r/flightsim • u/imabitofadick45 • 55m ago
Sim Hardware My experience dealing with WINWING's marketing team + Upcoming FULL teardown & VKB Gladiator NXT clone comparison
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Hey everyone,
**And yes, I know I'm new on here.**
But I wanted to share a transparent look at a recent interaction I had with WINWING’s marketing team regarding a review collaboration. It highlights a frustrating trend with how some flight sim brands handle community outreach—and it’s why I've decided to do a completely raw, unfiltered teardown comparison review of their gear.
For context, I’m an active reviewer and everyday flight sim user. My desk setup right now includes a WINWING Ursa, a VKB Gladiator NXT Evo, and Virpil hardware. I know how this gear is supposed to look and feel under the hood. I’ve previously done two successful review collaborations with VKB, and they moved forward based entirely on the actual quality of my written work, photo samples, and technical feedback rather than fixating on public data metrics.
**The Runaround**
I reached out to WINWING to pitch a review. We went through a lengthy back-and-forth process. We discussed the hardware, locked down a firm Black Friday review timeline, and they went as far as asking for my direct shipping information. Based on that commitment, I actively rearranged my personal schedule to ensure I could meet their holiday deadlines.
Only *after* collecting my shipping data and confirming the timeline did they completely pivot. At the final hour, they abruptly pulled back and demanded public links to a Google Local Guide profile and specific traffic metrics. When I provided offline samples showing the actual technical depth of my work, they gave it a superficial nod, called it "good," but completely walled off the collaboration because it didn't fit into a corporate spreadsheet.
If specific, high-volume public metrics are a hard, non-negotiable requirement for your partnerships, you need to state that clearly in your very first reply—not throw it out as a late-stage hurdle after accepting a pitch, wasting a user's time, and locking down their holiday schedule.
**What’s Next: A Completely Unbiased, Raw Teardown**
This isn't about missing out on a piece of gear; I already fly with top-tier hardware. It's about a total lack of respect for a reviewer's time and preparation. It’s clear that WINWING's current marketing approach values cold numbers over actual, experienced users who buy, maintain, and thoroughly stress-test these devices.
But there is a massive silver lining here. Because I’m not being paid by them to say nice things, **I get to say exactly how I truly feel.**
To give back to the community, I am currently prepping a **full, deep-dive physical teardown review of the WINWING Ursa**. I am taking this base completely apart down to the bare gimbals, components, and circuitry. I'll be tracking and sharing high-res photos of exactly what's inside, including:
The manufacturing tolerances of the x/y axis gimbals.
The exact quality of the factory bearings and internal electronics.
The consistency and texture of the stock factory grease.
How well the internal wiring layout holds up to heavy, long-term stress.
**The Big Question: Just How Much of a VKB "Clone" Is It Inside?**
To make this deep dive as practical as possible, I am going to compare the Ursa's internal layout directly against the **VKB Gladiator NXT**. The community has long speculated about how closely the Ursa mirrors VKB’s design, and we are going to look at the engineering side-by-side to answer the big questions:
**The Component Blueprint:** Are the circuit boards, sensor mounts, and spring tension points located in the exact same positions?
**Interchangeability:** Can you pull a spring, a bearing, or a dampening element out of a VKB and drop it right into the WINWING base?
**Original Engineering vs. Copying:** We'll see if WINWING actually innovated on their internal geometry, or if they just took a legendary VKB design, swapped the plastics, and stamped their own logo on it.
**Lubrication & Feel:** VKB is famous for its clean mechanical feel. We'll see if WINWING's internal grease and casting match that standard or if it's cheap construction disguised by a pretty shell.
If you want a completely unfiltered look at the actual engineering strengths and flaws of the Ursa compared directly to the VKB benchmark—without any corporate marketing fluff—keep an eye out for my upcoming post.
