Search for the Red ball top...

[knave]

So I want to play around a bit with a 4 way joystick.  I know many of the options, Happ Ultimate - $8, GGG omni - $14, Sanwa JLW - $16, and again Happ Pac-repro -$20.

I really want something that has the classic red ball top...without having to purchase it as extra.  So that eliminates the Ultimate and the Omni. (sigh the two most affordable.)

I've heard great things about the Sanwa and I think I can get one shipped for ~$21

But still I can't help but feel I should be getting two Joys at this price.  Am I that Cheep?

If the Ultimate can be $8 where is the affordable ball top option?

Anyone have any ideas where I can find a affordable Stick that meets my requirements?

Thanks

[Kaytrim]

You may or may not be happy with the Sanwa.  They are real light in the springs.  Lizard Lick has a leafswitch joystick that might meet your needs for $11.  It is a Chinese knock off of the old Wico stick.  I have never played with it so I can't say anything to it's performance.  To be completely honest if you want the real Pac-Man feel go with the Happ Pac-repro.  It'll have the same strength spring you remember and the fully restricted 4-way feel.

My $.02
Kaytrim

[TOK]

To call those Chinese leaf switch sticks crap would be an insult to crap.
The Sanwa has it all over these, and is available with a red ball top. I'm very happy with mine.

[Kaytrim]

Yo TOK dude, chill.  I like the Sanwas myself.  If knave wants to go cheep let him.  I was just giving him the options that I saw were available. 

To be honest knave just looking at the pic of the Chinese stick you can see the quality, or lack there of.  If you want a good balltop stick then you can expect to shell out a little more cash.  If you decide to go with Sanwa then shoot Ponyboy an email.  He has the JLF for $19 plus shipping.  The JLF is the top of the line for Sanwa and Ponyboy has the best price.

TTFN
Kaytrim

[CheffoJeffo]

But still I can't help but feel I should be getting two Joys at this price.  Am I that Cheep?

If the Ultimate can be $8 where is the affordable ball top option?

Anyone have any ideas where I can find a affordable Stick that meets my requirements?

Apparently you are that cheap (but you knew I was going to say that).   

All I can really say is that you will get what you pay for.

The Ultimate is $8 because it is a crappy stick. The Chinese leaf switch knockoffs are worse.

If you are going buy a crappy 4-way, you might not want to even bother -- for most 4-way games, I would choose a decent 8-way stick over a crappy 4-way stick most of the time (and for the exceptions, I would probably not want to bother playing with a crappy stick anyway).

[TOK]

Yo TOK dude, chill.  I like the Sanwas myself.  If knave wants to go cheep let him.  I was just giving him the options that I saw were available. 

To be honest knave just looking at the pic of the Chinese stick you can see the quality, or lack there of.  If you want a good balltop stick then you can expect to shell out a little more cash.  If you decide to go with Sanwa then shoot Ponyboy an email.  He has the JLF for $19 plus shipping.  The JLF is the top of the line for Sanwa and Ponyboy has the best price.

TTFN
Kaytrim

I wasn't attacking you. That Chinese leaf is the crappiest stick on the market. I know because I was given a set. Buying stuff twice isn't going cheap! 

[Level42]

http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=41573.0

[knave]

Whoa.. there...I would never get one of those crapsticks you are all refering to.  Please give me a little credit. (they are not on my list.)  I want to go affordable not cheep.
The reason is that I whatever I get now would likely sit around for some time until I get a chance to play with it and build something for it.  Really it's so I have a suitable part around in case I get the bug up my arse to hack my Jakks unit.

Really I don't want a leaf joystick in any flavor.  I just don't want to deal right now.

Thanks for the tip about the Ultimates being crap.  I'm pretty happy with my Comps so I was hoping they were just a 4 way variation.  Sad that this is not the case.

Is the Sanwa JLF better than the JLW?  Either would work for me, as would the Pac-repro except I kinda like the ability to go 8 way if I want to add some flexability.

It looks like in order to get what I want, it's going to cost $21-25 at least after shipping and whatnot. Unless anyone has any better options. Speak now if you please...

[CheffoJeffo]

Thanks for the tip about the Ultimates being crap.

I've got 3 of them that I bought when I first started out ... one was for hacking a Jakks (which I still haven't done ... well, I hacked the Jakks, I just haven't put it in anything). The other two I used in my first MAME cocktail and are still there, but the cabinet is at the cottage and only gets used on weekends in the summer by the kids, so I haven't bothered to switch them out.

[leapinlew]

I'll tell you what I did with my last stick. I already had some supers laying around so I purchased some red balltops from GGG.

http://groovygamegear.com/webstore/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=65&products_id=228

And I put them on a Donkey Kong cabinet (yes I know, should've went black)


It's no WICO but it plays really good in 4 way mode after tweaking the micro-leaf levers.    Price wise, if I had to buy everything from scratch (not having the supers on hand already) I would go with the HAPPS reunion stick.

Also: in the pic the dustwasher looks like it's offcenter to the arrows. It's not.

[More Cowbell]

Lew, is that a little notch on your speaker grill? Mine has that same notch. Is that something standard? I thought it was just where someone bashed it with something.

[leapinlew]

Lew, is that a little notch on your speaker grill? Mine has that same notch. Is that something standard? I thought it was just where someone bashed it with something.

that thing... it wasn't notched initially, but it eventually broke off when I was giving it a quick sand to get some bubblegum or something off. I tried to fix it with some bondo, and it popped off to. So, now it's just a notch.

[knave]

Speaking of GGG what do people think of the omnisticks?  I could pick up one of those with a versaballtop...what's that ~$24 before shipping.  I am thinking that I might pick up some other stuff too so that would offset the shipping. 

The sanwa looks really tempting though.  Arg... I am just not sure... 

Anyone want to give me a 4 way to play with to end my confusion?        

[divemaster127]

Ultimarc has the jstick red ball top, i sell a ton of these $16.00
dm

[shardian]

Anyone want to give me a 4 way to play with to end my confusion?        

I have a beat up chinese 4-way leaf missing two leafs. Its yours if you want it.

[FrizzleFried]

Tornado Terry sells BALL TOP Supers and Comps...

www.tornadoterrys.com