Advice on broken Cougar?
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So, recently I rediscovered the Cougar I had stashed somewhere, I installed the latest BMS, got me a TrackIR and went into a dogfight with the AI. Then disaster struck. The roll axis on the stick became loose. I opened it up and found that it as broken in two places (marked by the circles).
Sorry I borrowed the pic from vipergear’s site,but I have temporarily patched the stick and I am too tired to open it again.
Any ideas on how to fix it? Or does anyone know where to service it in Greece? -
Try this link:
https://www.shapeways.com/product/KTM9G6PGC/replacement-cougar-gimbal-1?optionId=61311022
Look at the instructions link, that will take you to DCS where he has a list of all the parts to fix the cougar.
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So, recently I rediscovered the Cougar I had stashed somewhere, I installed the latest BMS, got me a TrackIR and went into a dogfight with the AI. Then disaster struck. The roll axis on the stick became loose. I opened it up and found that it as broken in two places (marked by the circles).
Sorry I borrowed the pic from vipergear’s site,but I have temporarily patched the stick and I am too tired to open it again.
Any ideas on how to fix it? Or does anyone know where to service it in Greece?Looks like your gimbal broke - weak gimbals is a very known problem with the Cougar. Yes it is from cast metal but it’s the most cheapest, weakest metal they could possibly find!
I’m not sure if it can be welded back together. The only thing I can think of is treating yourself to the ViperGear Force Sensing Mod upgrade for your Cougar, which replaces the entire base internals (PCB + gimbal).
It’s not super cheap but probably cheaper than buying another Cougar (or Warthog + TUSBA for TQS) and it enhances the realism of your Cougar for BMS -
I’ve seen that broken gimbals more then once (on web)… and it is really the question how/why it breaks .
The cheap and poor metal quality can be the reason , of course , but what I think, what happened to me, think can be what is really responsible for that “sturdy” piece of metal breaks… it is not that “thin” that you can break it deliberately just with hands. … you really need to use some force… and what is the biggest force on earth? “The lever” - that is the stick itself.
On top of the stick base/casing you see 8 screws with allen head , they hold the gimbals from the top of the base … and that somehow got loose TWICE in 7-8 years.
Don’t know how , but it just started happening , when moving the stick from side to side , there was that “thump” in some position , … I was first neglecting it , until it become too “obvious” /I’ve removed the base bottom cover, tried to reproduce the “thump” with the stick and then saw it (not at first) - why, because it was jamming to the bottom of the base there were pieces of scraped metal in grease on the bottom… so with the bottom cover removed , “the thump” was GONE !!
…so what cought my eye was , gimbal was moving in Y-translate axis (up and down vertically) as screws allowed it to sink inside to the bottom of the base/…
That really isnt some big travel , the screws themselves are some 5mm long … but gimbal/stick was getting stuck on something , and by using some force-lever on the stick it would jump after crossing that “blocking” position causing that thump.Anyway, those loose Allen screws could be the reason of the broken gimbals… solution … oh really … is to tighten them - which I had to do twice in 8yrs .
So, if you ever feel that thing “thump” when moving the stick from end to end , stop and check if those screws needs tightening… tomorrow could be late.
Cheers
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Maybe can you try to contact Thrusmaster custommer service.
Last year, june, I was able to order replacement gimbal parts from the french one. ([email protected])
But according to their website, they only send to France. I live in Belgium and there was no problem.Parts numbers: 6000712 and 6000713, 6 euro each plus postage.
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Thanks everyone for the replies! Work was hell today so I just saw them.
Lumper, do you know if it is possible to change only the roll gimbal, or it has to be all the parts because they are not compatible with the original ones? An if so, do you know if they can stand the beating, since they are only made of plastic?
I think the vipergear solution is the best, but it is a bit too expensive for me now. Maybe I will try welding it and adding an extra metal rod on top, to reinforce it.
I will try to contact Thrusmaster first,but I am not too optimistic about it.
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I have never used the shapeways gimbal, so not to sure how it holds up. However, with that said, I do know that some 3d printed things can be made that are as strong as steel.
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I’m a owner of a 3d printers it depends on the type and material printed with.
If a part is made with DMLS Direct Metal Laser Sintering it’s even stronger than a cast metal part. But is the most expensive 3d printing methodBut for the gimbal even one printed in FDM with the right material where I would think of either Nylons or PC or Carbon Fiber enforced PLA will hold up very well
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So, recently I rediscovered the Cougar I had stashed somewhere, I installed the latest BMS, got me a TrackIR and went into a dogfight with the AI. Then disaster struck. The roll axis on the stick became loose. I opened it up and found that it as broken in two places (marked by the circles).
Sorry I borrowed the pic from vipergear’s site,but I have temporarily patched the stick and I am too tired to open it again.
Any ideas on how to fix it? Or does anyone know where to service it in Greece?I think I have all the inside guts for the cougar stick you can have for free if you pay the shipping, Let me know if you are interested and I will see if I still have it in my box.
Kukki