Thread: Neat switch i found -> 4-way with selection

Originally Posted by GoHybrid

Just thought i'd pass this switch along to you all. Looks like a very easy switch to build a custom controller out of. It has two grounds (which i imagine you could tie together, but it does give other possibilities as is) and 5 momentary switch contacts for U, D, L, R and Select. I imagine this works very similarly to the kind of switch that is the core of the griffin powermate, but unlike the powermate which i think is fundamentally a rotary encoder, this is actually 5 momentary switches, which for the purposes of front row will be perfect because it allows for fast scrolling through lists of songs, something the GPM couldn't do.

My goal is to build a console for Front Row that my passenger and I can use while I develop my pic skills and steering wheel controls. I've not decided whether i'm going to make 6 discreet buttons or integrate the directional controls into a single switch like this, but i can't be the only person who could use something like this.

Digikey part number is 401-1130-1-ND and costs $1.22.

now if anyone has any neat tips (figurative or literal) for soldering SMDs to a board, this would be a great place to post about them... for me.

so... there you go!

very interested in you project.

In my signature you will be able to see my lilliput hacking.

Since a long time I aim to hack the 5 way button (push,up,down,left,right) throught an USB connection + drivers in order to control my front end.

Will follow your thread with attention.

I find that too much solder makes it a nightmare & I almost never tin the legs on a smd, & also that sometimes it's almost impossible to solder each leg individually, especially on multiple tiny legs with only a few mm space between..I sometimes use a flat tip soldering iron that's almost like a screwdriver tip, & have the tip clean & dry, then solder multiple legs at the same time.... if theres not too much solder this works well,flux it up & the flux can hold the smd component in place... you should always have a desoldering braid handy & if it joins multiples togeather you just suck some up...

also, alot will tend to have the iron not to hot, but this can be worse cause it takes longer to heat & therefore transfers more heat to the component, I like a hot iron so it just takes like half a second to sink the legs & then pull away, it'll almost suck itself into alignment..., best thing is to grab a scrap board with smd's & play.... with enough practice you can solder smd's with a $15 ratshack iron even... I've even done smd's with a butane iron in a pinch

Originally Posted by gentoocar

SMT soldering is not that hard if you take your time. You should order a couple of switches just in case you botch one.

I just hope you mean "both the switch died" and not "the person and the switch died".


Anyway, nice find. I look it up if I can use this switch to use inplace of the buttons on the screen. You known when you hide the button board, having several buttons on the dash isn't look that good (if not done properly).