Pyrocumulous Posted October 15, 2023 Posted October 15, 2023 Is there any particular set of controls (throttle, HOTAS, rudders) that is more corrosion resistant than the Thrustmaster Warthog gear I currently am using? I'm in a highly corrosive environment that's just eating these things up, causing me to lose buttons and axis. These are only 18 months old and I'm getting pretty tired of disassembling to get to some troublesome potentiameter. Being under warranty isn't all that useful, I'd rather everything just always work. Warthog HOTAS, VMAX Prime Throttle, TPR pedals, Kensington Slimblade Pro, Pimax Crystal, RTX 4090 FE, Asus ProArt X670E-Creator, Ryzen 7950X3D, 64gb DDR5.
Scott-S6 Posted October 21, 2023 Posted October 21, 2023 (edited) There are options where the main axis are alu or stainless with hall effect sensors. I'm not aware of any where the small axis are also hall effect. The problem you'll have will be buttons and hats. You can replace TM buttons and hats with Otto ones which ought to help but I'd start with a good coat of grease on anything and go from there. Tough problem. Do you keep your controls covered when not in use? What's making your environment so corrosive? Sea salt? Edited October 21, 2023 by Scott-S6 1
Pyrocumulous Posted October 21, 2023 Author Posted October 21, 2023 I'm right on the coast about 150 meters from the crashing waves, so constant salt exposure that corrodes everything that is metallic. Pretty much what a real carrier-based HOTAS would be exposed to. I haven't been covering the controls, clearly I should have. I assume you are suggesting dielectric grease; can I just coat the potentiameters and button contacts? I've been just cleaning them with isopropyl alcohol and then reassembling, as I was concerned about grease at least while under warranty. So far, no problem with the main axis on the Warthog HOTAS or Throttle, but issues with the other axes and buttons. Warthog HOTAS, VMAX Prime Throttle, TPR pedals, Kensington Slimblade Pro, Pimax Crystal, RTX 4090 FE, Asus ProArt X670E-Creator, Ryzen 7950X3D, 64gb DDR5.
Scott-S6 Posted October 21, 2023 Posted October 21, 2023 (edited) The main axis are hall effect so will be fine as long as the circuit board and mechanical parts aren't being corroded. If you're cleaning parts with isopropyl - i.e. degreasing them - then they'll be left vulnerable. There are greases specifically for tactile switches, I'd suggest starting there. And covers are definitely worth trying. Just drape a cloth over them and see if it helps. Edited October 21, 2023 by Scott-S6
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