Help me Identify these joysticks

[IG-88]

I have several joys that I dug out of an old box and was wondering if any of you could help me identify them:

Group 1

[IG-88]

#2

[IG-88]

#3

[IG-88]

#4

[IG-88]

#5

[SirPoonga]

#1 is just an Atari joystick, used in many atari games like gauntlet.  I have 2 of those.

#2, my guess is xybots, actually, since that's obviously an atari joystick (same base at #1) it is a xybots stick.

#5 looks like an old happ super.

[IG-88]

Ya, I was pretty sure #5 was a Happs, but I hadn't a clue as to the others.

[RayB]

I second that #2 is Xybots.

I'm really intrigued by #4 though. Looks like you press down as a 5th input. I have no idea what that's for. Nintendo's Super-Punch Out used a stick where you pull up to duck, but that is definitely not a Nintendo joystick.

[IG-88]

I second that #2 is Xybots.

I'm really intrigued by #4 though. Looks like you press down as a 5th input. I have no idea what that's for. Nintendo's Super-Punch Out used a stick where you pull up to duck, but that is definitely not a Nintendo joystick.

You're right, you push it down for an input.  Want to see some more pics of it? I'll go take some more if you want.

[Q*Bert_OP]

The 3rd looks like a European styled joystick....

[Kremmit]

#1 is definately a generic Atari 8-way, and #2 is definately Xybots.  #5 is a Happ Super, or the IL or Betson equivalent.

I think 3 might be Karate Champ.  Is it 4-way?
*edit- Nope, not Karate Champ.  I just checked the sticks on the KC in my garage, and they're leafswitch (duh), and the bases look different.  Handle looks the same, though.

#4 I've never seen before. 

[spidermonkey]

Yeah,#4 is rather interesting. If I were to guess I would say its made by "Rollie Electronics". The same company that makes the translucent balltop sticks that Ponyboy was selling a while back. Notice the nurling that goes around the outside of the balltop just like Ponyboy's sticks. Not to say that Rollie was the only company that had embossed nurling on their joystick handles but honestly if there is another company that does that then I've never seen one. As far as the game that it came from,I have no idea. I can't recall of any game released in the US that came with this particular type of stick. My guess is that it came from some type of game from over seas wether it be an actual video game or even some kind of mechanical skill game. Maybe a crane machine ? This stick really has me baffled as I like to think I'm pretty good at figuring out what games used what controls but that stick is just bizarre. I can think of plenty of games that it could be used for. If

[NoOne=NBA=]

#4

My guess is that it was used on a Japan-only game.
The "crane game" guess is a good one, as I can't see a push-down function being useful for a frequent action.
It may also have been for blocking in a fighting game, or ducking in a boxing game (as mentioned earlier).

[Level42]

The 3rd looks like a European styled joystick....

Yep, my initial thoughts were that this is a Suzo. The handle looks very much like the Suzo 500. But it's a strange one, since normaly they have the "turning wheel" to select between (2-)4-(5)-8 ways. Maybe a very old one ? Any markings on it ? Suzo normaly always embosses their brand name or "STC" and "Rotterdam" on it.

[Minwah]

Yep, my initial thoughts were that this is a Suzo. The handle looks very much like the Suzo 500. But it's a strange one, since normaly they have the "turning wheel" to select between (2-)4-(5)-8 ways. Maybe a very old one ? Any markings on it ? Suzo normaly always embosses their brand name or "STC" and "Rotterdam" on it.

I agree it looks like it could be a Suzo.  This is the kind of stick used a lot in (European as someone else said) generic Jamma cabs.

How do those generic Atari sticks (#1) feel?  Just interested as it's years since I used one (probably since Gauntlet) and have no recollection...

[Rocky]

#1 is not a Gauntlet stick. They used leaf switches.

[IG-88]

..... Any markings on it ? Suzo normaly always embosses their brand name or "STC" and "Rotterdam" on it.

Good call, it does say "STC Rotterdam" under the hub. I hadn't ever noticed that before. It's in dire need of an overhaul tho. The joystick itself slides up and down so far that it misses the microswitches underneath.

[Level42]

So my guess was correct STC used to stand for Suzo Trading Company, but now it's used as Suzo Technical Components. Rotterdam (in The Netherlands, for those who do not know )was their home from the start, but they've moved to a place outside of Rotterdam now.

The sliding is probably caused by a missing E-clip ? If that's the only thing, you should be able to get one at any hardware store. However, the handle looks very shiny, and normaly (new state) they are matt. So it has been used quite a lot.

