The long journey to get my dactyl keyboard assembled and working... when I saw the pictures the first time I was all hyped. The total price tag seemed interesting too (200$+/-) and all the technical aspects to learn about hooked me instantly.
Project source: adereth/dactyl-keyboard
- diodes: I got 80x 1N4148 (the standard?). I ordered both the normal and SMD version.
- wirixng/flex pcb: I decided to go straight with the flex PCB. Why? a) I was interested to learn how to make them without having specialized tools.
- 3d model/printing: The print of the original models is very tricky on a consumer 3d printer. I had quite some troubles and had to do many retrys which took an incredible amount of time. the results were mostly not really satisfying and nozzle collisions broke many print - at the end I decided to order the parts from shapeways. they are crazy expensive at first sight. but the troubles, headache and time you save is tremendous and the results you get from shapeways are breath taking. biggest side effect: from this moment on I was really commited to finish this project.
- caps: This is somehow another unexpected nightmare. It's not the worst one, as bad decisions only affect the money you have to invest into new orders. a) there are many many different formats b) the special layout needs here and there specific amounts of caps. c) little amount of vendors and the fancy/goodlooking sets are mostly not available (EU problem?)
- Coating the 3d parts: I used standard acrylic varnish. Some people recommend varnish on silicon base as it should better connect with the surface. I used varnish on water base - I had no issues with it nor problems that the paint didn't stick.
- wiring
- Firmware: please read Building a Dactyl Keyboard, Running QMK
- Diodes: SMD for dummies