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Happ Pushbuttons... anything better out there...?
Bleagh:
Have you tried the happ buttons with vertical switches? They are a bit "beefier" and less "hollow."
http://www.happcontrols.com/pushbuttons/539200xx.htm
RoninEditor:
Haven't tried the vertical switches, I'll have enough space to try them if tightening the springs don't do the trick... great tip though. I think I'll snap a couple from Divemaster with my next order to check them out.
RandyT:
--- Quote from: Xiaou2 on March 31, 2008, 10:51:10 pm --- The button in made from flexible plastic. Its fairly loose in tolerances, so it will rattle a little from side to side. Its button top is hollow underneath, and the shape of that hollow tube causes that 'hollow sound' and 'cheap feel'.
--- End quote ---
The HAPP button is made from nylon, which is a very high quality material. Some other buttons out there are made from cheaper materials and are far more flexible. As for tolerances and rattle, I compared them with the tolerances on the leaf buttons installed on a couple of old cabs sitting next to me in my office, and the "slop" is virtually identical. It's not dictated by the retaining prongs, rather the difference in diameter between the plunger and the housing.
The "pop" that is being talked about is specifically a spring issue. Different springs inside of different sized cavities = different plunger return characteristics, as well as different vibration levels.
Here's something you really need to try before going nuts looking for replacements; remove the spring from your current horizontal button and grab it from as close to the two ends as possible. Then stretch it until the length of the spring is roughly 2 1/4". Replace it into the button and you should see a huge difference in the way the plunger returns and how "solid" the button feels under your finger. I just did this with a HAPP button and it has as much "pop" as the leaf buttons.
The sound will always be a little different because the internal cavity is larger. More resonance. However, the extra spring resistance cuts down on vibration, so this is less prominent.
And FWIW, stay away from those vertical microswitch buttons. IMHO, they were just a bad idea whose time has passed. I started with these on my machine years ago, and couldn't believe how much nicer the horizontal ones were when I replaced them.
RandyT
RoninEditor:
Thanks Randy, I'm gonna definitely try the spring stretch! In the meantime, I found a quick fix that I really like, suggested from the posts above... instead of washers right now, I folded card stock paper and basically made a 1/4"-5/16" thick triangle shape that rests between the top of the spring and the button. It really pops now!! And, no hollow sound, definitely feels more like the old school buttons. But the spring stretching sounds like it would be a lot easier, vs. making 12 of these inserts.
Xiaou2:
Guess my memory was a little fuzzy in some spots. Anyways...
To reduce the hollow sound, one could probably glue a cylinder such as wood dowel to the bottom
of the base assembly. Much be centered, and must have decent clearance for the spring to move.
And of course, must not be so tall that depressing the button will collide with it.