I had two Suzo 500 sticks on the Jamma cab I bought. The left one (player 1) was obviously used the most, there was some room to move the stick which shouldn't be there. The other one was as new though. Those sticks should cost around the

[u_rebelscum]

#1 is not a Gauntlet stick. They used leaf switches.

I have those #1 joysticks on my Klax machine.

Agree.  #1 was also used in cyberball.

They use some kind of grease to help them center.

Lithium grease, as recommended in the manuals.

[SirPoonga]

How do those generic Atari sticks (#1) feel?  Just interested as it's years since I used one (probably since Gauntlet) and have no recollection...

eh, one of my two is really sticky, needs to be cleaned and greased.  The other one is ok.  I prefere the feel of my supers though.

[IG-88]

How do those generic Atari sticks (#1) feel?

[spidermonkey]

Stick #1

I actually like the classic Atari joysticks that have the logo embossed on the top.Atari made many variations of this stick over the years including a leafswitch version,microswitch version,hall effect version and an analog version. The analog version is by far the rarest since it was only used in one game. Foodfight. When they were new or rebuilt,I thought they had a nice feel to them but the problem now is that the majority of them have worn out bellows,pivot balls and plungers rendering them useless. These sticks required periodic lubrication with white lithium grease and most likely the arcade operators didn't lube them as often as they should have. As a result the plastic bellows and nylon pivot balls eventually wore out. Currently nobody is reproducing parts for these sticks and nos parts are almost non existant so rebuilding them is damn near impossible. I had quite a few a while back but finally sold them off because I just couldn't find decent replacement parts for them anywhere. I kept buying doner sticks hoping to strip them for parts but every stick I bought had parts that were just as bad or worse . It's really a shame that parts aren't availiable for these sticks because IMO they really do have a good feel to them when they're mechanically sound .

[RayB]

What stick did Escape from the PLanet of Robot Monsters use?

[Flinkly]

klov say's hall effect joysticks, which leads me to believe they used the hall effect atari joysticks like #1.  the control panel image just looks like black balltops, which could be atari's or something else, although not many people made hall effect sticks.

[IG-88]

OK. So try not to laugh but I forgot to mention that #4 only "twists"

[Kremmit]

OK. So try not to laugh but I forgot to mention that #4 only "twists"  ie: like a spinner but not freely. It has eight ....how to describe it...."clicks", to make a full turn. So you twist it a little and "click", twist a little more and "click" and on and on 8 times in a 360 degree rotation. It does not move left, right, up or down like a typical joystick.

Oh, that gives it away- it's a Taito rotary push-to-fire controller with a red knob hacked on to the top in place of the original top.  The proper top looks like an Arkanoid knob.  Used for Frontline, The Tin Star, & Wild Western.  Also good for Sherriff / Bandido (clones).

Good find, those are hard to come by, and it's to only way to play those games right.

[IG-88]

Gawd, I cannot believe I didn't describe that 2 days ago.

[RayB]

I can't remember....didn't Frontline use pair of these? I'll have to look it up. How would a bartop designed around one joystick be ??

[Rocky]

Stick #1

I actually like the classic Atari joysticks that have the logo embossed on the top.Atari made many variations of this stick over the years including a leafswitch version,microswitch version,hall effect version and an analog version. The analog version is by far the rarest since it was only used in one game. Foodfight. When they were new or rebuilt,I thought they had a nice feel to them but the problem now is that the majority of them have worn out bellows,pivot balls and plungers rendering them useless. These sticks required periodic lubrication with white lithium grease and most likely the arcade operators didn't lube them as often as they should have. As a result the plastic bellows and nylon pivot balls eventually wore out. Currently nobody is reproducing parts for these sticks and nos parts are almost non existant so rebuilding them is damn near impossible. I had quite a few a while back but finally sold them off because I just couldn't find decent replacement parts for them anywhere. I kept buying doner sticks hoping to strip them for parts but every stick I bought had parts that were just as bad or worse . It's really a shame that parts aren't availiable for these sticks because IMO they really do have a good feel to them when they're mechanically sound .

The Analog sticks that Atari used were only used in Food Fight and Red Baron as far as I know. They also do not have the "Atari" logo on the top.

[u_rebelscum]

Stick #1

...Atari made many variations of this stick over the years including a leafswitch version,microswitch version,hall effect version and an analog version. The analog version is by far the rarest since it was only used in one game. Foodfight. ...

FWIW, another rare controller, the 720 skate or die controller, shares a few parts of this joystick, too.  Some might call it a version of it.  OTTOMH, they share the pivot ball, the top two thirds of the case, and umm, the lithium grease?

...the plastic bellows and nylon pivot balls eventually wore out...

I wish somone would reproduce the nylon pivot ball.  It could be used by all the different versions of the joystick/720.