Top mounting a joystick is where you mount the joystick above the wood with a mounting plate. And bottom mounting is when you mount the joystick below the wood.
In that picture the joystick on the left is top mounted and the two on the right are bottom mounted. If you plan to bottom mount your sanwa then you want to bottom mount it on 1/4" thick wood 3/8" max. Any thicker and the joystick is going to start feeling short. You just rout out the area where you plan to mount the joystick if you want to bottom mount it.
Screw Type buttons use a nut which screws onto them to secure them onto the joystick. The clip in buttons just clip onto either a thin piece of metal or the plexiglass.
If you have a 30mm spade bit for your drill then the clip on buttons are the easiest to work with but the screw in type have a more solidly reinforced mounting method as they help hold the plexi down.
If your going to use sanwa screw buttons then you need to mount them on 1/4" thick wood or you could use thicker wood and then use a router to thin the wood around the buttons.
IF you plan on using the clip in type buttons then you need to get a 1-3/16" (30mm) and a 15/16" (24mm) spade bit or frostner bit.
Once you’ve drilled the holes for the buttons use a file which you can buy cheap at a hardware store to widen the holes in the wood just a tad to allow room for the clips. Don’t widen the hole in the plexi just the wood.
Most hardware stores don’t carry the 30mm bits but you can buy them online.
Dudes… How the heck do you unscrew the ball on a regular sanwa-stick? I’ve tried to unscrew the green fckr on my RAP but shit, I don’t know how to do it, and I’m to afraid to start using violence when I’ve opened the whole thing. The last thing I wan’t is a broken stick right now, though, that green ball is annoying as hell!
Thanks.
The same way you put it on. Open up your HRAP and look inside. On the bottom of the shaft should be a notch perfect for a flat head screwdriver. Use your screw driver in the notch to keep the shaft from turning while you unscrew the ball top.
Random question: How long is the stock Sanwa stick shaft (ball top included) from the top of it to where it meets the very top of the base (right where it’s about to be bottom mounted or where the top mount plate is going to be attached)? Just wanted to know so I can get an estimate on how much of the shaft will stick out depending on mounting board depth… Oh, and include the diameter of the ball top too.
ok, stupid question, but i just got my sanwa pushbuttons, which of the prongs is the ground and which is the main, or does it not matter, i’m not sure, anyone?
Thanks for the info, just one more question. Does it matter what size wood for using the clip type buttons? Could I just use 1/4" MDF to top mount the joystick and use clip buttons?
The Ball has a 1-1/4" diameter. The shaft from the Top of the Sanwa Hub to the bottom of the Ball Top is 1-1/4". So from the top of the Hub to the top of the Ball Top is 2-1/2".
It doesn’t matter which one you solder the ground to and which one you solder the active wire to.
If you used an Ultimarc J-Stick it would fit in your P360 hole otherwise probably not.
It doesn’t matter what size wood you use for the clip in type buttons. I would use thicker wood than 1/4" MDF if I could help it. Oh and I didn’t think about this before but if you use a bat top on your sanwa instead of a ball top you can bottom mount it in 1/2" thick wood.
The microswitches on the RG buttons last 5 times longer than the ones on the regular buttons. They are also allot more expensive. Rod from Himuragames can get them for you if you ask him to. He can usually get you just about anything from Sanwa’s website if you ask him for it.
