slik stik repair?

[digdugnate]

my slik stik has taken to where it doesn't really want to go left or up.

 

does anyone have experience with taking these apart or repairing? I'm not particularly mechanically inclined (much to my chagrin).

 

this link - http://postimg.org/image/rwqcgezep/- seems to have a pretty good breakdown of the joystick, but i'm not sure where to even start.

 

barring that, would someone want to repair my joystick? i'd pay shipping both ways plus for your time.

[+KaeruYojimbo]

I've taken my Slik Stiks and TAC-2s apart to clean them. Just unscrew the screws from the base and pull the two halves apart. I sprayed a little Deoxit on the contacts and they all worked like a charm after.

[digdugnate]

cool, thanks! it looks like that the 2 screws are those weird P2 (or similar) screws so i'll need to poke around for a driver to fit it.

[yell0w_lantern]

If it is not corrosion on the plates, the problem is a break in the wire harness. I would bet on the latter.

Get a new wire harness from console 5 or buy an aftermarket Sega Genesis controller extension cord. Open up the female end, remove the glue, desolder the wires from the female d-sub (only for SG extension cord), tin the ends, and slip some heat shrink on for later. Note: you may need to remove the strain relief, too.

 

Open up your Slik Stik and clip the wires an inch or so from the tabs. Strip some insulation from each wire and tin it. You could put the heat shrink on these instead.

 

Run the bare end of the new wire harness through the opening your old one used. Later, you can add some hot glue to that area for strain relief if necessary.

 

Solder harness wire 1 to the wire running to the bottom tab, 2 to the top, 3 to the right tab, 4 to left tab, 6 runs to the button, and 8 goes to wire connected to the metal internal shaft of the stick. Test the stick now and fix any problems. Slip the heat shrink down the wire to cover your solder join then apply heat to shrink.

Edited January 18, 2018 by yell0w_lantern

[sparkdrummer]

As a side note on the Slik Stik - the "shaft" of the stick is a automotive tire valve stem! I discovered this when I repaired one of these joysticks. Pretty ingenious really.

[digdugnate]

thanks all for the tips! my first task is to get the thing apart then i'll see what im getting myself into.

 

i would like to have it in working order again!

[yell0w_lantern]

Odd. Slik stiks typically have Phillips head screws. Harbor Freight has a set of security head drivers for changeable head screwdrivers; just$10 a couple of years ago.

[ndp630]

I just bought 2 of these on eBay and awaiting their arrival. I’ll definitely file all of this information away for the future. Thanks!

[Sinphaltimus]

I recently went through my gamepad/joystick collection and found one in my Atari controllers box. It's now connected to my Amiga. It's my favorite joystick. And lucky me, it works great. But now when I look at it, I can't help seeing the air valve stem.

[Paranoid]

As a side note on the Slik Stik - the "shaft" of the stick is a automotive tire valve stem! I discovered this when I repaired one of these joysticks. Pretty ingenious really.

 

I feel like if you were watching me, you would have seen the light go on over my head when I read this. Awesome!

[Paranoid]

I just bought 2 of these on eBay and awaiting their arrival. I’ll definitely file all of this information away for the future. Thanks!

I have 4 of them. 3 of them had the square head screws. Only one had a set of Philips head.

[firebottle]

I remember burning through these joysticks back in the day. I think I went to Toys R Us every couple of months and bought another one. Too bad they break, 'cause the tight control is unlike any other.

Edited January 17, 2019 by firebottle

[Paranoid]

I had 4, and at least two of them have torn bases at the bottom of the valve stem - which is what causes the unwanted directional input.

I tried to replace one of them. I was able to get the ball off the top (and I realized that the ball on the top is basically just a ball-valve stem cover - what you might see as an 8-ball or skull on a tire.).

I went to the local tire store and the guy gave me 4 stems - but he gave me TR-413 instead of TR-414. The metal shaft with the ball is too thick in diameter to fit up inside the metal inside the TR-413. So, I decided to tear apart the donor valve from the slik-stick. My notes...

The top valve isn't threaded like an actual valve stem - where it connects to the orange ball. Also, the valve stem interior assembly is gone. It is just hollow - so it looks like you can't repair it just by swapping out an actual valve stem - there would be some machining required... I think you might be able to drill out the metal tube already in a valve-stem and then thread it, and then seat the metal ball and shaft in the stem.

I've ordered some TR-414s hoping that maybe the interior metal tube is a little wider in diameter and it'll work - but I don't think it is going to without some additional engineering that may be beyond me.

[Paranoid]

Just for the record, I was able to repair the Slik Stik and it works as good as new - and I've got an 8-Ball for the ball-cap instead of the orange ball now. I was going to upload images, but I guess they have to be hosted somewhere else for AtariAge. I'll post them on the AtariAge Facebook group.