Here I go, imitating Qui-Gon Jinn's format again. For the MHS saber I'm building now, I really wanted to use a
guarded switch from TCSS, but my UltraSound 2.0 does not like it. So, I nervously took a stab at converting it to a tactile switch. I'm happy to report that the operation was a success. But it is a messier and trickier operation than
the one Qui-Gon described for us.
First, you should really do this with a latching switch. I tried it with both latching and momentary switches, and the latter proved to be more trouble than it is worth. Suffice it to say, the guts of the two are surprisingly different, and the latching switch is far easier to convert. For the tactile, I used a longish one similar (I assume) to
this one sold by TCSS.
First, using a dremel, hack saw, or whatever, cut the section below the threads off. Unfortunately, I forgot to take a photo of the uncut switch before starting to work on it, but the photos below will show where the cut should be made. When you've cut it off, the doohickeys below, as well as a little spring not pictured, will fall out. You don't need any of them.
[img width= height=]http://lh3.ggpht.com/_THBqz9vPciU/SUo-zR_bCJI/AAAAAAAAACs/nWxn1ctRT-k/s288/IMG_0222.JPG[/img]Now comes the tricky part. Using a dremel, small file, or probably both, you need to cut a groove into the threaded end of the switch wide enough and deep enough to accommodate your tactile switch base, which, in my case, was about 6.5 mm x 3 mm. Note that two sides of the threaded portion of the switch are flat. It makes sense to make your groove as if to connect the two sides. Here are a few shots of what mine looked like after I finished making the groove.
[img width= height=]http://lh5.ggpht.com/_THBqz9vPciU/SUo-0d5RvBI/AAAAAAAAAC0/HZkukQR5Gbs/s288/IMG_0223.JPG[/img][img width= height=]http://lh5.ggpht.com/_THBqz9vPciU/SUo_Iq_YWdI/AAAAAAAAAD4/DAT8B-EfrzM/s288/IMG_0226.JPG[/img][img width= height=]http://lh3.ggpht.com/_THBqz9vPciU/SUo-1_iN-8I/AAAAAAAAAC8/0_BGm8xQ6d4/s288/IMG_0225.JPG[/img]At this point, push the button all the way down. Some portion of the white plastic piece inside should protrude into your groove. Cut or shave this off with a dremel or file.
Next, insert your tactile switch. (Golly, typing that made me blush. :-[) You'll probably need to grind away at your groove some to make it fit. (Gosh, that made me blush, too. :o)
[img width= height=]http://lh4.ggpht.com/_THBqz9vPciU/SUo-3cqE26I/AAAAAAAAADE/E-VxdyhlVBY/s288/IMG_0229.JPG[/img]Now, holding the tactile switch in place, try pushing the button of the guarded switch all the way down. If doing so pushes your tactile switch out, you're going to have to shave the end of the tactile switch until it doesn't. Here's what my tactile switch looked like after it was shaved down to the right length.
[img width= height=]http://lh6.ggpht.com/_THBqz9vPciU/SUo-2iEh98I/AAAAAAAAADA/-duyci5RT1I/s288/IMG_0228.JPG[/img]At this point, if you haven't already, you should solder your leads to the tactile switch. As Qui-Gon pointed out, there are two pairs of leads, but you only need one, so clip the other pair off. (Don't forget your heatshrink tubing!)
Now the messy part. Well, another messy part. You're going to glue the tactile switch in place. I used a few dabs of a gel-type superglue, and for good measure, topped it off with hot glue. Not pretty, but (I hope) effective.
[img width= height=]http://lh3.ggpht.com/_THBqz9vPciU/SUo-5kf23HI/AAAAAAAAADQ/Ult9nKn7in4/s288/IMG_0232.JPG[/img]Voilà. Your brand new guarded tactile switch.
[img width= height=]http://lh6.ggpht.com/_THBqz9vPciU/SUo-7OhvtwI/AAAAAAAAADY/PU0Ol4ipizA/s288/IMG_0234.JPG[/img]