black (stamped?) circuits

[choklitlove]

here's what i'm talking about:


it's on top of other circuits.  it looks like it might be stamped.  it is conductive (i metered it), but i don't know what material it is.

i guess what i want to know is: can it be soldered?  i would try, but i don't want to ruin it.


thanks!

[Nasse]

Looks like some conductive stuff, there must have been some rubbery buttons on that that have similar conductive surface. I think they use this kind of stuff with remote controllers and many other products.

I have seen a repair paint for remote control contacts on some catalogs, silly expensive if I remember. Dunno if they use same stuff on these rubber buttons, quess not...

Maybe you could replace it with mechanical switches (add resistors in series if needed)

[choklitlove]

yeah, it's a keyboard.  it had a rubber strip with button that connect the traces.  do you know if it's solderable?

[MartyMart]

If it is rubber based ( conductive ) then you'll just burn it up !
You'd have to use the same stuff to "attach" anything to it ... is my guess

MM.

[choklitlove]

the rubber is separate from the 'buttons' that connect the traces:


it has to be the same material.  what is it?  and is it solderable?

[Nasse]

I typed "rubber keypad repair" into search engine, lots of hits

This was interesting http://www.trackdown.co.uk/faqs.htm

I think if some tracks are broken you can fix it with conductive pant but for contacts you need something else

[gez]

If the buttons no longer work, you need a new rubber pad.  Get in contact with the manufacturer.  I had to do this a number of years ago with an old Roland drum machine.  They had the pads and they didn't cost that much.  Everything worked out fine.

[gez]

Having said that, the buttons pushed down onto 'raw' metal, not that black stuff...

[Ge_Whiz]

No, it's not solderable. It's a carbon-based film deposited onto metallic connection points.

[gez]

Perhaps you could touch it up with conductive paint?

[Peter Snowberg]

If you can find a break, you can often patch it with the conductive paint used to repair rear-window defogger elements.

[choklitlove]

i don't need to repair anything.  i need to connect wires to it.  thanks, Ge_Whiz.  i think you're the only one that answered what i asked...