VKB Gunfighter Users, Long Term Thoughts

[Cerulean]

I am seriously thinking of getting a Gunfighter MkIII in the next few days.  I was wondering what the long term impressions of users are. How do you find the buttons and switches hold up after a year or two of hard use? Of especial importance, what is the experience of the base like?  How would you compare it to (if you are familiar) bases for the Warthog, Winwing or Virpil sticks?

[DavePastry]

I'm going on a year with my MCG and I still love everything about it, its a million times better than anything thrustmaster makes, and while I've never owned a virpil stick I've played with my buddies and the VKB (while much bigger) feels MUCH higher quality by almost every metric. I've never sampled winwings sticks so I can't comment on them. 

[dburne]

2 hours ago, Cerulean said:

I am seriously thinking of getting a Gunfighter MkIII in the next few days.  I was wondering what the long term impressions of users are. How do you find the buttons and switches hold up after a year or two of hard use? Of especial importance, what is the experience of the base like?  How would you compare it to (if you are familiar) bases for the Warthog, Winwing or Virpil sticks?

You won't regret it.

Been using my Gunfighter Mk III Pro for two years now and love it as much as day I got it. I had the Mk I previous to it and it did great as well. And I put quite a number of hours each week on it.

As far as the base/gimbal system, it is miles better than the Warthog. Virpil and VKB bases I would say are fairly comparable. Personally I like the design and convenience of the VKB base a little better but really you can't go wrong with either.   I also have the original Virpil T-50 stick as well that I keep now for back up if I ever need.  WinWing I can not comment on.

Edited February 17, 2022 by dburne

[Dangerzone]

So good to see someone chasing 'long term' reviews as opposed to the instant thoughts upon unboxing!

I'm a 12 month user. The only thing I look at and wish I had on the VKB that Virpil has is it's scroll encoder. We get a 3rd pushbutton - Virpil get 2 push buttons and the scroll encoder which can be used as an additional push button, but I've been able to make do.

I've never actually tried Virpil's stick though - so have only compared 'on paper'. I have tried the warthog - and it's far better build than the warthog. VKB vs Warthog is comparable with Warthog vs Logitech X56. It's 'next level' again.

Haven't had any hardware issues with it. Had one issue with one of the thumb sticks but was due to me not calibrating correctly and was an easy fix.

Adore the flexibility with the programing available - that is flashed to the device - so no need for any software to be loaded or running on the PC after initial configuration.

Buy once - buy right. Yes - it hurts, but the pain is brief, and the satisfaction of quality is lasting.

[Cerulean]

Thanks for all the replies. Are the two ministicks on the pro edition reprogrammable to work as 5 way hats? 

[streakeagle]

55 minutes ago, Cerulean said:

Thanks for all the replies. Are the two ministicks on the pro edition reprogrammable to work as 5 way hats? 

If you can figure out how to use the software, there isn't much you can't do with the mini-sticks. You can make an analog stick function just like a 4 or 8-way hat plus center depress button AND keep the analog axes. So, for aircraft that need a hat, you can map those points. Those that need axes, map those. The default programming for the top center mini-stick uses the center depress to switch between hat mode and trim mode. I needed the center depress function, so I just reprogrammed it to be exactly how I wanted it to be. The key is reading some of the documentation, then playing with the software to learn exactly how it works.

[streakeagle]

While there was nothing wrong with my MCG Pro, I found the swappable axis/hat switch options of the Ultimate very appealing, so I bought it. If you can afford it, the Ultimate really is better: everything the MCG Pro with some very nice upgrades. I am not a huge fan of metal grips, but the weight of the metal combined with the comfortable soft rubber grips make it feel great. I swapped in both hat switches, too. The hats are only 4-way plus center depress, but that is normally what I need. I prefer the feel of dedicated hat switches to the feel of analog sticks mimicking a hat. But I can always pop the analog sticks back in if I need an 8-way hat or axes.

[Andurula]

1 hour ago, streakeagle said:

If you can figure out how to use the software, there isn't much you can't do ...

Therein lies the "but" for me.  I love the stick.  It is mostly working after a year and a half although my eight way switch gets a bit wonky and the software needs to be reset before every flight.

The software however is ... less than intuitive... and the documentation isn't very good. At least for me.  Maybe if I had a degree in software engineering and Russian language it would make more sense.  If you ask questions you will be directed to the VKB forums (with all the sketchy info that lives on forums) and ancient amateurish tutorial videos using older versions of the software.

Despite my frustrations with the support however, it is a great stick.  As Streakeagle said, if you can figure out the software there is nothing you can't do with it.  At least I think that is the case.  I am a long way from figuring out the software.

[Cerulean]

1 hour ago, Andurula said:

Therein lies the "but" for me.  I love the stick.  It is mostly working after a year and a half although my eight way switch gets a bit wonky and the software needs to be reset before every flight.

I'm not worried about figuring out the software. But it is concerning that after only 1.5 yrs, such an expensive stick has analog sticks that are getting wonky and problems showing up in its software or internal memory.

