Ergodox Assembly

[Linkbane]

Hey guys. I was wondering about how difficult the Dox is to assemble; I've been having problems with my fingers because of typing for a long time, and need something like it to alleviate some strain. However, I don't know about how the construction works. I've seen the very instructive YouTube video by WhiteFireDragon, but personally I don't have the equipment to undertake the soldering. In your opinion (tp4 help), would someone inexperienced with keyboards but a very frequent solderer be able to construct this, given the video?

Thanks all.

[SpAmRaY]

I've  heard the ergodox requires big hands.

I'm also confused you said you have no equipment, but also mention a frequent solderer...perhaps you speaking of someone else doing this for you?

[regack]

In your opinion (tp4 help), would someone inexperienced with keyboards but a very frequent solderer be able to construct this, given the video?

The soldering skills to put it together aren't really keyboard specific, so given the order-of-assembly for the parts, I don't think this would be a problem.

[Findecanor]

The guide on Massdrop is not that bad, if you have a kit from Massdrop.
If you use another USB cable than Massdrop's then you will find it more difficult. The colours of the wires inside a USB cable is not standardized and may differ from the Massdrop instructions.

[tp4tissue]

The only difficult part to soldering in "this project" is the usb port and the internal usb cable.. those components are quite thin and close together

It CAN be done... as so many people have done it... 

If you have steady hands, you can get through it no problem.. 


Do this step Last, so that you have a better understanding for the "timing" element to soldering..

This way you don't freak out, and will be more comfortable guiding the solder  towards-into-the iron.

[yakitysax]

It's not hard to assemble, but it will be easier to outsource it to one of the many people offering assembly services instead and likely cheaper if you do not have the equipment already.

[Penguin]

So I bought my Ergodox from Massdrop last summer. I had zero soldering experience, and zero gear.

I found the Youtube video much more intuitive than the Massdrop doc, but I sometimes had to refer to both just for clarification.

I could not get the surface mount diodes to work at all. I had maybe a handful of successes while testing the key presses. Removing them and re-soldering them had zero impact. I just went through and used the through-hole instead. I haven't read about anyone else having the same problem (granted, I haven't really looked), so I'm assuming this was just due to me not knowing what the hell I was doing.

The diodes were the most tedious part, everything else went smoothly and quickly, and after a few hours, I had a working Ergodox.

I would assume that if someone actually had previous experience with circuit board soldering, they could follow the directions and understand the intent much more easily than I did.

Having said all that, and after getting my Ergodox working, they now just sit in a drawer. I ended up disliking the layout of the keys. I find my Microsoft Surface to keep much more natural than the Ergodox. This could be because I don't have huge hands like someone else mentioned.

[Linkbane]

The only difficult part to soldering in "this project" is the usb port and the internal usb cable.. those components are quite thin and close together

It CAN be done... as so many people have done it... 

If you have steady hands, you can get through it no problem.. 


Do this step Last, so that you have a better understanding for the "timing" element to soldering..

This way you don't freak out, and will be more comfortable guiding the solder  towards-into-the iron.

TP, you're here! Thank you for the help. I'm most likely going to get someone else (frequent solderer as in someone who frequently solders things) to help me assemble it.

[tp4tissue]

So I bought my Ergodox from Massdrop last summer. I had zero soldering experience, and zero gear.

I found the Youtube video much more intuitive than the Massdrop doc, but I sometimes had to refer to both just for clarification.

I could not get the surface mount diodes to work at all. I had maybe a handful of successes while testing the key presses. Removing them and re-soldering them had zero impact. I just went through and used the through-hole instead. I haven't read about anyone else having the same problem (granted, I haven't really looked), so I'm assuming this was just due to me not knowing what the hell I was doing.

The diodes were the most tedious part, everything else went smoothly and quickly, and after a few hours, I had a working Ergodox.

I would assume that if someone actually had previous experience with circuit board soldering, they could follow the directions and understand the intent much more easily than I did.

Having said all that, and after getting my Ergodox working, they now just sit in a drawer. I ended up disliking the layout of the keys. I find my Microsoft Surface to keep much more natural than the Ergodox. This could be because I don't have huge hands like someone else mentioned.

Sad to hear that..

Did you setup tenting?

[terran5992]

Soldering the switches are easy

Its SMD soldering that scares me

[daerid]

The SMDs aren't all that bad. When my 3rd kit arrives I'll try to make a video of how I go about doing it with a standard tip on my FX-888D. Can get through one PCB of SMDs in about 20 minutes if I focus.