Ultimarc joysticks

[CGRemakes]

I have done a search, but haven't found a whole lot of information on the Ultimarc joysticks.  I currently have Super joysticks in my control panel, but have found that I have been playing quite a few 4 directional games (Ms. PacMan, Digger, Donkey Kong), and have found myself frustrated by the Supers for 4 directional games (love 'em for 8 directional games).  I have looked a little at the Ultimarc joysticks because I have heard they work great for both.  Other than the somewhat simpler "4/8 directional switch" on the T-sticks, I don't see much difference between the T and the J-sticks to merit the T-sticks being 4 dollars more / joystick.  Is the T stick heavier duty?  Do they both have about the same feel in both 4 and 8 modes?  Why haven't more people gone with the Ultimarc joysticks?  They are only a few dollars more / stick, and it ends up being cheaper than if you buy a separate "Pac-Man 4-way joystick" in addition to regualr 8-way joysticks.  Also, what kind of life do the microswitches have?

[TheManuel]

They are only a few dollars more / stick, and it ends up being cheaper than if you buy a separate "Pac-Man 4-way joystick" in addition to regualr 8-way joysticks

Well, in your case, you already have the 8-way stick so buying the additional Pac-Man stick will cost you a similar amount of money ($22 inluding shipping from Bob Roberts).  You could wire it up to the switches of the 8-way if you don't plan to use both at the same time.
I know this doesn't answer your question but I just wanted to make you aware of your alternatives.

[Brad Lee]

Ive got a pair of Tsticks. They've got a very short throw and fairly heavy springs, very responsive. I thought Id seen that the J's have a lighter springs so they may feel a bit different, but I haent tried them myself to compare

The toggle for 4 to 8 way is a nice touch- once you get used to it, its real easy to reach under the panel and flip it without looking, as opposed to having to turn the restrictor(again Ive only seen pics and descriptions of this)

[2slk]

As TheManual said, you already have an 8-way solution. If you are satisfied with the 8-way performance then adding a dedicated 4-way may be the way to go, providing that you have the space.

 As for the T and J sticks, they are both fantastic. In my opinion, they are both a better 8-way solution than the Happ super. The Happ super has a round feel where the T or J stick feels more square. This is great for fighters because you can feel the corners yet they aren't too sticky.

 I have not tried the T stick in 4-way but I know first hand that the J stick offers exceptional performance in 4-way mode. By rotating the restrictor plate, you get physical restriction of the 4 directions so there are no 'dead zones' in the movement.  

 The T and J stick have a similar feel but the tension on the T stick is much greater and if memory serves me right, the throw may be a little shorter. As the description says, the T stick is suitable for a dedicated cabinet or heavy standalone CP. Go with the J stick if you prefer or require lighter tension.

 Of all sticks, the T and J stick also offer the easiest and fastest method of switching between 8 and 4 way, the T being a switch and the J being dial-like. Still, you need to access the underside of the stick to do this. You may want to consider this if you don't have easy access to the underside of your panel.

 The micro switches, like te rest of the stick are A1. I don't know how many cycles they are rated for but I suspect they are at least equal to the top of the industry standard.

 As for why more people haven't gone with these sticks, I think you will find that they have a very large following. I have yet to hear from someone who went with them and was dissatisfied.

[CGRemakes]

I appreciate the info.  Yea, the room on my CP is very limited (I reduced the dimensions to 80% of the original Lusid's design), which is why I think I might switch to the Ultimarc joysticks.  I think it would fit just fine, but I think it would be pretty crowded with the other 2 joysticks.  I have somewhat easy access to the bottom of the joysticks (I have a Lusid's cabinet CP, and so the top lifts off and is held on by velcro).  Sounds like the J-sticks would work ok for my needs, so I might as well save the extra $8.

[CGRemakes]

Doing a little extra measuring on my CP, I think it might be ok if I just add the dedicated 4-way joystick.  I don't really need 2 sticks that are able to go 4-way, because I can't think of many 4-way games that would use 2 separate joysticks.  It would also be easier not having to mess with taking the top off each time I wanted to use the 4-way configuration, and run the risk each time of pulling some wires loose.  I appreciate the help very much!

[Tiger-Heli]

Another option would be to add OSCAR's 4-way restrictor plates - $10 plus $15 for the mounting plate which you should at least get as a drilling template.

Just to give you all the options and muddy the water and further befuddle you . . .

[Brad Lee]

Dual 4way -  Assault, Battlezone*, and Crazy Climber, maybe some more but that's all I play with em
[/minor hijack]

My cab is still open at the front under the CP(i.e it doesnt wrap around but I just need plexi & heat to do that) so it hasn't been a big deal to just stick my hand in and switch it. In anticipation of closing it up, Ive done some planning and testing on making the 4/8way switch as easy as possible.

