Stop using spray-on rubberised finish

[dave_electric]

Spacemouse TPU 3D printed sleeve.jpg (73.12 KiB) Viewed 19019 times

Here's a picture of the 3D-printed one I've made...

[xmen]

This is a spot on topic. Please stop using this material.

[Ravenna]

So I recently ran across this problem when I pulled out my barely used Space Mouse Pro from 2013. It was okay until about 2018. Than I boxed it up and stored it in a safe temperature stable location until this year. When I pulled it off the shelf I saw that during the period of storage it had contracted this condition. And it's kinda funny cause I had a cheap dress from hot topic one time that did this same thing and it was about the same material. The fact that they are still using a faulty material after 11 years is insane. It's not a hard fix, I have plenty of retro tech from Atari's to Logitech g500 mice that despite their age continue to not melt on me in the same environment. This without a doubt needs to be addressed. I contacted support about the issue and was offered a discount on a new device. Which is nice considering how out of warranty I am. But I do have to ask myself why would I buy a new device if the problem continues to exist? I might as well strip it down as others have and continue using it.

[rainyGardener]

I just dug out my SpaceMouse to try and get it working with Build Mode in the Sims 4 and also found mine to be very sticky. I ended up taking off the sticky finish with alcohol wipes. The plastic underneath is more matte than the rest of the plastic, but it feels and works perfectly fine. I just wish it had come this way originally!

[vividvulture]

For anyone interested, I can confirm that the new BT edition spacemouse pro does not use the old soft touch finish but rather a matte harder finish. I am currently working with 3DC support as my first sticky spacemouse is still under warranty and they confirmed that the new revision has a different finish and should not have the same breakdown issues with the coating. I upgraded mostly so I wouldn't have to travel with the dongle and an adapter for my macbook and USB-C, but this is definitely a welcome extra benefit. I also like that the BT can wake my laptop from sleep when docked at my workstation.

No kidding really? I thought they were going to stick with this since they've gotten this feedback for a decade now and its such a problem that 3D printed replacements are common on etsy and ebay (nearly 100 watches on this one https://www.ebay.com/itm/256015320350). They actually used to make a hard plastic one in the same form factor as the space navigator back in the early 2000's (https://spacemice.org/index.php?title=SpaceTraveler). I wish they sold replacement parts or else it wouldn't be so much of an issue.

Personally I didn't want the aesthetics of a 3D print with screws on the top and don't really like the feel of TPE filament so I went another direction. My replacement knob was printed in ABS and then I brushed on several layers of platinum curing 30A silicone. You need a couple layers for it to be thick enough to stand up abrasion but the shape of the knob holds the silicone shell on very well. It looks professional and is grabby, though it does have more of a tendency to attract dust but will never chemically degrade like the soft touch coating. You only need a bit for this but but due to the price it probably only makes sense if you have it on hand already. Plastidip would be another option though I assume you might have some degradation after a long period.