LED-lit joysticks
I’m in the midst of a total overhaul of a Tankstick. I already have replaced all the buttons and the trackball, gotten 5v LEDs working to illuminate specific controls with a PACLED64, and next up is joysticks.
The plan is a pair of UltraStik360s, with long shafts. I prefer oval tops, and dislike LED sticks with the light in the tops anyway — more a fan of the subtler stuff like Flynn’s Arcade. The buttons are already all black with clear bezels, for example. But it feels odd to use LEDBlinky and when the joystick is called out, not have anything to blink!
So, here’s the crazy question! Normally when a U360 is installed in one of these, you slightly enlarge the routed-out space for the joystick plate, or you fill it in with wood and get the longer shafts. So, this, from top to bottom:
– Shaft top
– Dustwasher
– Panel
– Stick plate
– Stick base
I was thinking of not filling it in completely, to be able to run wires in there, and then instead doing this:
– Shaft top
– Clear acrylic dustwasher
– Panel
– Acrylic ring around the opening for the shaft (a poor man’s Nephring)
– Pele ring around that
– Fill in with wood to ensure the stick is firm and won’t crush the lighting (I thought about using standoffs, but that’s probably not enough structural integrity)
– Stick plate
– Stick base
My questions are
* Pele ring driven as an RGB via PACLED64? It’s two LEDs, not one, and the PACLED64 is constant current. ParadiseArcade’s site doesn’t say. I’d rather not end up with a whole new controller. I’m also running low on outputs already, so part of the attraction here is that I can drive light on both sides of the ring with just 3 outputs on the board.
* Enough space given stick throw to place a Pele ring and the slice of acrylic tube around the shaft? ParadiseArcade only seems to have the 24mm ones left — which given we’re talking about a 10-12mm shaft, fits fine, but the question of course is stick throw. I’ve seen recommendations for panel holes anywhere from 24mm to the usual 1 1/8I’ve heard I probably want a restrictor plate anyway, with a U360… correct?
* How tall is a Pele ring anyway?
* Will the long shafts, which are just another 10mm longer, going to add enough length given that I am already dealing with a Tankstick top panel? (I could route out a bit deeper just to make room for the leds, but I don’t want to risk that the top is weakened).
Thoughts? Am I crazy?
Part two!
I figured I would post an update on this little idea.
I still don’t have the joysticks in hand, but I did some design sketches. The thought was to get:
U360 with long shaft
Clear 31mm dustwasher with larger hole in the center
https://www.focusattack.com/sanwa-jlf-cd-clear-shaft-matching-dustwasher-set/
11-7/8″ Polycarbonate Round Tube (Clear) – 1″ ID x 1-1/8″ OD x 1/16″ Wall
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00RBT4SDI/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Clear Round Small 1″ Beveled Ring Display
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00MFRKMFY/ref=od_aui_detailpages00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Well, I have the tube and rings in hand, and the ring fits *perfectly* in the tube, and the tube should fit perfectly in the panel’s standard hole. The ring is also nicely beveled, so should catch the light well.
I still don’t know for sure whether this dustwasher plus the throw on the U360 with restrictor plate and long shaft and so on will be too small. If it is, I probably will need to make my own clear dustwashers. It’s way smaller than the huge stock U360 dustwasher (2.5in, that’s like 63mm!) or JLW one (1.5″, 38mm).
I also don’t know if there’s enough clearance for the actual shaft around the ring display. It’s around 3/4″, but it’ll of course depend on joystick throw and how much the underside of the CP is routed out.
Lastly, I’ll probably need to open up a channel to mount the Pele ring right outside the hole. I couldn’t find any measurements for the *exterior* of a Pele ring, other than the hole must be 24mm to accommodate that size button. I am guessing the ring itself is probably more like 30mm, giving 3mm on each side for the thickness of the LED itself. I also couldn’t find anything on the *height* of the Pele ring, which determines how I do this exactly. For all I know, I could get lucky and the ring would actually slot into the 1 1/8″ hole and I wouldn’t use the clear tube; then I’d only need to route out a channel for the plug and wiring.
If joystick throw makes this all too tight, I think the approach will still work — they make polycarbonate tube and the little ring stands in larger sizes; I’d just need to enlarge the hole on the CP so that the interior hole ends up back at 1 1/8″. So that’s maybe easier for people than making their own beveled acrylic rings around joystick holes.
Part three!
Outcome on this is that the Pele rings are WAY TALL. Far too tall to use for this application; the photos online don’t convey how tall they are at all.
However, the tubing and ring stand work nearly perfectly in a standard size 1 1/8″ hole whilst not blocking shaft movement at all, with an Ultrastik, with or without circular restrictor plate.
So now I am looking at routing out a channel for the wire, and sourcing some small LEDs to mount to the sides of the hole.
Part four!
This worked.
Parts:
Tropical Mood light RGB 5VDC LED
https://paradisearcadeshop.com/button-leds/92-tropical-mood-light-rgb-5vdc-led.html
Clear 31mm dustwasher with larger hole in the center
https://www.focusattack.com/sanwa-jlf-cd-clear-shaft-matching-dustwasher-set/
11-7/8″ Polycarbonate Round Tube (Clear) – 1″ ID x 1-1/8″ OD x 1/16″ Wall
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00RBT4SDI/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Clear Round Small 1″ Beveled Ring Display
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00MFRKMFY/ref=od_aui_detailpages00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Some aluminum foil
5/16″ wood dowels
Cut the polycarbonate tube with a hacksaw to get two rings that are the same depth as the beveled display rings. I suggest cutting from each end of the original tube so you have two pristine edges to put facing out the top of the CP.
Put the beveled ring inside the polycarbonate rings you made. I didn’t need to secure them, they wedged in nicely. I tried both frosted (achieved by sanding) and clear rings, and went with the clear look; YMMV.
Wrap the outside in aluminum foil, shiny side in, to get maximum reflectivity inside. Leave two holes on opposite sides where the LEDs go.
Hot glue or electrical tape the LEDs to those holes, facing each other. Make sure they are towards the rougher side, the edge you cut. You want the clean edge to go into the hole, but you don’t want the whole ring in there… it won’t fit because of the LEDs anyway.
My CP — a modded Tankstick — already had space routed out for the joysticks. I was installing U360s with long shafts — you need that extra length, since you are losing length to the space for the LEDs. I also used the iL universal adapter plate from Paradise Arcade on the sticks, rather than modify the default plates on the U360s.
Place four dowels laying flat in the routed out space, to hold space open for the wires and LEDs and the ring. You can glue them down to keep them from rolling around while you do the work. Insert the ring into the hole for the joystick, clean side towards the top of the CP, LEDs on what will be the bottom side.
Attach the joystick by passing the shaft through the ring. Place the clear dustwasher on the shaft on the other side, then attach the ball or bat top.
Ta da! Fairly cheap underlit LED joysticks, no custom cut thick acrylic required.
