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Building an Arcade Golf Trackball?

Posted by simoniker on from the fist-through-screen dept.

SparafucileMan writes "Ok, I'll admit it. I've spent way too much time at the pub drinking... er... playing these arcade golf games such as Golden Tee 2004. However I'm annoyed by the lack of features, graphics quality, and courses and figure that playing golf on my computer, where there are several outstanding titles available, would get me a lot more bang for the buck. However, what's the fun in playing arcade golf with a mouse and keyboard?! I want to invite some people over to hammer the bejesus out of a huge trackball, just like at the arcade. Anyone have any suggestions on where I can find such a contraption, or how I could build one myself (with USB hook-up, no-less)?" We've previously covered the cult of Golden Tee, and the inevitable injuries that result from the mixing of beer and trackballs.

4 of 22 comments (clear)

  1. Go all the way! by lubeboy · · Score: 5, Informative

    Get Rich...it's not cheap!
    Optional: Control Panel
    Get the USB Trackball interface
    Get a trackball! And... FP!

  2. MAME Controls and Cabinets by dendyjm · · Score: 5, Informative

    There are a ton onf sites regarding arcade cabinets and controllers for your PC. Check out www.slikstik.com or www.x-arcade.com for controllers.

  3. Nobody mentioned _the_ site yet.. by KyolFrilander · · Score: 5, Informative

    The best place, bar none, to go is Build Your Own Arcade Controls. Hint: Happ is spendy. Consider Imperial/Betson. Google for them, and you can find TBs for $30-ish. Oscar Controls Sells a nice TB Harness->USB adaptor for around $12.

    Now, can you use a circular saw without losing important bodily appendages? _that's_ the real trick, you bet.

    --
    Buddha says, "Shut your karma hole."
  4. Big trackballs. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

    If all you need is a big trackball, there are two products that come to mind:

    * Microsoft Easyball
    * Crayola Kids PC Trackball
    * Infogrip BigTrack

    The Easyball would have been most suitable (as it was huge - I remember seeing one in the store, there are a few pictures here), but that and the Crayola trackball are no longer being sold as far as I know. From pictures, the BigTrack looks like the exact same model as the Crayola one. Although both are smaller than the Microsoft trackball, you can still buy the BigTrack direct from the manufacturer for $80 (link above, although I think that's at least $30 more than the crayola trackball was selling for).

    Of course, you might still be able to find an Easyball on Ebay or Froogle

    However - neither of these might be suitable for the purposes you're thinking about. They're plastic devices made for kids, not necessarily designed to be smashed around by grown adults as the arcade devices are.