Arcade Button Enclosure

The Arcade Button Enclosure is printed in three parts, then assembled with hardware into a single unit.

Find the files in our GitHub repository: https://github.com/BrownDogGadgets/3D-Pr...

Or on Printables.com: https://www.printables.com/model/649397-...

It's best to print the body upside down so you don't need to add supports for the cutout slot.

The top and bottom covers can be printed in either orientation.

Print them outward face down if your printer creates nice smooth surfaces on the bottom of prints.

Add the top cover to the body using 3mm screws.

3mm x 10mm screws work well, but you can use screws that are from 8mm to 12mm and they should also work.

We've now got the top cover in place so we can add the arcade button.

We'll walk through those steps as we go.

You will need to add 3 (or 4) wires to the switch and LED housing.

The Black wires goes to GND on the switch and to GND for the LED.

Note we have just 3 wires because we connected the black wire to GND for both the LED and switch together.

The Yellow wire goes to the NO contact on the switch. (Some switch will have a NO and NC contact, but the NO is typically closer to the bottom.)

The Red wire goes on the positive (other side) of the LED housing, opposite the black wire.

We recommend soldering the wires for the best connection but if you are unable to solder you can try to wrap them with Maker Tape around the terminals.

Use a CR2032 Battery to check if the LED lights up.

If it does not, pull it out, rotate it 180 degrees, and then reinsert it to see if that fixes it.

Unfortunately the LED may not be very bright since it will only be powered by 3 volts, but it can still be a nice indicator and does show up well in a darkened room.

Insert the button through the hole on the top, and then screw the large plastic nut in place to secure the button.

We've aligned the white tabs so that one is closest to the side with the slot in the button enclosure.

We can now add the LED/Switch to the arcade button by pushing it into place and rotating it to lock in.

We've positioned it so the wires can go out the slot of the printed enclosure.

To secure the bottom cover we used #4 screws.

These flat head #4 x 3/8" screws should fit perfectly.

Okay! Our Arcade Button and 3D printed enclosure should be all assembled, we should have three (or four) wires sticking out of it, and it should be ready to go.

In the following steps we'll show you how prepare it for connecting to your circuit using Maker Tape.

Remember, the Black wire is GND, the Red wire is for the LED inside the button, and the Yellow wire is for the switch.

We added two large loops of tape to the button enclosure to stick it down to a plate.

We used gaff tape, but you can use masking tape, painter's tape, or whatever tape you have available.

For our plate we used a piece of acrylic but you can use cardboard, wood, or whatever (non-conductive material) you have available.

Once the button enclosure is stuck down to the plate just tape down the wires using Maker Tape and you're all set!

At this point our arcade button is very similar to our Cardboard Push Buttons except we've got an extra wire for the LED.

Ready for gently pressing or excitedly slamming!

We do love our Cardboard Push Buttons but with our weekly quiz game things were getting a bit heated and the cardboard buttons were starting to wear out, so these will make a great replacement.

And you can use these buttons for any paper circuits or Crazy Circuits project that uses Maker Tape to connect things.