[Resolved] Repair eyelet on PCB for Mechanical Keyboard

Thread Starter

exeric

Joined Oct 25, 2020
2
I've been desoldering the switches on a mechanical keyboard. One of the keys however no longer works. The key doesn't register.
I think I've broken the eyelet for one of the connectors with a bad desoldering job and essentially just pulled it out.

Does anyone know how i could fix it?

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jpanhalt

Joined Jan 18, 2008
11,087
Welcome to AAC.

If that "eyelet" is connected to the copper pour that surrounds it, it is an easy repair. Repair rivets are made for that purpose, but minimal quantity is probably 100. Look for PCB repair rivets. If it connects to a thinner PCB trace, the repair is done the same way as described below, but is a little more difficult.

For a one-off, I would remove a small area of the solder resist on one or both sides (only you can tell whether that is needed), place a small wire in the hole and solder to the cleaned area(s), finally, insert the switch and solder it to the wire. You only need to remove enough of the resist to solder the wire.

A small fiberglass "scratch brush" works great for removing solder resist, but scraping carefully with a small blade (e.g., #11) also works well.
 

Thread Starter

exeric

Joined Oct 25, 2020
2
Thanks jpanhalt. I just used a copper wire from the leg where the PCB is damaged to the corresponding leg on the next switch location and it worked.
 
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