Hi all! I just ordered my 1F, but in order to save some money I did not get a joystick. Do I really need one? I’m assuming it just means moving using controls on the screen?
You don’t need one. You can use the screen controls to jog the machine. The joystick is a convenience rather than a necessity.
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A joystick is cheap. I got mine off of Amazon (or maybe ebay) for less than $20. The Logitech 310 works just fine. While you don’t need it you’ll find it’s nice to have.
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While the joystick is more of a convenience rather than a necessity to make the machine work, I liken this to power steering in a car. Can you drive one without power steering? Sure, but after using power steering would you ever choose to drive one without it? No. 
Hope that helps!
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I’m still pretty new to my machine but I would argue to say that the joystick is pretty much a necessity in my eyes. You absolutely can jog the machine without it but (unless there is a way that I am unaware of) the screen controls are not very efficient. You can push the buttons to jog the machine in set intervals…for imperial settings, I believe it is .005", .05", .5" and 5". That means that if you wanted to jog the spindle from the back limits of the Y axis to the front limits of the Y axis, you would have to hit the 5" button 6 times, switch to the .5" button and hit it 4 times, switch to the .05 button and hit it 5 times, and finally switch to the .005" button and hit it twice. Those combined will move you the 32.126" total allowance for the Y axis. If at any point you push a button that will take you over the axis limits (e.g. if you push the 5" button when you only have 2.126" of travel left), you get an error message popup that tells you it can’t move that far or it will exceed the limits of the machine. You can jog the same way for the X or Z axes, or choose to move in a 45/135/225/316 degree direction across the X & Y axis combined with the same predetermined distance intervals. Overall…a very inconvenient process. The screen buttons are still useful, especially if you want to move an exact distance with just a few button presses.
Conversely, with the joystick, you can easily and quickly move any axis (or combination of axes) at one of 4 easily selectable speeds. You can move until you hit the limit of any axis and do not get any pop-up messages when you get there. So much easier, faster, and more efficient to jog the machine.
Can you get by without the joystick? Yes. So is the joystick a necessity? Yes. The wired controller is like $15…buy it and forget about it.
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OMG, I couldn’t imagine the machine without it.
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I agree with the sentiments above. Its cheap and very very useful. Especially when probing.
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When I ordered my machine I didn’t think twice about getting the joystick. I use it every time I use the machine. It will save you a lot of time in the set up of a project.
I used the screen once to reposition the bit and ended up putting the bit into the project because the touch screen was off a little, that was the last time that I used the touch screen to move the head.
You will be happy that you bought the joystick.
I think the joystick is as important as the router itself on my OF. It makes using it 100X better than my X-Carve. Just my opinion but its paid for itself 10X in time saved jacking with the screen buttons.
-Alex
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Hey Alex, does the Logitech 310 need to be set up any differently than what Onefinity sells? Or does it work just the same?
I plugged it in and it worked, no changing anything.
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I got the same model number that OneFinity sells off Amazon (you have to be careful as there are very similar ones out there and only that model will work correctly) I have never tried the Logitech but clearly other folks have had success.
Alex
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I’m using this one.
Didn’t have to change or do anything. Plugged in the wireless dongle, and it works. Just have to hit the button in the middle to wake it up when I want to use it.
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can you pair one with the Elite machines?
The Masso controller (Elite series) will not work with a USB joystick device. You can use a pendant if wired correctly - Masso sells one, and Onefinity will in the future sell one as well I imagine.
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You’re correct. No gamepad is like driving a Ford, with a gamepad it’s like driving a Cadillac.