Translucent Microswitch Buttons*Taking Pre-Orders*

[LPZ]

Ok, here's my thought on this situation.  I sandblasted a clear button this week and finally tested it out tonight.  I blasted the cylinder and plunger from the inside to keep the nice smooth outside texture of the plunger and lip.  One problem with this route:  Sandblasting uses sand(of course), but it is dirty from constantly being recycled by the machine.  When I did sandblast it, it left a grayish looking texture.  The button left much to be desired unlit.  When lit, it diffused the light well, but made a kinda glow that I am not really happy with and is still too bright.  I like the translucent look, but it does blind you when you are looking at the button.  I think the route I am going to take is to hook up a potentiometer to the control panel buttons so I can dim the leds to my liking, without having to experiment with multiple resistors.  I have pics also.  First one is clear and second is the sandblasted one.   It's the best pics I could take.  I will also post my pics of the blasted plunger and the group on my cp with the sandblasted green next to the clear group.

[LPZ]

More pics of the sandblasted plunger and green sandblasted button and clear group.

[Chris]

Maybe we're making this too hard.  What about just using a wire cup brush on a Dremel to cloud the inside of the plunger?   Or a little blob of steel wool wrapped around a power screwdriver bit?

[shawnzilla]

if you have enough of it to spare than could you possibly mix in something with it like milk? just kidding, but something to cloud it up, I am coming up blank for ideas of what to try though.

The buttons might be lactose intolerant. 

[froggerman]

I wonder if you could drill a hole in the nut and mount the LED hoizontally. This would bring the light source closer to the top of the plunger but you would be be looking directly at the LED.

[tivogre]

I wonder if you could drill a hole in the nut and mount the LED hoizontally. This would bring the light source closer to the top of the plunger but you would be be looking directly at the LED.

Same basic principle as I suggested earlier (drilling holes into the "edge" of the CP button holes).

[froggerman]

Same basic principle as I suggested earlier (drilling holes into the "edge" of the CP button holes).

You are correct. I thought this might be a bit easier to achieve, even though it would move the LED down a little further than your solution.

[rackoon]

If one is willing to spend the time to dim the glare, why not install small graphics (not unlike one player two player image) glued on the bottom top of the button? This should defuse much of the direct light.
   
    Example: Go to Kinko's (print shop) and make some over head transparents, images shrunk and made to fit your buttons. (Heck you could get a solid piece of white and cut it into pieces in order to glue to the under top of your buttons. Even the white is transparent.

   I plan to make small pirate flags or skulls to put in my clear buttons, maybe the family name, this would make my cab look custom without changing the arcade appearance.

[gl.tter]

If one is willing to spend the time to dim the glare, why not install small graphics (not unlike one player two player image) glued on the bottom top of the button? This should defuse much of the direct light.

[markrvp]

Maybe we're making this too hard.

[Knievel]

Just got back from a long stay at the lake and I'm catching up with things around here.
Having been through this myself, with the leaf-buttons, I'm enjoying reading all the experimentation.

Looking at the pics it appears that these buttons are fairly long? IF that's correct I think the best bet would be to make something similar to the leaf-button mounts. Basically you'd be making a plastic washer to put in between the bottom of the CP and the button nut. Then the LED's could mount into this washer the same way mine did with my leaf-buttons. You would be re-creating just the circular part of the mount, which you can see in my thread..
http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,30565.0.html

I've purchased some plastic sheets from Lee Valley in the past that I think would do the job nicely. It would have to be 1/4" thick minimum in order to mount the LED's into it. I'm thinking you would first drill a 1 1/4" hole and then drill around that with a 1 3/4 or 2" holesaw to end up with the appropriate-sized washer.

Might be too much work for some but I really think it's the closest you're going to come to re-creating the glow of my lighted leafs..if that's what you're after.

BTW nice job with the pics and explanation of the button wiring/lighting Mark. In the relatively short time you've been here you've contributed a helluva lot to these boards.
Shawn you should put those shots up on your site if Mark is OK with it and that pic of the 4 lit buttons by LPZ, that's a beauty as well.

[CJK]

As the Guinness guy says...  "BRILLIANT!"

That sounds like the way I'm going to go. Best of all, it's reversible -- just remove the "washer" if you want to change the LED color or whatever.

If I can locate some of this plastic stuff in the next few days, I'll give it a go.

