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Best Stick Grips??? Taking a poll...thanks

JetPilot

Member
I need some help and have no time to do research. What is the best stick grip out there? Cost is not a factor. I want a cooley hat type for trim, radio, autopilot, etc. Also, how makes the fighter jet style grips with the cooley hats?
Thanks so much!
 
Try Infinity

Many people seem to favor these:

http://www.infinityaerospace.com/infgrip.htm

They're $150 and have plenty of buttons. You can fire Sidewinders, Sparrows, or the Vulcan gun, as well as slew the radar antenna, dispense chaff, release bombs, deploy the airbrakes, and engage the tractor beam. Whatever you do, don't press the red button or you'll engage the hyperdrive.
 
Ray Allen Grips

I've got a Ray Allen grip. It does not have as many buttons, knobs, or levers as the infinity, and I had to wire it myself. Here are some pictures:

http://www.rv8.ch/article.php?story=20041120212301548

http://www.rv8.ch/article.php?story=20050217211753326

This is really all I needed for my installation, but I have to admit the infinity looks cooler.

I've got the flaps on a lever, PTT on the trigger, autopilot disconnect as a button, and aileron and elevator trim on the coolie hat.
 
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CH Products

Several of us have used the CH Products Grips and think these are the best we have ever used.
 
I forked over the bucks for an Otto... same grip I had in the F-4. Full sized and the switches are all top notch. It ain't cheap tho, but ... well Its what connects me to the machine, so I thought it's worth it, plus my hand remembers every contour of it. S.H.
 
re: CH

I bought them after seeing Kevin's plane at OSH.

I just spent two or three hours chasing down a problem with MY wiring only to find a wire was not soldered and had never been soldered on one of the CH grips.

oh well.

still looking forward to them, though.
 
Can you fly with the CH grip in either hand? Where do you get them and how much do they cost? It appears you can only get them direct from CH?

- Scott
 
Stick grips

The ones I settled on were the replica B8 grips available from Wicks.
They are the same size-and almost the same weight-as the original military ones, used on every USAF jet from the F-84 right up to the F-104. Has a nice antisag shelf on the right-hand side to support the bottom of the palm so my hand won't slip down during high-G manoeuvres, like my landings.
Come pre-wired, terminating in a nine-pin plug with the mating plug supplied with pins, and fit right on the left-side stick, but require a collar( leftover aileron push-pull tube works perfect) on the right side.
Have the four-way "coolie-hat" trim switch, plus a trigger and three or four other momentary switches.
I had looked and grasped the Infinity and several others at Arlington, but they felt like video-game joystick knockoffs to me, and weighed so little I thought they would be flimsy.
The only drawback is that they are right-handers only, just like all the jets the originals were used in.
did have a problem with the one trim switch sticking at the nose-down position, but emailed the makers in Phoenix and they rushed a new switch out to me without waiting for the unserviceable one to be returned.
In summary, if the look you're going for is more vintage military than an F-16, the B-8 is the real McCoy, and the Infinity covers everything since then.
SCott in VAncouver
 
I called CH Products and got mine. It is very nice. I have it hooked up and working and have a button left over. I'm sure I'll figure out something to do with it. I have yet to order my dummy grip for the passenger side, but it will be only $50 and have a PTT buttun.

GRIP%20011.jpg


GRIP%20009.jpg
 
relay board ?

Jeff what did it take to connect the coolie hat to all the trim
wires ? what its like 5 wires from each servo ?
trying to figure out how to do the wiring


Danny..
 
Would not do it again

My new project will have just a PTT and rubber or foam cover on the control stick. I am putting the flap and trim switch near the throttle using the standard RV-7 cont'l stick LH and right hand throttle setup. The flap & trim switches will be with in finger tip reach of my right hand while my hand rest on throttle. I with one hand (left) on the stick and the right for throttle, flap & trim and radio I will never have to let loose of the stick. Also the flap & trim switches will be safer from inadvertent activation.

I think its overkill to use a replica military grip brisling with switches. Some of the other grips look cheep and plastic. They all cost & weigh more than a simple bike grip and PTT; Plus the installation of the fancy grips are more complicated with more failure points. Will full size panel switches you don't need a relay deck. How many switches do you need? There is a thread on dangers of the flap switch on the grip here: http://www.vansairforce.com/community/showthread.php?t=1611

You fly a RV with two fingers and not a fist full of stick like a 40-ton fighter; a simple stick cover/grip is fine. "Keep it simple, light and close to plans," it will pay dividends in reliability (no relays) and lower weight. There are a lot of cool rubber or foam bike grips that work well on the 7/8" stick.

