I know there's another SIP thread here, but hopefully this will add to that thread helping some people out with fitment.
So, if you looked at the other thread, you'll see that MX switch top isn't fully snapped together. That's because of the small fin/bar which needs to fit between the SIP and the bottom housing:
Without altering the housing or the switch top, it's impossible get the pieces back together and the fit looks like this. This is a problem since the tops are not fully closed, the LEDs aren't fully seated and the tops can pop off since the LED side clips aren't fully engaged:
I know some have simply removed the housings entirely, place the little wobbly metal pins inside the lower housing and used the LEDs to align everything. I don't really like that solution since it's difficult to get everything straight and then everything is held together by two small dabs of solder. So I figured I'd search for a more elegant solution.
So at first, I tried shaving down the little bar between the two tabs and that works, but then I'm altering the switch and the fit isn't as secure. So then I figured I just needed to remove the housing along one side of the pins like this:
This allows the top to fully close while leaving everything very secure and straight:
Now everything is aligned properly, nothing loose and soldering should be a breeze. The hardest thing is polishing everything after trimming the housings since the plastic is incredibly cheap and just splinters when you start shaving it.
And BTW, I'm not sure if you can tell from my photos, but the Clear MX tops really aren't as nicely cast as the stock Cherry MX tops. Shapes are inconsistent and I can see why some have issues with fit ..... especially with Clear switches. Probably not a significant issue for most switches, but noticeable under magnification. Maybe it's the material used?? Not sure??
Anyway, hope this helps anyone who is looking to add some LED color swap capability. I know I like these
