reverendshoebox Posted December 11, 2014 Share Posted December 11, 2014 Hey, guys. Just recently bought a couple of "new in the box" Atari joysticks from a local game place, and discovered when I opened them that they were no-brand reproductions. A quick search online revealed that these things are all over the place. They seem to be made of cheaper (or perhaps just lighter) plastic than the real CX-40s, and they have a slightly "tighter" feel, which could be a good thing or a bad thing. Where did these come from? Any of you guys have them? How do you like them? -=ShoEboX=- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Albert Posted December 11, 2014 Share Posted December 11, 2014 I bought a case of reproduction CX-40 joysticks two years ago, for use at a show where I had a ton of 2600 systems setup. They turned out to be so cheaply made that I broke one the very first time I used it. It's possible that was a fluke, but I still have the rest of them just sitting in a box, unopened. I may just have to include them with random orders in the store so I can get rid of them. I may test another first, though. If the "quality" is consistent, I certainly would not sell them to anyone. I would be interested in seeing some photos of the ones you bought. I can take photos of one of mine as well. ..Al 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chas10e Posted December 11, 2014 Share Posted December 11, 2014 I bought a great quality NIB atari joystick at the Video Game Exchange in NH it seemed to be an unpainted cx-40 shell , rubber handle with a cx-10 circuit board soldered to the cable, no rubber feet says "Made in Taiwan" on bottom. I'll have to posts pics later .... just saying perhaps all of them ain't that bad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Albert Posted December 11, 2014 Share Posted December 11, 2014 I did not mean to suggest that all reproduction CX-40 joysticks are junk. If someone can point me at some high-quality CX-40 reproductions, I'd love to buy some. ..Al Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+wongojack Posted December 11, 2014 Share Posted December 11, 2014 I got some that were brand new that I could tell weren't going to last long. The retaining ring is a problem for some of these (missing) and then there are just very fragile parts on the inside that seem to bend or give immediately. Right now, I am very cautious . . . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chas10e Posted December 11, 2014 Share Posted December 11, 2014 had a good tactile feel from them dome contacts & I think the white handle is the redesigned one as well 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gilsaluki Posted December 12, 2014 Share Posted December 12, 2014 Besides the soldered with connections, the repros look very similar, even board part number. I have to say, I would pass on the repros. I just rebuild an original controller with Best's Gold Contact boards, new rubber boot. It is awesome, 100 percent improvement. Not necessarily a big fan of Brad, but man, the guy DOES have the goods. I would recommend forgoing repros and find originals and rebuild them. I know it will cost more, but believe me, you will use the Best upgraded one's over any of the others out there. This was not meant to be a commercial for Bradley Enterprises. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reverendshoebox Posted December 13, 2014 Author Share Posted December 13, 2014 Mine look very similar, but the connections aren't soldered. Contacts are nice and clicky. Reverend -=ShoEboX=- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reverendshoebox Posted December 13, 2014 Author Share Posted December 13, 2014 (edited) Oh, and yeah, just finally got my catalog from Best along with my first order (B&C Computervisions has been my primary non-thrift-shop Atari supplier for the last couple of decades, and I've somehow never ordered from Best until just recently.) I suspect this thing's gonna be my primary toilet reading material for the next year or so. -=ShoEboX=- Edited December 13, 2014 by reverendshoebox Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Nathan Strum Posted December 13, 2014 Share Posted December 13, 2014 I suspect this thing's gonna be my primary toilet reading material for the next year or so. I'm confused… do you read to your toilet, or is your toilet doing the reading? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chuckwalla Posted December 13, 2014 Share Posted December 13, 2014 I have several from a decade or so ago. I opened one about a half year ago and it was largely non-functional despite tearing it apart and re-building it, as well as cleaning all contacts. I opened another and the same result. I do have two original CX-40 sticks (that REAL/ORIGINAL Atari joysticks with the red dashes around the rubber boot) that I bought brand new in the late 90's and keep them in reserve. I recently did buy two CX-40's with gold contacts from Best Electronics, and of course, they work perfectly and use those as my workhorses for classic gaming now. Bottom line: spend a few more $ and get the gold contact CX-40's from Best Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gilsaluki Posted December 13, 2014 Share Posted December 13, 2014 That Best Catalog Rev 10 (and last REV there will ever be) is a thing of wonder. It is a masterpiece. It has been my toilet buddy for a LONG time. Bad thing is, a lot of the nifty stuff there (memorabilia and such) is now out of stock. A lot of what was just common stuff is double or triple priced now. I have ordered many times from Best. They (he) are good. So is B&C. Always been there, always will. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gilsaluki Posted December 13, 2014 Share Posted December 13, 2014 Yeah, don't cheap out. Get original CX-40s and put the Gold PCBs in them. You will not regret it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reverendshoebox Posted December 13, 2014 Author Share Posted December 13, 2014 Well, these wouldn't be for me. I've been refurbishing some broken Atari 2600 systems lately that I've had in my basement for years with "broken" stickers on them and just recently revisited (it's been a fun project with my son, who wanted to learn to solder.) So I'm putting together a couple of systems for friends and putting a couple more on eBay, but I'm out of extra CX-40's, and they're way harder to find cheap than they used to be, so I was wondering if these would be a valid alternative for these systems (not that I'd try to pass them off as the real deal.) I've got two Wico Command Control bats that I'm using for most of my home Atari and Mame-ing...still my favorite joystick after all these years. And I've got a couple of really nice CX-40's of my very own. Very tempted by the gold PCBs...I may have to try those out. Thanks, -=ShoEboX=- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shawn Posted December 13, 2014 Share Posted December 13, 2014 Well they have to be better than the POS controllers that came with the flashback. Those thing brake just looking at them. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gilsaluki Posted December 15, 2014 Share Posted December 15, 2014 ShoeHorn, Buy the Best gold PCBs. They are really good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Nathan Strum Posted December 16, 2014 Share Posted December 16, 2014 ShoeHorn, Buy the Best gold PCBs. They are really good. Seconded. The second half of this blog entry recounts my experience with them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Video Posted December 18, 2014 Share Posted December 18, 2014 re the repos different than the "flashback" sticks (which seem good to me, but feel slightly different from original due to not having dome switches) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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