Hey guys, went out to buy a mouse mat the other week............... and after being shown a selection of "better qual" ones for 30 and 40+ au, i thought i can make my own .... and better than that!

So i did


The first one wasa 2 layer type, ver basic..... i won't post that...

The next one was a 3 layer design,

The Material im using to make the mats with is a New anti glare Plex sheeting product Black 508s "s"for satin.

the surface of this stuff has a very fine grain matting, wich perfect with the MX1000 series of mice, but struggles to work with the cheeper style mouse's.

the middle layer is UV green, the idea is that thislayer can be lit using a light source.


I got the 3 peices cut to exact size, and again grabbed some new rubber stick on feet.

Removing the paper from the inner side of the blacks and both sides of the green


The 3 peices are again stuck togther using plex glue! this stuff dries fast!!! so sorry no time to take piccys!!!


15 mins later its time for some powersanding


once the sharp edges are smoothed over its time for a bit of wet and dry 800 work

Still need a bit more work but you get the idea

Once the edges are all smoooth'd its time for some hand buffing! i ran out of gas on the portosol so this method was used instead of the usual quik and easy flame polishing.

Shinier edges!

A hole is drilled for the LED! (i'll wire this up to a usb cable later in the week)

the paper is peeeeeeeled off and the new sexy rubber feet are added!





Hook it up to some light!




Bling time!





a coupla shots on the way inside!







Defyant's new mouse mat! Not bad for 20bux eh!

Zak said he also wanted a new mouse mat, but asked for blue! and of course lights!
i decided to make more usable power source, this time as mentioned before i grafted in a USB conn to the mat, this also works as a prototype for the next mat which will feature a USB HUB as well as light custom laser cut back lit lettering and possibly the added feature of hand cooler fans for the hardcore gamer!

This time Zak picked the Aqua Blue, the lighter shade is pickedas it gives better contrast.




The extra part in this V3 mat, is the inclusion of a USB port to power the LED's



First thing to do is to cut the outer casing off the USB



As you guys can see, the header with a bit more trimming will fit just nicely into the 3 layers that make the mat.



Stipping of the wires,



The RED and The outer sheilding act as the power source for the LED's..RED being your 5+volt abd the outer sheilding acting as the - side.



Next is to mark a very crude pattern into the MIDDLE layer of the mat. the Blue plex.this will be the "main channel" for the USB power to supple the LED's

Over to the hobby saw to do some cuttin.




then transfer this shape to the top and bottem peices of Matt bLACK PLEX.





The next part is very crude! and a small dremel router would make this part look a lot more pro!

The idea is to just hand dremel a slight groove into the top and botten sheets.




This will alow the USB header to sit into all three layers.








The LED's are hardwired to the wires if the USB cable and plugged in to check test,



The middle is layed on and the whole usb and its cable is glue'd into place.



The next layer (the middle blue) is then glued into place, again guys because the glue dries soooo fast there no time to setup and get a shot of this,

The top layer is glued into place as well.



and a beed of glue is ran around the entire outer edge




Some more sanding!



Some more shiny edge polishing!





2 cables are joined to make one extra male-male cable.



Pug it into the PC!


Plug it into the mat!





Whaaaa La!







Qik out and in shot!







I have to admit, the light isn't quiet as bright as i'd had hoped for , and is somthing i should have "dark checked" before i glued the top down.

But this is a protostype for the final design

Nice guide!

That is sweet!!

So what do I have to do to get you to make me one??!! How much dinero?? One in red LED's.....

Holy shiat Defyant, you are a freaking god
Tell me, where can I meet the devil and sign the paperwork?

See your work makes me want to go out and spend a few Benjamins on a table router and drill press...

Yes I also want to know the cost for one of these.....White led's....clear plexi center...
pm me...
digi

that is sweet, is there more transparent version of that stuff so an etch can be done on the underside of the top peice for some sweet graphic action?

YGPM That this is nice.

!!!!! ........



DUDE! that's amazing work! Love the hub idea!

Sweet mat bling bling

Lol........Dibbs $30.00 for master piece (Don't forget to Sign it)

Haha....where's the new Avatar?

Love it! Really I don't think you can buy one as nice as that!

Holy crap skillz

That is a nice touch with the internalt USB, I never would have thought of building my own mousepad, in fact, im using a crappy one I "borrowed" from a large scale lan party back earlier this year, and its dying a very painful death.

Well done! I wish i had that kind of access to tools and uber plexi. Great job.

Quote: Originally Posted by Defyant I have to admit, the light isn't quiet as bright as i'd had hoped for , and is somthing i should have "dark checked" before i glued the top down.

Did you try lopping off a bit of the "lens" on the LEDs?