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WP 34S overlay installation - Printable Version +- HP Forums (https://archived.hpcalc.org/museumforum) +-- Forum: HP Museum Forums (https://archived.hpcalc.org/museumforum/forum-1.html) +--- Forum: Old HP Forum Archives (https://archived.hpcalc.org/museumforum/forum-2.html) +--- Thread: WP 34S overlay installation (/thread-222871.html) |
WP 34S overlay installation - Jeff Johnson - 05-24-2012 Received my 34S yesterday - Thanks, Jose! For those who are nervous about applying their own overlay, relax! I'm not nearly as steady as I used to be, but I washed my paws, got my readers, fine tweezers and a good work light, and gave it a go. Results - Excellent! Hopefully others will share a better way than mine, but here's my observations: - The overlay decals are NOT the ultra-pressure sensitive type that permanently adhere as soon as even a corner touches. They can actually be gently adjusted before smoothing them down. - For the button overlays, grab the very bottom edge with the tweezers and line the top edge with the key top. I actually left about 1/64" of margin at the top edge, and it centered all the legends nicely. Make sure you are also lined up left-right, then smooth it from the top edge to the bottom edge. - For the keyboard overlay, I initially started from the top down, and it wasn't working well, so I gently, slowly lifted it back off. It worked much better starting with the "Enter" row, working down to the bottom, then finishing the top. - Smooth the keyboard overlay with something soft, like a Q-Tip. Anything hard or edgy (even a fingernail) will leave a mark in the vinyl.
Since this is such a pioneering project, I'm experiencing a giddiness I haven't felt since purchasing my ultra-powered TI-58c in undergrad school. Looking forward to using this cool tool!
Re: WP 34S overlay installation - Mark Scheuern - 05-24-2012 Knowing how un-talented I am at such things, I was expecting it to be difficult and I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was. The quality of the sticker kit is really first-rate and that certainly helps.
Re: WP 34S overlay installation - Dale Reed - 05-24-2012 One brief word of caution. When I installed my first overlay, I had a key label that started a bit out of alignment, and I tried to "slide" it with my finger. This actually can work, but I suggest you not even try it. When I did so, I had to put a lot of pressure on the key to get enough force to slide the label on it, and I ended up permanently damaging the snap dome of the key, making it mushy and destroying the nice HP click. So use a magnifier, steady your hand against a sturdy object, and line up each key label before you put any real pressure on it to stick it down. It is, after all, "pressure-sensitive adhesive". If you need to peel a key label or the background overlay, note that the least force will be required if you peel at a 90-degree angle to the surface. Pull "up", not "back", and take your time. In the self-adhesive papers, films and foils industry, this is known as the "90-degree peel adhesion" characteristic. (There are also tests for 180-degree peel adhesion --- peeling "back" --- and shear --- sliding at 0 degrees. Things I found out working in a lab during a summer job way back in college days...) Fortunately, I bought a couple HP-30Bs, and I could sacrifice one as a "learner". I kept it so I can learn on it (mess it up) when I do my first crystal/cap and IR upgrades.
Dale
Re: WP 34S overlay installation - Les Wright - 05-24-2012 I found that the difficulty in applying the overlays has been highly overrated. I have purchased five overlays for three calculators, believing the application to be such delicate surgery, but I really haven't needed the extras. It is nice, though, to have extra key covers on hand when the existing ones start showing wear around the edges.
Re: WP 34S overlay installation - Jeroen Van Nieuwenhove - 05-24-2012 I'd like to add three additional observations: |