Joystick sticking - simple mechanical Q

[Ed Oscuro]

I got an XE-ST2, and the stick sticks a bit in one direction.

I note that the joystick itself springs back fairly quickly when disassembled, but there's some stuff between it and the outside of the case.

There's not a whole lot of stuff inside the stick that could cause trouble; around the stick there's a spring holding up a patterned plate which sits under a part you can press and turn 90 degrees to do something or other to the stick. Possibly one of these parts is causing the stick to not center properly.

There's some yellowish gunk around the base of the stick. Should it be safe to strip that off, and what should I put in its place? Vaseline, WD-40..?

[PC Engine Fan X!]

Perhaps some Sex Wax would do the trick?

It would be more like hobby-grade based lubricant is what you're after, right?

There is the Dow-Corning produced industrial grade arcade joystick lubricant but when priced at about $45.00 USD for a small tube that is used in the American arcade game industry. Just a tiny bit goes a long way. Granted, it's too expensive for that amount of money for the casual end-user. You do get what you pay for though. ^_~

Yeah, I'd clean off that yellowish gunk off and see if that does the trick. And a tiny bit of WD-40 would work in your case.

PC Engine Fan X! ^_~

[rolins]

I have the exact same stick so I know the problem. Whenever I bought a XE-1 stick the it never goes to neutral correctly. There was always gunk or hair inside the joystick but it easy to fix. The bearing just needs to be cleaned. Take the joystick apart, remove every inch the old grease and junk, and apply some silicone grease. While your at it make sure to clean the microswitches, sometimes there's oil and dirt on it.

Here's the silicone grease I use, I bought at a scuba diving shop for 2 dollars. It's 0.25oz (7g) container which is plenty for all your joystick. I'm still using the same one I bought a few years back.

[brokenhalo]

FYI you don't want to use wd-40 for an application like this. it will work fine for a bit, but wd-40 dries up too quickly and when dry acts like a dust magnet. the silicone grease or the moly coat grease are the way to go.

[Ed Oscuro]

Thanks for the notes, everybody:

PC E Fan: That sure is interesting about the arcade lube. I'll look it up just for the lulz.

rolins: Just what I was looking for, A++ !!!

brokenhalo: Thanks for pinpointing the deal with WD-40. I believe I had heard that in the past but didn't remember it correctly. I was afraid (for some completely irrational reason) that it would turn out to be hilariously corrosive in combination with the lube already on the stick Of course, dried WD-40 is hardly my fetish either.