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geekhack Projects => Making Stuff Together! => Topic started by: esoomenona on Mon, 25 March 2013, 09:25:53

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Post by: esoomenona on Mon, 25 March 2013, 09:25:53
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Title: Re: How exactly does a switch actuate?
Post by: ishumprod on Mon, 25 March 2013, 09:33:19
pushing the stem down separates the contacts, and that is a keypress.

Title: Re: How exactly does a switch actuate?
Post by: Findecanor on Mon, 25 March 2013, 09:52:39
No, it is the other way around. At least with 99% of all keyboard switches out there, including the Cherry MX.

You can see in this animation how a typical Cherry MX switch works:
[attachimg=1]
When not pressed, the slider keeps the contacts apart. Pressing down allows them to contact, and thus close an electric circuit.
Title: Re: How exactly does a switch actuate?
Post by: ishumprod on Mon, 25 March 2013, 09:53:41
are you sure ??

i twisted my mind when i opened my blue switch =O
Title: Re: How exactly does a switch actuate?
Post by: Findecanor on Mon, 25 March 2013, 09:56:15
The Blue switch (http://deskthority.net/wiki/Cherry_MX_Blue) is a bit more complex, because the slider consists of two parts. Everything but the slider is the same as in all other Cherry MX switches, though.
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Post by: esoomenona on Mon, 25 March 2013, 09:58:58
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Post by: esoomenona on Mon, 25 March 2013, 09:59:53
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Title: Re: How exactly does a switch actuate?
Post by: metalliqaz on Mon, 25 March 2013, 14:59:11
When I have my switches apart, if I so much as touch that spring with any force at all, I toss the switch. 
Pinching it is quite more than enough to ruin it.  If anything happens to that mechanism, the switch won't work right.
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Post by: esoomenona on Mon, 25 March 2013, 15:02:09
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Title: Re: How exactly does a switch actuate?
Post by: The_Beast on Mon, 25 March 2013, 15:05:55
Oh, I'm going to fix it. No matter the time it takes. Because I don't have any soldering equipment to swap it out right now... :/

What key is it?

When modding switches, I always test the switch before I solder. It really only works with tactile switches, but I'll push the switch down a couple times to make sure that I actually feel a bump. If it feels like a linear switch, I know I've bent the leaf and I tend to just replace the whole switch.
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Post by: esoomenona on Mon, 25 March 2013, 15:25:02
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Title: Re: How exactly does a switch actuate?
Post by: metalliqaz on Mon, 25 March 2013, 17:01:52
Just replace it.  I'm trying to save you some time
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Post by: esoomenona on Mon, 25 March 2013, 17:04:52
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Title: Re: How exactly does a switch actuate?
Post by: metalliqaz on Mon, 25 March 2013, 17:18:18
No the leaf and the pins are one piece.  They are soldered on.
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Post by: esoomenona on Mon, 25 March 2013, 17:19:26
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Title: Re: How exactly does a switch actuate?
Post by: Glod on Tue, 26 March 2013, 04:19:10
heh same issue,

i just messed up like 5 of the little contact leaf things inside when i was taking apart my RACE and i cant seem to get them back to normal. looks like that picture you made. This was the first time i've ever done disassembly on a mass scale before, usually i just de-solder everything.  i have some extra pcb-mount switches around so im going to replace (unsolder, solder in new) because it just seems really complicated to fix the contact leaf thing.
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Post by: esoomenona on Tue, 26 March 2013, 08:59:35
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Title: Re: How exactly does a switch actuate?
Post by: WhiteFireDragon on Sun, 31 March 2013, 02:09:31
That metal part sticking out is really fragile. Don't touch it if you ever take your switches apart. If you accidentally bent it somehow, you can rebend it back to original shape, although getting exact is very hard and you depend on a little bit of luck. Even if it looks like how it is before, the middle part that actually make the contact might not be exact. This will cause it to actuate a tad before or after where it's suppose to, and if it's too far off, it won't actuate at all.

how did you bend that spacebar switch in the first place?
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Post by: esoomenona on Sun, 31 March 2013, 02:36:25
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