New Joystick Mounting Plate

[CanStick]

Hello,

If you remember from a few weeks ago, there was talk about a recessed mounting plate for joysticks:

http://www.arcadecontrols.org/yabbse/index.php?board=1;action=display;threadid=7194

Anyway, I am in the process of getting some of these manufactured.  See below for a drawing of the sizing and hole dimensions.  The four inner holes are for Sanwa joysticks, and the four outer holes are for Happ's joysticks.

These mounting plates will allow you to mount joysticks with a much higher mounting height, while maintaining the integrity of the wood.  The plates themselves are screwed into the 3/4" wood from below (although they could be bolted from the top too!)  An area 4" x 3.25" x 1/2" deep needs to be routed out.  This would leave 1/4" wood plus any lexan or laminate on the topping.

I am open to some suggestions here...these won't be going to the manufacturer for a few more days.  Should the mounting depth be more than 1/2"?  Maybe 5/8"?  Are there any other mounting holes that should be added?

I am interested in getting some feedback, as well as some interest, so that I have an idea how many to order.

If you are interested in purchasing some, please leave me a message here, or email me, with the quantity you are interested in.  Please note that this is not binding at all...I just want to get an idea of quantity.

Oh yes, the pricing on these will be $15.00 CDN (I am in Canada), and this is approx. $10.75 to $11.00 USD.  They should be ready to ship around the week of June 23, 2003.

Thanks in advance!
Terry.

[gtjoe]

Looking at the pic, I assume you intend to mount these sideways.  You might want to rotate this 90 degrees so the plate mounting screws are on the top and bottom, instead of to the sides.  People tend to mount the buttons pretty close to the side of the joystick, especially if they play defender or stargate.

If rotated, it looks like your plate will work as for the sanway joystick since the mounting holes are symmetrical, but the Happs holes would have to be adjusted - maybe you add 4 more holes for the Happs to support both up/down and sideways mounting.

If your worried about depth.  Maybe make them 3/4" deep and use spacers/washer at the mounting locations to give you an adjustable height.  You could do this for any depth you choose....

[CanStick]

Looking at the pic, I assume you intend to mount these sideways.  You might want to rotate this 90 degrees so the plate mounting screws are on the top and bottom, instead of to the sides.  People tend to mount the buttons pretty close to the side of the joystick, especially if they play defender or stargate.

If your worried about depth.  Maybe make them 3/4" deep and use spacers/washer at the mounting locations to give you an adjustable height.  You could do this for any depth you choose....

I never thought about that...I will have to play with the Happs holes to see if I can put in holes for both vertical or horizontal mounting.  They may be too close together for that....either that, or I may offer a horizontal and a vertical version, although I would rather be able to do it with one...I will play around with that.

That is a great idea about the depth...I think I will do that.  It wouldn't be hard to use a few washers to be able to adjust the depth...

Thanks!

[Sprucemoose]

I would leave the depth at 1/2.  If people want it any lower they can route out another 1/4" where the bolts go.  They will have to use a router (most likely) anyway.  

As for the mounting bolts.   Unless I misunderstood what Gtjoe was saying,  I think the mounting bolts are on the correct side.  If people want their buttons close to the joystick they can rotate the joystick so the mounting bolts are on the top and bottom.  "Up" wount be "UP" until you wire the contact.

[CanStick]

As for the mounting bolts.   Unless I misunderstood what Gtjoe was saying,  I think the mounting bolts are on the correct side.  If people want their buttons close to the joystick they can rotate the joystick so the mounting bolts are on the top and bottom.  "Up" wount be "UP" until you wire the contact.

Geez...you can tell it is still early in the morning, and I have only had one coffee...  

That is totally correct...it does depend on how you wire it.  So it can be used either way....

[Grasshopper]

Hi,

I'm certainly interested but I'd need to know more about payment methods and shipping costs before I commit myself. I'd be looking to buy about three.

I'll have to think about whether 1/2" or 5/8" is best. I'll post again when I've pondered it for a while.

It occurs to me that a similar type of plate could also be built for trackballs as they also have to be top mounted at present. Have you any thoughts on this?

Please can you answer a few questions:

Will the plate be compatible with the Ultimarc T-Stik and the Wico/Suzo series 500?

What gauge metal will you be using?

