TheCoyoteHunter

Hello @TRNow I was wondering if you have figured out a way to make this work. I recently got a NXT premium as well and while I use TrackHat (alternative to Trackir), my 10 yr old son doesn't care much for head tracking... yet. To set up the ministick to control view in DCS, you will need to set the ministick mode to TempoB, and set the ministick axis to relative as opposed to absolute. Here is the video I followed, at 3.50 to approx. 5.25 it explains TempoB and how to set ministick axis to relative. In DCS you bind these axis to absolute camera view vertical, and absolute camera view horizontal. If you require further assistance, let me know.

Good day everyone! Some time ago I was wondering how the import/tax charges were handled when ordering from VBK to Alberta, Canada (5%GST applies for Alberta). So for those interested here is how it went for me... -Placed order on June 27, 2022, and selected FedEx for shipping. (Total US$225/ CAD$297) -Received email on June 28, 2022, saying that my address is in remote location, and FedEx needs an additional US$35 to deliver. There were a few options given; pay the additional fee, cancel the order or provide a different address that is not considered a remote location. I was able to have them ship it to my friend who lives in a major city just 30min drive away. -Received an Email from FedEx on June 30, 2022 with a tracking number. -July 07, 2022, package arrived in Canada, and was delivered same day. I happened to be in the city when my friend called telling me my package had arrived. Now as soon as I saw that my package was in Canada I contacted FedEx and asked if I would have to pay a import/tax fee. They told me that I would receive an email on how and where to pay within 24hours, or I can go to https://www.fedex.com/paynow/payment and input my tracking number to see if I owed anything and pay up before receiving the email, amount would be the same anyway. FedEx also told me that this could likely speed up the delivery by 1-2 days, so I went ahead and payed my dues. Expected delivery was July 11, 2022, but was delivered yesterday July 07, 2022. Total cost came to CAD$321, put it together and set the mini-stick mode to TempoB , so far it feels much better than the TM 160000, especially the twist axis. Here is an image of the Import/Tax fees:

Thought this was pretty good.

On the HSI page, push Data, all the info is there. HSI page is on bottom ddi as default.

Thanks @dekiplav, that's very good to know. I have done many small deals with Ali Express. I usually choose their Ali Express Saver shipping option, its usually under $5, never had any sales taxes or import fees to pay; it can take up to 6 weeks for delivery though. You would think with a $60 DHL/FedEx shipping fee, all other fees should be covered twice over, except for the federal/provincial sales tax. Regards Coyote

Hi @cordite, He doesn't remember the shipping method, but said he chose the cheaper option which currently is $2 cheaper. It was delivered to a PO Box in the city. He had to pay $42cad more than what he paid initially at purchase. Approx. $15 of that would have been the 5% sales tax we have in Alberta. (we only have gst @5%, no pst in Alberta) I'm curious why there are no sales tax fees when ordering from places like Ali Express, or even online shops out of the UK. But I have never had an order over over $200cad.

Thanks for he reply @fallout9, I know you guys cant do anything about the tax/duties, weak dollar, shipping, etc... For the record to get one VBK Gladiator NXT Premium to Alberta, Canada it costs approx. $315cad ($248us), my friend has one and they hit him with $42 in duties. More info over on reddit suggests the same approximate duty charge. Like I said, I know this is out of your control... Regards Coyote

Hello Guys, Not complaining or pointing fingers here, as most likely this is out of VBK's hands. I was looking to upgrade my T16k joystick with the VBK Gladiator NXT Premium. Shipping and duties to Alberta, Canada is over $100us. Total cost for 1 stick would well over $300cad. When I ordered some flight sim gear (TrackHat) from the UK, shipping was around $12us and no duties. I have ordered way to many things from Ali Express, shipping cost can vary depending which option you choose, but never had any duty charges. Why are there duty charges on VBK but not on Ali Express, I could swallow the shipping charge but when you add duties to it, I just cant do it. Regards Coyote

Skip FC3 (for now), I found those to be harder than the full fidelity modules. They are a lot of fun but require you to remember many key binds. With the clickable cockpit there are way fewer binds to remember. I got FC3, then I got the Hornet, the hornet was much easier for me to learn. my $0.02 anyway.

I use "Active Pause" when learning new weapons. Active Pause - default key is LSHIFT+LWIN+PAUSE And as stated above, pretend that you are an actual fighter pilot flying the jet, its so much more fun.

its not listed, but did they fix the Aim-9x sound when pushing the selective weapons jettison button? I'm on stable version, was just wondering if they fixed it in OB. Regards Coyote

I moved most mission spawn points near areas of interest. (airports, landmarks, things like that.)

Apologies if this has already been posted...

