SPARKN64 Controller
am Le is a student at California Polytechnic
University, and just like the students of
1998–2002, he’s a big fan of the Nintendo 64.
He’s such a big fan that he goes through game
controllers at the rate of around one every two
months – so instead of wasting time on eBay,
he’s reverse-engineered them.
First, he took an old one to bits, measured every part, then
reassembled it in the SolidWorks CAD program. During this step
he found that the reason they break down is that the moving parts
eventually grind away to dust. The way to fix this was to upgrade
the materials – cast brass for the gear housings and socket that
the joystick fits into, 3D-printed VisiJet M3 Crystal for the gear
teeth and the joystick housing, and 3D-printed nylon for the
joystick itself.
“Generally, harder materials won’t be worn by materials of a
lower hardness,” says Nam. “The result is having only one part
wear compared to every old component wearing. Every once in
a while the stick will have to be replaced, but it takes a longer
time to wear, and is a better cheap alternative than buying a
new controller.”N
By Nam Le imnam.com