Where is the cheapest place to buy Buttons?

[Superdude]

Hello,  I need to buy a whole new set of buttons for my machine.  Where is the cheapest place to buy?  I have seen a couple for 1.60 a button with the microswitch.  Anyone find better?

Thanks!

[Dink]

http://www.therealbobroberts.com/

$1.45 each

[Grasshopper]

I bought some leaf switch buttons from www.videoconnect.com for $0.50 each. They are still listed on the website however someone recently posted that Video Connection were no longer selling them. Worth a phone call though.

www.industrias-lorenzo.com sell microswitch pushbuttons for 0.90 euros each.

The X-Arcade pushbuttons are cheap as well. I think someone sells them on ebay.

[SNAAAKE]

http://www.therealbobroberts.com/

$1.45 each

Yo...this bob dude is selling the real horizontal happ buttons right?I need to order some but wanted to make sure.Since I got a surprise ordering from x-arcade .

[Chris]

What kind of suprise?  I was thinking of ordering their joysticks that are Super clones...

[SNAAAKE]

ERR...nothing.

Just that buttons weren't as good looking as happs and was shorter.Joystick works fine though.

[Chris]

I'm just one of those guys who hate suprises...

I bid on an eBay auction for 16 used Happ buttons and a used Happ joystick.  Looking carefully at the picture, I could tell that the buttons were Happ horizontals and the joystick was a Happ super.  So I bid on the auction and won, but instead of getting used Happ buttons and a used Super, I got new non-Happ buttons (in different colors than shown in the pic) and a new Ultimate. After that, he started another auction using the exact same picture!

Now, it's hard to complain about getting new stuff vs. used stuff, but I was hoping to get a Super to replace my Ultimate, and the buttons, although new, are flat rather than concave like Happs and look like they're made of cheaper plastic, and have Zippy switches instead of Cherry switches.

Fortunately, I have a friend who is getting started on a cab, so she's taking the controls off my hands, but they would have been useless to me.  People who put pictures on auctions should sell what's in the picture, especially for used equipment!

--Chris

[Lilwolf]

I would still give negative feedback.  He didn't send you what you expected and had the wrong picture up.  (but reread the page to make sure he didn't mention that you were  getting something else....)

[Dink]

Yo...this bob dude is selling the real horizontal happ buttons right?I need to order some but wanted to make sure.Since I got a surprise ordering from x-arcade .

Uh, it says 'Happ Microswitch Pushbuttons' .  So I'd assume it's Happ.

The X-Arcade does not say the buttons are Happ, so that's your fault, probably for not asking.

A neat idea would be to email Bob and ask...

[MrToasty]

I bought the same X-Arcade buttons from ebay (in their first auction I believe).  Before I bid I sent email asking about the buttons and joys:

Are these Happ Super joysticks and Horizontal Microswitch buttons?

And their reply:

As picture shown.
XGAMING branded buttons/microswitches.
Microswitch is NOT INSERTED inside button.

The ones I received were not the same as shown in the pic.  I emailed a complaint about the buttons being different from the picture and received this repsonse:

Only ones we have.
Standard Arcade Size Exactly like HAPP.
You can return for a full refund, I do not have other style.

Sorry.

I ended up keeping them, but still a littled pissed nonetheless.

[Chris]

I would still give negative feedback.  He didn't send you what you expected and had the wrong picture up.  (but reread the page to make sure he didn't mention that you were  getting something else....)

Well, it was my first eBay purchase and I had a 0 rating, so I couldn't risk the retalitory feedback... and he has a huge feedback rating and an excellent reputation on Usenet.  Since I had someone who could use the parts, I didn't ask for a refund, and I have no reason to believe I wouldn't have gotten one... I just think it needs to be clear if you use a picture that is not of the actual parts in question, say so....

--Chris

[AlanS17]

Well Happ does make flat pushbuttons. I think they're called competition pushbuttons. And they do use microswitches too. That may be what you got. Personally, I still like the plane old concaved ones too...

