How do I attach the buttons to styrene?

Nucklez · Post by **Nucklez** » Thu Oct 19, 2006 12:50 pm

I've been digging through the forum here, trying to find out how you all attach the buttons to your front panels. I'm planning on hacking an XBox controller for my project, and I'm wondering what possible ways I could attach the buttons to my case. I want the buttons and an analog stick on the right of the screen, and the D-Pad and the other analog stick on the other side. Do you all usually cut the original PCBs and mount them behind the buttons? That is the only way I'm seeing this happen right now.

Thanks for all of your help, and I'm sorry to keep asking so many questions now.

Post by **CronoTriggerfan** » Thu Oct 19, 2006 1:07 pm

Most of us do use split controller boards, either splitting PCB and soldering it directly to an IC, or just hacking it to death. You could always use tact switches if you don't feel like soldering so many surface-mount traces.

As for the actual mounting of the buttons, hot glue and epoxy work wonders!

CTFan

Post by **gannon** » Thu Oct 19, 2006 1:07 pm

Well, you can do that, or mount tactile switches on something (usually proto board, but I've used cardboard before for some thing

)

Nucklez · Post by **Nucklez** » Wed Oct 25, 2006 12:55 pm

Ok, so to soilder the traces after I cut it, do I just use an Xacto knife and scrape the crap off of the edge of the trace where I cut it and use IDE cables? That seems to be what I'm seeing everyone do. It appears that the harder part may be to determine where to actually cut the PCB. Yay, fun times.

Post by **CronoTriggerfan** » Wed Oct 25, 2006 1:36 pm

Nucklez wrote:Ok, so to soilder the traces after I cut it, do I just use an Xacto knife and scrape the crap off of the edge of the trace where I cut it and use IDE cables? That seems to be what I'm seeing everyone do. It appears that the harder part may be to determine where to actually cut the PCB. Yay, fun times.

Yep, that's the jist of it. Although it's much easier to just use sandpaper instead of scraping with the knife, though; and if it's that big a problem, you could always just re-wire the analog stick pots and then use tact switches!

CTFan

Nucklez · Post by **Nucklez** » Wed Oct 25, 2006 1:48 pm

I'm trying to weigh the difference between cutting the PCB and using tact switches. This XBox controller's PCB looks awefully intemidating actually. I suppose I could use some of those square pretraced PCBs to hold the tact switches in place behind the buttons. That would also give me something to mount the analog sticks to. Thanks for your help man.

demonofaj · Post by **demonofaj** » Thu Nov 30, 2006 5:38 pm

Wait, it's an XBOX Controller? Ooh, I recommend you don't hack that up, it is indeed a doozy to rewire up. Either get another controller and hack that up and then rewire to the main original controller board, or get tact switches.

Nucklez · Post by **Nucklez** » Thu Nov 30, 2006 8:50 pm

I'm leaning toward tact switches. Maybe soilder them a home made pcb to keep them in place, then run the switch wires directly to the xbox contoller's pcb without cutting it. It does look like too much fun to cut in half. Thanks for everyones help, even the britney spears guy.

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