My last RV I installed the Ray Allen G207:http://www.rayallencompany.com/products/stickgrips.htmlIt worked fine but the small wires soldered, relay deck and run to the panel was a pain. I cut the flap switch down to a short stub to avoid hitting it by accident. Really all I need is a PTT. Yes it was convenient to have up/down trim and flaps on the grip but it was not necessary.
Cheers George
 
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Danny-

The servo basically has two wires that run its motor, I used these relays for both aileron and elevator trims and well as my flaps. Then 3 position wires run to the LED indicator in the panel.

PANEL%20170.jpg
 
Yikes. That's a lot of wires. I'm starting to lean toward George's camp. I can't bring myself to use a bicycle grip, though. Maybe a nice teak grip with a PTT. After I fly for a while, I can always install a grip with all the doo-dads. (Although I hear once you're flying, you don't want to stop long enough to make any modifications.)
 
stick buttons

i'm with george, as far as only having the ptt on the stick. my current plan is to put the flap switch next to the throttle (or possibly the mixture -- somewhere close to the quadrant, anyway.) for the trim switch, i'm planning to replace the fuel selector top aluminum piece with a larger one that angles down instead of up, and mount the trim rocker and co-pilot ptt there. i'm used to flyin' pipers, and it's no big deal to reach down between the seats for trim. also, i hope to do a fair amount of right seat flyin, and i want the trim accessible to the right seat pilot (yet i still want the control stick removeable for when my wife rides there, so no copilot ptt on the stick).

the great thing about building is we can all do it 'zactly like we want it. :)

john
 
Deal for Dave

Davepar said:
Yikes. That's a lot of wires. I'm starting to lean toward George's camp. I can't bring myself to use a bicycle grip, though. Maybe a nice teak grip with a PTT. After I fly for a while, I can always install a grip with all the doo-dads. (Although I hear once you're flying, you don't want to stop long enough to make any modifications.)

Hi Dave--

I've got an unused hardwood stick grip for you from Van's catalog, brand new, complete with switches. Will definitely make you a great deal if you're interested. I can send you some email pics if you want. Check your private messages.

Take care,
Steve
 
Bike Parts

As a hard core cyclist, I decided before I ever started building that my RV4 would be equipped with bicycle water bottle cages for me and back-seater. A good cage is lighter than anything you could design and attaches easily with a couple of nutplates. Bottles are cheap and available in any color to match your interior. Maybe I could even get Van's to produce bottles with their logo. :D

Steve Zicree
 
Walmart bicycle department..$1.99/pr. Machined plug w/PTT. OK, so I did have to replace them after about 10 years.
Mel...DAR
 
12" bicycle foam grips, if you can find them

I find that unless I'm in the pattern, I usually hold the stick down low, so I can rest my arm on my lap. If you use a long foam bicycle grip, it's comfortable anyplace you grab it. They're getting hard to find, though.

Spruce sells a PPT switch that fits the end of the stick perfectly.
 
foam grips

jonbakerok said:
If you use a long foam bicycle grip, it's comfortable anyplace you grab it. They're getting hard to find, though.

Spruce sells a PPT switch that fits the end of the stick perfectly
What length of foam grip did you use?
What is the part# of PTT that fits in the end of the stick perfectly?

You can buy foam grips on eBay sometimes or on line; here is an interesting site. They will make them any length you want or have them in fixed 4.00, 4.25, 5.00, 9.00, 18.00, 24.00 lengths: (select "Cut to Length Grips")

http://grip-tek.com/ListCatProds.asp?cat=20

They also have "Contoured Foam Rubber Hand Grips" for more traditional grip lengths (4.75") with various shapes.

Cheers George
 
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Foam Grips

For the foam style grips (from the bicycle industry), trust me, "Grab-On" grips are the best way to go. I worked in the bicycle industry for many years, and also raced competitivley all across the USA. These grips are comfy, extremely affordable, and very durable.

Skip any install instructions included...spray a little hairspray on the stick, install the Grab-On grip (cut to length) and you are done.

www.grabongrips.com
 
Tennis racket grip

I used a replacement tennis racket grip to provide a comfortable grip down to where I hold the stick in the cruise - only a few bucks fom your local sports store.

Pete
 
225 on Infinity

I bought the Infinity, a slightly scaled down version of the F4 grip, or so I'm told. Whatever, one of the best decisions I made on the bird. The coolie hat is my elev/aileron trim, gunswitch is p.t.t., I have channel select/flip flop on one switch, fuel pump, flaps with one switch left over. I was going to put the ldg lights on that one, but opted for seperate switch on Control Vision EXP buss board for taxi and lgd, and it has a "soft on" feature built into the board that I didn't want to lose. I have a fairly large hand, yet the Infinity fits it perfectly. I don't find that the switches get in the way at all. Being able to handle flaps, fuel pump, trim and comms with the stick is way to wonderful. The grip is ordered with all the switches selected in advance, and wired at the mfgr.

