How to remove SNK LS-30 joystick knob

[OSCAR]

I know many of you already know this procedure, this post is mostly for the archives since it may not readily apparent how the knobs on the LS-30's come off if you don't have the proper tool that SNK made available for doing so.
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The first thing you need to do, if you don't have the plastic knob removal tool, is to make a little tool to pop out the center cap.  What I did was find a piece of heavy wire (I believe the wire below was actually a coat hanger at some point!) in the garage and bent it into this shape:





Then locate the 2 small nubs on the bottom of the joystick handle, this is where you need to use the tool to release the center cap.  Just press up (towards the SNK logo on the knob) with the tool to release the tabs on the center cap.









When the cap is removed, you will see a nut in the center of the knob.  This nut only needs to be loosened with a 10mm socket.  The knob is held on by a compression fitting inside, and loosening the nut relieves pressure so the knob will come right off.  If the knob doesn't want to come off, spray around the nut with some penetrating oil (WD-40, Break-Away, etc) as the fitting is likely stuck to shaft from some goo that found its way inside the joystick handle.  Let it sit for a couple minutes and try again.  The shaft has a knurled end that grips the inside of the compression fitting.  It's pretty simple, once you know what you need to do... 

[jerryjanis]

OH NO!   Now all the punk kiddies are gonna know how to steal the knobs from all the Ikari Warriors games!

[OSCAR]

What Ikari Warrior's?  I haven't seen one of those in an arcade since 1989...  

[spidermonkey]

 Out of all the different types of joysticks I've owned I must say, the SNK LS-30'S look and feel VERY well built. The only stick I own that I could honestly is built even better would be my Happ analog stick. It looks and feels like it could withstand a nuclear blast. I read somewhere that snk sticks were known to be troublesome, wore out quickly and not liked by arcade operators/repairmen but from the looks and even the sheer weight of them I have a hard time believing this.

[Frostillicus]

yeah I agree- they feel solid.   Great clicking action.  KaCHUNK kaCHUNK kaCHUNK. Though to be fair it's been awhile since I've played on a machine with heavily used ls-30s.  I got mine from video connect.  

[OSCAR]

What mostly contributes to the looser feel of the older sticks is bad springs.  While it may seem like the looseness is coming from the rotary switch, I've installed new springs on old sticks and they feel just like NOS again.  I haven't yet run into an SNK stick with a bad rotary switch; but many have old, worn, or broken springs.  I believe that the springs on the LS-30's may have been prone to breakage because I've seen quite a few of these sticks with broken springs.  

Perhaps this may have been what you heard about, spidermonkey, regarding them being troublesome and prone to wear out quickly?

Here's a pic of one of my own with a broken spring that I haven't fixed yet.  The stick still works okay, but feels a bit sloppy as you can imagine:

[spidermonkey]

Ahh so the springs are the weak link in those sticks. Thats good to know and a fairly simple fix. I just bought two new ones from Video connection so I'll probably be dead before I wear these out but I may go trolling on Ebay for some used ones for my first cabinet  and now I know what to look for. Thanks again Oscar.

[menace]

I just got these on ebay and even though I haven't even received them yet, would you know if they have a similiar method to unlock the top or will it more likely be that i have to replace the entire handle if i wanted to put on different ones.  Thanks.

[OSCAR]

Menace - those are the Wico rotaries.  They just use a standard set screw through the handle to hold it to the shaft.  The shafts are not interchangeable between the SNK & Wico rotary joysticks.

I think you are pretty much stuck with the handle that comes with those sticks, I'm not aware of other types of joystick handles designed to be held on with a set screw.

[menace]

that would typically be my luck--oh well they're not THAT bad    thanks.

[Zapper]

I've been looking for a used set of those sticks. Usually the knobs are dirty, worn out and miss the top plug. Maybe someone will make some LS-30 replacement knobs

[menace]

Oscar:

Would it be possible to get a few dimensions of just the yellow handle part--This is BYOAC afterall and since I'm not thrilled with the WICO balltops I might just as well build my own SNK tops.  Just flat side to side measurement and height of the knob is all I need.  THX!

[Lilwolf]

I don't think it will be worth trying to build your own...

They has been a mas flood on ebay in the last few months.  You should be able to get a few for about 10 bucks.  I don't think you could come up with anything for near that... that would work well.

[menace]

A wood dowel the same dia. with the sides bevelled would be very easy to do and feel the same--take 20 mins with a belt sander--piece of cake.

[jerryjanis]

Sorry for the ugly scrawling & pictures, let me know if you need me to clarify any measurements:

[menace]

A thing of beauty!  Thanks JJ!

