Need some Wico Help

[DaveStall]

Last weekend I finally realized a longtime dream of mine and I picked up a pretty nice Robotron cabinet.  When I got it home and powered up, I noticed that the joysticks had quite a bit of up / down play to them which could cause the stick to get jammed a bit.  I took the sticks apart (they are Wico leaf sticks with a grey base) and found that the springs that go between the actuator and the and base were broken.  I tried to fashion new springs (I had to cut some longer springs to size), but now one of the sticks will not hit either the upper right or lower right diagonal unless I flip the actuator over so that the wide part is next to the clip.  I have tried everything from longer springs to no springs, even the old broken springs but the results are always they same.  The right side diagonals simply will not register unless the actuator is in the "wrong" position.  I did notice that the grommets are pretty old and somewhat cracked, but even rotating the grommet still gives the same results.  If anybody out there with some Wico experience has any ideas of what I am doing wrong I would greatly appreciate some advice.  The game is still fairly playable with my reversed actuator, but it still feels a bit off.  I did find an earlier thread where Oscar did a great job of showing the proper assembly of these sticks, so I am pretty confident that the sticks are asembled correctly.

Thanks in advance.

Dave

[Tailgunner]

Start scouting Ebay for Wico rebuild kits. They have all the bits needed (excepting the grommet) to return them to like new condition. I've no idea where you'd find a Wico grommet without buying a NOS joystick.

[DaveStall]

Thanks for the reply Tailgunner.  I will keep a lookout for some rebuild kits.  I have seen some NOS Wico grommets on ebay from a few sellers, but I'm not sure if NOS grommets will fit the old sticks or not.  Of course, those grommets seems to be worth their weight in gold as well.

Dave

[spidermonkey]

Check the hole on the top of the base where the shaft goes through. They should be round. If they are diamond shapped then the sticks are Wico 4-ways. The reason I'm concerned is because Wico usually made their 4-way sticks with a gray base and their 8-way sticks with a black base. Their are rare exceptions but that is the general color rule for Wico leaf switch joysticks. If they are in fact 4-ways then that would certainly explain why you're having so much trouble hitting the diagonals. As far as the centering grommets go, as long as its a first generation Wico base the grommets are all the same. Both 4 and 8-way use the same grommet. Even the early Wico microswitch joysticks use the same grommets. I bought four n.o.s. Wico black ball 8-way microswitch joysticks off Ebay a while back. I removed the grommets from two of them and used them in my older Wico leaf switch joysticks. A perfect fit. Can you post pictures of the bases ? Maybe we could help more if we saw them.

[spidermonkey]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=13718&item=6110265737

 

[DaveStall]

Those are the exact grommets I was referring to earlier.  Seems like I remember Wico selling the entire stick for about half that price a few years ago.  If I could only go back and stock up ....  

I will get some pictures of the bases online later today, but just as a description the base(s) is grey with a round hole as opposed to diamond shape.  The bases do have the Wico name on them so I am fairly sure they are genuine Wico sticks.

Dave

[NoOne=NBA=]

The 8-ways are the same as the 4-ways with the exception of the round holes on the 8-ways, and a larger actuator on the 8-ways.

In addition to the above question about whether your sticks are actually 4-ways, the other three things I would check are:

1) Is the actuator round?
The actuators on both types of stick are basically a straight-sided sleeve over the joystick shaft.
The 8-way is a little larger than the 4-way.
You are saying that there is a "larger side" on the actuator, and there shouldn't be.

2) Are the leaf switches adjusted properly?
The inside leaf should be almost, or actually, touching the actuator.
The outside leaf should be almost touching the inside leaf when the stick is centered.
That allows very slight movement to make the leaf switches close.
You can actually adjust the 4-ways to allow diagonal movement if you bend the leaf switches close enough to the actuator.
The best way I've found for adjusting the leafs on the switches is to use needle-nosed pliers, grip the leaf very near where it connects to the base, and twist lightly on the leaf to get it where you need it.
I actually use the bent-tip type pliers because these make it a little easier to make adjustments lightly enough.

3) Are the grommets ripped?
A ripped grommet will usually not make the stick quit functioning, but will make it easier to move in one direction because there is no resistance from the rubber.
As far as the grommets go, the $24.50 price on them seems to be the norm at the moment.
Considering that you can get NOS sticks at $25.00 ea. this price isn't bad if all you need are the grommets.
If you need the leaf switches too, it is probably cheaper to pick up complete NOS sticks.

[sdrob04]

There's a flood of Wico stuff on and off eBay at the moment--I've been keeping an eye on this stuff as I've wanted leaf joysticks for my cab in progress.  The fourth item below would be my recommendation for your situation:

NOS 8-ways:  mrbigwig@hotmail.com (found this guy on the Google groups board and bought two sets--no problems with the transaction)
 
NOS 4-ways:  http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=13718&item=6117324094&rd=1

NOS replacement kit (all sticks):  http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=4315&item=8135206336&rd=1

NOS 4-way bodies (cheap!):  http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=13718&item=6120993293&rd=1

Joystick parts:  http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=13718&item=6121972647&rd=1

Hope these leads help...

[RayB]

Also I think the grommets in the Wico "Command Control" joysticks (red bat handle, ball top, or grip) are the exact same size. Command Controls tended to be used by one person and they certainly didn't wear down like abused arcade joys did. So try that out. You can find these joys (they are red and black) in thrift stores for a buck.

~Ray

[DaveStall]

Thank you all for the much appreciated responses.  Following are some pictures of (one of two) the sticks in question.  I do believe I will be looking into some replacement parts and/or sticks.

The base:



The Parts:


The Grommet:



On the base, the tape marks the upper right hand corner.  The actuator I was referring to can be seen in the second picture towards the top.  When I flip this over so the wide end is towards the e-clip, the stick works almost the way it should.

Thanks,

Dave

[nostrebor]

Dave,

I just put two NOS wico 8-ways in a cab... Have the original instructions right here. According to this, the actuator goes on "skinny" end up, "fat" end down.

Hope this helps!

Edit: Forgot to say that I got my sticks from an ebay user named "nicade" It seems like he has about 10,000 of these, you might try to contact him and see if he has some parts.

[DaveStall]

Nostrebor,

That does help indeed.  I wonder if these sticks were assembled incorrectly when I received the cabinet in the first place now.  I ended up reversing the actuator on the other stick as well (both have the fat end towards the clip) and both sticks now feel much more responsive.  I hope I haven't just been wasting everyone's time (although all of the great contact information is very much appreciated as I do still need some parts) by putting these things together wrong .....

Dave