MCA Joysticks in Australia

[RetroBorg]

I have just purchased a Gottlieb game pod on Ebay for $50 Australian which I intend to make a budget MAME machine with. It has a four players layout, but only has two joysticks with six buttons each in it right now.

Has anybody in Australia used these joysticks who has also used Happs joystick or possibly the T-Stik? If so how do they compare?

I noticed it has a restictor plate underneath and by removing two screws you can slide the restrictor and make it 8-way, 4-way or 2-way horizontal. Unfortunately they are probably the ugliest joystick I've ever seen made totally of a very hard plastic.

I'm weighing up buying another two of these which are only $12 Australian each or removing the two I have and buying four of another make.

For people of other countries who haven't seen one of these, here is a picture.

[spidermonkey]

I've seen those things floating around over the years. They look VERY similar to Suzo's 500 series joysticks. I think I've only seen one or two guys who have used those in their cabinets. They seem to be white elephants as far as joystick style popularity. Start trolling the examples pages and if you see them in somebodys cabinet then e-mail them and ask how they like them. Thay are quite fugly though . I think they were used primarily over seas. God knows what they will feel like during gameplay. Don't have any experiance with those. Hey... you might get used to their looks. kinda like an ugly bar fly chick after a six pack.
S.M.

[Mr Kray]

MCA or MCA-Style joysticks seem to be the standard for Australian arcade machines, 99% (maybe even 100%!) of the arcade games I've played in Australia have this style of joystick.

I do agree that they look a little ugly but they feel quite nice to use and they are the only ball-top micro-switch joysticks I could find.. but they cost about AU$25-30 so I order ball-top Wico leaf-switch joysticks from the US for about $20 instead.

Go to any place that has a few arcade machines (Timezone, a Bowling Alley, etc.) and you'll be able to test these out yourself, if I was to buy micro-switch joysticks instead of leaf-switch I would use an MCA style one over a bat-handled one.. However this is partly due to the fact that being from Oz I've never used a bat-handled joystick, so it wouldn't seem right!

Personally I think the small ball top is a little more comfortable that the big ball top on Wico joysticks, others may disagree though.  

[Mr Kray]

Oops, I didn't see that you could get them for $12 each, if I had been quoted that price I would have bought MCAs over Wicos.

Can you get more? I would really like a couple of MCA Joysticks to complete my Aussie arcade nostalgia experience!

[RetroBorg]

Mr Kray,

The price $12 Australian was actually for used ones at Highway, their address is
http://www.highway.net.au/parts/buttons_and_joysticks.html
I can get new ones locally in Adelaide for $20 Australian each. These are available here.

Southern Star Electronics.
Unit 4/93 Research Road
POORAKA SA
08-8359 5600

I'll probably go for the MCA's because they are cheap, I already have two and the panel is already drilled for the other two to go in. They do feel good and certainly feel very durable for plastic but they are so ugly.

[Mr Kray]

Thanks for the info, once I save up enough moolah, I'll order a few!  

[Grasshopper]

I have never seen an MCA joystick however I do own a Suzo 500 which as a previous poster said appears to be very similar.

I agree that the Suzo 500 is pretty ugly. It is designed to be fitted to a metal panel with the fulcrum visible above the panel. However I think it would look a lot better if the fulcrum was recessed into a wooden panel.

Don't be put off by its appearance though. It has a very nice crisp and precise feel, especially in 8 way mode. It also has a very short throw and a strong spring, both of which I like.

I think this joystick is very underrated and I would be happy to use one on my panel. However if you want the 4/8 way switch facility then I would go for a T-Stik. I also own one of those, and I think it is the best general purpose joystick there is.