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DIY Coating for Conductive Rubber Switches

I had some prototype circuit boards made containing traces that form an array of targets for conductive rubber switches. I know from taking apart dead phones, calculators, etc., that these switch on the circuit board are normally either gold-plated or coated with carbon - I suppose to combat corrosion. But to save money, I didn?t get that done on these 20 developmental prototypes. The swtich targets are just bare traces (no solder mask). At this stage, is there anything I can do myself to improve the longevity of these prototype boards? How beneficial is that plating or coating on conductive rubber switch targets anyway? Or course the production boards will be commercially coated, but I would like the prototypes to last as long as possible.

Robert Scott Ypsilanti, Michigan

Reply to
Robert Scott
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Some type of brush-on plating, I'd say.

The rubber pads can be rejuvenated by a product sold by Mike Sandman's phone supply company.

Reply to
Bret Ludwig

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I have worked proto boards with solder plated intermingled trace fingers for carbon pad and for click disk applications and they worked fine for more than the time I needed to keep the proto going. Worse thing that would be required would be to shine up the solder plate with some good flux followed by a hot water bath.

- mkaras

Reply to
mkaras

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Ttin/lead solder may be the lest expensive; next is Nickel plate.

Reply to
Robert Baer

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