How Do You Deal With Thumb Stick Drift? - Lemmy.World
lemmy.world
So I like to use Xbox controllers (doesn’t matter if it’s first- or third-party) because I like the layout, it’s just comfortable to me. However I’ve noticed that on all my controllers in the past few years, the left thumb stick will start to “give out” over the course of a couple months. For instance I’ll be pushing it forward all the way, but it won’t register for some reason and my character will only move a little bit. Sometimes wiggling it a bit will fix it, sometimes it doesn’t. And it’s not like I’m squeezing the hell out of the controller or mashing the stick constantly; in fact it’s made me try to be more delicate with my controllers, even though I’m just playing the games normally. Is it just how controllers are, or am I just getting the shit end of the stick?

So I like to use Xbox controllers (doesn’t matter if it’s first- or third-party) because I like the layout, it’s just comfortable to me. However I’ve noticed that on all my controllers in the past few years, the left thumb stick will start to “give out” over the course of a couple months. For instance I’ll be pushing it forward all the way, but it won’t register for some reason and my character will only move a little bit. Sometimes wiggling it a bit will fix it, sometimes it doesn’t. And it’s not like I’m squeezing the hell out of the controller or mashing the stick constantly; in fact it’s made me try to be more delicate with my controllers, even though I’m just playing the games normally.

Is it just how controllers are, or am I just getting the shit end of the stick?

  • GlitchingtonEnglish
    1•10 months ago

    With the Switch controllers I found out the clicking action puts pressure on the back housing of the analog stick. Basically, the aluminum backing was bowing really bad. The best fix I found was to tape a couple layers of cardstock behind the housing so it made contact with the plastic shell. This presses the housing back into place, and also prevents it from protruding in the future.

      • GlitchingtonEnglish
        2•10 months ago

        Right? They don’t even need new tooling, just a shim the size of the stick housing and tape. Two years in on fixing all four of my joycons and not a single instance of drift since.