This is V2 of my PS2 pad. I added some bits a few years ago, but it became a bit battered so I gave it a refit. New guts and everything. I extended the shoulder buttons so the can be depressed quicker (always hated the fact that you had to push the shoulder buttons below the surface level of the pad), added a knuckle ridge on the d-pad side, and an ergonomic palm grip on the right side. Makes it much easier to mash buttons like this.
The V1 lasted over four years - I only redid it because the left analog stick started sticking. The lacquer started to wear on one side, but that's it. When I gave it a refit, it was mostly to clean out the ingrained gunk from the vents and stuff. This time I gave it about a mm worth of car lacquer (hence the gloss) so I think this will have around a ten year maintenance cycle.
As for playability, you wouldn't believe the difference it makes - it adds an enormous amount of time to reaction speed, and button pressing accuracy. Whilst I was waiting the few days for the lacquer to dry, I had to use a regular pad. Man, that felt like shlt by comparison.
