4 replies to this topic

[NightSprinter]

As the title states, I'm having some trouble fixing the sticks on my Channel F-II. One stick works save for the right directional, and the other gives no response when I push or pull the stick (which makes Alien Invasion unplayable with it). Is there a way to fix these?

[Ataritard]

Yes... I remember it being hard to put back together though. Mine had a wire that needed to be soldered back on to the fire button. Good luck.

[BassGuitari]

Channel F/Video Command joysticks tend to have problems because the wires are extremely flimsy, small-gauge things that wear out, break, or become disconnected easily. Usually the wires just need to be resoldered to their appropriate points. The trouble is, as they were manufactured, the wires were left with just barely enough slack for them to reach their solder points, so you can't just cut the frayed/broken/whatever and shave off the insulation. But, fear not!

One method of repairing via "extending" the wires so they reach their points basically has you pulling the external part of the cord into the controller casing to allow more slack for the wires. This works fine as long as you don't mind cutting off the stopper/crimp protector where the cord goes into the controller. Also, your cord will be slightly shorter. Here's a video (not mine) outlining the procedure as performed on a Zircon 2600 joystick (it's the same as the Channel F joystick but added a trigger button):



An idea I had that I haven't tried yet (I hope to this summer, I've got a couple of flaky Video Command joysticks I want to fix up) involves splicing wire extensions onto the old wires, and soldering the extensions to the contact points. Again, I haven't tried that yet so I can't guarantee the results of that, but I don't see why it shouldn't work.

I hope this helps!

[Chuck D. Head]

Same experience for me with my Video Command sticks. Each one has one axis that wont respond at all and one has a bad fire button. The one I opened revealed the flimsiest wire possible had broken off the trigger button contact. The wire to the joystick was attached but probably broken internally. I will rebuild them, but I am sure it wont be worth the trouble.

[NightSprinter]

Not that good at soldering, but once I've some money again I'll have a look at it.