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Slew upgrade for TM Warthog


WWChunk

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Got the slew upgrade installed, as well as the pinky switch replacement. The slew feels INCREDIBLE!! I think the analog movement is going to make a huge difference. I’ll test it later tonight. The pinky switch looks exactly the same, but the switch feels like it is significantly better quality. It’s doesn’t jiggle or sag at all. Installation was super easy, and it took about 20 minutes total to do both. No soldering involved at all. 

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Edited by WWChunk
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  • 2 months later...

Necro-posting, but thought it was relevant here (I forgot which thread Chunk was cheering me on to do the replacements) ... I got the pinky switch (the one on the left side of the left throttle) replaced, and did the slew  replacement as well.

The pinky switch wasn't that big an upgrade as far as I'm concerned. Apparently I was never too hard on that particular switch. I gave up on the glue removal, there was so much of it globbed onto the wires within my switch assembly it was impossible to remove. I trimmed the wires as close to the glue-glob as I could, then played hell trying to trim the insulation off the wires. After cutting the damn things even shorter (un-intentionally) I finally got a few strands from each wire exposed and twisted together. Getting them into the new switch was an exercise in cussing and wishing I had kid-sized fingers. Got it together and it tested okay, but if it ever flakes out I'll simply splice in longer lengths of wire and have room to work. The 'pinch' tighteners on the new switch worked well though, I applaud the choice of that part.

The slew switch replacement is what I was worried about, but was (for the most part) super easy. The only issue I had was getting the little tiny tab on the inside of the original switch to push in and release it from the housing. I almost pulled out the hat switch just I could get my finger in there to push the tab. Ended up using a long-ish flat screw-driver (with illumination from an LED flashlight in my mouth) to unlock the dang thing. Once it popped free, the rest of the new switch installation was simple. On Chunk's advise I used the rounded 'gate' template for the slew control movement. It tested well during re-calibration, even to the point where the cursor did not go to the corners of the test box, instead the cursor moved in a complete and steady circle ... a little concerned there that I may not be able to move the cursor in-game to the corners of the MFD's - we'll see. 

TLDR: The pinky switch replacement sucked due to tiny wires; the slew replacement was easy and took far less time. 

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When faced with removing insulation from wires, in these circumstances, the insulation is almost always vinyl based, and I always burn it off with the soldering iron. With iron hot, knowing the length of bare wire you need, go to that point and twist the wire/insulation on the tip of the hot iron. Sometimes you cant do that, so in that case, use the tip of the iron to circle around the radial of the insulation to do the same thing. You just need to soften the insulation and not burn it down to bare wire. With the insulation hot/warm, use your opposing finger nails to pull the softened insulation off down the length of the wire towards  the cut end. Easier to do with a chisel point iron tip, but works with the pointed tips also. Downside is the ragged bit of insulation left on the wire where you pulled it off, upside is there is no chance of cutting the wire inside like there can be using wire cutters, exacto knife etc. This wont work on teflon insulation, but doubt that expensive wire type is used on most consumer products.

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I'm not sure I had room to get one of those in there to use. I live about four blocks from a Home Depot, and I'll admit I have run over there for something as dumb as one specific screw driver. I did consider going to get a wire stripper like that for this project, and of course any future projects. You never buy a tool for a single use, right? Right? 

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45 minutes ago, WWDubya said:

Nope! I don't have a toolbox full of unitaskers. Nope, not me.

Me either, nor do I have a complete second set of tools at the cottage even after I gave 2 sets away to my son and daughter when they moved out...

Never use the right tool for the job when an old butter knife will do.  Also, make sure you use DIFFERENT types of screws when replacing a given access panel... 😉

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