Fanatec Modification for Amputee....

  • Thread starter Thread starter Owen Meany
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Owen Meany

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Hello -

I have been Gran Turismo Racing since GT3 but only in late 2013 did I finally ungraded to the Fanatec Clubsport, BMW rim and the b CSR Elite pedals. I have been racing consistently over the last couple of months and doing pretty well..


Here is the rub, I am a below the knee amputee (right) so I have no dorsa-flex in my angle/foot. I control the accelerator (like in my actual car) by doing a combination of lifting my leg and pushing through my hip.


After hours with the Elite pedals, I have concluded that a much stronger spring behind the accelerator would help my lap times significantly. Currently, I tend to apply too much acceleration while braking as it takes more of a conscious effort to decelerate and lift whereas more pedal pressure will minimize the amount of “leg lifts” I am required to on the average lap…


As is, I have almost no “finesse” in acceleration, but if there is a lot more resistance I will be able to “feel” more feedback in the pedal and, in theory, be better able to use the accelerator.


Question: Could this process be as simple as dismantling the accelerator pedal and replacing the existing spring with a large more robust spring? Any ideas on how to source a new spring and how to be sure it is “stronger” than the existing spring?


Other complications I should consider?


Thanks for you input…
 
Sorry I don't have any actual info for you (I'm not familiar with fanatec), but I do have a link to an excellent sim racing forum which has a sub category just for these wheels. I'd guess you could just get a stiffer spring if its as simple as the G25 and G27 pedals.

I found a "bob shock" mod for brakes but that would likely have a progressive stiffness, and you probably don't want that, you'd want it to be stiffer in a linear manner so its not painfull to floor it.

Here's a more relevant thread discussing stiffer brake pedals DIY mods. You could mimic their mod but just use a spring without a shock. A shock would likely make it progressive.

Good luck!
 
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Something I've heard of being done to make a joystick stiffer is to add a piece of foam under the pedal. A piece of foam or sponge maybe even a tennis ball to increase the feedback felt.

Hope this helps!
 
I'd mail thomas from fanatec, or from what i've observed, try and disassemble the clutch pedal and adapt a dual spring setup, using another one of the position holes. Also there is some adjustment, i imagine yours is in the hardest setting?
 
Heard of people using a bungee cord too...
I took apart my dfgt in the past and it looked like you could probably just glue a second spring under the pedal if you wanted additional resistance. On that one they kind of fold into the base...
I think it shouldn't be too much trouble.
 
If I wanted to remove and replace the spring behind the accelerator pedal to a large one, what "specifications" should I look for? I have found many springs, etc on hobby websites but don't know where to starts.

Alternatively, any reason I cannot swap the clutch spring for the accelerator spring?
 
They tend to be similar to the gas pedal. If yours is harder, try it out...
The hardest springs you can get are from a exhaust cam valve, crappy low power cars have softer and higher end ones are harder.
 

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