Build Your Own Arcade Controls Forum
Main => Main Forum => Topic started by: Dexter on March 31, 2005, 04:50:00 am
-
Yep, fraid so.
My question is this...I have a chance of a Star wars yoke. Shes in pretty bad condition. i.e. thumb buttons broken, one of the triggers broken, some springs missing etc.
What parts can I replace without too much hassle and which should make me say 'not worth the grief'??
By the way, I may be able to get my hands on a roadblasters controller. Would the springs and pots be interchangable (I know theres no y-axis)
Thanks all
Dexter
-
You might be able to combine them and get one working. The pots SHOULD be the same...
As for the triggers / ect it would just be by luck if they where. Springs are the same. Since I don't have roadblaster to test... it would only depend on what was in stock / easy access at the point when they designed it.
How bad do you want a starwars yoke? If not much, there was a really really broken one that sold on ebay for like 80 bucks last week. insane considering that I used to pass on them all the time for less then 50 bucks in near perfect condition. I got a hydra controller in good condition for 20 bucks shipped.
But if you do kill a roadblaster controller and combine them. Make sure to get it working well, then sell the parts here. Decent chance of making 30 - 40 bucks on the extra gears and triggers / ect. that might be the same. And if they aren't close enought to sell the extras... then you probably won't have much luck combining them.
So I say... Take them both apart... and see what you can do...
-
I thought the Road Blasters controller was optical?
-
very well could be.
-
Road Blasters is definately optical, so there are no pots. The grips, triggers, and thumb buttons match on SOME of them, but some of them come with a different grip assembly. If you look at a picture, you can see the different grips right off, they're blue with red thumb buttons. I think the blue grips would probably attach to a SW yoke if you move them over complete, but the thumb buttons and triggers are definately not interchangeable, don't know about the internal switches.
The springs on the X axis should be interchangeable, and I think the large X axis gear is, too. The Y axis housing is shaped differently, so the bodies will not swap, either- but the X axis frame might.
As for your beat up yoke, there was a guy selling repro thumb buttons as of a month ago. Springs seem to be in short supply, but you can always have a go at making your own. Pots can be bought from Happ, but are like $20 each. Triggers will have to come from another yoke somewhere, so expect those to be tough to get. Ditto for the gears- they tend to be broken, and replacements will either come off of another dead yoke, or you'll be searching for suitable replacement gears on the net- I've seen some links posted, but never any confirmation if they panned out or not.
-
if your thinking of passing it up, let me know so i can pick it up instead. i'd be interested in almost any star wars yoke with two handles...the rest i can fake. please?
pm me if you do think of passing it up.
-
The hard parts to replace are the gears, or the large internal springs (the ones that center the yoke). The plastic finger triggers are a hard to find item, but repros of the thumb button triggers are pretty easy to find. If you only have microswtiches, trigger springs, and pots to replace, consider yourself lucky.
The roadblaster yoke is optical, and I don't think too many of the other parts are going to be transferrable.
-88mph
-
Right guys, I got the yoke! It's in ok condition.
I'm missing one 5k pot on the x-axis (rear of the yoke) and the small gear that fits on it. Does anybody have an orer number as the descriptions on the happ replacement potentiometer page arent the best.
One of the thumb triggers is busted so I'll be looking to replace them too. Triggers are intact but spring action is gone on the left one.
Also, any ideas of where replacement small gears can be picked up??
By the way, I'll be running it through an a-pac
Thanks
Dexter
-
not to down the moment, but alot of that stuff has no direct replacement. so your gonna have to find the peices some other way or make them yourself. well, cept the pointometer, that should be pretty easy to replace. but the rest of the parts are gonna be hard to find in order to complete the yoke, thats why broken yokes go for alot cheaper on ebay.
-
Pots can be bought from Happ, but are like $20 each.
Really??
-
cheap pots are cheap, and expensive pots, in the long run, are mostly worth it. now i'm not saying that happs hasn't marked up their product, but a cheap pot won't be as nice as a more expensive one due to the way it varies the resistance.
again, i'm not saying that the happs pots are overpriced, since i'm not sure what a good price is, but there is a difference between pots. might want to get a EE in here to tell us whats what and what a good price might be.
(EE = Electrical Engineer)
-
Right, but even the better quality ones shouldn't be anywhere near that much.
-
How about the gears, would a model/hobby shop be any use? Does anybody know the spec of the small rear gear.
Also, Anyone know the order for the 5k pot from happ??
-
search under the joysticks I think... bottom of the page.
they ARE expensive though... wish bob roberts or some of the others had some good quality ones for cheap.
-
Finding the pots page isn't the problem chief!
I need info from somebody who has replaced the original pot with a happ replacement that the standard gear will fit over properly.
I think its just the 5k pot and small cog gear that I need to get the yoke working.
Are the small x axis and y axis cogs the same size/no. of teeth? Wheres the best place for cogs? 5K pot order number??
HELP!!!!
-
all the happs pots have the same shaft size...unless they have a different section for oddball sizes.