Stylus ideas

[Neelix]

Is the 3rd one still up for grabs? If so I'm interested.

- Neelix

 

[Grench]

Is the 3rd one still up for grabs? If so I'm interested.


- Neelix

Yes - last one.  You're in.

My offer for Evil Dragon is still open.  If he wants to request one, I'll send him one and the parts & vendors lists on my cost.

 

[Grench]

Third one shipped.  I found it hilarious that sending $5 in parts to Australia cost $8.25.  No worries - I'm not in this to make money.  It is an intellectual curiosity only.

 

[Neelix]

That reminds me of when I shipped my first Pandora back to the UK for RMA. At the post office I first queried the fastest shipping option, then the cheapest. I was quite surprised to discover that fastest option was the cheapest.  It made the decision really easy.

- Neelix

 

[Hồng Thất Công]

Your post office uses the "time is money" principal.  Shorter the time to get the package to you, the cheaper it is

I guess your post office is the only logical post office left in the world

 

[Neelix]

I just received my red stylus today.   I have to say it feels pretty good to use, and I think the long tip does actually allow for better precision when placing the stylus.  For some reason It also seems to be easier to apply the specific pressure my touchscreen needs to register a continuous drag, which is something that's always given me problems in the past.  I'm not sure why that would be,  possibly it's because of the heavier weight of the stylus?

In any case I'm quite pleased with it overall.

Thanks Grench,  much appreciated.

- Neelix

 

[rygD]

For some reason It also seems to be easier to apply the specific pressure my touchscreen needs to register a continuous drag, which is something that's always given me problems in the past.

I noticed that too.  I still have inconsistent touchscreen sensitivity (in a couple places it seems less sensitive, so I have to push slightly harder).  Even at those places I feel like I am not pushing down as hard compared to the stock stylus.  I tried to see if there was anything that may have been causing a problem, but didn't find anything.  With the dart tip stylus it really isn't as noticeable, since the touchscreen likes it better, regardless of the reason, which may just be me being more precise with clicks and pressure.

After I got bored with looking for steel standoffs to replace the aluminum ones I decided I would try to find something else to add weight, and did that some time over the last few weeks.  I just cut some nails and slid them in and added a bit of padding.  It adds a little bit of weight, and works for now.  This was not how I originally planned to do it, which was to swing by an arts and crafts store or somewhere else and look at the metal rods they have.

 

[Grench]

That is an interesting idea of adding more weight by filling the tube...

I have some powdered tungsten from back when I was building pinewood derby cars with my sons.  Hmmm...  Drawback is it's messy as hell to work with.  Think insanely heavy talc.

An expensive but sure-fire way to make a heavy version is to purchase a set of 5mm OD tungsten darts using the links above.  With shipping they're ~$100 for 3.  I used one like that for a month or so.  It's actually a bit 'too heavy' and the surface knurling gets uncomfortable after extended use - tends to rub the finger tips raw.

So, there are 3 of the red stylus 'in the wild'.  Overall response has been fairly positive.  I like that we've been able to show a stylus can be longer, higher quality and have changeable tips without costing a fortune.  ED hasn't replied to my offer to send him one for free.

What are the opinions here?  ED is a busy guy.  He's working on the Pyra case.  Should I send him one or more of them unsolicited to see if he likes it enough to make sure the Pyra works with it?  Or would that just be an annoying distraction?

 

[comradekingu]

Do you still have some red-styluses?  Im in for one to norway unless the price is bonkers.

You dont have to ask, send ED one and see what happens.

 

[rygD]

The powdered tungsten doesn't sound ideal, especially for those that don't have it sitting around.  I still like the idea of tungsten darts, just not the price.  I sometimes like knurling.  I don't know if it would bother me with extended use.  I like these red ones.  The slickness hasn't been a problem, but I have been thinking about that as well.  There isn't much that can be done since it must remain narrow enough to fit in the slot.

I thought ED said something about the Pyra stylus possibly being slightly narrower.  Since some feel that the Pandora stylus is already a bit too narrow for comfort, maybe he is still considering a proper Xstylus as an optional add on.  I would like the Pandora stylus to fit in the Pyra so that I can keep using the aluminum one.  I don't know if I have an opinion on what you should do.  I don't know how much of a minority we are, so I don't know if he would be interested in accommodating the use of a DIY stylus, or if he would want to bother with ordering parts, possibly assembling them, listing them in the shop, etc.  On the other side of it, as you said, he may be too busy to read this thread and might be extremely interested if he knew.  If I were in his position I would be interested, but I was also interested enough to look into options on my own, and ask for one of these red ones when they were offered.  

I don't think it will be too much of a distraction if you send it with a brief note explaining that it was a proof of concept design, and that it increases weight and length, and that some of us feel it allows for more precision.  There would probably need to be a sentence explaining that it needs to be pushed in further after it locks in.  He could try it out, and if he doesn't like it he only spent a few minutes of his time on it.  I understand the hesitation, though.  Maybe if someone sees him active in the IRC channel they could ask him if he would mind being sent one to test.

