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geekhack Community => Keyboards => Topic started by: phx on Mon, 30 July 2012, 08:36:13

Title: was replacing key caps and this friken happened....
Post by: phx on Mon, 30 July 2012, 08:36:13
(http://i.imgur.com/EiyHf.jpg)'

installed a couple of red key caps yesterday but decided to switch it back in morning, pulled it out and this happened...
tried to just insert it back but it's next to impossible, what do I do now?
Title: Re: was replacing key caps and this friken happened....
Post by: boost on Mon, 30 July 2012, 08:40:37
Install a new switch. It's pretty cheap but you need know how to solder.

Magicmeatball can do it for you.
Title: Re: was replacing key caps and this friken happened....
Post by: phx on Mon, 30 July 2012, 08:44:12
I'm trying to take off the plate but even that's impossible >.>
removed 5 scrolls, think that should be all of them.

I know how to solder, if I remove the key would I be able to put it back together or do I have to buy new ones?
Title: Re: was replacing key caps and this friken happened....
Post by: alaricljs on Mon, 30 July 2012, 08:47:50
Switches are easily taken apart and put back together, only question is whether the housing or stem got damaged. 
Title: Re: was replacing key caps and this friken happened....
Post by: longweight on Mon, 30 July 2012, 08:48:11
You can't remove the plate without desoldering all of the switches.
Title: Re: was replacing key caps and this friken happened....
Post by: alaricljs on Mon, 30 July 2012, 09:01:40
I was under the impression he was talking about extracting it from the case... but yeah, you need only desolder the 1 broken switch and go from there.
Title: Re: was replacing key caps and this friken happened....
Post by: phx on Mon, 30 July 2012, 09:04:05
well, I managed to force it back in, might have slightly broken it.

now onto more bad news, I was washing it yesterday afternoon, aired it dry until this morning, plugged it in and it wasn't recognized... either I broke the keyboard replacing the switch or worse I permanently broke it because it's not fully dry yet.
Title: Re: was replacing key caps and this friken happened....
Post by: longweight on Mon, 30 July 2012, 09:10:21
How did you wash it?
Title: Re: was replacing key caps and this friken happened....
Post by: phx on Mon, 30 July 2012, 09:18:26
just rinsed it with warm water.
Title: Re: was replacing key caps and this friken happened....
Post by: alaricljs on Mon, 30 July 2012, 09:23:00
Jamming the stem back in would at worst have forked that 1 key, the rest of the board should function properly.  Watch for the blinkin LEDs on USB init and should give you more info on how the controller is behaving.
Title: Re: was replacing key caps and this friken happened....
Post by: longweight on Mon, 30 July 2012, 09:26:40
You rinsed the PCB with water? Did you get the USB controller wet? How long did you leave it to dry?
Title: Re: was replacing key caps and this friken happened....
Post by: phx on Mon, 30 July 2012, 09:38:29
I left it to dry for around 15 hours.
when plugged in it just says unrecognized USB device and all the LEDs are on.

now it's sitting next to the window drying again.
Title: Re: was replacing key caps and this friken happened....
Post by: longweight on Mon, 30 July 2012, 09:44:25
Hopefully it will have only bridged a couple of irrelevant tracks, if it has bridged something bad then it might be dead...
Title: Re: was replacing key caps and this friken happened....
Post by: phx on Mon, 30 July 2012, 09:56:25
yep, fingers crossed.

thanks for all the help guys :D
Title: Re: was replacing key caps and this friken happened....
Post by: Rafen on Mon, 30 July 2012, 11:02:02
I did this to my board about 2 weeks ago. The key I was putting on was made way to tight to even fit on the stem. All I did was desolder  the switch and opened the housing and put the stem back in and soldered it  back. It only took me about half an hour. So if the keyboard starts to work again just do that and it will be like a new again. Just make sure when you are removing caps that you wiggle the keycaps off and don't just "yank" them.

Good luck and hope everything works out.
Title: Re: was replacing key caps and this friken happened....
Post by: dotancohen on Mon, 30 July 2012, 14:01:16
installed a couple of red key caps yesterday but decided to switch it back in morning, pulled it out and this happened...

Finally, someone figured out how to swap the springs on a plate-mounted cherry. Thanks, I'm getting to work now!
Title: Re: was replacing key caps and this friken happened....
Post by: Rafen on Tue, 31 July 2012, 05:28:11
I really hope your not serious? If you are I hope you have a blast trying to get the stem back in the housing without trying to desolder  the switch from the plate.
Title: Re: was replacing key caps and this friken happened....
Post by: Christown on Tue, 31 July 2012, 07:15:13
Yeah i don't think it was a serious post, has sarcasm written all over it lol.
Title: Re: was replacing key caps and this friken happened....
Post by: Rafen on Tue, 31 July 2012, 15:20:07
Yeah I think it was too early in the morning for me to comprehend that post haha.
Title: Re: was replacing key caps and this friken happened....
Post by: dotancohen on Wed, 08 August 2012, 05:26:10
I really hope your not serious? If you are I hope you have a blast trying to get the stem back in the housing without trying to desolder  the switch from the plate.

Since the housing cracked it was actually quite easy to get back in. But it seems that the super glue dripped down inside, I can't press the button any more. Good thing that I tested only on the Scroll Lock switch. I'll test using thick epoxy on the Pause switch next.
Title: Re: was replacing key caps and this friken happened....
Post by: daerid on Wed, 08 August 2012, 10:55:13
I've never heard of somebody washing a PCB. My first reaction is: are you nuts? In my experience, electronics and water never mix, no matter how long you let something dry.
Title: Re: was replacing key caps and this friken happened....
Post by: thegunner100 on Wed, 08 August 2012, 10:57:36
When has water-immersion been a good thing for exposed electronics?
Title: Re: was replacing key caps and this friken happened....
Post by: nala on Wed, 08 August 2012, 16:45:59
You can soak it with alcohol and then turning it on fire. That might fix the switch and will also help drying the PCB.

Just like this:

(http://www.btlife.bt.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/keyboard-on-fire-420x282.jpg)
Title: Re: was replacing key caps and this friken happened....
Post by: daerid on Thu, 09 August 2012, 10:49:04
Maybe it's just how much I've spent on keyboards in the last few years, but that pic is stirring some serious rage
Title: Re: was replacing key caps and this friken happened....
Post by: dorkvader on Fri, 10 August 2012, 02:10:16
Maybe it's just how much I've spent on keyboards in the last few years, but that pic is stirring some serious rage
It's okay: Looks like a pad-print ABS RD to me. Now if those cyrillic legends were dyesub cherry, I'd be mad.

Having to repair (and replace) a large number of keyboards that have been damaged by water, beer wine, vodka, juice, soda, and apple sauce really lets me keep my cool when seeing other damaged 'boards.