Custom Arcade / Fight Sticks

adeq1

adeq1

adeq1

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Joined
23 Mar 2008
Posts
109
ok, so picking up SFII HD Remix and SFIV has made me start to lust after a proper stick. It seems i'm a little late to the party and all the Mad-Catz SFIV sticks are sold out, and even things like the Hori are quite rare/pricey. I was wondering if any enterprising individuals are making custom sticks in the UK. There certainly seems to be a fair amount of demand.

If I had the facilities, and wasnt so cack-handed with tools I'd think about putting one together myself, but thats never going to happen.

Does anyone know of anywhere/anyone in the UK doing this, if so I'd really appreciate it if you could point me in the right direction - i can find places online selling the parts over here, but none selling whole sticks.
 
I'm in the process of making a JLF/Sanwa based stick using a MAdcatz PCB, expect a build thread soon :)

You don't need many tools or any skill for the method I'm using ;)
 
I don't think that anyone specifically makes them to spec over here - I had a good look myself after deciding that I hate the wife's HFS3.

I'm currently awaiting the parts for mine - Sanwa stick and OBSF30 buttons, The shop I ordered from have been that busy, it's been 17 days since I placed the order and they've still not despatched. Same story with the Cthulhu PCB ordered from the States on the same day (that shop however has just stopped taking orders until their backlog is cleared...).

The one thing I've been having a real problem with is finding an enclosure. I bought a nice ABS jobbie off the bay, but it's just not going to be large enough. I'll ending up throwing one together out of hardwood tbh.

If you like the results, I might start making them for members here ;)
 
Hey guys, let us know how it goes. I've trawled the 4 corners and not come up with anything. Apopcalyptic if your project goes well, i may just take you up on that :)

If I had access to the right kit and tools, i'd be really tempted to start making sticks - there does seem to be a fair amount of demand at the mo. But as you pointed out, the parts and the funky Cthulhu boards are in demand as well.
 
Before you get carried away Apop, you're not allowed to use this forum for profit so don;t think that would be allowed unfortunately.

My enclosure will be very ghetto (I have no access to wood working tools) but as long as it works that's all I care about.
 
Ha, finally finished my extremely ghetto stick the other week.

Had grand ideas of a nice pretty box that my woodworking skills just wouldn't have. So instead I have a very ugly but perfectly functional stick.

I might post it on here, but would need to put a warning on it so as not to scare the kids!!! :)
 
Kreeeee said:
Before you get carried away Apop, you're not allowed to use this forum for profit so don;t think that would be allowed unfortunately.
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Good point well presented. Even with minimal access to tools you should be able to come up with something fairly decent though. A bespoke case will always be best, but prefabs electronics enclosures are plentiful and cheap (if you can get a decent size!)
 
Kreeeee said:
I'm in the process of making a JLF/Sanwa based stick using a MAdcatz PCB, expect a build thread soon :)

You don't need many tools or any skill for the method I'm using ;)
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Do you mind giving me a brief rundown of the cost's involved in making one? I want to make one for as cheap as possible but using quality parts. I've got an uncle who's a joiner so I can get a case made, I'm just looking at the electronics.
 
From what i've seen you are looking at:

Cthulhu board - £28 (you can also try and mod a controller, but you have to solder some pretty small contacts)
Joystick £8-20 depending on quality
Buttons - £2/ea

So all in you're looking at upto £60 for electronics (depending on exactly how many buttons you want) but thats going to be arcade quality bits.. plus you'll need some wires, screws, paint etc
 
Sinny said:
Do you mind giving me a brief rundown of the cost's involved in making one? I want to make one for as cheap as possible but using quality parts. I've got an uncle who's a joiner so I can get a case made, I'm just looking at the electronics.
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360 pad - Madcatz Arcade Stick - £6
Sanwa 30mm screw buttons * 8 + Sanwa JLF (The highest quality stick) stick - £35

Already had these tools:
Soldering iron and solder
24 gauge wire
terminal block
4 8mm bolts
drill
30mm and 24mm wood drill bits
cable ties
electrical tape

Then it's just the case, I used a £3.50 plastic storage box as I have no woodworking tools and am a scummy student but it works fantastically.

