The HW-GEN003 Trim Wheel from Flight Illusion in The Netherlands belongs to a new line of products. My first reaction after unpacking it is: It’s HUGE !
No kidding. I was actually stunned a little by its “huge” size even though I was prepared to accept that it would be big after reading its physical dimensions before the purchase.
Pardon me if I sound a bit exaggerated.
But it was true at that moment because the contrast was so big that this relatively huge unit was packed in a relatively small package — which is about half the size of the box shipping the Flight Velocity Trim Wheel, which on the contrary is about half the size of the Flight Illusion trim.
Frankly, I have never seen any other trim wheel for simulation bigger than this one.
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A BOXY MODULE
The HW-GEN003 Trim Wheel, as its codename implies, is the third module in Flight Illusion’s new HW-GEN series, which generally adopts a boxy modular approach that is vastly different from the rest of the company’s previous products.
There are five (5) modules (from GEN001 on the left to GEN005 on the right) released so far, with many more different control units to come for not only single engines but dual engines, airliners and helicopters as well.
According to their product descriptions, the series are designed to help users to create a sim panel cockpit configuration for general aviation on desktop in no time.
Therefore, in addition to a USB cable, the Trim Wheel also comes with the necessary braces and connectors to allow the unit to mount or to connect to the other HW-GEN modules for expansion.
Actually, I was initially attracted to the new series by the composite unit in the drawing above that includes both the elevator and rudder trim wheels plus some user-configurable buttons.
Since the unit is still in development and there’s no schedule when it will be available, I somehow ended up getting the trim wheel instead, which has a nose up / nose down indicator and back-light LEDs.
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The EXTERIOR
The housing of the HW-GEN003 Trim Wheel, in general, is robust.
It weighs 853g (not 400g as stated in its product spec) and has a dimensions of 150mm (H) x 92mm (W) x 172mm+70mm (D with wheel included).
On the front plate, the trim wheel, as usual, is on the right and the nose up / nose down indicator, which has back-lit, on the left.
The eight (8) little white triangles on both edges are place marks for screw mounting and connection.
On the back plate, there is only one USB 2.0 type-B port for PC connection.
The assembly and craftsmanship of the unit is top-notch. 
Its enclosure uses a two-color tone, double-layer structure. The inside layer is in black, and the outside layer in grey with two circle cutouts each on the top-plate and the two side-plates.
Since I don’t see any practical use of the circle cutouts, I assume they are for aesthetics only.
The company’s CEO Matthijs Thijssen says that the enclosure is made of ABS, front and back plates are made of laser engraving material. The trim wheel itself is made from ABS, CNC milled.
With the weight and footprint of the unit, I can put it on any flat surface steadily. However, it only stays in place barely without sliding around during use.
In other words, if it is to be used alone, it’s better to make use of the attached aluminium braces to secure it on the desk top or mount it under the table for good.
At the moment, I just use a few pieces of nano-tapes to stick the unit temporary on my work desk.
Regarding the back lights, they work nicely illuminating the trim indicator and the texts.
My only complaint is there are leaks of light coming thru the two mounting holes in the middle on the left side of the front plate which is a bit irritating to the eyes in the dark.
My fix is to cover the two holes in the back of the front plate with some black tapes. That’s easy.
But the LEDs won’t turn off with the computer. I am not sure if it is because the Trim Wheel is connected to a powered USB hub or not.
Anyway, not a big deal. Either I’ll leave it staying on as it is or I’ll just switch off the power of that particular USB port after use.
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The INTERIOR
I didn’t open my unit. The followings are the 3D computer images showing the internal structures of the Trim Wheel I requested from the company.
Unlike the Saitek Cessna trim wheel or the Flight Velocity trim wheel that uses a rotary encoder to convert the signals for trim positions, the HW-GEN003 uses a belt to drive a 3-turn potentiometer instead.
Marco Leerentveld, Product Developer of the company, says that by using a high quality 3-turn potentiometer for the trim value, and combined with a timing belt that is mechanically linked to the wheel, the position indicator of the unit can always match with the current trim setting.
The trim indicator will move up and down following the position of the wheel. The wheel itself can do three (3) full rotations from maximum nose up to maximum nose down or the other way around. In addition, both the indicator and texts are backlighted when the unit is connected.
Marco added that the design is roughly based on a Cessna 172 trim wheel, but more generic so that it can be used for most GA aircraft.
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Installation
Installation is not required for the HW-GEN003 since its interface PCB presents itself as a joystick. It is plug and play via the USB port on the back plate to the computer without needing additional driver or power. 
However, if the unit is to be connected to the computer via a USB hub, the company recommends to use a powered hub to play safe.
