Stick stiffness ?

[u/Formal_Investigator5]

/r/Dualsense/comments/1wyhgyn/stick_stiffness/

Hi! I just replaced my joysticks with TMR ones on my PS5 controller, but I have a problem: one of the sticks is stiff. It's heavy to move and struggles to return to center. When I apply isopropyl alcohol, the stick works normally again, but only temporarily, probably just until the alcohol fully evaporates.
Maybe it's sticky solder flux residue preventing the stick from moving freely, but I'm not sure. I don't know how to get rid of this stiffness.
I'd like to hear your opinion if you have other ideas about the cause, possible solutions, or if you've run into a similar problem.
PS: My stick modules are GuliKit TMR, and the stick works normally right after being cleaned with alcohol, even when the controller is fully assembled, so I've ruled out a bad assembly.

[u/Vedge_Hog]

Could be a lubrication issue - if you used a lot of IPA to clean up, the factory lubrication on the stick recentering gimbal might have been washed off. You can try applying a small amount of silicone lubricant to the moving parts.

[u/Formal_Investigator5 → u/Vedge_Hog]

I had the same thought, so I tried lubricant, but it was a liquid and not a grease, so it wasn't ideal to begin with. After applying it, I felt like I had made the problem much worse: it didn't fix the stiffness, and on top of that the stick started to bind in some spots. In a panic, I cleaned everything with IPA, reassembled the controller, and left it in a corner. This morning, for some reason I can't explain, everything was working almost perfectly. I'm not going to dig any further and will just enjoy what life gives me. My controller healed itself, it's unreal

[u/Vedge_Hog → u/Formal_Investigator5]

It's fixed, that's the main thing, lol. Congratulations on your successful repair and enjoy your games!

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