Thanks @deadlyfishes, I already did that with most of the missions. One question though, why are they all the missions inside populated areas? Is it to make it a little harder to find the baddies? I usually take out the main air threats then come in with an A10 and CBU-97 the rest. Regards Coyote

I have almost completed my DIY throttle controller, needs some paint and I possibly a upgrade on the TDC. Thanks to all of you fine folks that helped me out back here... I used the Leo Bodnar BU0836X, I have all 8 axis in use, as well as 37 on/off buttons & switches. 1 button needed some diodes, as it is connected to the hat switch (up & left). In reality I could still add 3 buttons but I don't think I really need them. This is my 1st ever such project and I am very happy with it so far. It completely changed my DCS experience. In the end it cost nearly double what my budget was, but still only a fraction of what the warthog throttle costs. For the TDC I used the ADAFRUIT-2765. https://www.adafruit.com/product/2765 This is a very cheap little thumb stick and while it works as advertised, I wish I could get more precision out of it when using the TGP on the Hornet. For A-A radar its excellent, I tried various curves but can't quite get it to a satisfactory level for the TGP. One question for you guys: Is the TDC on the Warthog or Vipril throttles more like a stick, like on a Xbox / PS4 controller? Or is it like the one I used, that moves side to side. I'm thinking of replacing mine for the same one that's on the Nintendo Switch. It is the stick style, nice and small and not very expensive. Anyway here are some pictures...

Here are some examples of what I am talking about, all missions, easy and hard are like this. I checked this setting, and it seems correct. remove_ground_units_on_buildings = true

Fantastic mission! @deadlyfishes Been having a blast playing it. One question: is there a way to make the air-to-ground missions not spawn in a town or city? Its a little harder to find all the individual targets among the civilian vehicles and buildings, I always land up causing quite a bit of collateral damage. Many of the tanks and arties are pointing directly into a building or structure of some sort. Regards Coyote

Hi Pete, You can put all that off in the game's settings IIRC, I wanted to leave the campaign as close to the original F-15C as possible. Basically all I did was change F-15C to F/A-18C, fixed the AWACS so datalink is working, changed a few radio frequencies and used a proper tanker for the Hornet. Cheers Coyote

All the best @Mrgone! Coyote

Not sure if its a bug or not, but here is how I work it. I designate a waypoint (WPSDS), push undesignate and then TDC depress. Then you can slew. I was always wondering if it was little bug like you mentioned. Coyote

I think it is very good to improve A/A skills. Some missions are a little bit nail-biting, but one thing that I particularly like, is there are no bandits popping up suddenly within striking distance. You can know where everyone is most of the time via F10 map, Datalink and AWACS callouts. Some missions require you to only keep bandits away from the strike flight, you do not necessarily have to get a kill. Protect the strike group by sending a few Aim 120s at the bandits to get them to disengage. Once strike group hits their targets, its mission complete.

Were you getting some dialog as you were passing the waypoints? Most of the waypoints will have some spoken dialog. When you pass the last waypoint, the one before landing, your wingman (Wag's) should say something like "Nice Flying With You Sir" and there will be a message that pops up on you screen saying "Mission Complete" (This should pop up even before you land). Of course, you need to follow through all the previous waypoints, which you said you did. Some things that I found... I played all the individual missions before putting them together in a campaign, and now again after putting them together. The only thing I noticed was that some missions get a little too hot for just 2 Hornets, originally many of the missions had 4 Eagles. After getting shot down I like to see what I could have done differently and try again till I win it, due to proper tactics. I think it is mission 3, called "AWACS Hunt", I struggled with this mission in the Hornet, originally it had only 2 Eagles as well . My preferred method on this mission is to send my wingman to RTB right after he takes off, this way I can sneak in there, fly really low with radar in standby(watch the power lines) and pop up before they ever know I'm there. I find this mission thrilling from start to finish.

Hello Hornet drivers, Here is the F-15C's free Bear Trap campaign converted to fly with the Hornet. It is a A/A only campaign, with working AWACS, Datalink and Tankers for AAR. (refuel usually not required.) Some of the missions in the original campaign had you flying with 3 wingmen, I changed all missions to have 1 wingman. Its a bit more challenging but you have an AWACS along with Datalink to help you out. I have played all the missions, but not since putting them together in a campaign so if there are issues please let me know. I'm not a pro with the Mission Editor so there may be some things I missed. Enjoy. https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1jOCQyv6ypPtzuLnU_2b9o_Q8Fzg29T9x?usp=sharing

I learned to refuel with a TM 160000, using the little slider for a throttle. I then built me a throttle controller which has 5.8 inches in the throttle axis. I found it much easier with more movement in the throttle. As far as the joystick, I have no problems with the TM 160000. If I can leave you with 1 tip... when you are in the beginning of your learning faze, keep moving the throttle forwards and backwards constantly (not all the way but...). You will soon learn subconsciously how long it takes for your input to actually happen. The up-down & left-right happens instantly, but the forwards-backwards is delayed.