Soldering to pads it also a complete doddle so it's best to use those rather than any expensive solderless boards.
 
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It will be the same components as the TE and the arcade cabinet for less that a third of retail price, plus more reliable circuitry and custom art/layout.
 
Might have to give a custom fight stick a go, used to be die hard SF2 player on the snes and im really hitting the new one hard. my Game has improoved ten fold over the last week just a shame i tore the side if my pad off in a fit of rage in amatch against a lad who resorted to some pretty infureating tactics to win the match, fair play to him though he won..... Just!!
That will be my donar board though so will still be handy.

Does it make a huge differance playing with a fightstick over pad, i did notice that the 360 pad is very well suited to arcade fighters.
 
I have one made from 3/4" MDF, Sanwa stick, HAPP buttons with cherry micro switches and a Mad Catz wired controller. I finally built it when SF4 came out, even though I've had all the parts for over a year.

I also have a Hori EX2 stick which I bought in preperation for SSF2 HD Remix. My custom stick is slightly better than the Hori, mainly thanks to having a longer joystick.

The custom one cost me about £30 for the arcade stick and 9 buttons, £10 for MDF, £12 for the joypad, and £5 for a hole saw (no arbour, as I have several) the right size for the buttons. It also took about 6 hours labour and the use of a table saw, circular saw, jigsaw, 2 cordless drills, a sander and a soldering iron. I could hardly move in the garage for tools on the floor. Mine isn't decorated yet, so still looks rubbish. I guess maybe £10 for some black adhesive vinyl should be added to the cost.

The £40 I paid for the Hori EX2 was a bargain looking back, but the custom was way cheaper the the silly money being spent on SF4 tournament sticks.
 
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Well I'll be building a far superior stick to my £35 Hori EX2 for only a tenner more (rather than the £150 for the TE stick), which is a bargain in my opinion :)
 
damian666 said:
Does it make a huge differance playing with a fightstick over pad, i did notice that the 360 pad is very well suited to arcade fighters.
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If you could invent the worst pad ever for a fighting game it would be the 360 pad put it that way
 
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damian666 said:
Sorry had to correct that i didnt realise id made the mistake. Any way yeh it aint so good for arcade fighters.
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Ah good, you're not mental then :)

To be honest, some things are easier (charge specials) and some things are harder (QC specials) but I found it a lot more enjoyable to play even if it made me play a tad worse.
 
Apopcalyptic said:
I'm currently awaiting the parts for mine - Sanwa stick and OBSF30 buttons, The shop I ordered from have been that busy, it's been 17 days since I placed the order and they've still not despatched.
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Likewise, order placed over 3 weeks ago and still nothing...

As for costs, in my experience it very much depends how posh you want the enclosure to be. I'm making 2 identical sticks with no expense spared on parts. I already had most of the tools required but all the bits and bobs (apart from a bit of MDF I already had and a few screws) have cost me £186 for the pair. Factor in the time it takes to put a decent enclosure together and it's not the cheapest option. That said, I'll end up with 2 first-class sticks for under £100 each.

Details:

Sanwa Pushbuttons OBSF-24
Sanwa Pushbuttons OBSF-30
Sanwa Joysticks JLF-TP-8YT
Mad Catz Xbox 360 Joysticks
Lexan Sheet A4
50 Crimp Connectors 2.8mm Female
Chair Buffers 22mm
Plasti-Kote Gloss Polyurethane Varnish
10k Resistors
Permanent Spray Adhesive
Socket Button Screws BZP M6 x 30mm
Flat Washers BZP M6
Hex Nuts A4 Stainless Steel M6
Fabric
Terminal Blocks 3A
Oak 20 x 70 x 2400
Wood adhesive

If you want some inspiration and appreciation of what's involved, you won't beat this site for an introduction to building your own stick - http://www.slagcoin.com/joystick.html
 
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