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A Visit to Guillemot
By Kurt Giesselman

The first visit to a new place can often be the most memorable. My first visit to Guillemot certainly qualified as memorable for me. Everyone was very open and informative. You may note that there are very few photographs. This is the price paid for being allowed into the inner sanctums of Guillemot's Research and Development center.

Fig. 1. The Inner Sanctum of Guillemot R&D

The scope and quantity of new products under development at Guillemot is somewhat staggering. Two new HOTAS/joystick lines, a new flight yoke, new game pads, two new fully graphic user interface (GUI) driven configuration programs (one just for the F-22/TQS/RCS HOTAS 2000 setup and another for the Top Gun joysticks, game pads, and NASCAR/Ferrari racing wheels), new video cards, and new audio cards are just the short list that is most interesting to Combat Sim readers. Let's take a closer look at each. All prices quoted are estimates and are subject to change without notice. Not all products described may actually be manufactured. Specifications and features are subject to (you guessed it) change without notice.

F-22/TQS/RCS 2000 HOTAS

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Fig. 2. New F-22 mock up

Before any of you cry foul, "I saw that mock up in your E-3 report", let me remind you that photographs were not allowed in Guillemot's R&D center. I fully understand considering some of the things I was shown. The HOTAS 2000 program is on track and making great progress. Peter "McLane" Kreft, who is currently heading up this project, and his team are ready to send drawings out for manufacturing bids and CAD files for the metal work and plastic molding. Metal work you ask? The shear amount of metal in the stick and throttle should keep this stick and throttle in place on your desktop without any suction cups!

Fig. 3. New TQS mock up

The Guillemot team has gone through the original F-22/TQS design and replaced several of the original injection molded plastic parts with either metal or nylon (doesn't corrode, very good for a smooth feel in some moving parts). The old plastic central hub in the gimbal? Metal! The plastic ring at the base of the stick? Metal! The plastic shaft for the four way hats? Metal! The whole darn stick? Metal!

Fig. 4. F-22 with small head

Talk about the luck of the Irish, the morning I arrived at Guillemot the mechanical drawings for the new F-22 stick had just been delivered. We went through the drawings in detail while Peter or one of his team members pointed out every change. For those of you that do not remember, Peter was head of Thrustmaster's Technical Service in Europe. He saw reports on every part failure in the F-22/TQS/RCS line. He really knows all the weak links and has corrected them in the new design. Additionally, the new design has easy access to all the internals. The unit will be assembled with heavy duty Allen head screws. If anything ever does break, most repairs can be easily accomplished by the end user.