Fixing an N64 Controller Broken Joystick (Wiggle Stick) NO REPLACEMENT PARTS 

Good tip! I should have been more clear on final dimensions after trimming the excess. I haven't ran into this, but I imagine if the ring is too large it could impede the stick motion. 1mm width or slightly less should be the target.

Good info, thanks!

Thanks! I also used a 3mm diameter O ring and this works great!

Hope it goes well man!

How did it go?

literally? as in one million? do they own a factory for that kind of pen?

Awesome, I do my best to show detail on the teardown for this exact reason, cheers!

That's a great idea! I'm glad it worked out :)

I just did that! Pushed from under the rubber with the tip of the screw driver to easily cut a hole from the other side. Also had to cut off the sort of ''double rim'' as it was way too tight with it (the stick wouldn't always come back in the centre). Perfect fit :D

Great Idea, I was looking for something similar but ended up using plumbers/thread tape and my joystick is good as new!

Glad you liked it :)

Too much mario party? Hope you can get it in better shape!

Glad you enjoyed! I find this method to be more simple with less room for error. If you mess up with resin/epoxy, your part may be completely shot.

Try out Kitsch-Bent parts. It costs a dollar for a new set of gears

Cool alternative, glad that worked out!

Glad to hear that! Cheers m8

I had never heard of that vendor. They seem like a great option. Thank you for sharing!

It might seem like a somewhat newer fix, but someone with a painfully slow YT video posted about using a white Bic pen’s outer casing like this about six years ago. 👍 Not knocking this guy’s video, though. You did your repair about twenty minutes quicker than the OG Bic guy did his.

Thank you!!!

Thank you sir!

Thanks for watching!

Awesome, glad you got yours working better!

Love to hear it, cheers!

Awesome that you fixed it, congrats!

Thanks for sharing! Very glad this worked for you :)

Thanks I'm glad to help!

Thanks for the lube suggestion, I should probably start using this more myself!

Thanks for watching! Kinder pod sounds like a neat alternative option as you'd get curvature in both directions instead of just one like with the pen.

Glad I could help!

Glad it helped!

Glad it worked out!

Thanks for watching!

That would probably work well if you got a high durometer o-ring!

Thanks for the kind words and I'm glad this helped you out!

Glad you got it fixed up!

Hope it helps and you can get yours in better shape, cheers!

Glad I could help, cheers!

Glad it helped!

That sounds high class!

Where did you get those?

Thanks for the sub!

Its a pretty simple fix when you get some free time!

Cool alternative! Might have to try this next time I've got a wiggly stick in front of me

Glad to hear!

Stick as in it doesn't have full travel in those directions? That shouldn't be happening, but whether it plays well with games and feels okay is what really matters.

Well acquainted with plastic dust I see..

Good observation, yes I had already taken this one apart and cleaned it out before deciding to make the video.

If one direction feels different it's definitely a symmetry problem with the insert, but if it works well enough for you then nice fix!

O-ring will probably work but you'd want a high durometer or else the stick will feel squishy as the O-ring compresses in use.

I didn't game test this particular controller, but I've done the same fix in the past on a controller which I then used without issue for many months afterwards.

I just did the reparation following this video and I arrive at the same problem as Zipple41, My lose stick is now way firmer and snaps back in place, but in-game, the joystick still performs the same. I still can't run in SM64. I think that adding spacers to the black curved parts might be the solution to recover the joystick's range of motion.

@@waza_alex720 Let me know if this works for you! Still looking for a solution since I can't rely on Steel Sticks to be in stock.

​@@zipple41 I spent around 8h this week trying a couple different methods to bring back to life joysticks that would barely walk in mario64. I personnally think steel sticks are way too expensive, i would not consider them but they might be great. The spacer shown in this video is a great solution to bring back the snap of the joystick, but it does not bring back the lost input. I found that the 2 black curved gear pieces were grinded on the inside and that is probably the source of the bigger deadzone and missing inputs. I tried adding layers of transparent packing sticky paper around the 2 branches of the curved grinded parts, then burning with a lighter and sanding the outside to make it steel feel smooth inside the bowl, trying to fill the inside missing plastic. The next day I tried to achieve the same result dropping a drop of crazy glue and controlling it while it settle.. Both methods kinda worked, I gained back some inputs, but I couldn't make a clean result, the joysticks were still stiff and not perfect, I think time and effort is the solution. 8h was great but not enough. I tried ordering the gears from Etsy N64gears, I will see if the parts can revive a controller, and if it works, I will try to find if someone could help me create a copy with a 3D printer, I Just want to play Smash Multiplayer ahah

might have a cable pinched in there somewhere. They can "creak" a little bit no matter what but it should feel like a perfect fit when the shell halves come together.

