Best joy lube.... Tough question...
Depends on application use.
Depends on application use.
Joystick lubricant
- Thread starter videodan
- Start date
andrewb
Well-known member
I've rebuilt a ton of these. What you want is 100% silicone grease (aka spark plug grease or dielectric grease. Get a tube for $8 at any auto parts store.)
You do not need Nyogel. I've tried it and it isn't as good as silicone, and isn't worth the money.
And you don't want to use a lot. I put a tiny amount on a toothpick, and only apply it where needed. You only need a thin film at the contact points, not gobs of it.
Also, that base is the 'Gyruss style' Monroe. It is tricky to get apart. There are two C-clips, above and below the lower actuator roller bushing. You have to push that roller part down to pull out one of the C-clips, then slide it the other way to get the other one out. They are not obvious, and it's a tricky process the first time you do it.
Maybe find an exploded pic of the base to help. (Check the master Monroe thread, not sure if we have one there.)
You do not need Nyogel. I've tried it and it isn't as good as silicone, and isn't worth the money.
And you don't want to use a lot. I put a tiny amount on a toothpick, and only apply it where needed. You only need a thin film at the contact points, not gobs of it.
Also, that base is the 'Gyruss style' Monroe. It is tricky to get apart. There are two C-clips, above and below the lower actuator roller bushing. You have to push that roller part down to pull out one of the C-clips, then slide it the other way to get the other one out. They are not obvious, and it's a tricky process the first time you do it.
Maybe find an exploded pic of the base to help. (Check the master Monroe thread, not sure if we have one there.)
OP
OP
As a previous poster said, I'd soak it properly in rust remover for a long time. I'd use Evaporust, but you can use plain white vinegar, it just takes longer. There's probably rust up in there that you haven't removed with your spray.
Evaporust: overnight
Vinegar: 2 days
Swish it around from time to time when it's in there.
If it was me, I might even load up my ultrasonic cleaner with vinegar and let it sit in there, and just turn it on for a minute or 2 a few times a day.
Check this out:
Evaporust: overnight
Vinegar: 2 days
Swish it around from time to time when it's in there.
If it was me, I might even load up my ultrasonic cleaner with vinegar and let it sit in there, and just turn it on for a minute or 2 a few times a day.
Check this out:
andrewb
Well-known member
This is not true. They both can be removed.
Nothing is seized here. It's just a matter of taking it apart.
@videodan, there is a C-clip between that lower rounded bushing, and the roller bushing. Those are two separate pieces. Crack them apart. However the rounded piece is being pushed down on by the heavy spring above it, which is what makes this tricky. You have to press the rounded bushing up toward the base (compressing the spring) to see the C-clip that is hidden between them.
Once you get that clip out, the lower roller bushing can be slid back, exposing another hidden C-clip that is under that bushing, which you also can't see at the moment. But it's at the end of the shaft, inside the roller the way it is now.
If you want to ship it to me I can disassemble it for you. Just cover shipping and $5 for a beer.
mattosborn
Well-known member
I believe he was talking about removing the ball top from the shaft. Don't think you can do that, but there's no reason to anyway.
andrewb
Well-known member
Ah, you're correct. I misread that as the bushing ball, not the knob. Thanks for the correction.
That said, I personally haven't seen one that *couldn't* be unscrewed. I have seen ones that unscrew easier than others, and I think it's because they used glue on some of them, and maybe not others. (Maybe they got feedback that they were being stolen, and started gluing them?)
I think they made them unscrewable to make installation easier, so you don't need to disassemble the stick to get the shaft through the CP, for CP's where the CP hole is smaller than the stick knob.
The ones I've seen that would not unscrew easily, I have been able to remove by lightly heating the ball with a heat gun, just enough to soften the glue. Then they screw off like the others. The glue is usually a greenish color. But as far as I know they are all threaded.
The same goes for the thick part of the shaft. That's a separate piece from thinner inner shaft. But some are glued, while others aren't. I'm not sure if 100% of them (e.g., all shaft lengths, etc) are this way, but many definitely are. I've removed the glue and cleaned out the shaft on a few I've rebuilt, as I like the outer part of the shaft to spin. That way it tends to grind against the base less, if it's allowed to 'roll'.
andrewb
Well-known member
For reference, here's a pic from another thread showing how these go together. You can see the one C-clip between the rounded bushing and the lower roller, plus the location of the second hidden C-clip that is inside the roller (which is technically called a crescent clip, as it's very small).
Original thread here:
Also in that thread are the measurements for the white Delrin ring, in case anyone needs them.
Original thread here:
Monroe Joystick Parts
Two drastically different actuators here. The Rampage style one is taller and tapered. The other (which uses a taller ferrule under the knob) has the much smaller actuator. Both are 5/16" hole for shaft and 5/8" OD for the actuating surface however. Height of the taller one is 3/4", the smaller...
forums.arcade-museum.com
Also in that thread are the measurements for the white Delrin ring, in case anyone needs them.
