Toggle Switch Covers

[mooginnyc]

Hello,
I'm having trouble sourcing a specific part. I am in need of 24 red rubber toggle switch cap/covers. Specifically, the exact ones that are included with these radio shack switches:
http://www.radioshack.com/spst-high-current-mini-toggle-switch/2750324.html

I'm pretty sure radioshack doesn't sell just the caps. I tried finding some thread covers, but the ones in stores are too big, and I've had bad luck guessing the correct size when ordering online.

Does anyone know of a place that sells just covers like these?

Thanks
mooginnyc

 

[Arouse1973]

Ring RadioShack, they might be able to help.
Adam

 

[mooginnyc]

Thanks.. I won't hold my breath though. Actually, they are quite marked down now I guess due to the bankruptcy. I can always use toggles. I might just order 24 of them and steal the red caps for this project.

But are there places that just sell the caps? Maybe I'm not typing in the correct term.

I appreciate the reply!

 

[KJ6EAD]

Ring RadioShack, they might be able to help.
Adam

This is a joke, right? Even before the bankruptcy, an inquiry of this sort would be met with a blank stare or the telephonic equivalent.

Maybe I'm not typing in the correct term.

The parts you're looking for are called "vinyl switch caps". Most manufacturers of miniature toggle switches offer them, C & K for example. You'll probably need to make a few measurements of your toggles to insure a good fit. Mouser or Digikey would be good possibilities for stock.

 

[hevans1944]

If you have the patience for it, you can buy at many hardware stores a can of red plastic "stuff" used to coat tool handles to provide a better grip. Just dip the toggle switch handles in it and suspend over a drip catcher (like newspapers) for 24 hours. Repeat if necessary until you get the coating thickness you want. But I seem to recall that for miniature toggle switches you can purchase the "vinyl switch caps" that @KJ6EAD mentioned. Check with a major on-line electronics distributor like Allied Electronics, Newark, Digi-Key, etc. and look under the product pages of a specific manufacturer, like C & K. Trying to find stuff like this is like trying to find nut and washer hardware for panel-mounted switches and potentiometers. Not commonly stocked, but usually available if you are persistent.

 

[mooginnyc]

That's a good idea! Thanks. They're actually for little mechanical latching switches. The plastics caps they come with are too big, and I had luck trying the vinyl caps from some radio shack toggles (they come with 3 colors). I'll check C & K. I tried mouser and jameco with no luck. But maybe I wasn't searching correctly.