Is this just a one off deal or will you be selling these plates indefinitely? And will the price depend upon how many people place an order?

Thanks in advance

[Tiger-Heli]

Should the mounting depth be more than 1/2"?  Maybe 5/8"?

I think 1/2" is good.

Here's why.  Most people use 3/4 MDF for the CP.  Most people think the ideal joystick mounting depth (and the ideal depth for OSCAR's restrictors to work properly) is 3/8 inch.  Many of the people who buy this won't have access to a router, but will have access to a Dremel or a chisel.

With a 1/2 depth, you either route the wood to 1/4 inch (or less remaining, which gives you 0.25+0.1 inch Lexan=0.35=~3/8", or you route to 3/8" depth and shim the plate by 0.25 inch, which gives you 3/8" depth for the joystick without Lexan, or you don't shim the plate and have tall joysticks at 1/4-inch depth.

If you increased the depth to 5/8, you end up either shimming the plate between 1/8-inch to 3/8-inch, which people might not want to do, or if you don't shim the plate, you have to route to less than 1/8" of wood remaining, which would be tough with a Dremel or chisel.

Just my 2 cents

[CanStick]

Hi,

I'm certainly interested but I'd need to know more about payment methods and shipping costs before I commit myself. I'd be looking to buy about three.

I'll have to think about whether 1/2" or 5/8" is best. I'll post again when I've pondered it for a while.

It occurs to me that a similar type of plate could also be built for trackballs as they also have to be top mounted at present. Have you any thoughts on this?

Please can you answer a few questions:

Will the plate be compatible with the Ultimarc T-Stik and the Wico/Suzo series 500?

What gauge metal will you be using?

Is this just a one off deal or will you be selling these plates indefinitely? And will the price depend upon how many people place an order?

Thanks in advance

As for payment methods, at first I will take money orders and be set up for paypal.  Eventually I will use an online merchant credit card system as well as paypal, but at first, just paypal.  As for shipping, probably regular post (surface or airmail) would be the most economical.  However, if someone wanted UPS or something else, that could be arranged.

I have thought about a trackball version as well; that would come after the joystick one.

As for the joysticks you mentioned...it would replace the metal plate on the T-Stik...if it is the same as the Sanwa joystick I have, then the inner holes are spaced 2" apart.  Can someone confirm that this is also the case with the T-Stik?  As for the Wico ones...if they have the same mounting hole dimensions as the Happ's joysticks, then yes.  If not, does someone have the dimensions?  If they don't interfere with the holes already there, then I can add them easy enough.

I am also thinking of adding holes for Oscar's restrictor plates too...I think I can add them without interfering with any other holes.  Does anybody have the diameter of the holes that Oscar uses for his plates?

They will be 16 gauge steel....

I will be selling these indefinately, and the price is not dependent on how many place orders...even if only 1 is ordered, it will still be the same price.  My minimum order on these is 25 at a time, but I just want to gauge whether or not to initially order more than that.

I hope this answers your questions....

Terry.

[paigeoliver]

Wico sticks have the same mounting holes as Happ sticks. Actually, technically, the Happ stick uses the Wico pattern, not the other way around.

[OSCAR]

I am also thinking of adding holes for Oscar's restrictor plates too...I think I can add them without interfering with any other holes.  Does anybody have the diameter of the holes that Oscar uses for his plates?

If you are serious about this, I can help save you trial & error dollars.  I can give you some design parameters that will help to implement the restrictors into your plate design.  Email me for more info.

[mcleanjoel]

Should the mounting depth be more than 1/2"?  Maybe 5/8"?

I think 1/2" is good.

Here's why.  Most people use 3/4 MDF for the CP.  Most people think the ideal joystick mounting depth (and the ideal depth for OSCAR's restrictors to work properly) is 3/8 inch.  Many of the people who buy this won't have access to a router, but will have access to a Dremel or a chisel.

With a 1/2 depth, you either route the wood to 1/4 inch (or less remaining, which gives you 0.25+0.1 inch Lexan=0.35=~3/8", or you route to 3/8" depth and shim the plate by 0.25 inch, which gives you 3/8" depth for the joystick without Lexan, or you don't shim the plate and have tall joysticks at 1/4-inch depth.