[armad1ll0]

Oscar, where did you get replacement springs? I have one that I cleaned the the handle out pretty well but the spring is pretty rusted with some parts of the plate.

[rdagger]

Could you also post the mounting dimensions of the LS30?

[jerryjanis]

The 4 nubbules where the screw holes are stick out 1/16".  The width of 3 7/8" includes the extra width of the nubbules.

[dpdelcollo]

How do you replace the spring on a wico rotary?  I have 4 of those now, and one of them feels weak and sloppy like how the LS-30 with broken springs was described.

Also, it looks like of the 4 little nubs that retain the two halves of the rotary switch have been broken off.  It stays on so far, but I forsee having to do something about it in the not too distant future, any suggestions there?

[menace]

Re: springs--either find some appliance/toy/junk and make your own spring based on the other working 3 you have or find a place that sells springs (I have absolutely no idea if such a place exists but you never know)  

Re: clips--take a heavy gauge staple and bend it into a square 'C' shape and push it on--2 of these "spring" clips should hold it together--maybe three.

[Hoagie_one]

Just want to say thanks to Oscar for making this tutorial.  Very helpful.  I just wish teh last owner of my LS-30's read this.  My shafts are all scraped up from them trying to pull the tops off.

Thanks

[OSCAR]

Just want to say thanks to Oscar for making this tutorial.  Very helpful.  I just wish teh last owner of my LS-30's read this.  My shafts are all scraped up from them trying to pull the tops off.

Thanks

No problem, I'm glad it was useful! 


Kelsey

[shmokes]

Idon't know.  I'd never seen the Wico rotaries before.  I think those yellow ball-tops are a thing of beauty.  I can't imagine trading those gems for LS-30 knobs (which are, admittedly, quite cool.....just not nearly as).

[Texasmame]

I know many of you already know this procedure, this post is mostly for the archives since it may not readily apparent how the knobs on the LS-30's come off if you don't have the proper tool that SNK made available for doing so.
---------------------------------------------------------------------

The first thing you need to do, if you don't have the plastic knob removal tool, is to make a little tool to pop out the center cap.  What I did was find a piece of heavy wire (I believe the wire below was actually a coat hanger at some point!) in the garage and bent it into this shape:





Then locate the 2 small nubs on the bottom of the joystick handle, this is where you need to use the tool to release the center cap.  Just press up (towards the SNK logo on the knob) with the tool to release the tabs on the center cap.









When the cap is removed, you will see a nut in the center of the knob.  This nut only needs to be loosened with a 10mm socket.  The knob is held on by a compression fitting inside, and loosening the nut relieves pressure so the knob will come right off.  If the knob doesn't want to come off, spray around the nut with some penetrating oil (WD-40, Break-Away, etc) as the fitting is likely stuck to shaft from some goo that found its way inside the joystick handle.  Let it sit for a couple minutes and try again.  The shaft has a knurled end that grips the inside of the compression fitting.  It's pretty simple, once you know what you need to do...  

Just to add to this, I had to do this today.  I just used two 3/4" finish screws and they worked fine.  Just about anything small enough to fit in those holes and make it under the mounting plate will do. 

[MaximRecoil]

What mostly contributes to the looser feel of the older sticks is bad springs.  While it may seem like the looseness is coming from the rotary switch, I've installed new springs on old sticks and they feel just like NOS again.  I haven't yet run into an SNK stick with a bad rotary switch; but many have old, worn, or broken springs.  I believe that the springs on the LS-30's may have been prone to breakage because I've seen quite a few of these sticks with broken springs.

Old post I know, but since it has already been bumped...

I think the main thing that contributes to the looser feel of older LS-30's is the fact that the slot on the metal bracket which goes over the metal post to keep the roatary switch stationary when you twist the handle, gets rounded out due to friction against that post (which it is always rubbing against during joystick movement), and the post itself wears as well. This gives more free "play" in either direction when you twist before it clicks, as well as gives the joystick more freedom of movement in all directions, resulting in a sloppier feel.

If you look at a new LS-30 the slot in the bracket will look like the image on the left while the slot on a well-used LS-30 will look like the image on the right:



I have four LS-30's here. One was NOS when I got it and the other 3 are in various states of "used". None of the springs are broken but the ones that have the most wear to that slot have the sloppiest feel. If you watch that slot and how it interacts with the post it surrounds as you move and twist the joystick, you can see how wear in that area contributes to a sloppy feel.

I have grease on all the slots and posts of my LS-30's to hopefully reduce future wear in that area. It also elimates the feel/sound of metal rubbing against metal when you are using the joystick for directional control.