Fanatec Clubsport Handbrake V1.5 Review

Final thoughts on the Fanatec Clubsport handbrake version 1.5. Out of the box this handbrake looked and felt like I expected considering the 130.00 price point. The body casement is made from stamped steel. As well as the internal support brackets. The finish on the casement halves was better than I had expected. The internal mechanical bits are made for the most part
from steel. It is a simple yet effective design. The main shaft that the spring is riding on, is a solid steel rod. The action is surprisingly good on the bench. Good heavy spring tension when pulling the lever, and a soft landing on release of the lever provided by the rubber bumper acting as a stop. There is some flex in the mechanism as a whole. But I was not expecting it to have a solid feel. I was also not expecting the unfinished sharp burs that were left on the main levers edges. Not sure how this got through the quality control guys, but it is sharp enough to cut through some dental floss with ease. I did take the time to file down the edge burs, so I would not have any issues working around it. Also, It will probably end up with another sim racer, so I didn’t want them
to have to deal with it. The foam handle feels quite good in use. Not sure about long term durability though. Fanatec has thought of many ways the user may want to mount this handbrake. And
has come up with an overall good compromise design with their solution. I didn’t have any issues getting mounted to my cockpit. Driving this handbrake doesn’t inspire the driver, but it does get
the job done without any complaints. I was able to find a good rhythm with it when driving my rally cross car. The pressure needed to pull the handle was a little less than I was hoping for when testing it before actually driving. Still, enough tension for most I think. Overall, this Clubsport handbrake meets my expectations for one in this price range. Except for the sharp burs on the levers edges, it did everything I needed it to do.