^I have one of these back home and has undergone various modification stages. I see them from time to time, but they are usually boxed, and it's up to what the clerk had for lunch that day if they are willing to open it up for me.
Just some advice before pulling the trigger. The sticks are standard LS32; if you want new ones, you can quickly drop new ones in. You must get a new panel if you want to use a JLF as the mount for the LS32 is welded to the panel. The buttons need to be desoldered from the board, however. Also, standard 30mm buttons fit the panel; however, they fit loosely. I plugged the 7th and 8th holes, but it still doesn't look as good as a six-button panel. Here's the really crappy part. If you get a repro panel, it does fit; however, the metal tabs on the back side are placed differently, meaning it won't drop right into the slots on the plastic. The screws align with the standard Astro City panel, but the tabs do not. In other words, these tabs need to be removed, or you need to order the panel custom WITHOUT the tabs or have them placed properly. I took my repro New Net City panel to my mechanic, who sawed off the tabs for me.
Perhaps my biggest gripe about the stick is that every time you want to work on it, you must remove the bottom panel before the top panel can be removed. It's time-consuming, and the plastic threads on top of the bottom panel will eventually wear out. It is VERY important to ensure everything is in good working order and you are happy with your choice of stick and buttons before re-assembly because it is a pain in the ass to change anything. A simple spring change or connecting a wire on a button could take over 20 minutes.
Overall, I love the stick and think it is great for having people over. Especially those who don't know much about the hobby; always dig it. That said, it's not a simple stick to work if you want more advanced mods like adding DB15 and RJ45 support, coin buttons, etc. There is a lot of drilling of plastic involved. However, if you keep it as a Saturn-only stick, it is fairly straightforward so long as you know how to do basic soldering.
I attached pics of mine.
Just some advice before pulling the trigger. The sticks are standard LS32; if you want new ones, you can quickly drop new ones in. You must get a new panel if you want to use a JLF as the mount for the LS32 is welded to the panel. The buttons need to be desoldered from the board, however. Also, standard 30mm buttons fit the panel; however, they fit loosely. I plugged the 7th and 8th holes, but it still doesn't look as good as a six-button panel. Here's the really crappy part. If you get a repro panel, it does fit; however, the metal tabs on the back side are placed differently, meaning it won't drop right into the slots on the plastic. The screws align with the standard Astro City panel, but the tabs do not. In other words, these tabs need to be removed, or you need to order the panel custom WITHOUT the tabs or have them placed properly. I took my repro New Net City panel to my mechanic, who sawed off the tabs for me.
Perhaps my biggest gripe about the stick is that every time you want to work on it, you must remove the bottom panel before the top panel can be removed. It's time-consuming, and the plastic threads on top of the bottom panel will eventually wear out. It is VERY important to ensure everything is in good working order and you are happy with your choice of stick and buttons before re-assembly because it is a pain in the ass to change anything. A simple spring change or connecting a wire on a button could take over 20 minutes.
Overall, I love the stick and think it is great for having people over. Especially those who don't know much about the hobby; always dig it. That said, it's not a simple stick to work if you want more advanced mods like adding DB15 and RJ45 support, coin buttons, etc. There is a lot of drilling of plastic involved. However, if you keep it as a Saturn-only stick, it is fairly straightforward so long as you know how to do basic soldering.
I attached pics of mine.
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