Low Force Joystick Grommets

Have you tried with the stiffer darker blue silicon you used in the earlier grommets?

I have not. The blue stuff actually has a lower durometer than the green. So, maybe too wimpy. There are some stiffer silicones that may be OK. I need to get one into a game and see how it plays, and my only opto stick game (Joust) is down at the moment.

I like the zero-play design. I don't think that plastic actuator is going to hold up though. Just make a hole where you can glue in a metal rod.

I think you are correct. At least about the rotation rods. I think the leaf actuator rod is not subjected to much force and should be OK. I decided to fall back to the older design and use 1/4" bolts that screw in to nuts captured in the actuator body:
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I'm sure some appropriately sized rods pressed into the actuator would work too. But, they need to be the right length, and I'm trying to minimize fabricated pieces.

Since I don't want to require any permanent modification of the housing, I placed an additional bearing outside the joystick frame to allow the bolt head to rotate freely:
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Assembly was completed in a few minutes with a screwdriver and some pliers to tighten the nuts:
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This assembly feels solid with no slop. Better than the plastic rod version. Pretty strong.

My defender needs this mod. I'm going to try it and see how it holds up.

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HOLY CRAP! These Grommets are quite literally GAME CHANGERS!

It took my Wico from unplayable and painful to a smooth as butter stick. I had SO much fun over the weekend with my games and this Joystick Upgrade!

(Posted this on my own thread too)

If there is anyone on the fence about this grommet......let me push you over the edge!

Totally agree with these comments. Stock Wico grommets are unplayable, the jlpmauldin grommets are the solution.
 
Just wanted to throw this guy a kudos. After being disappointed with the stiffness of the Arcadeshop grommets for my Wicos; I got some from @jlpmauldin and holy crap are they damn perfect. Robotron plays so much better. Buy with confidence.
 
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I got some of the first ones he made and my Robotron is still going strong and the joysticks feel great.
 
Agreed on Robotron feeling like butter. Have more I'm going to adding to a Smash TV when I get that done.
 
Thanks to everyone for the support. Suggestions and feedback from the forum are really helpful.

It's also great hearing that collectors are having more fun playing their games.

I haven't made a design change in months. The last rev seems pretty solid. Way better than the first ones.

This project has gone so well I started making other control parts. I've made a bunch of Williams spiders now, and I've made a super cheap Wico spinner replacement I need to post about. I also need to look into Battlezone grommets. Lots to do!

I'll keep making them as long as there's interest.

Happy new year to all!
 
OK update

I've had some time to work on the BZ/FS grommet design. Here is the joystick housing for the grommet I'm looking to replicate:
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These are bigger than the Wico style grommets. Just under 2.5" in diameter:
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These do not bolt into the housing. They are captured in a groove.

This grommet will be in inner and outer rings with silicone in between. The silicone should hold onto the rings so it doesn't come apart during play.

This first design was mostly just a pathfinder experiment and I expected problems. The ring designs had features that protruded into the silicone that were intended to hold it all together after assembly:
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The silicone was molded separately and then fit into the rings:
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This first attempt wasn't horrible (some bubbles in the silicone but mostly OK):
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Fitment in the housing is good. But, the rings and silicone did not hold together well at all. Also, the silicone is not thick enough to re-center the stick properly.
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I need for all the parts to hold together. Glue is an option, but I'd rather avoid that if possible. Continued in next post...
 
I thought the best option was to redesign the rings with small windows that would allow the silicone to flow through during injection. If this works, the silicone would be permanently linked to the rings after it cures:
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In order for this work, the rings have to be in the mold when the silicone is injected. The molds had to be re-designed to accept the rings, and then it all needed to fit together snuggly enough to prevent leakage during curing. This required a few little sub-mm features. Also for these new molds, I increased the thickness of the silicone flex area to stiffen the action a little and made the breather holes bigger to prevent trapped air:
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The result was really good. There was very little leakage around the ring pieces. Almost no flash to clean off:
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Also, the silicone flowed into the little windows as hoped. All these pieces are permanently joined now. They can only be separated by tearing the silicone.

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Fitment is good and the stick re-centers properly. The play action is still quite light. It now needs to be play tested for awhile to see how it holds up. Also, I don't have a Food Fight, so not sure how it would feel playing that game.
 
Glad you are taking this on! (looked into it myself but too many reality things in the way) Whizz's version definitely suffices (and will outlast life on earth) but I find that is has too much play and the lack the hard parts makes the play worse. (not knocking his, in fact it's what is in my red baron now and I'm still rockin 30,000 plus.) And for those who want to buy the other repros, (formally Ram Cunt Troll's offered by another vendor who is not he) those are built more like the original but are severely riddled with bubbles, and are a thinner rubber than the originals. My thoughts are that they wont last especially from RB and BZ beatings. Play kinda loose compared to the original too.
I think this one will be an awesome hybrid of Whizz's and the original. (Which I also had the pleasure of testing NOS).
I'm totally down for one when ready, out of curiosity of comparison to the other 3.
 
I thought the best option was to redesign the rings with small windows that would allow the silicone to flow through during injection. If this works, the silicone would be permanently linked to the rings after it cures:
full


In order for this work, the rings have to be in the mold when the silicone is injected. The molds had to be re-designed to accept the rings, and then it all needed to fit together snuggly enough to prevent leakage during curing. This required a few little sub-mm features. Also for these new molds, I increased the thickness of the silicone flex area to stiffen the action a little and made the breather holes bigger to prevent trapped air:
full


The result was really good. There was very little leakage around the ring pieces. Almost no flash to clean off:
full


Also, the silicone flowed into the little windows as hoped. All these pieces are permanently joined now. They can only be separated by tearing the silicone.

full


Fitment is good and the stick re-centers properly. The play action is still quite light. It now needs to be play tested for awhile to see how it holds up. Also, I don't have a Food Fight, so not sure how it would feel playing that game.


That's pretty dang cool.

I'd love to test out a set in my Battlezone. I have the Wiz ones now and they are too dang stiff.
 
The fusing of the rings & silicon looks like a solid solution. Nice design and execution.

Have you tried that technique on the Wico-style ones? Thinking that could be especially good on the center flanged sleeve, if you still use a printed one.
 
ve you tried that technique on the Wico-style ones? Thinking that could be especially good on the center flanged sleeve, if you still use a printed one.

I've thought about it. I really like the one-and-done aspect of this approach.

On the other hand, the current Wico version works well and has some features that I want to keep. I'm not ready to modify the design on those yet.
 
I still have my first set from Jim and they are still flawless. Getting closer to a 500,000 point game because of them. Keep us posted if you complete some for Food Fight.. I have 2, but only the older joystick currently needs a new grommet at the moment.
 
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