@jimmer
So basically you’re telling me you’re not Jim Bowley, known as Jimmerjammer from the jammaplus boards ? You were selling a whole lot of new stuff (generic, legit, customs) on these boards and via facebook , hinting people to look for “arcadepartsuk” on ebay (ebay store which doesn’t exist), nor do exist the websites whose adresses are listed on your facebook pages (retrofightsticks.co.uk and arcadepartsuk.co.uk lead to blank pages, and I’ve checked them months ago while reading articles on retrogaming, wico sticks and all, since I’m also genuinely interested in old style joysticks, buttons and games) .
jammaplus link where you present new material including your prototypes : jammaplus.co.uk/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=60687&title=goldleaf-buttons-joysticks-restrictors
So what’s this “arcadepartsuk” business all about? Just a coincidence that it resembles arcadeworlduk in the title? some stuff you sell is only distributed by arcadeworlduk in the UK (such as the new goldleaf mk2 buttons from BaoLian) . This is not meant as an attack but just to clarify things since professionals usually introduce themselves as pros and not like random fans or DIYers who have a project to elaborate asking other fans and diehard gamers their opinion. I mean if you actively sell and order from manufacturers, a bit more clarity should be introduced in the mix.
the big difference between a pro who sells, repairs and advertises…and a simple fan who has ideas is that the fan will struggle (as it can be seen on this same forum) HARD to order some fizzy 3d printed parts as no manufacturer will make for him one or two protoypes just for the sake of it , while a pro just writes a little email or has a short chat with a chinese dude from baolian or other manufacturer and a dozen of protos arrive in a month with a relatively professional look to them.
Other than that, the grommet stick whose photo you posted on jammaplus.co.uk , which model is taht? a japanese plate-less jlf sized model such as the one present on your diagrams?
what is funny is that people are telling you “do you know this or that joystick model” as if speaking to a newbie when you sell tons of joysticks yourself. Why should it go this way?
The only models you should get your hands on are those of your …competitors, such as groovy game gear who sells some chinese leafswitch generic joysticks, some with grommets, others based on pivots. There’s even a guy who patented some leaf based sticks I just discovered on the web a few days ago. honestly, GGG’s “deluxe” gromemt +leaf stick is ABSURDLY overpriced at almost 50 bucks, which is incomprehen sible for something that is a blatant wico ripoff barely modified with basic leaf holding parts that have nothing special.
How about the rubber in your grommet, how does it differ from the one in the wico repros and inspired clones , often based on natural rubber which sure has some qualities but doesn’t last that long and cracks under exposure to sunlight for example, not to speak of the poor chemical resistance unless many specific additives are included to slow the degradation proces reasonably.
The HEART of a grommet stick is its grommet, so if its too soft to please the JLf crowd, it’ll wobble all over the place when playing “MK” style aka only with taps and dashes on a long shaft with exclusively a bat top. Also the fit of the central tube in which the shaft will go should almost be a pressure fit to limit wobble and imprecision. Another point that is almost never adressed on forums and blogs is the way a grommet is designed geometrically: its concentric grooves act like bellows in a horizontal plane (usually bellows are superposed along the Z axis, on the shaft, as on industrial joysticks and flightsim sticks, but ona WICO type grommet, the “bellows” are concentric and remain in the same plane more or less) . Did you opt for a shape that simply is a repro of wico or did you redesign completely the grommet, which means a different rubber type and a new shape?
Concerning the leafs in the leafswitches, you’ll have to opt for QUALITY leafs that are resilient and do not keep a bend, or else people will disregard them, except leaf only fans who will always buy leafs exclusively, and that is for the feel and the rapidity of firing only. If you simply stuff your stick with some random chinese leaf whose leaf alloy remains undiscolsed to you (chinese manufacturers already are producing on a large scale repro leaf joysticks and some vendors are already distributing them).
As for the question of should the leafs (and micros eventually) be adjustable, I say why not. As long as it remains precise, after all the actuation is only a matter of a fraction of a millimeter and not everyone is ok with buying a goodie bag full of different radius actuators to swap in and out. Only diehard modders do this, while people only oriented towards gaming will occasionally swap once in a while and stick with a given configuration. But that’s only my opinion. Some people spend thouisands of bucks for a pile of custome joysticks cases and play hours too. As another member said, you cannot please everyone and wil have to make a compromise or simply issue different versions of your stick.
