Trackball from Golden Tee Home Console?

[Boingo]

I was just looking around in a discount store, and I came across a shelf full of home console versions of Golden Tee for ~ $25.00 each.  Each of these consoles had its own 2 inch trackball.  This has led me to wonder if it is possible to adapt one of these home consoles for use as an inexpensive MAME or arcade machine reconstruction trackball.

Has anyone tried this?

[BobA]

A very poor quality trackball.   You would be better off spending more for a real arcade trackball.

[severdhed]

i bought one of those about a year ago at k-mart for $12.  i promptly took it apart and hacked a mouse to interface it with a PC.  it works just fine, however it doesn't roll free like a real arcade trackball.  as soon as you take your hand off of the ball, it stops rolling.  the rollers that the ball sits on are tiny and metal, but with little rubber rings where the ball contacts them.  plus, it lacks the bearings that a real trackball has.   the buttons are OK, but they are recessed into the panel, which feels a little weird, plus they are pretty stuff compared to happ buttons.

if you wanted to use it as a mouse, it works fine, you can even do OK with games that don't requre alot of spin on the ball, such as missile command or centipede...however i don't see how it would ever work right for golf or bowling games.  if you can get one for a few bucks and can hack a mouse or something for the interface, it can be a fun project, but in my opinion, it is not suitable for an arcade cabinet.

[Boingo]

Darn.

That's disappointing to hear.