Found a way to soften up stiff rubber grommets

[thorr]

I recently purchased a reproduction Wico 4-way joystick from here: http://www.arcadeshop.com/i/1538/wico-4-way-red-ball-3.5-handle-leaf-joystick.htm

At first I wasn't happy with it because I could easily hit all 8 directions. 
- I fixed this by flipping the white plastic piece on the shaft upside down so it came into contact with the leaf switches sooner and then bending the leaf switches out a bit so only one at a time would be hit.  The white plastic piece needs to be with the narrow end at the bottom end of the metal shaft near the clip, not near the center of the of the shaft.

The other problem was it was very stiff.  I fixed this by doing two things. 
- I flipped the rubber grommet upside down and the joystick movement was a lot looser in the upside down orientation, but still too stiff. 
- I softened the rubber by submerging the grommet in a mixture of 1/3 Wintergreen Oil and 2/3 Isopropyl Alcohol for two full days.  I put it into a glass and then wrapped the glass in cling wrap and put it in a zip lock bag.

Now I am quite happy with my 4-way joystick.  It has that diamond pattern feel, only hits 4 directions, has a pretty short throw, is soft but not too soft in the movement and plays everything I throw at it very well: Frogger, Donkey Kong, Ms. Pacman, Elevator Action, Dig Dug, Mr. Do, etc.  It is still very slightly stiffer than my Dominux 8 joysticks, so I may go for another day in the Wintergreen Oil, but I need to play with it more to really decide.  I think I will probably keep it as is.

I hope this helps others who have stiff Wico grommets.