As the unit works like a normal USB game controller, adding the trim wheel to MSFS or P3D or X-Plane is straight forward.
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The Wheel
The size of the trim wheel of the HW-GEN003 is a little bit larger in diameter than the Saitek or the Flight Velocity one. But thickness is about the same.
When the wheel is turned, it creates a lot more frictions than the other two products but not to a point that I need to press it hard.
Actually I can still turn it slightly with very little force, which I find very helpful when I need to finetune the trim to a precise position.
I would say the overall operation of the wheel is superb.
You turn the wheel fast, the trim position moves fast. You turn it slow, it moves slow. Very responsive.
In comparison, it makes the adjustment knob on the Flight Velocity Trim Wheel Pro I purchased earlier a complete unnecessity.
In addition, although the wheel by design can do three (3) full rotations from maximum nose up to maximum nose down or the other way around, I never find myself needed to turn it more than one (1) full rotation.
Nevertheless, there is still one thing I don’t fully satisfy with the wheel.
It is made from ABS, CNC milled, rather than plastic injection molded as used on the Saitek product or the company’s higher-end HW-TRIM.
In a way, it looks very similar to the wheel used on the Flight Velocity Trim Wheel Pro. Of course they are not the same.
Although there aren’t sharp edges as found on the Flight Velocity product, the wheel is still a bit rough compared to its bigger brother or the Saitek one.
I guess the answer of using a CNC milled wheel lies in the reply I got from Macro regarding the delivery of the unit after my purchase.
He says his company doesn’t have all items in stock. Most of their products are “made to order”, meaning the products are assembled only after they are ordered.
That’s understandable as plastic injection mold production doesn’t fit into this type of small scale manufacturing economically.
So obviously I can only accept it is what it is.
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A BEAUTIFUL MISUNDERSTANDING
Actually, it was the trim indicator on the HW-GEN003 that successfully persuaded me to go for the Flight Illusion Trim Wheel, despite the fact that I just bought the Trim Wheel Pro for only a few weeks.
While using the Flight Illusion Trim Wheel in the first week, I found the trim sometimes returned to the position where it was left off automatically after I issued a trim reset command to force it to go to the center.
I was excited to see that happened because that feature is something I really want — having the trim position to stay at where it is according to the physical position on the Trim Wheel, and, if necessary, automatically return to where it is currently despite what commands are given.
However, the feature didn’t work every time.
So I checked with Flight Illusion.
Matthijs replied to me that “feature” seemed like a conflict between the Trim Wheel and my other hardware or software to him.
He said that the only thing the HW-GEN module does is sending the current position to the simulator. This can only be the value as defined by the wheel.
If the Trim Wheel is in nose-up position when the simulator is started, the simulator will follow it directly. If there are other hardware or software that can control the trim as well, conflict may happen as shown in my case.
What a beautiful misunderstand !
Anyway, I am glad that my hunch to get the Flight Illusion Trim Wheel is still correct.
If I forget to set the trim wheel back to the center at the start of a flight now, with the HW-GEN003, I no longer end up in an unknown trim position or in a situation where my aircraft suddenly dropping or rising furiously as I encountered in the past with the other two trim wheels that are using the rotary encoder.
Although the Flight Illusion’s potentiometer approach still couldn’t get rid of the “memory effect”, its belt-driven mechanism acts like a lock holding the trim indicator in place, so that I can instantly tell where the current trim position is or where it is left off.
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Conclusion
- So, is the Flight Illusion HW-GEN003 Trim Wheel good?
Absolutely.
The Trim Wheel can’t be said perfect but it is the best I have ever used so far, no doubt.
- Will it replace my Saitek or Flight Velocity Trim Wheel ?
Definitely.
But I’ll need to figure out how to incorporate it to my existing setup due to its body size. It is not just a simple taking out the old and putting in the new.
- Will I miss the adjustment knob on the Flight Velocity Trim Wheel Pro ?
No, I won’t.
The HW-GEN003 already works accurately and very responsive, making the adjustment knob unnecessary.
- Any other thing I don’t like about the Trim Wheel in particular ?
The Trim Wheel is not cheap:
$225 for the unit; $77 for shipping; $11 for PayPal Fee — totalling $313
It is nearly two and a half times (2.5x) the price ($135, including shipping) I paid for the Trim Wheel Pro. Dear me !
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The Verdict
If 5 stars rate the best,
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The body construction & quality of HW-GN003 : 4.5 Stars
The wheel : 3.5 Stars
The wheel performance : 5 Stars
The trim indicator : 5 Stars
Accessories : 4 Stars
Overall operation and performance : 5 Stars
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Recommendation : Highly, if you don’t mind the price.
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FSX TIMES 