[streakeagle]

I bought the first run of MCG Pro/Gunfighter MK2 sticks. The only problem it ever had was I killed a bearing on the roll axis by using 2 x #50 springs. I have used it almost daily since I got it and everything works as it did when brand new. I rotate between several grips, and the MCG Pro was replaced in rotation by the MCG Ultimate. But it still had quite a few hours of nearly continuous use on it. I actually have all of the VKB grips and none of them have failed in any way. I understand others have had worse experiences. I forgot: there was one other problems the MCG Pro had: on arrival the connector on the base of the grip was not screwed in properly, so it was a little loose. After the problem got worse, I found 1 screw missing and the other one had worked its way loose with usage. I got another screw and fixed it. But that is the only problem I have experienced out of the box with a VKB product.

I have 2 x Gunfighter Mk 2 bases, both having had the full Mk 3 upgrade packages installed, MCG Pro, MCG Ultimate, F-14 Combat Grip, SCG and SCG Pro, and the original KG12, I also got the adapters to make my TM Warthog and TM Hornet grips compatible, and I have both the 200mm and 100mm extensions. That is a lot of hardware to have had for so many years with only 1 manufacturing defect (missing/loose screws) and one operator induced failure (roll axis bearing).

[trashcan]

About 3 years ago I got my Gunfighter Mk2 with the MCG Pro. I don't think it had to live through "hard use", but it's used often. Everything on that stick and base is exactly as it was 3 years ago. Every button feels the same, every axis has the same precision.

Once I had an issue with the X-axis jumping, but that was due to the cable within the base not being fully plugged in. I assume that was my fault, when I changed the cams. After reseating this cable 2 years ago, no issues occured anymore.

The Mk2 had a bit of an issue with the rubber dust cover creating too much resistance at near-maximum stick deflection. I ordered and installed the improved dust cover of the Mk3, and that issue has gone away.

In general, I absolutely love the base. It allowed me to set it up exactly how I want it to be. I hate it when sticks require a lot of force to move. The Thrustmaster Cougar was a desaster on the desk. It required so much force that it constantly tipped and fell back on the desk, making enough noise to wake up other people.

There are a few minor things, that could maybe be better about the MCG:

• The buttons' switches feel like they are going to last until the end of humanity, but they don't feel like "real airplane" buttons. They are very precise, with a very well defined actuation point, but they don't feel and sound like I'm using a stick out of an airplane. Don't know if any of the competitor products are better, and it's not something I think about when using the stick. (Maybe I'm wrong, I haven been in too many airplanes)
• The hand/palm rest is oddly shaped, and always at a weird height. When I first set up the stick, I couldn't find a position where the handrest felt natural, where all the fingers perfectly aligned with the finger grooves and the trigger on the stick. I thought this would cause issue during use, but I'm when actually using the stick, I never think about this, and have no issues even after day-long flying sessions, so I assume, it's not actually a problem.

tl;dr: no regrets. No wear of any kind after 3 years of use. It will live forever.

[dburne]

10 hours ago, Andurula said:

Therein lies the "but" for me.  I love the stick.  It is mostly working after a year and a half although my eight way switch gets a bit wonky and the software needs to be reset before every flight.

 

You should contact VKB and open a ticket on this. Most definitely should not be a need to reset the software. I am confident they will get you sorted.

[Cerulean]

Thank you everyone for your thoughts. I tend to be the exact opposite of an impulse buyer. I'm not rich and I've dreamt of a good HOTAS for ages.  I am extremely happy with my Warthog throttle and upgraded the ministick to a DeltaSim analog last month. so now that throttle is about perfect to me, and this month I decided to address the stick.  If I wasn't starting a flight sim channel, I might not have but I can justify it now.  After countless tests on my Warthog stick, I find that powerful center detent to be a real pain with fine stuff, like AA refueling, where it simply wears my arm raw, and I am a strongly built guy after having spent a lifetime working a farm in north Canada.  After a mountain of research, my choice came down to the Virpil Alpha and the VKB MCG.  They both looked awesome but the flexibility of the VKB base combined with its well known precision, and a flip up trigger that looks to be far more useful, and the ability to setup the stick and then not have to worry about running a driver, won me over.  I do WISH VKB would have put at least one more 5 way hat on the stick, or given the purchaser an option between 5 way hats and mini-sticks, but I reckon I'll get used to it.

Again, thanks for all your input.  I am starting a flight/spacesim channel and will review it a bit down the line.

[dburne]

If you were to go with Ultimate Grip, it has two additional 5 way hats you can swap out with the two POV hats.

[Cerulean]

16 hours ago, dburne said:

If you were to go with Ultimate Grip, it has two additional 5 way hats you can swap out with the two POV hats.

I know, but truth be told, I prefer a polymer grip. I've owned Glocks and know from experience a good polymer is stronger than metal.  I wish VKB offered 5 way hats as an option on the MCG at order, but I'll get used to the analog sticks.