Trackball Prob.

[Golgo_13]

I have a Betson-Imperial 3" translucent red PS/2 trackball installed on my panel. It has functioned great until last week. I've been playing a lot of World Class Bowling ever since MAME 0.60 came out and I must have "popped" something. It was playing fine, smooth as silk and suddenly on the next turn it as very rough. It almost feels restricted, and makes a rough sound. The strange thing is it is only when rolled Upper-Right or Lower-Left that its rough, if you know what I mean. It rolls smooth as ever to the Upper-Left or Lower-Right. Straight up or down is a blur of the two. I am afraid to open it up, cause if anything falls out I have no idea where to put it back. I once read about a fellow who removed some bearings to make a smoother roll, but I don't know if this is related. Any ideas? I need my WC Bowling, so please any help is appreciated.

Thanks,

Golgo 13

[u_rebelscum]

The strange thing is it is only when rolled Upper-Right or Lower-Left that its rough, if you know what I mean. It rolls smooth as ever to the Upper-Left or Lower-Right. Straight up or down is a blur of the two.

Sounds like the third roller busted.  The third rollor is the one that doesn't have an optical wheel hooked to it, and it's only purpose is to make sure the ball rests on the X and Y rollers.  Looks like you will need to open it, but I've never down that, so others will need to help you there.

[OSCAR]

I agree, definitely sounds like a roller problem.  Taking the trackball apart is very simple, and the only parts that can fall out are the ball, rollers, and bearings.

I have a 3" Imperial that I disassembled and took some pics of.

http://www.oscarcontrols.com/tmp/imperial_tball1.jpg

http://www.oscarcontrols.com/tmp/imperial_tball2.jpg

http://www.oscarcontrols.com/tmp/imperial_tball3.jpg

http://www.oscarcontrols.com/tmp/imperial_tball4.jpg

http://www.oscarcontrols.com/tmp/imperial_tball5.jpg

http://www.oscarcontrols.com/tmp/imperial_tball6.jpg

When you remove the screws from the bottom side, hold the halves together while you turn it over (ball side up), and then remove the top half.  Everything will stay in place that way.  In the pics, I removed the third roller.  Note that the bearings rest in plastic "pockets" (shown in the pics), and make sure that yours are intact.  I'm thinking that perhaps yours may have cracked, allow the roller to "float around" based on your description.

Good luck!

[Golgo_13]

Oscar to the rescue! Why am I not surprised! Thanks for the tips. I opened it up and nothing appeared to be broken. The posts the rollers sit in are all fine. I switched the bearings on the ends without fly-wheels with the 3rd roller. Re-assembled, and no help. Still the same prob. Where do I go from here? Could the 3rd roller be warped? How could that happen? I am sure it worked perfectly at one time. I have had it for a year, and have only used it sparringly until a couple a weeks ago, b ut I am sure it was perfect until last week. Any more ideas? Thanks for your help Oscar.

I agree, definitely sounds like a roller problem.

[Elkor]

with the cover off..  
rest the ball on the rollers and gently give it a spin in the problem direction.

You should be able to see what is causing the rough movement.

[Donor]

Hey I've been  thinking of buying that very same trackball but I have one question. Does it come pre wired for a left and right mouse button? I thought since it is pc/2 this would seem logical, but I just wanted to know before I purchased one.
Thanks

[Golgo_13]

yep, its pre-wired for 3 buttons, if you have a 3 button driver. I use it as a 2 button myself.