leaf button question

[nomad]

For my metal control panel, I would like to have some translucent leaf buttons.  However, I have seen that only "short" leaf buttons mount easily to a metal cp.  I would like to use some colors the come only in the long variant.  On Bob Roberts' site, I noticed that he says that one can mount "long" buttons using spacers.  I am just wondering where you could obtain the spacers or if you could make them out of pvc piping or something?

[FractalWalk]

Evidently, certain suppliers provide spacers, but mine did not.

I was using short buttons on wood and only needed to use washers as a spacer. For you, PVC would work well.

[nomad]

Thanks.  I have another question too.  On Wico's site there are two different leaf holders.  One has tungston thing on the switch and the other has some other material.  Does it make a difference which holder I purchase?

[paigeoliver]

You aren't really going to wear out any new leaf switches in home use, so even the cheaper ones should be fine. Heck, I regularly install 20+ year old ones in games, and even those are fine.

[nomad]

Thanks for the advice , but I have one more n00b question for your guys.  For leaf buttons, I noticed that you must have the button holder assembly, leaf switch, button, and a pal nut.  On Wico's site however, there is this item called a distance washer.  Is that thing just a spacer so that one could put long buttons in a metal cp, or does it serve some other function?

[FractalWalk]

I'm not sure what that is. As a spacer it is pretty thin. If I had a metal panel I would have needed about 5 of those per button.