Switches | About Split Keyboards - Build Guide

With the top plates prepared, you can now insert the switches through it, into your keyboard's hot swap sockets.

Parts needed

You will need the keyboard you've prepared in the previous steps, as well as the switches you'd like to use.

The prepared keyboard and switches.

Warning: Before you insert the switches into the hotswap sockets, make sure to straighten the switch pins. You can bend them back with a fingernail or by carefully using tweezers. Try not to bend them many times, bending them back once is sufficient. It’s possible that pins are bent, which can happen at any point between being manufactured and arriving to you.

A bent switch leg on an MX switch can be bent back in shape.

Positioning the switches

After making sure that the switch pins are straight, you will need to correctly align the switch with the keyboard PCB before inserting it. The pins should be facing south.

Aligning the switch with the keyboard PCB.

After aligning the switch you can position it in to the top plate. Don't press it down just yet.

Positioning the switch in to the top plate.

Side view of the positioned switch.

Inserting the first switches

It may be easier if you remove the top plate from the keyboard PCB for the first couple of switches. That way you can make sure the switches are fully inserted in to the top plate.

Side view of the positioned switch with the keyboard PCB and sound dampening sheet removed.

Fully press down on the middle of the switch to insert it in the top plate. You may need to support the top plate itself as well.

Info: Because of tolerances with our top plates and the switches from the factory you may need to put more pressure on the switch than you would expect.

Fully inserted switch in the top plate.

Now insert 3 more switches in each corner of the plate.

4 switches inserted in to the top plate.

Grab your keyboard PCB with sound dampening sheet again and align them both with each other.

Aligning the top plate and keyboard PCB.

Press down on each switch to insert the switch legs in to the keyboard hotswap socket.

Installed corner switches in to the keyboard PCB.

Make sure that each switch is fully inserted in to the keyboard PCB. You can double check this from the side. Notice how the switch sits flush on the plate.

Fully inserted keyboard switch.

Inserting the rest of the switches

Position the rest of the switches just as before.

Positioning a switch.

Press down on the switch.

Info: It is advisable to support the hotswap socket underneath with your finger to not accidentally break the hotswap socket of your keyboard. While this is not likely to happen at all if you make sure that the switch pins are straightened, it also doesn't hurt to do this.

Pressing down on the switch.

Insert the rest of the switches the same way.

Info: You may notice that the switch takes a lot of pressure to insert as said before and that it's pushing down and deforming the top plate. For that refer to the troubleshooting section of this page.

All switches inserted in to the keyboard.

Troubleshooting

You may notice that the switch doesn't fully insert in to the top plate and it deforms the top plate.

Deformed top plate.

For most switches in the middle of the keyboard it is usually enough to rest the keyboard with it's spacers on the table and apply pressure on the switch directly.

On the edge this is a bit more difficult as the keyboard may just slip away. For this you can use something plastic (to not scratch the top plate), like a pen, to support the side of the top plate while putting pressure on the switch to insert it.

Supporting the top plate with a pen while putting pressure on the switch.

Do this for any switch that has trouble fully inserting in to the top plate. In the end it should look like the following. There should be no gap between the top of the switch and the top plate.

Fully inserted switches in the top plate.

Top plates

Preparing the top plates for your Halcyon keyboard's case.

Halcyon modules

Installing a Halcyon module onto your Halcyon keyboard.

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