Posted by Dave from Sweden on 22, 2001 at 1:36 PM:
In Reply to: Oh yes, the magic base stop... posted by Smack on 22, 2001 at 11:05 AM:
: I have 3 super Happs joysticks on my cab. 2 are set 8 way, 1 way.
: The "bas stop" is a little plastic ring on the underside of the joystick that you flip over and put a little horseshoe type ring on it to hole it in place. It goes on the bottom of the metal shaft.
Isn't the part you're describing actually called the "actuator"...? AFAIK, the base stop is a part inside or near the joint of the stick.
Either way, there are two fundamentally different ways of switching between 4- and 8-way
1) Flipping the actuator. For 8 way, use the bigger end, so that the diagonals are triggered closer to the neutral position. (BTW, some sticks seem to have square actuators for 8-way, same effect, but might be better in some cases.) For 4-way, use the smaller end so that it gets next to, or entirely impossible to trigger more than one switch at a time.
2) Restrict the movement of the stick. This gives the stick a different feel, and ensures that 4-way really is *true* 4-way; ie you can't force the stick to activate the diagonals. There are various ways of doing this. On most sticks, you have to replace a part (called "base stop" I assume...) inside, or near the joint, while on others (like the Suzo Controls 2/3/4/5/8-way), there are adjustable stoppers below the actuator. There may be other variants as well.