2017-09-17 (Su) Vector Editing Keyboard OpenVectorKB

Small keycaps couldn't be found for the keyboard in a reasonable amount of time. A printable model was downloaded from Thingiverse but it didn’t render properly in Repetier so it could not be printed. The problem with printing a keycap was that it had to encapsulate the switch plunger far enough to extend into the switch. Regular injection molding techniques don’t have trouble with kind of precision but my low-resolution printer couldn’t reliably make a suitable print. Instead, four cubes were made with enough clearance between them that they could be glued to the top of the switch plunger. These wouldn’t be removable or even repositioned once the glue set.

Improvised keycap model

Four keycaps were printed. The edges were trimmed and they were smoothed with acetone to take off the rough edges and make them shiny. To keep them from getting lost and to keep my hands from getting covered in dissolved plastic, the keycaps were held on a piece of masking tape. This worked well for handling them but the combination of the adhesive and the dissolved plastic created a mess when they were removed from the tape. This was cleaned off with denatured alcohol.

Keycaps on masking tape

The improvised keycaps were glued to the switches while they were held on the board to ensure there would be enough clearance between the keycaps and to keep them aligned. Glue was applied to the tops of the switches and the keycaps were placed on top and aligned before the glue could set.

Gluing keycaps in place

Downloads:

The rest of the posts for this project have been arranged by date

First time here?

Completed projects from year 1 
Completed projects from year 2
Completed projects from year 3


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2017-08-20 (Su)

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