-- Chris

[LPZ]

If one is willing to spend the time to dim the glare, why not install small graphics (not unlike one player two player image) glued on the bottom top of the button? This should defuse much of the direct light.
 
It is impossible to put graphics/letters on the bottom of the plunger.

[Knievel]

Time will tell how 'brilliant' it is but if it works as well as it did on my leafs you will be VERY happy.

Looking at the online Lee Valley catalog, the stuff I was thinking of is on this page..
http://www.leevalley.com/hardware/page.aspx?c=2&p=32045&cat=3,43576
Item B - 1/4" UHMW - 4" x 24" to be exact... one should be enough for an entire CP.
To try this you're going to need a 1 1/4" forstner or spade bit, a 1 3/4"- 2" hole saw and a 3/16" drill bit for the LED holes.

I was just thinking about my idea some more. If you were to use a smaller bit for the inside hole of the washer and then 'tap' some threads into it you could use it AS the nut. Of course you'd have to make at least a couple of the outer edges flat so you could get a wrench on it..

BTW the washer does something more important than just hold the LED's, it diffuses them. If you make them out of that white plastic the whole ring should glow and indirectly light the button. As you can see this makes the bezel glow as nicely as the plunger which makes a big difference..

[gl.tter]

It is impossible to put graphics/letters on the bottom of the plunger.

[nobody]

okay i have an idea that might help, if you made a curved mirror out of tinfoil or some other reflective material and placed it behiund the led it might hellp diffuse the light.

[pointdablame]

okay i have an idea that might help, if you made a curved mirror out of tinfoil or some other reflective material and placed it behiund the led it might hellp diffuse the light.

If it was behind the LED, it would do nothing to diffuse the light beam since the beam is directed forward.  The only light that would hit the tin foil is the small amount of residual light that would hit behind the LED.

[markrvp]

BTW nice job with the pics and explanation of the button wiring/lighting Mark. In the relatively short time you've been here you've contributed a helluva lot to these boards.
Shawn you should put those shots up on your site if Mark is OK with it and that pic of the 4 lit buttons by LPZ, that's a beauty as well.

Thank you for the compliment Knievel.  Thank you even more for inspiring me to build this stuff with your awesome examples.

Anybody that wants to use my pics for an example is welcome to do so.

[D5A1AC]

I'm not sure if this has been tried yet, but in a lot of electronics projects that require that "diffused" effect from an LED, It is easiest just to roughen up the actual LED with rough sandpaper. This usually works well and isn't as fiddly or as complicated as some other suggestions, but I don't know if it would be as effective on a superbright LED. I would imagine roughing up the LED, then dropping a blob of hot glue on the LED, then roughening that up too would be more effective, but it seems a bit too fiddly.

If this has already been suggested, sorry - I only skimmed through the 9 or so pages on this topic 

[Chris]

As the Guinness guy says...

[quarterback]

I still think somebody should try a piece of translucent plastic up in the button and/or around the led.   

Somebody mentioned a milk carton.  Sounds like an easy test to me and somebody with the translucents must have a plastic milk jug lying around.   

Or (tangentizing off of Chris' last post) how about those flexible cutting 'boards' that are just sheets of somewhat thick translucent plastic.  I know I've seen those at the dollar store as well.

[Knievel]

A cutting board is a good idea Chris, you need something soft enough that will drill without cracking. I have some of that Lee Valley stuff here and it's perfect but yours could be a cheaper route.

[AlanS17]

The white plastic washer is the only way I can think of to light the ring AND plunger.

An alternative would be to track down white plastic buttons nuts. I've seen them before on some of my machines, but I don't know where they came from.

[SirPoonga]

What about thin paper.  You can go to a crafts store and pick up thin paper.  Many card makers use it for interesting effects, it's semi translucent.
Or think tissue paper.  I wonder how well really thin tissue paper wadded up in the button would be like.

[wakerlet]

Alan,

I have the plastic button nuts from the button hole plugs that Bob Roberts sells.  A little pricey for just the nut but at least you know where to get them now.

-Todd

[gl.tter]

What about thin paper.

[AlanS17]

Plain paper won't cut it. Hold it up to the light. It's not uniform.

[thetered]

LPZ, how did you light your buttons, through the bottom or sides?

[gl.tter]

Plain paper won't cut it. Hold it up to the light. It's not uniform.

