the money for it.

I do not believe it is common. However the first stick I got had a hat that was not working. It worked in 2 of the 4 directions. It took me a couple of days with me thinking maybe it was a software or computer problem.

I just suggest you install it and check all of the buttons first thing. Go to Start Button on Windows desktop >> Devices and Printers >> Find your Stick and Throttle. Right Click on the icon Choose "Game Controller Settings"

Choose your Stick or Throttle by highlighting it and then Press "Properties".

You can then see if all buttons and hats are working properly.

I returned mine quickly to the vender "B&H Photo" and got an replacement.

There are a few issues that I can add.

1. It's damn heavy. So don't drop it on your foot.

2. People will keep wanting to touch it. Keep a box of disposable cotton gloves handy so that they don't sweat on it.

3. It may make you feel like you should be wearing leather gloves when you fly. That is normal so just give in to the feeling and buy the gloves.

Aside from that it is a wonderful bit of hardware.

:D

Love mine, had to RMA the joystick but they had it back to me within 10 days and I sent it 2 years after it broke due to Real life commitments.

Buy one and everything else seems cheap and nasty by comparison.

@Chiclidfan, I used nomex flying gloves for a while till my wife started calling me a geek:D

@Chiclidfan, I used nomex flying gloves for a while till my wife started calling me a geek:D

Your wife is fairly forgiving then. I have a pair of leather driving gloves that I, occasionally, wear but I was being called a geek long before that. :)

"Stiction" and a stiff spring are a bit of an issue if you fly WWII crates only and advance from sticks with softer springs (it's waaaay stiffer than my old AV8R, let alone X-52 or similar designs). That's why as soon as I bought it, I started crafting my own stick extension. Still haven't finished it though, because, after quite a few weeks with Warthog, I kind of got used to it. Sure, more precision would be nice, so I'm going to extend and re-grease the thing eventually, but even with stock version, after a while, I can aim at these Mustangs and Doras with reasonable accuracy.

Throttles from early production batches were dying like crazy when "the Hog" hit the market (probably USB power line related problem), but nowadays it seems that Thrustmaster fixed it. Just in case, I don't keep it plugged in when powering on/off my computer.

For X-52 veterans, lack of rotaries on Warthog might feel as a step-back.

Despite these shortcomings, every time I use it I'm more and more happy with it and I think you should be pleased as well. Definitely recommended piece of a hardware.

I don't know where you live, but my only advice would be making sure after the shipment that the HOTAS is brand new, because, sadly, one of popular electronic e-megastores in Europe had a nasty habit of selling refurbished/serviced Warthogs as "new" ones, for full price (!) and you certainly don't want to find yourself in such a situation after spending quite a lot of money on this gear.

... one of popular electronic e-megastores in Europe had a nasty habit of selling refurbished/serviced Warthogs as "new" ones, for full price (!)...

As I'm about to pull the trigger on a set myself, I'd love to know which store you're referring to. I've held off purchasing one way back when they were first released just to avoid the 'early adopter' -problems. I don't want to end up owning a 'serviced' Warthog that's been sitting on the shelf for a couple of years...

I'd prefer to get a late production sample if at all possible...

I have had mine for a little over 2 years now as well, and have not had a single issue with it. I just leave mine plugged in all the time to an external powered USB Hub.

When you get yours, just be sure and check that it has the latest firmware, if not it is easy enough to get the latest and flash it form the TM site.

I have thought about opening mine up and doing the regrease thing, but have shied away from that so far in fear I will break a wire or something. Mine certainly is a little stiff, but not too bad and have gotten used to it. And currently I am using it mostly in WWII Combat Flight sims.

I did however, add a CH Throttle Quadrant to the setup, to give me some additional levers/axis. I use those for things like mixture, prop pitch, and rads.

So far I love my Warthog setup.

Ditto on the latest firmware...

I love my Hawg, can't think of using anything else.

Enjoy it, (you will!). :thumbup:

Chaos - PM sent.