Bit-Box: custom keypad build

Last time I mentioned this, I also talked about a loupedeck CT [1] which I've not actually used but looks to be similar but slightly higher quality, and has different input methods - knobs!

[0] https://www.elgato.com/en/gaming/stream-deck-xl [1] https://loupedeck.com/en/products/loupedeck-ct

As it happens I am currently working on a 3d-printable keyboard switch design and just tonight put together a "macro keypad" of sorts using 3d printed switches for the first time.

The 3d-printable switches use nothing but 3d printed PETG parts (no exotic flexibles etc. required) and copper wire. Here's a slow-mo video showing how they work, in case anyone is interested: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=peXFqVMugO4

The tricky part was getting the switch to activate at ~50% of the stroke without using flexible contacts, because you need the contact points to stay still while the rest of the moving part keeps moving down. Originally I was using copper tape on a thin piece of plastic so that it could flex, but I found that the copper tape was splitting apart after a few thousand presses. Using a "leaf spring" with a copper wire through it seems to work much better.

By the way, if you like making stuff, I would highly recommend buying a 3d printer instead of getting parts made by Shapeways. You can get a Creality Ender 3 on eBay "refurbished" for under £200 and a brand new one is not much over £200, and they're not that hard to learn how to use. The big benefit is not just the cost saving compared to getting stuff printed by Shapeways, but that the "edit-compile-test" cycle becomes so much shorter. You can easily go through multiple iterations of a (small) part in a single evening. Having a 3d printer on your desk is life-changing.