See that lovely struggle stick? It is not only a controller: it is a image. An emblem of me operating out of excuses to git gud (or not less than crawl my manner out of scrubhood) in Road Fighter 6. Earlier this yr I used to be so excited for the brand new Road Fighter that I made a decision to construct my very own Hit Field, AKA an all-button arcade field with out an precise “stick.” As with most preventing video games I am enthusiastic about, earlier than launch I vowed that this can be the one I dedicated to placing actual time into. I am the primary and solely preventing sport novice to ever inform himself this lie.
When Road Fighter 6 landed in June, I solely had the venture half-finished, so I figured I might wait on diving in for a month or two, simply till I might end issues up. Contemplating I lastly attached all of the wires and screwed the field collectively on December 19, it is protected to say issues did not go precisely as deliberate. However 2024? 2024 would be the yr I positively pour some actual time into Road Fighter.
Constructing the controller was lots of enjoyable all by itself, although, and a course of I might advocate to any preventing sport fan who occurs to have lots of woodworking gear helpful (or, like me, a good friend with that gear). Regardless of watching some YouTube movies and studying about other people’ builds on-line, I nonetheless made just a few small errors and got here away with suggestions for different first-time builders. Here is the way it got here collectively.
The planning steps
I made a decision I wished to make a wood struggle stick, and that I wished it to be comparatively small in order that storing it wasn’t an enormous ache. I purchased some sturdy half-inch plywood from a neighborhood store, and whereas on a trip journey to Tokyo got down to discover an arcade components retailer to purchase buttons. I figured they’d be a bit cheaper in Japan than on-line, although I ended up erasing any financial savings I might gained for myself by panicking in regards to the colour mixture and shopping for extra buttons than I wanted.
For my major buttons I went with Sanwa’s OBSN 24mm, which I might evaluate to Cherry MX Reds. They’re quick, gentle contact buttons that you will discover throughout arcades and in lots of, many struggle sticks. For a contact of colour and textural selection I additionally picked just a few Seimitsu PS-14s, which require only a tad extra strain to activate, to function the triple punch / kick buttons.
That left the stick’s controller board and wiring.
Whereas I will principally be enjoying on PC, I additionally wished the keep on with work on consoles. There is a finances choice within the $25 Brook Zero-Pi, however I requested Brook to ship me its $80 Common Preventing Board in addition to a small add-on board for PS5 help. For anybody constructing a struggle stick going ahead, although, I might advocate the brand new UFB Fusion, which integrates the PS5 add-on; it is the plug-it-into-anything-and-it’ll-just-work board to decide on now. In case you’re constructing a leverless controller like me, you may additionally need the preventing board cable and hitbox cable, which make the wiring course of actually, very easy. Brook gives bundles for getting the cables collectively and/or with the UFB that knocks fairly a bit off the value.
The subsequent steps of planning my construct at this level revealed many complexities I hadn’t actually considered.
- Even good high quality plywood is not going to have completely squared edges, which makes excellent measurements powerful. This may be pretty simply solved, however solely in case you have the precise woodworking gear.
- The saws you’ve got entry to will dictate the way you go about constructing your controller. As a result of we did not have a desk noticed or skilsaw (or a laser cutter, which might be even higher), we determined it was going to be tough to construct a box-style controller like on this YouTube video. As an alternative we went for a “sandwich” method, slicing the plywood into a number of items and layering it to create the thickness wanted to suit all the interior components. This is able to allow us to cope with the not-square edges later with an orbital sander.
- When discovering a button template on-line, ensure that the spacing will work for screw buttons (higher for thicker packing containers) somewhat than push buttons (constructed for skinny metallic/acrylic panels). I used this template that was modified to suit screw buttons, and so they simply barely match, so I actually wanted one other couple millimeters of spacing in between. If I might used considered one of these official templates, it probably would not have match my buttons.
- Until you have already got a totally stocked woodworking store, prices are positively going so as to add up—I spent almost $30 simply on the 24mm and 30mm Forstner bits used to drill the button holes, about that a lot on the wooden, and extra afterward brushes, stain, and polyurethane for the ending steps.
Drilling button holes and check becoming
Ideally, you’d use a drill press to rapidly and cleanly make the button holes utilizing the round Forstner bits, however a handheld drill truly did the job completely wonderful right here. One necessary tip: use the purpose of the drill bit to make a small indentation within the wooden at your heart level to anchor it as you drill, making certain it would not go skittering throughout the floor.
The advantage of this half-inch piece of plywood is that it is extraordinarily sturdy and would not bend in any respect, however it comes with a draw back: it is too thick for the screw buttons. That meant that on the again aspect of the highest panel I had to make use of the 30mm bit to drill all the way in which round every gap, greater than doubling the quantity of labor for this step of the method.
At this level we did a check becoming, and every part match! However later, once I stained the wooden and needed to tighten all of the buttons to make sure they did not wiggle, it was an especially tight squeeze.