If you increased the depth to 5/8, you end up either shimming the plate between 1/8-inch to 3/8-inch, which people might not want to do, or if you don't shim the plate, you have to route to less than 1/8" of wood remaining, which would be tough with a Dremel or chisel.

Just my 2 cents

Is the thickness of the mounting plate accounted for as well?

[Tiger-Heli]

Should the mounting depth be more than 1/2"?  Maybe 5/8"?

I think 1/2" is good.

Here's why.  <snip> Just my 2 cents

Is the thickness of the mounting plate accounted for as well?

No it was not.  Good point!  The thickness of the mounting plate is not mentioned above either.

BTW, good idea in adding the holes for OSCAR's restrictors.

[Lilwolf]

I might be interested in 2.  But I'm not sure if I will be able to get the cash.  

Are you ordering extras and trying to keep some around?  

[CanStick]

Yes, for sure...I am getting a bunch of them done up, so that I will have some extra's...plus I will reorder when necessary.

I think I am leaning towards a 5/8" depth for these, and including some 1/8" spacers for people who want to mount it 1/2".  I think that this would satisfy the most people!

Terry.

[Grasshopper]

Thanks for your reply.

In your previous post you mentioned that your plate would replace the plate that comes with the Sanwa joysticks. Personally I would prefer to fasten the two plates together even though you lose a tiny bit of height by doing so. The reason for this is that I'm the sort of person who swaps joysticks in and out of my panel fairly frequently. The screws that fix my Seimitsu joystick to its plate screw into plastic and I think that if I kept removing the joystick from its plate the plastic holes would gradually widen. This is obviously not a problem with steel bolts.

With regards to the two joysticks I mentioned:

The T-Stik is not actually made by Sanwa it is made by Industrias Lorenzo. Details of its dimensions can be found on their website - www.industrias-lorenzo.com

The very underrated Suzo series 500 joystick is totally different to the old Wico leaf joysticks. The mounting holes are in the standard Happ/Wico pattern (actually fractionally different) however the length and width of the mounting area are bigger. If you want dimensions then I have a fairly crude CAD drawing of the joystick somewhere but I think there is a better drawing on Oscar's site. I also think it's worth pointing out that the Suzo 500 joystick has a very long shaft and therefore technically does not actually need the extra height that your plate would give it. However I still think it would be worth making your plate compatible with as many jousticks as possible. The holy grail for me would be to build a panel that can be fitted with any joystick currently available.

I have no idea how thick 16 gauge steel is. Is it the same thickness as the steel used for the Sanwa's mounting plate?

[CanStick]

Thanks for your reply.

In your previous post you mentioned that your plate would replace the plate that comes with the Sanwa joysticks. Personally I would prefer to fasten the two plates together even though you lose a tiny bit of height by doing so. The reason for this is that I'm the sort of person who swaps joysticks in and out of my panel fairly frequently. The screws that fix my Seimitsu joystick to its plate screw into plastic and I think that if I kept removing the joystick from its plate the plastic holes would gradually widen. This is obviously not a problem with steel bolts.

I had thought of that, but I think that it would make the total size of my mounting plate very large (perhaps too large).  True, the plastic threads might get stripped over time, but you could then just use regular bolts to hold the joystick in.

The very underrated Suzo series 500 joystick is totally different to the old Wico leaf joysticks. The mounting holes are in the standard Happ/Wico pattern (actually fractionally different) however the length and width of the mounting area are bigger. If you want dimensions then I have a fairly crude CAD drawing of the joystick somewhere but I think there is a better drawing on Oscar's site. I also think it's worth pointing out that the Suzo 500 joystick has a very long shaft and therefore technically does not actually need the extra height that your plate would give it. However I still think it would be worth making your plate compatible with as many jousticks as possible. The holy grail for me would be to build a panel that can be fitted with any joystick currently available.

Do these have the same dimensions as the Wico joystick with the top fire button that is on the same catalog page?  I do have one of those, so if it is, then that should work out fine....

I have no idea how thick 16 gauge steel is. Is it the same thickness as the steel used for the Sanwa's mounting plate?

16 gauge steel is approx. 1/16"...the same as the Sanwa plate.

Hope this helps!
Terry.

[DeafBug]

Any update to this? It been a month since the last post.  Count one for me.  I think 1/2 inch thick is good.