Just arrived. 48 hour thoughts, extremely negligible complaints

[chris]

I ordered the Revolution about two weeks ago and received all five boxes (cockpit plus accessories) yesterday. Took me some time but I have it mostly set up. I’m typing this from the workstation now. This is an absolutely fabulous solution to the old desk and rolling chair getup.

I have some thoughts about my experience so far that I would like to share (in no particular order).

1. Boxes came in a bit worn with holes in some that I was worried a small part or two could have fallen out. No such issue here after assembly. Everything was internally packaged very well (too well, how do I get rid of all this foam and cardboard!?) and all pieces appeared in tip top shape.

2. Assembly wasn’t quick, but I expected that. The Obutto assembly videos, the instructions that came with the cockpit, and the actual physical pieces didn’t match up. So it took a couple beers but I managed.

3. I was unsure about the seat when I ordered it. I’m a big guy, 6’2 about 220 pounds. I thought that seat was going to be too small for my frame, specifically the flared edges on the seat, I was worried it would squeeze my thighs and back. It is actually pretty amazing. The seat is larger that I had imagined, but it is shaped such that even a smaller person would feel comfortable in it. I do get some squeezing around my upper thighs, but I imagine that will ease with extended sitting and wear-in (I could also hit the treadmill, so I can’t blame that one on the chair).

4. The center column which houses the main mount was off level by a significant amount, very noticeable to the eye and bubble off the charts on my level. With a little force and some mechanical agitation I got the main mount surface to be mostly level, it is still off by a half to one degree, but not noticeable by eye. This was not a problem but did take some extra time to correct and get right.

5. The rest of the main body went together easily and man is this thing SOLID! Chair, pedal board, main mount…. doesn’t move in the slightest no matter what force you throw at it. This could support an elephant and not stretch a millimeter. I don’t feel like I’m sitting in a chair, I feel like I’m sitting in something attached to my house, it does not move, sway, or shake.

6. From reviews I’ve read I was under the impression that the keyboard tray would be bouncy. It has some play, but for the distance from my hands to the body connection point it is very minimal. It is as good, or better, than my best expectations.

7. That being said, the pivot joints on the articulation keyboard tray arm seem to self-tighten as I use them. One of the joints tends to get really tight after moving it about despite loosening the allen bolt repeatedly. Not a huge issue, and it’s not seized, but it requires me to use my hand to manipulate the arms rather than just swing the tray around.

8. The monitor stand is solid carrying three 27 inch monitors despite my initial feeling about it. With no monitors attached it was shaky and the legs were loose. This isn’t a problem now that everything is setup, but moving the monitor stand might prove annoying given the play in the legs. I would like to see a cross bar for support attaching the two vertical main legs. If you need to move your monitor stand often the current setup is not exactly optimal.

9. My monitors are nice and level. I’ve seen a lot of comments from people not being able to get their monitors leveled out with the triple monitor arms. I honestly didn’t find it much of an issue. After attaching three monitors to the VESA plates it only took about 15 – 20 minutes to fine tune in the leveling. The side monitor arms are way more resilient than I had anticipated. They feel solid with no noticeable sag. The hardest part was getting the tilt right on the individual mounts. I really had to gronk down on the horizontal bolts to get the monitors to not droop downwards under their own weight. This could be an issue with heavier monitors.

10. Joystick / HOTAS mounting. I am currently flying with an X-52 Pro. The Revolution mounting plates are smaller than the base of my joystick / throttle. At this point I am not sure how I am going to deal with this. I wanted to hard mount them using the provided holes on the joystick / throttle base. The holes are slightly off the plate, though. Double sided tape or velcro is not a good solution for me as it would allow for some play between the base and the mounting plate, and also I want to be able to swap out flight hardware without re-velcroing or re-taping my joysticks. I really want a solid solution with a solid attachment / mount. I will figure this one out but it may take some jerry-rigging.

I think that’s about it. Ten seems like enough. When it comes down to it I have to say that this thing is solid, comfortable, and utilitarian. I didn’t even know what I was missing before. I love sitting with my legs extended and in a recline-able chair.

Amazing. Thank you.

[Author]

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