Jeff
 
I used the cheaper Ray Allen grips with just the PTT button. Running too many wires in the sticks tends to get too congested for my liking. I have manual ELE and Aileron trim and placed the flap control in the floor between the seats. very convienient and minimises wires in the stick. The soft Ray Allen Grips are comfy and fit left or right hands. I also added the bicycle foam to the sticks below the grips.

Roberta
 
jhallrv4 said:
I bought the Infinity, a slightly scaled down version of the F4 grip, or so I'm told. Whatever, one of the best decisions I made on the bird. The coolie hat is my elev/aileron trim, gunswitch is p.t.t., I have channel select/flip flop on one switch, fuel pump, flaps with one switch left over. I was going to put the ldg lights on that one, but opted for seperate switch on Control Vision EXP buss board for taxi and lgd, and it has a "soft on" feature built into the board that I didn't want to lose. I have a fairly large hand, yet the Infinity fits it perfectly. I don't find that the switches get in the way at all. Being able to handle flaps, fuel pump, trim and comms with the stick is way to wonderful. The grip is ordered with all the switches selected in advance, and wired at the mfgr.

Jeff

I am very happy with the Infinity grip. Although every button is prewired, I only hooked up the trigger for PTT, the coolie hat for 2 axis trim, and the (momentary) toggle for flaps. Pattern work is a real pleasure by adjusting the flaps, fine tuning the trim and announcing "short final" almost effortlessly without taking the hand off the stick. How could these varied tasks be made any easier than that?

Rick Galati RV-6A "Darla"
 
PTT and grips

gmcjetpilot said:
What length of foam grip did you use?
What is the part# of PTT that fits in the end of the stick perfectly?

Here's the PTT. It looks like they have two types now. Mine was the "Threaded Bezel" version. I drilled a hole in a stainless plug to mount it on the end of the stick. With the "Press Fit" version, maybe it just fits right into the stick. It's a really nice switch and the bezel is nearly the same size as the stick, so it looks like it was designed for the purpose even though they don't actually call it a PTT.

http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/elpages/p1momswitch.php

You know, I said 12" in my previous post, but I've never actually measured it. Mine are probably more like 9" because there's a couple of inch gap between the grip and the stick boot.
 
CH Grips

just over $100. IMHO, these are far superior to any other product on the market. Easy to install, one solid piece, with no seam. Mine installed great with Todd Rudberg's front/back bent sticks in my RV-8. Kevin, at CH, will let you borrow a non functioning demo unit for testing purposes. Just pay the return shipping.

Thanks,
Robby Knox
 
CH wiring

min. eight wires for me. I love my CH grips but "Far superior..." ? they're play toys.

dscn20522tu.jpg
 
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Play Toys?

Your opinion. I looked at everything I could find available and when I purchased my CH Grips I had already eliminated the toys!
 
Ray Allen G101's with just the push to talk switch. Manual flaps and trims on my airplane.
 
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Infinity Grip

We just received our Infinity Grip. It seems the same size and shape as the old Thrustmaster Computer Joystick. The switches seem a little higher quality than the Thrustmaster. You might laugh at the similarities, but the Thrustmaster got an unbelievable amount of use and all the switches remained operational. In fact, the gimbals wore out before any of the switches.

Our Infinity is wired for ail/elev trim on the hat switch, a flap switch to the left of the hat. A fuel pump switch to the right of the hat, an autopilot disc under the thumb as per Boeing control wheels. And a pinky switch that will be wired to the starter. I like to hold the stick all the way back in my lap while starting the engine and this pinky switch makes that possible.

Anyway, I liked the wiring service and the quality of the wire, and the bundling, so I guess I am happy so far with the Infinity. They also included the relay board for the trims and the flap switch.

Cheers, Pete

Cheers, Pete
 
i just looked up the infinity. Its pretty much an exact replica of the one in the uh-60 blackhawk. We dont have the silver flap switch though, its just a red button. The shelf to rest your hand is a must.
 
I'm curious if any of the people who replied to this thread have further comment some 18 YEARS later?

I noticed some dead links, and then looked at how long this thread had been dormant.
 
I'm curious if any of the people who replied to this thread have further comment some 18 YEARS later?

I noticed some dead links, and then looked at how long this thread had been dormant.

Yeah, that's why I was wondering whether CH still sold grips for actual aircraft.
 
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