Atari CX-10 Joystick Button Alignment Jig

Atari CX-10 Joystick Button Alignment Jig

After countless tries at aligning the new domes for my vintage Atari joysticks I gave up on eyeballing them and designed this simple two-piece jig. It lines up all five triangle-dome buttons the same every time and helps align them on the original circuit board.
Hopefully it helps someone!

What’s Included

Normal jig
Holds the five 10 mm triangle-dome contacts for initial placement.

Mount jig
Aligns both the taped-up domes and the CX-10 PCB.

Bonus jigs (optional backups)
Two extra resized jigs in case your buttons are slightly out of spec.

You’ll Need

5 × 10 mm triangle-dome buttons (no legs)
I originally grabbed mine on AliExpress at $4 for 100:
https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256802037736386.html
(Be sure they’re 10 mm, no leg. This new link is about $8 for 200.)

Clear packing tape (cut into ~5 in / 12 cm strips)

Goo-Off or acetone (to remove old tape glue)

Isopropyl alcohol (IPA)

Magic Eraser (for stubborn residue)

Sharp razor or hobby blade

Step-by-Step Guide

Strip the old pads
Peel off the ancient tape and domes. Use Goo-Off or acetone to dissolve the remaining goo.

Deep-clean the PCB
Wipe everything down with IPA, scrub the contact pads gently with a Magic Eraser, then finish with another IPA pass.

3D-print the jigs

Only print the Normal and Mount parts.

The extra two files are spares if your buttons don’t quite fit.

Line up your jig and make sure your print matches the PCB pads.

Load the Normal jig
Drop the five new triangle-dome buttons into the cutouts.

Tape the domes in place
Lay a 5 in (~12 cm) piece of clear packing tape across the domes and press just enough so each dome sticks.

Transfer to the Mount jig
Peel the tape (with domes attached) off the Normal jig, leaving the back half on the Mount jig.

Seat the PCB
Slot your freshly cleaned Atari PCB into the Mount jig.

Align and adhere
Lower the taped-up domes onto the copper pads, nudging as needed until each is perfectly centered. Press the tape down firmly.

Trim excess tape
Slide the PCB out and carefully trim any overhang with a sharp razor—watch those traces!

Verify and enjoy
Visually confirm all five contacts line up. If one’s off, peel and retry—you’ve got up to 200 retries!

I whipped this up in Tinkercad—feel free to tweak it!
🔗 Tinkercad design

Enjoy bringing those dusty CX-10 joysticks back to life! 🎮

Category: Tools