That is not an issue I've seen, it sounds like some debris got trapped inside. I'd recommend opening the joystick assembly and cleaning things out as a starting point.

its because the support piece you cut is hitting the lid casing making it hard to press up on the joystick. u need to sand the piece down more on that edge.

5/32" - thanks for the kind words!

@@FantasticQuack so I tried it and the right, top, and left flick back up but the down one won't. Any ideas?

I figured it the trick is to screw it in but leave a small small gap

I just tested it with Mario 64 and it played much better than before the fix. In hindsight I really should have filmed the gameplay and added to the video for completeness--you're not the first one to ask about this. I might need to do a refreshed video on this topic at some point!

I'd only recommend this method if you're trying to get something in bad condition into better condition. You could still give it a go, but if you're already buying new parts I'd probably suggest just buying a new stick as well.

Glad it helped!

Absolutely, but I wouldn't use a straight FDM print with PLA or ABS because of the ridges and printing artifacts that could wear itself or the sorrounding parts. The latter could be vapor smoothed with acetone and the former has some finishing options as well. SLA printing might be good to go right out of the printer. All of these "extra" options are not necessarily common or available to a hobbyist printer. Therefore the pen cap that is already injection molded is a good option and available to pretty much anyone!

I don't see why you couldn't!

Thanks for the kind words!

but the limited range of motion is not ideal for N64 platformers, like SM64

@@inclinerd Or any game that requires precision aim, like Goldeneye/Perfect Dark etc

I didn't even know people were doing that!

Pretty impressive you've kept in in good order for that long!

Thank you for watching!

Thanks for watching!

Not showing game footage was a missed opportunity on my part. It does also bring back the range because the black gear piece starts moving right away by adding that spacer. Before, the gear wouldn't move until the stick was outside the wiggle range. Maybe I'll do an update video at some point showing gameplay.

@@FantasticQuack Well that's good if it worked. ;) cheers for the reply.

Are you talking up/down on the d pad? If so check/clean the pad contacts on the board. The method in this vid should resolve all directions on the joystick.

Unless you're trying to 3D print a spacer you don't need to be that precise and can just do it by feel w/manual whittling. You can take the stick out and measure it yourself with a caliper. Unfortunately I did not do that when I had things disassembled here so can't hand you the number. I'll try to remember to do that on the next one.

ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-ETQhlSXIsR0.html this video goes into more detail. hope it helps

​@@FantasticQuack 3d printing spacers for these is a great idea.

Sorry to hear that! Was it a clean break?--Maybe some opportunity to repair it with super glue or epoxy

@@FantasticQuack yep. Clean break. The right side that held the stick in place broke completely off.

I think you're right

For sure, just make sure it's high durometer like 70A at least or else it will feel "squishy"

Thanks alot!

Hope it works out for you!

No shame in that, thanks for watching!

I bet you could but would probably need to be hard (high durometer) or else it will feel "squishy".

@@FantasticQuack nice video by the way I was just curious if that would work. I just swapped my worn out one with a good one from another controller. It's about that time to start collecting consoles. I'm buying a Dreamcast and a GameCube this week

Hope it helped you out, cheers!

@@FantasticQuack it made 3 useless controllers playable again!

Very sorry to hear this, agreed I should have shown game footage before/after. It did work well on mine which is why I shared the process. The size of the plastic piece is tricky to get right and I'm sure there's opportunity for things to go sideways. I am confused how the behavior is worse after removing the extra plastic though, I'd expect it to have reverted to how it was working before. It's better for me to see this feedback instead of a dislike and then wondering why without any context. I definitely don't want to lead people down any path that makes an issue their experiencing worse, so I'll keep this in mind and try to do better moving forward. There are other solutions to this problem such as repairing the joystick bowl, I'm happy to offer further advice or insight if you'd like to email me.

Thank you very much for the reply. Like I said, I don‘t normally comment since videos like this are trying to be genuinely helpful and I am in no way trying to be needlessly negative towards your video. I did think for people trying this at home it might be helpful to share my experience with your particular fix. It did surprise me that the controller didn‘t go back to its previous manoeuvrability. I’m not sure why though, but I did notice with my controller that the colours weren‘t exactly the same as the colours of the guts in the controller you were fixing. Maybe some are more sensitive than others.

I was happy with the result :)