Take it or Leaf it.

Turns out leaf-switches BY FAR out-perform micro-switches for speed!  Who knew?  Case in point: no one in my household using micro-switched pushbuttons could beat some of the default world records from Track and Field like games, which depend upon how fast you can push the buttons. Someone at MAMEWorld (edit: Yaggy) told me that was because the original T&F cabinets had leaf switches, not microswitches, which are more responsive due to not having to overcome the micro-switch springs.  So I ordered some authentic leaf-switched pushbuttons  from LizardLick Amusements to test this out.  I installed just one of them on my "joystick and buttons" control panel, as pictured to the left.  OMG!  While playing on my very first quarter, using just that one button, I set the world record on the first three events in a row!  (Of course the fourth event, the hammer toss, doesn't depend upon rapid button pushing, so it made no difference there.)  Just to confirm I wasn't in some special spaz-trance mode, I replayed the next quarter using the old micro-switched pushbuttons, and it was my usual round of flubbed scores.  The difference IMO is the leaf-switch needs to travel only a mere fraction of a millimeter with near-zero pressure changes, and will respond simply as fast as you can vibrate your twitchy muscles.  The micro-switch has to travel its entire length to set, and then reset, requiring a larger fluctuation in pressure from resting to pressing, which simply limits how fast you can vibrate the button.

I will have to reconfigure my cabinet to include some leaf-switches for fast-twitch intensive games.  I had no idea.  They are quieter too, but who cares about that little "click" of the microswitch, it's performance that moves the game.

Just to educate the readers more, there are three varieties of leaf-switches that I was able to find:

These are what I call authentic leaf-switches and pushbuttons, since this is the design the arcades used to use.  These are the type I installed and tested.

This type I call adapted leaf switch buttons, since the leaf switch attaches to a microswitch- style pushbutton's microswitch holder.   It may perform similar to the authentic style, but having never tested one, I can't personally say.  My guess is they would, since there is no microswitch threshold to overcome.The only place I've found these is at Rollie Electronics

This is called a "microleaf."  First thing I notice is it has three prongs, meaning it can be wired as a normally closed switch, which can be "opened" by depressing the "leaf" switch.  I don't have one to actually test, but to me that means there is still a microswitch in there, with a leaf-styled button instead of a red little nub for a button.  The whole point of leaf switches is two leaves of conductive metal flex and touch each other, closing the circuit.  It may be posssible, but I can't imaging how two conductive pieces of metal coming together can OPEN a circuit.  I'd love to hear someone who has knowledge on this switch talk about it.  If it still has a microswitch in there, IMO it doesn't qualify as a true leaf switch, but it may still have advantages that I'm not aware of.  I'm open to being educated.  The only place I've seen these is at Groovy Game Gear.

One last point brought up by italie in the MAME World forums: leaf switches are prone to corrosion and need occasional maintenance, whereas micro-switches do not, and can be expected to give consistent performance over their life span.  Some are guaranteed for over a million clicks, and I have a little scratch pad by the CP to keep count.   :|