1. I drilled a hole thru the little white tab that you slide back n forth, and put a small eyehook through it(1). I then added a small wooden piece(3) and put an eyehook in that as well(1 again) so that the holes lined up, were the same height from the CP's plane
2. I took a piece of threaded rod(2) and found a threaded cap that fit the end of it. The length I had to make some measuring tests, so they're slightly different for each joystick. I measured so that when the rod was attached, in the 4way position the knob would be almost totally flush with the edge of the CP
3. Lined up the actuator rod within the eyehooks, The end by the actuator is attached by 2 nuts(4), just wide enough so they don't go through the eyehook

In 4 way, the plunger is pretty much flush with the face of the CP, in 8way, it sticks out about 1", in about the same position as the P1 & 2 strat buttons on some cabs


and just for kicks
No more having to open the cabinet or reach inside.. ever again!











*Probably 2-ways, God I havent seen an actual Battlezone in ages.. Also these were originally trigger or thumb button sticks. Playing with 2 sticks + a button on the CP can be awkward, but I've got a secret project I'm working on and accumulatng parts for

[rampy]

Wow Brad lee, that's awesome... I've been pondering how I'd approach that if I got T-sticks...

My original idea was to have the switch face the front, and have a smallish hole for access where I could stick a nut driver (no really, that's what they are called!) in to flip the switch.  (I mighta had to make the hole go like this  
 ______
(______)

*shrug* ... I like your rig much better... kudos!

and the animated gif had me rolling =P

rampy

[Tiger-Heli]

*Probably 2-ways, God I havent seen an actual Battlezone in ages.. Also these were originally trigger or thumb button sticks. Playing with 2 sticks + a button on the CP can be awkward, but I've got a secret project I'm working on and accumulatng parts for

Cool solution.  I mentioned when the Ultimarc sticks first came out that there needed to be a way to activate the lever from outside the CP.  Only thing I would worry about is bumping the lever and knocking it back into 4-way mode.

Also BattleZone was originally two 2-way sticks with a thumb button mounted on top of the right-hand switch, if anyone cares.

[Brad Lee]

Thanks

One thing I forgot, and this is where you void your warranty

The groove that the white tab sticks out of looks like this
_______                        _______
|444444 |___________|888888|
|_________________________|

the 4's and 8'2 are where the tab rests, so that you need to push downward as you slide the tab, 'till it clicks at the end..

I drememeled out the center part so it slides freely
__________________________
|444444      <--------->    888888|
|_________________________|


SO far, normal, or even aggresive play hasn't managed to move the toggle on it's own

[Tiger-Heli]

One thing I forgot, and this is where you void your warranty

I think you voided the warranty when you drilled the hole for the eye hook, FWIW!!!

[armad1ll0]

I ordered that T-stick from them before and returned it. I kept the J-stick though.

The T-stick is actually Lorenzo built stick. Lorenzo builds most of Happs parts.
The J-stick is actually a Sanwa stick.... these are japanese style and mount in the much more shallow Japanese cabs w/ the steel housing. I "top mount mine after I route out the two holes for the top mount.

I like my Sanwa sticks because I can flip the top up and switch them to 4-8 way. They also have very fast action. If you don't like the more square feel then you'll like them. They come in the traditional japanese ball top style and the bat top as well.

Ultimarc doesn't manufacture sticks.

[CGRemakes]

Ok, I need some opinions on where the best place would be to put a dedicated 4-way joystick.  As you can see, there is a little space, but not much.  I can place it as far down as I can go and center it between the 2 "Player start" buttons, or I could actually probably fit it between the Player 1 start button and the black "insert coin" button.  It might look a little odd centered towards the bottom because the player 2 joystick is so much closer to it than the player 1 joystick, so it would look really off balance, but I think towards the top by the start button would be pretty hard to reach, and might look a little odd as well.  Any feedback would be appreciated.

[Tiger-Heli]

Any feedback would be appreciated.

I like centered toward the bottom, both for symmetry and b/c many 4-way games (Pac-Man, etc.) had a center mounted joystick anyway.

[2slk]

In your case, I would say definitely centered. It would appear to allow more comfortable button access as well. Good luck!

[CGRemakes]

Yea, I was definately leaning towards that as well for both the nastolgic "centered" feel, as well as easy access.  Do you think it would make the CP look really off ballance, or should I off-set it a bit to make up for it?  It might get more in the way of the player 1 buttons if I do though.