Right, but it will give you a rough idea how the light will diffuse with better paper/film.

[LPZ]

I lit my buttons directly from the bottom.  I am trying a couple of new things tomorrow and will inform on the outcome.  Busy this week with overtime. 

[thetered]

See this is what I don't get, I can't believe no one has just stuck the led in the side to even look!  Everyone is looking for magical paper and washers, have you even tried through the sides?  I am happy with the way mine turned out and they are color, I think if they were clear then the results would be awesome, because the light should luminate the outside as well as the center.

[Knievel]

Guys I went ahead and made some of my LED RINGS^TM today and they turned out great. I'm just awaiting my 'grand prize' buttons from Shawn and then I'll be able to actually test them and post pics. I really think they are the best answer.

So when I was drilling the holes for the LED's a thought came to me. Instead of just the usual 2 holes why not drill 4...or 6. That way you could have 3 different colored sets of LED's in a button. Using clear buttons you could change the color of your buttons to red, blue, green, whatever at the flick of a switch.

And I haven't been following the LED controller threads as of late but I imagine they will be able to do some crazy things with different colored LED's in a single button.

[kickngas]

I have done the same thing as Knievel, using  a cutting board that I planed down to 1/4".  I will wire the buttons hopefully tonight and can post pics if they turn out as expected.   My buttons are blue by the way.
  I have tried plastic diffusers inside the button, white/clear and blue ones from spiral notebook material,  and have gone as far as painting the inside top of the button with some clear blue plastic jewelry paint I found at a craft store.  The painted buttons looked the best, but it made the top look too dark when they were not lit.  Both of these methods at least took the white glow out of the top of the button.

[AlanS17]

So when I was drilling the holes for the LED's a thought came to me. Instead of just the usual 2 holes why not drill 4...or 6. That way you could have 3 different colored sets of LED's in a button. Using clear buttons you could change the color of your buttons to red, blue, green, whatever at the flick of a switch.

The same though had occured to me. I'm just too lazy to wire up more than two. Heck, even two kinda sucks when you're talking about that many buttons. If you don't mind the work, though, the theory is sound.

Could we get a picture of those button rings?

[AlanS17]

Guys I went ahead and made some of my LED RINGS^TM today and they turned out great. I'm just awaiting my 'grand prize' buttons from Shawn and then I'll be able to actually test them and post pics. I really think they are the best answer.

I would imagine they have to fit pretty snuggly to transfer light properly. I have a feeling that the key if the surface area. Could you test on a solid button? If you've got 2 LED's on the ring, I bet you should get some pretty good light even from solid buttons.

We (meaning I) really don't want to wait for your translucents to come in the mail. Could you give it a shot with something you've already got lying around?   

[AlanS17]

Also, I've got a general question about the clear translucents... Are they crystal clear?

I'm wondering how difficult it would be to shoot some metalic spray paint up into the plunger for a metallic effect that won't wear off. (My idea! Nobody better steal it.)

I also wonder how well that would light up. I would expect something funky, but that would be the point - something that looks equally cool while on and off.

Oooooooohhhhh... "metalicized" buttons with tri-color LED's! 

[thetered]

So when I was drilling the holes for the LED's a thought came to me. Instead of just the usual 2 holes why not drill 4...or 6. That way you could have 3 different colored sets of LED's in a button. Using clear buttons you could change the color of your buttons to red, blue, green, whatever at the flick of a switch.

The same though had occured to me. I'm just too lazy to wire up more than two. Heck, even two kinda sucks when you're talking about that many buttons. If you don't mind the work, though, the theory is sound.

Could we get a picture of those button rings?

For what it's worth (not that I expect anyone to even do it) you can wire them in parallel series which is much quicker as you dont have to run "homerun" wires back to blocks each time and in some cases if your buttons are turned just right you don' t have to use any wires between them.  The only thing is you must use the same kind of leds and perferably not even mix between different manufacturers as they will all be pulling the same current/voltage.  But with the voltage window given on leds it wouldn't matter if they weren't all exactly to specs and little off.  Also you must use different resistors as the resistors for each one would be to much.     Depending on the color you can do 3 to 4 I think on each series, so it cuts down alot of time and wire clutter.

[kickngas]

Well, here is my "very rough and rushed" portotype of the LED washers.

[kickngas]

oops...here are thi pics...

[kickngas]

and the top.....sorry...having early posting jitters!!