Assembling the layers, gluing, and slicing
With the button holes achieved, we drew a tough diagram on the highest panel to determine how the PCB would match and the place the aspect buttons (for Begin, Choose and many others.) would match, in addition to the place the outlet for the USB plug would go. This helped us decide how thick we might make the perimeters and the way a lot further wooden to depart within the corners to provide screws for the underside panel loads of safety. With all that sketched out, we lined up a number of extra items of the plywood and glued them collectively to function the physique of the controller.
Our course of right here was dictated by the type of noticed we had available—on this case we used an oscillating multi-tool to chop by means of the stacked wooden vertically. We used a bit of tape on the blade to mark the depth we would be slicing to, however utilizing some low cost particle board as a backstop made it fairly straightforward to inform after we’d damaged by means of the more durable wooden.
The slicing course of was surprisingly painless, and as soon as the inside block was gone we might use the Forstner bits once more to drill the aspect button holes after which glue the highest panel in place.
Sanding, sanding and extra sanding
We now have a field! The controller just about appears the half at this level, however refining is a prolonged course of. At this level I had to make use of the orbital sander to wash off that overhanging lip on the highest panel and start sanding down the perimeters, too, which is trickier than it sounds. Some sides would slope in direction of the highest or backside and/or left or proper; others would bulge or dip barely someplace in between. Wooden appears fairly straight till you scrutinize it from all angles after which it actually doesn’t look straight in any respect.
After an preliminary hour or two of energy sanding to get the perimeters roughly sq., I additionally did a ton of sanding by hand to spherical off all the perimeters, making them way more nice for wrists to relaxation in opposition to. As you may see within the completed picture, there is a fairly clear inward slope on the precise aspect—I did my finest to imitate it on the left, and except you are actually squinting on the last product it appears even. It is positively not an ideal rectangle, however I am okay with that: it feels extra handmade and would not compromise on the usability of the stick in any respect.
Staining and polyurethane
I wished a wealthy reddish brown, so I utilized three coats of purple chestnut wooden stain. I cherished the way it seemed when moist, however naturally when it dried the colour was a lot much less vibrant. A number of coats helped, although, as did the ultimate step: making use of a transparent semi-gloss polyurethhane. I did an especially wonderful grit sanding in between to make sure no particles or bits of stain roughed up the end. The poly actually helps convey out the vibrancy of the wooden in good lighting.
Last steps: Wiring all of it up
Securing all of the buttons proved to be more durable than I anticipated—throughout my check match I hadn’t grappled with getting the screws firmly lodged in place in opposition to the wooden. I needed to chip away some further room with a screwdriver and use needle nostril pliers in just a few instances the place my fingers have been too huge to get a grip. I additionally wanted the pliers for the left aspect buttons the place we would saved the wooden fairly thick—there was no manner my fingers have been becoming in there!
Wiring was fortunately a straightforward step: I simply adopted a information for the 20-pin harness displaying which coloured cable corresponded to every button. Brook additionally provides a information for its hitbox cable. Because the cables are preconfigured with feminine connectors, they simply slide onto the buttons and the job’s achieved. The one “guide” wiring I needed to do was for the PS5 add-in board, which required two wires be hooked up to the precise terminals on the Common Preventing Board and screwed in. With a small Philips screwdriver, that took all of a minute.
I additionally wanted to connect the Neutrik USB feed-through with a pair small screws, so I drilled tiny pilot holes first after which secured it by hand. Since I might already splurged on this venture I purchased each Kind-C and Kind-A cables to be prepared for any scenario.
The ultimate step was securing the board in place. I had some heavy obligation adhesive velcro leftover from one other venture, so I hooked up that to the underside of the UFB after which caught it to the highest panel. I determine this fashion it’s going to keep in place however nonetheless be pretty straightforward to take away and reuse if I ever need to swap it out or transfer it to a different stick.
A number of extra suggestions and classes discovered for constructing your individual hitbox
After placing this factor collectively, listed below are just a few takeaways:
- This information on FocusAttack is a superb place to begin for figuring out what components you want, and what components you may need (deciding between button varieties, for instance)
- Getting a wonderfully straight edge is an actual problem with out the precise instruments, so in case you’re an novice builder like me, having a extra skilled good friend is invaluable (thanks, John!)
- There is a purpose most struggle sticks are typically bigger than the one I’ve constructed. A deeper field provides you a bit more room to relaxation your wrists, and a wider one sits extra stably on the lap. I do not remorse constructing a extra compact field, but when I had it to do over I might most likely go a bit larger.
- In case you’re on the fence about constructing your individual, there’s positively a extra inexpensive customized choice: an acrylic enclosure from Everlasting Rival. These nonetheless require you to produce your individual buttons and PCB, however provide you with a case to construct in, no sanding required. You may as well get customized prime panel paintings achieved for these, which is lots of enjoyable—check out the r/fightsticks subreddit for inspiration from some unimaginable designs.
- It is all the time going to be actually arduous to not name this a “struggle stick” each single time although there is not any stick