 

[Hồng Thất Công]

Grench's red stylus has been my default stylus since I received it. 

 

[comradekingu]

Can a picture be taken of this red stylus be shared, or some details to put on the wiki.

 

[Hồng Thất Công]

I would let Grench do the honor as he's the inventor of this RHS (Red Hot Stylus)

 

[Grench]

I would let Grench do the honor as he's the inventor of this RHS (Red Hot Stylus)

I like that name.  RHS - use it. 

I've been traveling a bit - any of the 3 of you who have them are welcome to post up pictures of the RHS.

I'm not sure how much narrower ED's planning to make the Pyra's stylus.  The old stylus slot was something larger than 5.15mm (the size of the dart I was using) and less than 6mm (the size of the button screw on the RHS).  Closer to the 5.15 than the 6.  The RHS is pretty much exactly 5mm in diameter and the button screw on the end is 6mm.  So - depending on 'how much smaller' ED decides to make it, it could work?  No real idea.

I think I will send a couple of them off to ED unsolicited.  Everyone who has gotten one seems to like it.  In -theory- he could have a cheap plastic wand mold made with threads to mate up to the dart tips - which would give him 90% of the benefit of the RHS.  I've always seen the ones I've made as prototypes anyway.

After I send ED's out I'll check my supplies and see if I have enough left to assemble any more.  There were a few of the long standoffs where the threads weren't as deep as the others - which means the button screw didn't fit properly and sits a bit high.  If I can assemble any more I'll put them up.

 

[rygD]

There were a few of the long standoffs where the threads weren't as deep as the others - which means the button screw didn't fit properly and sits a bit high.

I have dis/reassembled mine several ways during my experiments.  I was considering cutting the screw shorter when I ran into that issue, but decided to do something slightly less destructive (imo) by forcing the screw in further.  The screw threads seem fine, but I don't suggest it.  If you want to send a couple more out maybe you can cut the screw a bit.

While the picture in this post doesn't really show the stylus that well, or show the details, it gives a general idea of looks and size.  Since I am unlikely to upload a pic I will try to give some info.  Grench listed the parts used.  They include 2 hollow red aluminum standoffs, one long and one shorter.  I don't have dimensions currently, maybe they were listed earlier in the thread.  The standoffs are held together by a headless screw.  There is the hex screw on the back that keeps the stylus from going too far into the slot.  On the business end is the green dart tip.  I just looked back and noticed that Grench already said all this here.

Maybe someone with a virgin RHS can weigh theirs so they can be compared to the stock stylus.  I used some cheesy panelboard nails to add weight, and eventually hope to try some small brass or copper rods.  With the cut nails I feel it pushed it into my ideal weight range while still remaining light.  TSA and such probably wouldn't like such mods.

 

[Hồng Thất Công]

Here are some pics of the RHS (and my awesome Pandora )

Spoiler

 

[fusion_power]

Here are some pics of the RHS (and my awesome Pandora )

Looking good. Not my prefered colours though but at least the stylus looks usable and I can imagine that thing in a nice black finish. Is such a metal stylus actualy heavy? Does it hold comfortably in your hands?

 

[Hồng Thất Công]

^ Yes, very comfortable for me.  Before the RHS, I mostly used the nubs for desktop navigation.  Now I mostly use the RHS for that.

 

[Grench]

Here are some pics of the RHS (and my awesome Pandora )

Looking good. Not my prefered colours though but at least the stylus looks usable and I can imagine that thing in a nice black finish. Is such a metal stylus actualy heavy? Does it hold comfortably in your hands?

Since this was a prototype endeavor, I was far more interested in dimensions, fitment and usability than I was in color selection.

There are two things going on that improve the usability.  It's far longer than the stock stylus so it can be held like a pen instead of a crayon.  The nylon dart tips give great visibility around the tip so you can see what you're selecting.

They're made of hollow aluminum with 1.5mm wall thickness and 2BA (2mm) internal threads.  So, they aren't heavy - at least not compared to the tungsten darts I was using during the early days of this exercise.

 

[Grench]

Do you still have some red-styluses?  Im in for one to norway unless the price is bonkers.

You dont have to ask, send ED one and see what happens.

I started with enough materials to build 10.

I have two Pandoras which I've put RHS in, and I'm keeping one as a spare - so 3 consumed by me.

I sent 3 to the first 3 to respond at $10 each, which was less than it cost to make and ship them.  I'm not in this as a business or to become one, so loosing a bit was fine.

I just sent 2 to ED so that he can fiddle with them.  Hopefully he'll see the merits of a longer stylus with removable tips and give that some consideration on the Pyra designs.

That leaves materials for 2.  However, those two sets have particularly shallow threading on the offsets.  So the black end screws won't turn in right.  I've found a silver screw that worked in my 'spare' above (it had shallow threads too).  I need to sort through my bucket of old PC parts to see if I can find any more short screws that fit.  If I do, I may make those 2 available, but they'll have 'less pretty' end screws.