For the accelerator, you can leave the last little bit of travel for the feathering and minute modulation of the throttle and have the bottom end of the travel come in very quickly. On the brake side, the very stiffest part of the pedal stroke, that last little bit of travel before the pedal stops completely translates the maximum braking input applied to the computer. In other words, maximum braking is not attainable unless you push very hard on the pedal, allowing great modulation of the brake. Even then the amount of resistance can be adjusted after calibration so that locking the brakes is impossible. Both pedals are equipped with adjustable stops for both ends of the travel range. Allowing the user to fine-tune both the distance of travel and the rest angle. This is remarkable engineering and frankly something I never thought I’d see in an out-of the-box pedal unit. Though the return spring for both pedals were a little on the weak side to acquire the correct feel. After viewing the assembled unit and wondering if my big feet would rest comfortably on the rather small foot-plate, the only thing that really disturbed me was that I was not able to rest my feet against the pedals without them being applied. Again due in part to the weak return springs. This was easily remedied with an additional spring. I also felt as though my feet were a little too close together with the current configuration. A slight modification to the assembly process allowed a more comfortable spacing between the pedals. By mounting the pedal pads on the opposing sides of the uprights instead of the way the instructions read, gave more space for the drivers’ feet and also added a little leverage to the unit. The kit comes with aluminum shims to spread the pads out some but it just wasn’t enough. After a trip to the drill press to chamfer the holes in the pedal pads to mate with the beveled screw heads, the pads were tightly secured and properly positioned.

Once the pedals were in order, it was time to grab the illustrated assembly sheet and fastener guide for the MOMO wheel and lay out all of the nuts and bolts needed to assemble the wheel. The wheel itself is a standard Momo Corse, Volante Steering Wheel direct from the factory in Italy. The Mod12/c Momo Wheel is outfitted with black suede that feels as if it had been tailored from a mold of your own hand. Bright polished aluminum paddle shifters sit comfortably behind the wheel at convenient distance and yet not so close that they are in the way. The shaped paddles are again adjustable for a light touch to change the gears or the springs can be cinched to require a stiffer tug to actuate the shifter. In addition to the paddles there are six momentary push buttons and one, lighted two-position button, all with colored caps to distinguish their function from each other. The connection to these multicolored buttons is neatly handled with factory Microsoft circuit connectors that plug directly into the board from the Sidewinder wheel. No wiring schematic or soldering is nessecary. Just plug it in and put it together. All switches are installed in a plate steel bracket with a plastic faux monocoque overlay made to simulate a carbon fiber mesh. A very sturdy piece of 3/16 inch plate steel backs the wheel and provides the mounting for the circuit board via o-ring buffers to protect it from flex or shorting. This is the flange that also adapts the Momo wheel and all of its accessories to the Microsoft base steering shaft. Three self-threading screws provide a rigid mount to the Sidewinder base.


CLOSING COMMENTS:

Although this kit is very intricate in design, the assembly is not difficult and was an entertaining and enlightening experience. It is not a tedious installation but with so many adjustments available, I found I spent much more time adjusting than I actually did assembling the kit. As I stated, it is not impossible to build a stand alone wheel unit without the Microsoft donor but if you want just a plug & play wheel and pedal set, this one is probably not for you. The Frex kit adjusts in so many ways to suit the end users tastes and comfort it is one of those things that will take quite a bit of time after it is completed to fine tune all of the adjustments that are there. If you live to tinker with stuff, you’ll be quite intrigued by the myriad of possibilities that Frex has created and in the end have one of the fanciest upgrades to your controller that exists on the market. This intrigue doesn’t come cheap though and I’m not sure it should. Racing in general is not an economy sport. The entire kit retails for just under $460.00 US. The pedal kit alone retails for $280.00 US and that does not include the shipping from Osaka Japan nor the donor wheel from Microsoft. That price is F.O.B. Japan. Which means you arrange and pay for it to be shipped to you. However, if I were the manufacturer, I wouldn’t offer it for a penny less. Because in the real world, you get what you pay for in heavy-duty metal construction, great design architecture and fantastic engineering. All of which leads me to believe someone thought long and hard about how to make a controller upgrade that works and this one definitely works.