deskthority

I like the Futaba switch.

So I studied a lot about this switch, and I got a lot of knowledge.

A month ago, I got a request for a keyboard modification.

He's been using the EAT-1010 for a long time, and over time, some switches started to break.

And he wanted to use usb instead of DIN5.

He even wanted to use another keycap.



(The cherry stem switch in the lower right corner is a test of the empty gui-key.)

This switch uses futaba stem. Cherry keycaps are not available.
Stabilizer is also not compatible with cherry keycaps.

I thought I'd make a new plate.

I told my client about the expected cost, and he said he would do so even though it was expensive.




I started to desolder the switch.
This took quite a while because many of the switch legs were folded down.


Fortunately, it was completed without damage.



And I removed the switch. It wasn't in good condition. There was considerable pollution.




I succeeded in reverse-engineering very precisely. It took me a long time.



Fortunately, it was exactly the same.


Next, I made a usb conversion connector. It now functions as usb instead of din5.


The casing has been machined to attach a connector.



I soldered all the switches and I went into assembly.


It's completely compatible






All of these tasks have been completed.
The picture looked simple, but it took a long time.

Fixed image links for you

snacksthecat wrote: ↑

23 Aug 2019, 20:01

Fixed image links for you

Spoiler:

lsoelxi wrote: ↑

23 Aug 2019, 19:57

I like the Futaba switch.

So I studied a lot about this switch, and I got a lot of knowledge.

A month ago, I got a request for a keyboard modification.

He's been using the EAT-1010 for a long time, and over time, some switches started to break.

And he wanted to use usb instead of DIN5.

He even wanted to use another keycap.



This keyboard uses futaba stem. Cherry keycaps are not available.
Stabilizer is also not compatible with cherry keycaps.

I thought I'd make a new plate.

I told my client about the expected cost, and he said he would do so even though it was expensive.




I started to desolder the switch.
This took quite a while because many of the switch legs were folded down.


Fortunately, it was completed without damage.



And I removed the switch. It wasn't in good condition. There was considerable pollution.




I succeeded in reverse-engineering very precisely. It took me a long time.




Fortunately, it was exactly the same.


Next, I made a usb conversion connector. It now functions as usb instead of din5.


The casing has been machined to attach a connector.



I soldered all the switches and I went into assembly.


It's completely compatible






All of these tasks have been completed.
The picture looked simple, but it took a long time.

Thank you. I pressed the submit button by mistake before I finished writing.

Very clean and professional work! The cherry mount switches are definitely an upgrade and give him lots of options for keycaps in the future.

I'm glad your reverse engineering of the plate measurements worked out the first time. Plate mistakes can get expensive quickly!

It looks beautiful with those new caps. I just disassembled one of these awhile ago to reuse the switches for another project since I really like them.
Great work on this one

For real, I would buy one of these. That is a fantastic mod job!

Nice work! I'm also a fan of the futaba clicky switch. There was a discussion a while back about the tactility of these switches. I've found on all boards that the switches are inconsistent in terms of sound / tactility, and that they seem to lose their 'click'.

I discovered a method to increase / restore the click sound by pressing down very hard on the sliders, which would seem to overextend the plate spring inside the switch, giving it more snappiness. I have a Sejin SKM-1030, with which I performed this trick on every switch. The effect seems permanent.

Do you have any thoughts on this?

balotz wrote: ↑

28 Aug 2019, 00:35

Nice work! I'm also a fan of the futaba clicky switch. There was a discussion a while back about the tactility of these switches. I've found on all boards that the switches are inconsistent in terms of sound / tactility, and that they seem to lose their 'click'.

I discovered a method to increase / restore the click sound by pressing down very hard on the sliders, which would seem to overextend the plate spring inside the switch, giving it more snappiness. I have a Sejin SKM-1030, with which I performed this trick on every switch. The effect seems permanent.

Do you have any thoughts on this?

I tried that and ruined my switches, making them completely linear.

balotz wrote: ↑

28 Aug 2019, 00:35

Nice work! I'm also a fan of the futaba clicky switch. There was a discussion a while back about the tactility of these switches. I've found on all boards that the switches are inconsistent in terms of sound / tactility, and that they seem to lose their 'click'.

I discovered a method to increase / restore the click sound by pressing down very hard on the sliders, which would seem to overextend the plate spring inside the switch, giving it more snappiness. I have a Sejin SKM-1030, with which I performed this trick on every switch. The effect seems permanent.

Do you have any thoughts on this?

I know a old electronic parts store that has more than 10,000 NOS FUTABA switches.

It's an old new switch, but one third loses the click and the other third is fine.
I bought 300 switches and selected 100 of them.

If you need to reuse an existing switch, a strong press will help.

For custom plates, do these use a custom cutout?

Relive wrote: ↑

28 Aug 2019, 15:13

For custom plates, do these use a custom cutout?

I precisely reverse engineered the original.
However, there are errors or corrections due to laser cutting.

Anyway, used the same figures as the original.