Centsible Leaf-Switch Joystick

[dmish82]

Has anyone had any experience with the leaf-switch joystick on the following Centsible website: http://www.centsibleamusements.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=415

Thanks,
Dave

[paigeoliver]

Second hand knowledge only, but basically it isn't quite as firm as the original.

[Kremmit]

I've got a machine with one of those.  Much as I'd like to claim otherwise, I couldn't tell the difference without looking "under the hood". 

Of course, every real Wico you try these days feels different, due to the different level of wear on the rubber grommet.

Edited:  See my comments below.

[patrickl]

I had a couple of those and they were crap. In mine the shaft didn't fit tightly into the grommet. Thus the handle could wobble without any constraint from the rubber grommet. Also the actuator rides on the shaft. All in all it was the worst stick I have tried.

It's actually only a 4-way stick. They cloned a 4-way wico and added an 8 way actuator, but it doesn't really work as an 8-way. There is a 4-way restrictor plate! I guess the chinese cloning this thing cloned the base and cloned a 4-way/8-way repair kit. They combined these and assumed they got a 4-way and 8-way stick. Of course it doesn't work that way.

I'd stay well clear from this stick even though they lowered the price on it dramatically (I think they charged around $20 before). Just get yourself a proper 4-way Wico stick. Nicade still sells these (NOS=old but not used) on ebay for $25 "buy it now" or perhaps less if you bid on one.

Tailgunner did a good: Leaf Stick Comparison

[Kremmit]

That doesn't sound like the one on my machine at all.  No handle wiggle, no actuator movement, no 4-way restrictor plate.  I wonder if we're talking about the same stick?  Mine sure looks like the one in the picture on the Centsible site...

Edited:  see my comments below.

[spocktwin]

   I am definetly not an expert here but I did happen to buy both in the last few weeks.  The one from Centsible has issues.  Does not quite have the same feel as the NOS from Nicade.  All in all using both I would buy the Nicade ones.  Just my two "Cents" (sorry horrible pun)

[patrickl]

That doesn't sound like the one on my machine at all.  No handle wiggle, no actuator movement, no 4-way restrictor plate.  I wonder if we're talking about the same stick?  Mine sure looks like the one in the picture on the Centsible site...

Mine looks like that one too (and the one that Tailgunner did the pictorial on).  It's hard to tell from the back if it's exactly the same, but mine has a diamond shaped restrictor plate seen from the top and thus it's basically a 4-way stick. IIRC gray wico bases are always 4-way and black ones are 8-way (even for a cheap clone I guess).

I actually have an original Wico base like they cloned to create this stick. OK that's not very helpful information, but I thought it was funny

[paigeoliver]

Grey Wico bases are not ALWAYS 4-way. I have a grey 8-way base in my parts box.

[patrickl]

Grey Wico bases are not ALWAYS 4-way. I have a grey 8-way base in my parts box.

Oh OK, nearly always then  

[spidermonkey]

Paige, are you sure its not a 4-way that has a rounded out restrictor from wear and tear ? I have a bunch of Wico 4-ways but one of them has a TOTALLY worn grommet. The restrictor plate as well, is so worn that the diamond shaped hole is so rounded out that it could definately be mistaken for an 8-way. Probably because the stick was continually used long after the grommet wore out. Both 4 and 8-way Wico sticks use a round cylindrical actuator. I think the 8-way actuator is a tad larger but both are round so you can't hardly tell the sticks apart from the actuators. I'm just wondering because I've never seen a gray Wico 8-way.
Lord knows I've been wrong before though.

[Kremmit]

Reviving a dead thread here because I wanted to set the record straight.. even if I do have to admit to being a dummy!

I just opened the control panel on the machine I thought had that stick inside it.  Nope, regular Wico in there.  Further investigation found the knockoff stick in a box of parts, with all the leaf switches removed- I changed it out a long time ago and forgot that I did it.  

So, please ignore my comments above, as I was playing on a real Wico all along.