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I got a bug up my butt to do another 3D printed project that isn't another printer mod. I found the Orbion Space Mouse (print files here) and that looked like a fun challenge. It became more of a challenge than anticipated and the top comment at Printables is bluntly, painfully accurate. The design leaves a bit to be desired--it feels about 3/4 baked and still needs some fine-tuning.

So the printed parts came out well though I had to use some brims to try to stop warping since I chose to print in ABS. Assembly turned out to be a challenge. As the mentioned comment said, nearly every part needed rework to make the electronic components fit and I still need to make some tweaks. I think I got spoiled with how well the Voron team dials in their files before releasing them.

The wiring...OMG. That was a challenge and a half. I've never tackled an electronics project like this before and it took me time and some rework to get it all together. Plus the fun of cramming 7lbs of wires into a 5lb box. I got it done though, so I'm pleased that I pulled it off.

It does work, so I'll play with it and see if I can retrain my hands while working in Fusion. I also think it might come in handy doing editing in Davinci Resolve.

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Oh, I took a few progress pics. I got eyeball-deep into getting the wiring soldered up I forgot most of the time. THen my hands were full trying to cram it all into the body there were no pics.

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All the parts.

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Wiring up the back switches. Getting the ground jumpers on the middle one sucked--it got enough heat to shift the spade, but it appears to work, so good enough.

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Wiring up the NeoPixels. These were leftovers from the Trident case lighting project and happened to be the exact right type for the Orbion design.

I put some Gorilla epoxy on the joystick part to hold the top on better and left it overnight; now the top seems to be securely attached. No, I don't plan to need to open this thing up again. That would be much like the old snake in a can prank and I don't want to do that...

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Now I don't know how someone like me with fumble fat fingers will go.

See the omnifixo at work - what a great little tool. 

7 hours ago, claudermilk said:

Getting the ground jumpers on the middle one sucked

Mmmmh - Retrospectoscope - soldering those middle jumper prior to installing the switch, and feeding the wires through, may be easier. Ain't hindsight a good thing 😄

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I daisy-chained the grounds, so there was no avoiding that PITA. It was the second wire that was difficult. I also needed to use the unmolested spades to screw the suckers in.

That Omnifixo seems really expensive, but after using it a couple of times--especially on a challenging project like this and you suddenly don't mind the initial cost any more. It beats out the old common alligator clip ones of any flavor so comprehensively I cannot imagine willingly going back.

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