Gamesteer Proracer review

As promised, here are my thoughts for R.A.S on the AU$180 (about US$135) 'Pro Racer' device from www.gamesteer.com .... PRO RACER Review by Steve Simpson http://www.mypage.tsn.cc/wiw_stats/pr/Proracer.jpg The Pro Racer is a pretty solid piece of metal obviously designed by an engineer with a fair bit of common sense looking to solve the problem of how to use a steering wheel in front of a TV or in a lounge room. I say this because although it is targetted at PC users as well, there's not as much benefit from using a system such as this compared to the trusty old PC desk. Having said that, the ability to adjust the angle and height of the wheel to your exact preference is something which can't always be achieved at a desk Also, the ability to correctly distance and secure the pedals is another added benefit for a PC sim'er. The main concern with a relatively small structure such as this is how sturdy and secure it feels while driving. Obviously you can push it over fairly easily but does it move around while thrashing about it a rally game or while muscling a NASCAR around? The short answer is no - providing you're playing on a fairly solid floor. I found that while using the Pro Racer on the thick(ish) carpet in my lounge room, the spongy nature of the floor was transferred to the wheel. It's almost like you'd want to have spikes in the bottom of the stand similar to many loudspeakers for use on carpet. It's only a minor quibble though and something which a handyman could fix in 10mins. There's a few of these sorts of solutions popping up - mainly for the Gran Turismo fans but the Pro Racer is by far the most solidly built wheel stand that I've seen. Who knows - with simulations like RBR and Forza Motorsport appearing on consoles maybe sim racing is starting to find a place in the living room and if so then I can't imagine a more practical device for the job. It's no substitute for a full blown racing cockpit but the fact that you can fold it up without removing the wheel and store it in a cupboard means that it's probably a lot more spouse-friendly. I must admit that having a solid bar between your legs while driving takes a bit of getting used to though (ahem) The other notable feature is the velcro straps do a good job of tidying up the cables. In summary, if you're looking for highly adjustable, versatile and covenient racing stand then this is about the best value one available. 8/10 Steve

Steve - Would you mind if we reposted this review over on eRacer Garage so it can be listed permanently and not lost within Usenet? ---------------------------------------------------------- eRacer Garage - Sim Racing Hardware Resource Center http://eracer.schoonersolutions.com "Steve Simpson" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:[email hidden]...

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> As promised, here are my thoughts for R.A.S on the AU$180 (about US$135) > 'Pro Racer' device from www.gamesteer.com .... > > PRO RACER Review by Steve Simpson > > http://www.mypage.tsn.cc/wiw_stats/pr/Proracer.jpg > > The Pro Racer is a pretty solid piece of metal obviously designed by an > engineer with a fair bit of common sense looking to solve the problem of > how to use a steering wheel in front of a TV or in a lounge room. I say > this because although it is targetted at PC users as well, there's not as > much benefit from using a system such as this compared to the trusty old > PC desk. Having said that, the ability to adjust the angle and height of > the wheel to your exact preference is something which can't always be > achieved at a desk Also, the ability to correctly distance and secure the > pedals is another added benefit for a PC sim'er. > > The main concern with a relatively small structure such as this is how > sturdy and secure it feels while driving. Obviously you can push it over > fairly easily but does it move around while thrashing about it a rally > game or while muscling a NASCAR around? The short answer is no - > providing you're playing on a fairly solid floor. I found that while > using the Pro Racer on the thick(ish) carpet in my lounge room, the spongy > nature of the floor was transferred to the wheel. It's almost like you'd > want to have spikes in the bottom of the stand similar to many > loudspeakers for use on carpet. It's only a minor quibble though and > something which a handyman could fix in 10mins. > > There's a few of these sorts of solutions popping up - mainly for the Gran > Turismo fans but the Pro Racer is by far the most solidly built wheel > stand that I've seen. Who knows - with simulations like RBR and Forza > Motorsport appearing on consoles maybe sim racing is starting to find a > place in the living room and if so then I can't imagine a more practical > device for the job. It's no substitute for a full blown racing cockpit > but the fact that you can fold it up without removing the wheel and store > it in a cupboard means that it's probably a lot more spouse-friendly. I > must admit that having a solid bar between your legs while driving takes a > bit of getting used to though (ahem) The other notable feature is the > velcro straps do a good job of tidying up the cables. > > In summary, if you're looking for highly adjustable, versatile and > covenient racing stand then this is about the best value one available. > 8/10 > > Steve > >

"eRacer Garage" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:Ihtad.78986$[email hidden]... > Steve - Would you mind if we reposted this review over on eRacerGarage so > it can be listed permanently and not lost within Usenet? http://groups.google.com/ Malc.

> Steve - Would you mind if we reposted this review over on eRacer Garage so > it can be listed permanently and not lost within Usenet? Sure. No problem.

Thanks Steve for the review. This will assist all in R.A.S gain a balanced view of this new product. sales1@gamesteer www.gamesteer.com "Steve Simpson" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:[email hidden]...

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> As promised, here are my thoughts for R.A.S on the AU$180 (about US$135) > 'Pro Racer' device from www.gamesteer.com .... > > PRO RACER Review by Steve Simpson > > http://www.mypage.tsn.cc/wiw_stats/pr/Proracer.jpg > > The Pro Racer is a pretty solid piece of metal obviously designed by an > engineer with a fair bit of common sense looking to solve the problem of

how > to use a steering wheel in front of a TV or in a lounge room. I say this > because although it is targetted at PC users as well, there's not as much > benefit from using a system such as this compared to the trusty old PCdesk. > Having said that, the ability to adjust the angle and height of the wheelto > your exact preference is something which can't always be achieved at adesk > Also, the ability to correctly distance and secure the pedals is another > added benefit for a PC sim'er. > > The main concern with a relatively small structure such as this is how > sturdy and secure it feels while driving. Obviously you can push it over > fairly easily but does it move around while thrashing about it a rallygame

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> or while muscling a NASCAR around? The short answer is no - providing > you're playing on a fairly solid floor. I found that while using the Pro > Racer on the thick(ish) carpet in my lounge room, the spongy nature of the > floor was transferred to the wheel. It's almost like you'd want to have > spikes in the bottom of the stand similar to many loudspeakers for use on > carpet. It's only a minor quibble though and something which a handyman > could fix in 10mins. > > There's a few of these sorts of solutions popping up - mainly for the Gran > Turismo fans but the Pro Racer is by far the most solidly built wheel

stand > that I've seen. Who knows - with simulations like RBR and ForzaMotorsport > appearing on consoles maybe sim racing is starting to find a place in the > living room and if so then I can't imagine a more practical device for the > job. It's no substitute for a full blown racing cockpit but the factthat

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> you can fold it up without removing the wheel and store it in a cupboard > means that it's probably a lot more spouse-friendly. I must admit that > having a solid bar between your legs while driving takes a bit of getting > used to though (ahem) The other notable feature is the velcro straps do a > good job of tidying up the cables. > > In summary, if you're looking for highly adjustable, versatile and

covenient > racing stand then this is about the best value one available. 8/10 > > Steve > >