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Wrong joystick.
Evaporust. Very aggressive on the rust and mild on everything else.
andrewb
Well-known member
If you're going to use Astroglide on a Monroe, you should probably put it on the knob.
mattosborn
Well-known member
Evaporust is amazing. It may seem expensive at first, but it's really not. You re-use it over an over. Lasts a very long time. I bought a big jug of it and put it in a sealable 5-gal bucket. My bucket doesn't seal perfectly, so there's some evaporation. Just add water to bring the level back up (it's a water-based product).
andrewb
Well-known member
Evaporust works great, no objections to it besides the price. I did the same, but with white vinegar.
1 gallon of Evaporust: $30
1 gallon of vinegar: $2
5 gallons of vinegar: $10
So for $10, I have a completely full 5-gallon bucket of vinegar in my shop, which I can soak very large items in. It also doesn't really evaporate much, even with the not-perfectly sealed cover. I've been using the same bucket of vinegar for two years.
Vinegar works equally well. It's just a little messier looking, as it doesn't 'disappear' the rust like Evaporust does, it just dissolves it. You pull the part from the vinegar, put it in the sink, and give it a scrub with a brass-bristle brush. The brush knocks off all of the last bits, and you're left with clean metal down to the pits.
Then you can use the vinegar to make some delicious iron-flavored pickles!
1 gallon of Evaporust: $30
1 gallon of vinegar: $2
5 gallons of vinegar: $10
So for $10, I have a completely full 5-gallon bucket of vinegar in my shop, which I can soak very large items in. It also doesn't really evaporate much, even with the not-perfectly sealed cover. I've been using the same bucket of vinegar for two years.
Vinegar works equally well. It's just a little messier looking, as it doesn't 'disappear' the rust like Evaporust does, it just dissolves it. You pull the part from the vinegar, put it in the sink, and give it a scrub with a brass-bristle brush. The brush knocks off all of the last bits, and you're left with clean metal down to the pits.
Then you can use the vinegar to make some delicious iron-flavored pickles!
100% right. Love that stuff. Used it many times.
Here's a semi recent example: https://forums.arcade-museum.com/threads/show-us-your-tumbling-results.515318/post-4766799
I've been using the same gallon for a lonnnng time.
In my experience, substantially more effective than vinegar. I guess YMMV.
mattosborn
Well-known member
Just looked up my order (buy online, pickup in store), and I bought my gallon 8 years ago!
I must have bought it on sale. Only cost me $14.88 at WalMart.
Probably have used it a couple dozen times. It looks milky now, but still works great.
andrewb
Well-known member
That's because our currency today is worth half of what it was 8 years ago.
If you start comparing, you see it everywhere. A 24-pack of Coke cans used to be $5.99 here in NH, and was that way for a decade. I used to stock a soda machine at my old work, and bought soda monthly at BJ's for ten years. I never paid more than $6. Now it's $12-14. Fast food prices have doubled, but so have the starting wages for the people making it.
Same thing with home prices. People think real estate has skyrocketed in value, because 'number go up'. But the truth is, most of that increase is due to the buying power of a dollar being driven down, via inflation.
It doesn't matter if the value of your home has doubled, when the cost of everything else has also doubled. (And if your salary hasn't doubled as well, you're actually behind the curve, as the buying power of each dollar you earn buys you less and less over time.) We're all being pinched as a result.
I'll be interesting to see where this ends up. Because it can't go on forever.
I bought mine...in the before times.
Actually, I asked the GF to pick it up for me.
She got 2 gallons instead of the1 gallon that I asked for.
OMG! I'll *NEVER* use all of this stuff!
She's too helpful.
I always filter mine through a blue shop papertowel before I put it back in the jug. It still looks new.
And it still looks like a full gallon. But it has yellowed with age. (this is normal)
Actually, I asked the GF to pick it up for me.
She got 2 gallons instead of the1 gallon that I asked for.
OMG! I'll *NEVER* use all of this stuff!
She's too helpful.
I always filter mine through a blue shop papertowel before I put it back in the jug. It still looks new.
And it still looks like a full gallon. But it has yellowed with age. (this is normal)
mattosborn
Well-known member
That does seem to be close to the truth for quite a few things, particularly food.
I'll circle back so we're on topic.... How about those Monroe prices!?!?
I was able to get a 5-gallon bucket of Evaporust from Oreilly's Auto. My son uses it on our ordinance collection and some of the projectiles and cases are huge. It is now $99 for the 5-gallon bucket so it brings the per gallon price down. The 2.5-gallon bucket is $83, and the gallon is $30. I had it shipped to the house and shipping was free. You can also pick up next day from the store. If you were in for the 2.5 gallon it would only be a little bit more to get the 5-gallon bucket. Again, we use it all the time for stuff. It may not be worth it for a casual user, but we are working on old parts that are made of unobtanium, so the gentle nature of the rust removal is worth paying extra for us.
obitus1990
Well-known member
The correct answer is Hawk Tuah spit on that thang…