[Tiger-Heli]

Yea, I was definately leaning towards that as well for both the nastolgic "centered" feel, as well as easy access.  Do you think it would make the CP look really off ballance, or should I off-set it a bit to make up for it?  It might get more in the way of the player 1 buttons if I do though.

Definitely keep it centered side to side.  Vertically, I wouldn't put it in line with the joysticks, but you could maybe move it up a tad.

[CGRemakes]

More or less like this?  (Sorry about the drawing)

[Tiger-Heli]

More or less like this?  (Sorry about the drawing)

That's what I was thinking, but it's your panel!

[CGRemakes]

I agree, I think it looks better there.  Thanks for the input, I appreciate all the help you all give!

[CGRemakes]

I was wondering how the Ultimate 4-way joysticks are.  I have heard bad things about the 8-ways, so I was staying away from these, but are the 4-ways any better?  I certainly like the $8.50 more than the $16.00 and problems with mounting to wooden control panel, or $30 (plus $14 or so shipping) for the Ultimarcs.

[AndyWarne]

I was wondering how long it would take for someone to come up with a neat switching method for the T-Stiks! Nice job! I am wondering if removing the whole of the tab with the Dremel is a good idea or would it be best to give it slopes up and down so that the lever slides up over it and give it some detent feel?

No worries about warranty! If people want to drill holes in our stuff that's fine by me!

It is true we don't manufacture joysticks. Like Happ we buy them in but to our specs. All of our sticks are different from the manufacturers offerings. In the case of the T-Stik it is the smallest change, the addition of an extra shim as I was not happy with the amount of up/down endfloat on the stick.

[MinerAl]

Re: switching the T-stick from the outside...

I like the in/out plunger thing, but it seems like it might be easily bumped by an enthusiastic player and go into 4 way mode...

Could you use something like a 10-speed bicycle gearshift?  Then you could use however long a cable you'd like, and put your plunger/shifter anywhere you like.  You'd have to have a mounting point on or near the joystick for that end of the cable, but then you could have your shifter anywhere.

Just an idea.

[vitaflo]

Personally I love the J-Sticks.  Amazing 8-way and I think their 4-way is even better (if that's possible).

I don't like changing them tho (it's not always easy).  At first I would flip up my CP and change them almost every time I played a game, but that got tiring quick.  But then I figured, why use Player 1's controls for every game?  So instead I set player 1 to 8-way, and player 2 to 4-way, then redid the key configs in MAME.  This way I have to change the sticks only when I'm playing a 2 player game and both sticks require 4 or 8 way to work properly.  This obviously happens a LOT less than before, so there's a lot less screwing around in the CP.

[Xochi]

I was wondering how long it would take for someone to come up with a neat switching method for the T-Stiks! Nice job!

IIRC, My J-Stik has toothed, gear-like, dial. Seems like some sort of threaded, dial type changer could be made for them... The trick being of course the threaded piece.

[CGRemakes]

Just ordered some J-sticks this morning.  I've heard nothing but good things about them in both 8 and 4 way, so I might as well.  I am building another cabinet sometime in the future, so I'll just use my Supers for that one.  I will probably do as was suggested earlier, just have player 2 joystick set most of the time in 4-way mode and player 1 in 8-way.  I usually am the only one that is playing, so I usually would only need 1 or the other.

[Brad Lee]

IIRC, My J-Stik has toothed, gear-like, dial. Seems like some sort of threaded, dial type changer could be made for them... The trick being of course the threaded piece.

This is the other Idea that I had contemplated
(the black dots are pivot points)
Or using a straight piece extending out the front with a pivot in the center, this would keep the extruding distance constant, and at only about 1/4-1/2"


I havent seen a J-stick so I dont know how much clearance there is or how muc hthe dial needs to spin, but something liek this could likely be adapted

[armad1ll0]

when using J-sticks... beware the mounting height. I mounted mine from the top. It's because they are japanese style and meant to be in Steel think cabs. not 3/4" wood panels.

[Hoagie_one]

My modification to the idea




may need a slot cut at the center pivot as well

[Brad Lee]

may need a slot cut at the center pivot as well

One or the other, but probably not both

[Hoagie_one]

may need a slot cut at the center pivot as well

One or the other, but probably not both

right, thats what i meant.  Middle would be best idea becaus there may not be clearance at the joystick side

[Brad Lee]

Now for the real wang-dang-doodle..

Ive got 2 sticks. You could shorten up the stick so that it ends inside the cabinet, use a long piece to run between the ends of the sticks, with some Kind of T in the middle.. have that stick out. If you get proper leverage, all of a sudden youre setting both joysticks for 4/8 at the same time, with one switch

[Hoagie_one]

oooh, a mechanical genious in our midsts

lol