What 4-way should I get?

[The cranky hermit]

I will be mounting it on a wood panel. The footprint should be no larger than that of a Happ Super, or at least it shouldn't be much larger. My options are:

T-Stik in 4-way mode
E-Stik in 4-way mode
J-Stik in 4-way mode
Happ Ultimate 4-way
Happ Super with 4-way restrictor
Happ Ms Pacman/Galaga Replacement 4-way

[The cranky hermit]

Hmm, thought more people would have answered this one by now.

[rampy]

my vote is blue

It's really a matter of personal preference.

The e-sticks are easy to mount... and have that q-bert feature... but I think they look dorky

The J-sticks are a different feel

The t-sticks are a little stiff from what i've recently read

happs ultimates stinker from what I understand...

super with a 4 way restrictor plate from oscar is a decent solution I guess (super with 4 way actuator is a lame solution) i'd probably stiffen up the spring if I was going that route.

If you could fashion/get/use a mounting plate (or do some extreme routing/top mount job the ms pacman galaga stick is a great option too..

*shrug*  Try them all!   I'll be trying a j-stick in 4 way mode soon for my dedicated 4 way.

You left wico 4 way leaf from NOS/used off your list... probably can't beat those! =P

Rampy

[Grasshopper]

Well as you've missed out the Wico 4 way leaf joysticks my first choice would be the T-Stik followed by the Ms Pacman/Galaga stick.

[The cranky hermit]

I'm not going to buy one of each. I'm just going to buy whichever one gets recommended the most, and if I'm unhappy with it, I'll just live with either it or my 8-ways.

[Apollo]

Don't "live" with your 8 ways. If you are going to spend all this time and effort then make sure you have a "proper" 4 way joystick. Ms Pacman/Galaga replacement looks and plays awesome but it is for a metal control panel only so you can count it out. Get the real deal dude you only need one.

[MinerAl]

I have 2 T-sticks, and I like them very much in both 4 and 8 way modes.  They have a relatively short throw and stiff action.  I prefer a stiffer action than some, and don't mind the clickiness.  Some people hate hearing the clicks.    

I have a super that I bought to hack into a trigger stick.  It is much quieter, but the longer softer throw feels mushy after the Ts.  

I wonder... since the switches are what account for the clicking in a T-stick, could you put the quiet switches from a Happ joystick on in place of the T's clicky ones?  The switches are physically the same, and it looks lke only 1 or 2 little screws per switch.   Next time everything's all torn apart I'll have to try it.

[creatine28]

Don't "live" with your 8 ways. If you are going to spend all this time and effort then make sure you have a "proper" 4 way joystick. Ms Pacman/Galaga replacement looks and plays awesome but it is for a metal control panel only so you can count it out. Get the real deal dude you only need one.

The true 4 way stick is the way to go!  I mounted an old school pacman stick on my wooden control panel and it plays awesome!  For the newer 4 way mspac/galaga sticks, you can easily create a small mounting plate by using a piece of 16 gauge metal plate from home depot or orchards supply and just mount your stick to that!  Should work like a charm!

Good luck to you!

[Magnet_Eye]

i think you could get the galaga/pac-man stick, and then get a joystick mounting plate from www.oscarcontrols.com to mount it in wood.

[paigeoliver]

My vote is for the Ms. pac/Galaga stick. Making a mounting plate is pretty simple. Just get a piece of metal, if you have a bunch of projects laying around then you will probably already have a nice piece to use.

[The cranky hermit]

I don't have a single project. This will be my first, and possibly last one. Is there any way to make the Mrs. Pacman stick swivel like the E-Stik does?

[paigeoliver]

Swivel? Not sure what you are talking about. It doesn't swivel, it just goes up, down, left, and right like it is supposed to, and it has a short throw so it feels right.

You can cut a piece of sheet metal off an old computer case to make a mounting plate. Heck, you can use an old computer case as a standalone panel if you want to.

[OSCAR]

For a dedicated 4-way, I vote for the Ms.Pac/Galaga stick too.  It has a very nice feel and I think the throw on it is perfect.  I haven't used any of the Ultimarc sticks yet, but in my experience with the Suzo 500 the rotating restrictor truncates the throw too much because it needs to be both an 8-way and a 4-way, and the geometry created by the physical size of the restrictor cutout doesn't give an even throw.  My study drawings of the Suzo 500 restrictor can probably explain this better:

http://www.oscarcontrols.com/suzo500/suzo500_4way.jpg
http://www.oscarcontrols.com/suzo500/suzo500_8way.jpg

[The cranky hermit]

Ok, I'm sold. But I've never worked with metal before, so I need to know how to make the mounting plate.

What shape and size does the piece of metal have to be?
What kind of metal?
How thick?
Do I need to put holes in the piece of metal?
How do I cut it?

[The cranky hermit]

Swivel? Not sure what you are talking about. It doesn't swivel, it just goes up, down, left, and right like it is supposed to

I was referring to the E-Stik's ability to rotate 45 degrees, AKA Q*Bert mode.

[rampy]

Ok, I'm sold. But I've never worked with metal before, so I need to know how to make the mounting plate.

What shape and size does the piece of metal have to be?
What kind of metal?
How thick?
Do I need to put holes in the piece of metal?
How do I cut it?

Heh, now you know why the e-stick is the easy mount stick =P

rampy

[The cranky hermit]

Would a mounting plate from Oscar do the trick?

[OSCAR]

Would a mounting plate from Oscar do the trick?

My mounting plate does fit the Ms. Pac/Galaga stick:
http://www.oscarcontrols.com/tmp/mspac_plate.jpg

You will have the 4 extra holes for the restrictors, however.  I currently have these plates laser cut in large quantities with the restrictor holes already in them.  If there is enough interest, I can have a batch made without the restrictor holes specifically for this type of installation.

I can understand that many people hesitate at the $15 price for the plate, but that price includes all the extra hardware for the restrictors which is about half the cost.  I can sell just the blank plates for $7 each with no hardware.  This option isn't available on the website, but arrangements can be made.  Email me if interested.

[SpAwN]

I can understand that many people hesitate at the $15 price for the plate, but that price includes all the extra hardware for the restrictors which is about half the cost.  I can sell just the blank plates for $7 each with no hardware.  This option isn't available on the website, but arrangements can be made.  Email me if interested.

I would be interested in getting the plate so I can mount the Ms. Pacman joystick on my 5/8" wood control panel.

Would you mount it from the bottom or top with this metal plate?

Or would it be easier to route the wood and mount the joystick? Has anyone mounted one of these on 5/8" wood?

[SpAwN]

I found these plates, that would mount a Ms. Pacman joystick from the Arcade Shop...

http://www.arcadeshop.com/pics/mspac-joystick-mounting-plate.jpg