Skybird's been 'online' for days now but no reply here? You OK mate? No obligation to reply, but I expected you to want to talk about your rig. No worries, but hope all's OK.
I did get the T248 wheel and pedals. Not on the level of the Fanatec stuff, but really nice all the same. Great set of pedals which is what put it over the top for me.
I started off looking at Fanatec, and was ready to go for it, went through their configurator, and when I got to the base I found it was out of stock. I was prepared to blow $1000 on this kit. But when it wasn't available I changed course.
I also looked at two other high end brands, Precision Engineering and Ascher. This is amazing gear, it really is. I mean look at this
https://www.precisionsimengineering.com/
And I thought Fanatec was high end! ha!
So once I changed course I dropped in to the mid-range. wheels in the $400 range. It came down to three wheels for me, the Logitech G923 Trueforce, Thrustmaster T300 RS GT Edition and the Thrustmaster T248.
These wheels move away from the direct drive force feedback, and that's a big part of what you give up in this range. But I know that even so it will be the best FFB I've experienced considering what I've used so far. In the faceoff between those three options the T248 was the winner for four main reasons.
One, the price I spotted it at was hard to beat. Pricing is out of control these days, and over the past few days while I did my search I was steeled for spending a grand. So to find an agreeable option for $300 was good.
Two, the FFB is hybrid belt and gear, which gave it the edge for me over the G923. By making the move to a new wheel I am hoping to improve my driving, bring laptimes down through proper gear. I expect force feedback will be a big part of that. I think if I can go X amount of fast without any feel from the car and track, that having those indicators can only make me better. Belt driven is generally regarded as better than gear it seems, but worse than direct. So this was a slight edge in my decision, even if it's only a hybrid system.
Three, the paddles are magnetic.These are like the Hall sensors I put in my flight gear, no contact points, all magnetic so they retain accuracy and don't wear out over time like traditional pots do.
And fourth, the pedals that are included are said to be good, and improved over other recent offerings. These are also magnetic and that's what I want. And I get a clutch pedal.
So I chose the T248 over the G923 for better force feedback (hybrid belt and gear over all-gear) and chose the T248 over the T300 for the superior pedals in the bundle. If the T248 had been at regular price of $400 and if the T300 had the same pedal set I would have gone for the T300.
The kit has arrived, setup was straight forward and I've turned some laps. Nice wheel and I really like the pedals. However I need to work out a mounting solution and until I do I won't be able to race seriously as the pedals rock. The brake takes quite a bit of force (and even comes with an additional spring to make it stiffer).