Zal's budget stick bonanza! UPDATE 11/11 CLOSED TILL CURRENT ORDERS ARE COMPLETE

Trading Outlet
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CLOSED TILL I FINISH ORDERS, I WILL NOT RESPOND TO PM’s FROM NEW CUSTOMERS RIGHT NOW AS I NEED TIME TO COMPLETE THE ORDERS I HAVE THANK YOU, I’LL UPDATE WHEN WE’RE OPEN FOR ORDERS
If you have already inquired about a stick you are probably on the waiting list for the next set

I also have a new PCB policy for full sticks

When i was looking for a joystick, i realized that there aren’t really any affordable (as in cheap ha ha) arcade perfect sticks.

So i set out to make an arcade perfect stick for the budget gamer, some of us don’t need elegant art and woodwork, just a working stick. I just designed a stick box that fell right in within my budget and i am happy to say that i have an arcade perfect stick starting at $50 plus pcb.

the boxes are made out of MDF, nothing fancy, screw in construction. happ/iL parts, 6 face buttons and two start/select + any extra buttons your pcb requires (as in x box button or ps button) measures 12"x8"x3"

i will also be selling boxes by themselves with the panel holes cut to your specifications for $20 a piece.

UPDATE:
So here’s the final design for the happ’s:

american street fighter layout

finished sticks:

thekidfromLBC’s American PS2 stick

Domino Logic’s American 360 stick

Prices:
Blank American box - $20
Blank Japanese Box (with plexi) $30
American Stick (minus pcb) $50
Japanese Stick (minus pcb) $75

PCB’s: i’ll have to out source some of my hacking, Rugedman will take care of that.
I will now have a $5 dollar hacking fee. This is relatively low as it can take upwards of an hour and a half to hack a pad

Prices: (fee included)
PS2 $15
360 $25
PS3 - these pads are hard as shit to hack, i think a toodles cthulu board would be much better suited, but those cost about $40 dollars, thats a pretty good deal for a great PCB, no hacking fee if you order a Cthulu

for other pcb’s pm me and we’ll work something out

Sanwa/Japanese Box prototpye pics:

I’m now accepting orders on the japanese sticks.

I’m going to have to set a limit of ten boxes per shipment and no more than 5 full sticks
This is kind of like a full time job to me now, but i still need to make time for school.

if you have any questions feel free to ask or PM me, thank you all for your time,

i cannot tell you how stoked i am to be doing business in this community!

-Zach

Order Status:
ETOTHENG: so how does $15 shipped sound?
Logos: assembling stick tomorrow
Snatcher: painting today, assembly tomorrow
Pablo: i just need to install the pannel in yours then hack the pcb, your parts are all here, did you mean to get snap ins?
MRGay: i don’t believe i’ve gotten payment from you, i have your parts in
Ikagi-Chan: i’ll order your parts today
Muffinman: i’m going to get your estimate now, i just need to drill your pannels

Waiting list:
Vietexan
Patmonsta
Oresuma
Graph
Lovepig
Rawisjehrico
Cacaking
FallingEdge
Tetsu
Bobbysworldfosho
Bucklemyshoe

you guys will all be taken care of in my next shipment, if you’ve gotten ahold of me or tried to remind me and you can go on the waiting list too

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Are you doing the wiring/soldering as well?

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yeah i can do that as well, if not i have a buddy who can, its included in the price

and like i said thats not the final design, i’ll have a more complete/finalized design next week i think. it’ll be more ergonomic and maybe i’ll stencil on some artwork

4

what are the dimensions of this thing? from the pics it looks like hrap sized but a little taller and less wide.

it looks like you might get splinters playing on that lol but im sure you have taken care of that already. i suggest making the corners rounder but like you said that is not the final design. maybe make it a little flatter if you can, as flat as you can go without running into clearance problems. save some wood, lol.

anyways i think there would be interest in this, especially if you do xb360 sticks. given that people buy the hori EX2, which is ~$50 for shitty hori parts i know i would gladly pay an extra 20 or so on top of that for something real arcade parts (and a non-shitty pcb since youre probably going to be hacking 360 controllers). if you put japanese parts in there you will definitely get people wanting those but im not sure it would still be “budget” because sanwa/seimitsu parts are more than double the price of Happ/iL parts.

actually now that i think of it there arent that many options for getting an american stick so maybe this would be a good solution for people who want one. i know i would buy it if the price was right.

5

Dude, what is that? Plywood?

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the panel is yeah, but its sanded down, and i’m looking into something else for the panel, perhaps some thiner MDF

if my math is right, the jap stick would only cost about 15-20 more, and definitely thinner. i don’t have a job currently so getting those parts isn’t really in my budget unfortunately.

in the picture the panel is 8"x12" and the box is 3 1/2" high, the next one i do will be shorter and have some sort of beveling.

7

Nice. If it comes out well i might be interested in getting one. I dont have a job as well and have been searching for a while and dont have the skills you do, hell, i wish i had a soldering iron atleast then i could do some work.

8

:lol: thats one big ass box :wgrin:

but im def. interested, I’ve been trying to look for a stick that wont break my wallet, id make my own but my wiring exp. sucks

9

Nice work. Your work is a throwback to the beginnings of home joystick making. Happ parts, wood, wire, and a PCB all thrown together without care of cosmetics. As long as it works, it’s good.

10

I want a box for $20, and maybe I could pick it up?

11

So how much is it in total?? Shipping included into the price or not?

12

hey rugged i shot you a PM, maybe you’ll be my first customer :woot:

the box isn’t actually that big, i think its smaller than a mas, could be mistaken though who knows, i don’t own one :frowning:

but if anyone would like to place an order i think i can go home to make another box or two this weekend, and of course if you don’t like the redesign i could either refund you or make you another box free of charge with design tweaks.

13

You know Zal, this is a freaking wonderful thing you’re trying to do here. I know two very close friends of mine who are definitely interested in these “budget” sticks. Just got a few questions.

  1. If we’re willing to pay extra, can you paint them (nothing fancy, just a monotone color, like black) and put a finishing coat on them so that it doesn’t splinter or anything?
  2. One of my buds is wondering if you can mix and match parts. He’s looking for a stick with Happ/iL buttons and a Sanwa joystick. Are you able to do that?
  3. Just to make sure, PS2 compatible PCBs are a default, correct? And will they be soldered from 1st party or 3rd party controllers?

Really, neat thing you’re starting here. You’ll definitely be seeing orders from me if at least numbers 2 and 3 are “Yes.”

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if you do 360 sticks, i might be interested in a complete stick (or maybe a box) once i see the final design + price and all that :tup:

oh and lets say i want art on it, would i just mail you the picture printed on adhesive vinyl/lamilabel/laminated photo paper/whatever and you apply it? if you dont feel like spending the extra effort its fine, just wanted to know

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i’ll have a final version up by monday,

i already have my first two orders, any other takers? i can have your box by monday

16

Im interested in one :smile:

17

shoot me a PM and we can work out the details!

18

I might be interested in one, if my parents want to get me one for my Christmas, or something. =P

:edit: Looks like my parents are going to let me order one for Christmas. =)

19

Keep us updated on your new design. I’ll be on the lookout cause I really need a stick and every stick maker here is either out of my budget or gone missing/retired.

20

I’m interested.