SimStix Orion replacement angled throttle plates - REVIEW

[rob10]

Saw these advertised in the thread on the Ergonomics of the Orion throttles and decided I'd try them out.  Shipped promptly after order.  US + Canada postal services were slow, but delivered when they said they would (IIRC courier was available but fair bit more expensive and I wasn't in a hurry).  Well packaged even though it would be hard to damage them in shipping .  Final result comparison between stock plates and the new angled plates:

Install was simple, same as installing the originals throttle plates and handles.  Only minor issue I had was the hole for the throttle lock was slightly too small for mine so I had to use a file to enlarge it slightly (easy to do since the plates are aluminum).  In communicating with SimStix this seems to be due to slight inconsistency in the throttle locks from WinWing -- not a common issue with these plates, but has happened to others too.  Personally I'd rather it be slightly undersized vs oversized as that's an easy fix and you end up with a snug fit for the throttle lock.  The flat side for the throttle lock hole has also been turned slightly in the angled plates which puts the throttle lock handle in a nicer position to work with.

Final assembled results can be seen above.  It makes for a much more natural hand position on the throttle.  As can be seen in the pictures, there is a slightly wider gap between the two halves of the throttles with the angled plates installed.  Not sure if that was required to make the plates work (no issues with clearance at all even if you're using the throttles independently) or a deliberate design decision.  Either way, I actually prefer it.  The outside two buttons are now both easily pressed with pinky finger (with the originals I found it awkward to press the inside one with 2nd finger in from pinky).

Overall fit and finish of the new plates is excellent.  Below is a picture of the installed plates without the handles attached.  1st one has one of the left angled plate installed and right original WinWing plate still attached, the 2nd pic is with both new angled plates installed.

My final conclusion is that I'm happy I bought these.  Cost is about $50 USD + shipping from here: https://simstix.com/products/winwing-orion-angled-throttle-plates

[Dudikoff]

If you compare the edge to edge width of the original mounting plates and the new ones when installed, you'll see where the extra spacing comes from.

Cool idea. I hope he can come up with some sort of adapter plates for the Super Taurus as well.

[Katmandu]

Maybe you could share this with Winwing on Facebook? Originally they said that they are aware of the ergonomics mishap, but decided not to address it as it required major rework of the throttle. If the current solution is good, then surely Winwing themselves can replace the two fitting plates. 

[Simm0]

11 hours ago, Katmandu said:

Maybe you could share this with Winwing on Facebook? Originally they said that they are aware of the ergonomics mishap, but decided not to address it as it required major rework of the throttle. If the current solution is good, then surely Winwing themselves can replace the two fitting plates. 

This isn't a criticism of the solution but a proper OEM solution would take more than just replacing these IMO.
If you look at the photo to stop the throttles hitting each other there is a massive gap created, I believe that gap would be unsuitable for me (personal view) and I would stick with how they currently are.

A proper solution at the OEM level would also need to change other things so the throttle handles can still be used independently and not have that huge gap. Then there is all the retooling/testing etc...

Just a thought on a similar Taurus solution, if you cast the "wedges" that are on the Orion solution and used them as angled spacers for the Taurus would this work without having to replace the entire piece? Problem with that solution is it might get too thin at the narrow side of the wedge...

[rob10]

Surprisingly, looking closely at it, the spacing isn't really to keep the 2 halves from hitting each other (at their closest I can still almost get a pinky finger between the closest parts), but due to the need for the thin part of the wedge to be thick enough to for the bolt holding the left handle on.  Part of the reason for good clearance may be due to the new right hand plate being slightly taller then the original.  You could "just" add a bit to the inside of the left handle to fill the gap to a more acceptable size.  I say "just" because it would involve retooling which likely wouldn't be cheap, but I doubt you'd have to re-engineer/rearrange much, just change the tooling for the shell of the left handle.  And honestly, after install and before I used it I was concerned about the gap, but it really isn't an issue in usage.  Before I installed this I definitely thought it would take a much bigger re-engineering and redesign to "fix" the angle.

Edited October 14, 2021 by rob10

[Katmandu]

I didn't even notice the increased gap in the pictures - until now  It does look excessive, and certainly a compromise - whether one agrees to live with it or not, this gap is absent from the real throttle.

Why does the mod introduce the second triangular wedge? It seems that the simplest solution is to twist the current fitting plates counterclockwise. Intuitively, if you imagine the fitting plates were made of putty/plasticine, and if you wanted to change the angle of the handle, you would simply twist the handle by about 30 degrees and leave it there. Then, it is a matter of recreating the resulting plasticine plates' shape in AutoCAD/metal or plastic/3D print. Or does my mental geometry deceive me?

Edited October 15, 2021 by Katmandu

[rob10]

I suspect if you just twisted the fittings then you would have a problem with the 2 halves hitting each other if you moved them independently (the right throttle would be in the way if you tried to only move the left forward).