[Kitbasher]

I recently purchased a new Happs super and several Happs horizontal pushbuttons from Bob's.  Excellent service and great prices.  I was impressed, and will continue to send him my business.  During the time I placed my order Bob went into the hospital (he has a "where's Bob" section on his website)  and his wife jumped in and took care of everything.  I was really impressed with the level of communication and speed of shipping.  
YMMV, but I was satisfied.

[liche]

A $1.60 is DIRTY CHEAP for a pushbutton especially considering you are getting a larger pushbutton assembly with it as well as a microswitch.

The panel pushbuttons I use for other electrical projects (such as MIL type, Allen Bradley commercial etc...) run typically over $20.00 each and sometimes as much as $50.00 each for Allen Bradley industrial controls one.

Heck, in my experience, if these buttons were $5.00 each, they would still be a steal ! ! ! !

I'll guarantee you can't buy that microswitch (let alone the entire assembly) for less than $1.60 at any of the big electronic supplies such as digikey, allied elec, newark, future, mouser, etc...

L

[Rocky]

Bob Roberts is a top notch seller. He has great stuff and great service.  The buttons he sells are Happs with Cherry microswitches.


Rocky

[AlanS17]

It's a pushbutton... what's the maximum price difference? 50 cents max? All the research might save you $5 in the end but then you just spent 3 or 4 hours trying to find the right ones. Even costing at minimum wage you wasted $15 worth of time trying to find the right ones. I say get the ones you like and they're probably the right price.

[SNAAAKE]

It's a pushbutton... what's the maximum price difference? 50 cents max? All the research might save you $5 in the end but then you just spent 3 or 4 hours trying to find the right ones. Even costing at minimum wage you wasted $15 worth of time trying to find the right ones. I say get the ones you like and they're probably the right price.

Damn right

If its cheaper then it probley look like $hit and not as good as other buttons.Always remember that say (you get what you pay for).

[Chris]

If its cheaper then it probley look like $hit and not as good as other buttons.Always remember that say (you get what you pay for).

Having recently received cheaper buttons, they don't look nearly as nice as a Happs pushbutton.  When spending so much on a cabinet project, the buttons that provide your actual interface to the game should be the last place to go cheap!

[HeadRusch]

I ordered 20 buttons from the X-Arcade website.

Four weeks later, still no buttons.  So I send them an email and say "Where are my buttons?".  My reply was "We dont have any spares to sell, you should have received an email".

The only e-mail I got was my order confirmation AND a charge on my credit card.

To their credit, the charge was off my credit card in about 1 hour but still, thats lame...I was counting on those buttons as "cheapies" to use for pinball sides, etc....

I'll pick up some regulars from BobRoberts I guess!

[rampy]

fwiw, several months ago I won 20 buttons and 2 joysticks for 19.99 in a dutch auction on ebay, and didn't have a problem... I'm happy with 'em for my "prototype" control panel...

I have zero problem with the action on them.  Just would like a bit more of a color scheme going with the final panel... they are shorter than the happ ultimate horiz pushbuttons.  But I can only see that being an issue if you go 3/4" wood AND plexi on top of that (I have them currently mounted on 3/4" plywood)

The joysticks are servicable.. A little finnacky to get the actuators set right for diagonals.. but that's a matter of taste.  I'll replace them with T-sticks or J-sticks for the final panel... although the x-arcade stick are not perfect for 4 way, if you're reasonably careful you can play the old games OK (sure beats a keyboard).  And 8 way/fighting games play pretty damn good in my opinion  (I'm having a tekken 2 smackdown with some folks from work tomorrow, which we play on an authentic one down the street, so we'll see how my cabinet compares)

*shrug* so yeah... sorry not everyone was thrilled or got cheezed with x-arcade stuff... but they're pretty decent for the price... I can't complain

rampy

oh yeah... the other difference is they don't use "cherry" microswitches which are the name brand that happs uses.. so i guess that's another knock on 'em... but c'mon do you buy scope or walmarts equate green mouth wash? =P