There’s plenty of choice for sim racing handbrakes these days, but sitting at the cheaper end of the branded entries is Moza’s HBP handbrake. It can work independently via USB cable making it an option for all PC racers, and connects with Moza’s software to allow you to customise the input curve just how you like it, and can be physically adjusted to tweak the amount of travel there is and how much resistance it puts up getting there, ranging from a fairly long pull to a very short and snappy one.
If you’re after a pretty cheap unit, but you want something with a good deal of adjustability and a bit more name-brand legitimacy than a generic ebay handbrake can give you, this seems to hit the mark. Let’s have a quick look.
Note:
Thanks to Moza for providing the HBP handbrake for review. Although sent courtesy of them, Moza has no say in what I say, those that know my reviews know that I’m not scared to point out shortcomings if there are any, but praise is also always given where due. The links below are affiliate links and may earn me a small commission from the parent site.
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Contents
In the box you get the handbrake base, the upper half of the handbrake complete with the handle that you can remove and replace with your own custom item, an alternative spring and rubber bushing to adjust the handbrake’s physical feel, the tools you’ll need to swap the bushes and springs if desired, and connection cables.
The construction of the handbrake is all metal apart from the control module on the side where the circuity lives. Overall it sets off a really low key satin black anodised finish with a design that looks like Moza actually tried to make it stylish, I like the look of everything except for the knobbly knee bit in the middle, that looks a bit goofy but it can be forgiven being as that gives the handle adjustability.
You don’t have to leave the spring cover plate fixed - the spring makes for an interesting splash of colour, but I think it may actually be intended to protect against food falling in whilst you snack at your sim rig, if just one cheese and onion crisp falls in there, you’ll wish you were dead.
There are two mounting holes at the front and rear of the handbrake but also a single threaded hole underneath, between them there should be enough to work with to mount it to most things. I’ve mounted mine to the shifter mount of the GT Omega Titan rig seen above but if I wanted a shifter AND handbrake together then of course I’d need to add a separate bracket or extension plate, so do consider where and how you’ll mount yours.
In order to detect you pulling on the handbrake it uses a rotation sensor, not a load cell, that presumably helps keep the cost down to where it is and it’s not unusual at this price point either, but it’s also not really a practical cause for concern either because you can still set the handbrake up to act very much like a load cell handbrake in nature and that’s thanks to the accompanying Moza software that makes it all possible. In the Moza pit house app you can tweak the exact input curve that you want the handbrake to register, very useful for making sure things can be molded to suit your particular style, whatever that may be.
My handbrake is set up to completely ignore the initial slack in the lever, i.e. the 1st stage, then it picks up sharply when it meets that resistance of this rubber wedge which essentially acts as the 2nd stage of the handbrake pull. To me it behaves and gives results just like the Heusinkveld handbrake I owned previously and that’s twice the cost of this at least. It’s possible for me to set it up exactly like that with Moza’s software very easily, they have certainly given the user enough options to play with and it’s because of the combination of software and physical tweaks that the HBP handbrake is easy to recommend to people, I can’t imagine there’s many out there that can’t set this thing up to their taste, and the few that do fall into that category probably need a more specialist boutique handbrake anyway.
If it wasn’t for the extra effort put into adjustability, then this would just be a generic, unremarkable device. Because they did this is an excellent handbrake for the price that feels like it was made to satisfy the widest spread of racers possible for the money. It’s a considerate handbrake - if you know what I mean - like at a hotel when there’s both continental breakfast and a big greasy fry up on the menu; pretty much everyone should be satisfied.
Whenever I make a video on an item like this, I gleefully crack out Dirt Rally 2 and wonder why it isn’t my go-to game because I always have an excellent time. With a handbrake, it’s such an active and hectic game to play, it’s always so addictive to launch the car into turns and kick the back end out with a physical pull of the lever, it simply wouldn’t be the same without it.
As mentioned, I’ve used the Heusinkveld handbrake before, and whilst that is a lovely premium piece of kit with a load cell sensor and a distinct mechanical aesthetic, in real, practical terms the Moza HBP can do a comparable job for a lot less money for most people, only professionals or ultra-spec rig builders would need anything more. If you like the way it looks, for the price this handbrake should make you pretty happy.
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