Sticky Feet

January 25, 2004 2:19 PM

I have a logitech laser mouse. I bought it three years ago, and it's well-broken in. In fact, it's *so* well broken in that the 'feet' (for lack of a better term) on the bottom ... the little slick plastic things that it slides on ... have started to come off. The adhesive is all goopy. Any idea what I could do to either re-attach them or get new 'feet'?

I'm afraid to try glue because I don't want to upset the 'level'ness of the mouse. I don't use a mousepad. I do a bit of graphic design, so I'm worried about affecting the way the mouse moves on the desk.

Thanks!

posted by SpecialK to technology (13 comments total)

There are places that you may be able to purchase "Little Rubber Feet" or LRF as referred to by one of my roommates. After fully removing and cleaning of the bottom of your mouse. If you have a local electronics store I'd look there rather than online, as you'll be more likely to be able to find what you need.

You may be better off just taking off the feet, and cleaning it well and not replacing them. You may also be better off replacing the entire mouse with a new logitec optical.
posted by woil at 2:37 PM on January 25, 2004

I know exactly what you mean, having gone through a few of these mice in my day and the only solution I've come up with so far is to buy a new one and relegate the old one to "emergency mouse" status. However, if you actually still have both sliders, and they're not worn unevenly, you ought to be able to get away with superglue. Remove the old adhesive and superglue the sliders back in to the little circles that hold them.
posted by majick at 2:40 PM on January 25, 2004

woil: The problem with replacement is that these aren't "rubber feet," they're little (nylon?) low-friction pucks that give the mouse its feel. Rubber friction feet (or nothing) would be an ergonomic nightmare.

SpecialK: You might want to consider going in for a softish mousepad. My experience has been that the slide feet last much, much longer when they're on a soft surface as opposed to bare desk.
posted by majick at 2:43 PM on January 25, 2004

If its just a standard Logitech optical mouse (two buttons and wheel) you can get another one for $10-20 almost anywhere. I think brand new they're only $19.95 at CompUSA.

I've got quite a few of them; can never have enough.
posted by mrbill at 2:48 PM on January 25, 2004

Yeah what mrbill said, the logitech laser mouse I'm using right now was 7 bucks. Keep your eyes out for a deal. And use a mousepad next time, it will ease the amount of friction between the mouse and your desk surface, prolonging the life of your next mouse.
posted by banished at 3:25 PM on January 25, 2004

to get rid of the old adhesive, before regluing the feet, you can use acetone or 90-100% ethanol. (and make sure to keep the solvent off the rest of the mouse.)
posted by shoos at 4:20 PM on January 25, 2004

Can you post a link to the actual model of mouse in question?

On my Logitech cordless optical mouse, which I've had for a little under 2 years, the feet are sort of embedded into little raised ovals (that's not the right word, they're shaped more like grains of rice) molded into the body of the mouse itself, such that I don't see how they could ever come out/off due to wear.

Which leads me to think that maybe they've recognized this problem and corrected it in more recent models. So if you got a new mouse, maybe it would last longer.
posted by staggernation at 4:59 PM on January 25, 2004

"...you can use acetone..."

I don't recommend this. If you want something that won't damage plastic, try anything with naptha in it -- a drop or two of basic Zippo or Ronsonol lighter fluid will do the trick.

staggernation: If you go out and buy a basic, non-cordless Logitech Optical Mouse today, you'll get one that will still eventually lose its pads. Later designs are more durable, but since the mouse itself hasn't been improved (a large majority of Logitech's designs are incredibly uncomfortable or awkward in the hand unless you have huge mitts) there are lots of people who keep buying them, me included.
posted by majick at 5:19 PM on January 25, 2004

What you need is referred to in the gaming community as teflon tape. It is NOT the teflon tape that plumbers use, rather it is a roll of thick tape (think flexible plastic) with one side being adhesive and the other side being coated with teflon. Pop off all four feet and apply teflon tape in their place. Teflon tape is sometimes referred to as Mouse Skates.

Example
posted by yangwar at 7:03 PM on January 25, 2004

Would the Mouse Skates work just as well for a laptop that lost it's little feets? They're all gone on mine, and I've even lost the bits themselves.
posted by stoneegg21 at 8:05 PM on January 25, 2004

Would the Mouse Skates work just as well for a laptop that lost it's little feets?

Only if you want to slide it across the desk.
posted by inpHilltr8r at 8:40 PM on January 25, 2004

Yangwar - thank you! As easily-replaceable as the Logitech optical mice are, I've got an original MS Optical Mouse 2.0 (the "dove bar" first-generation optical with two buttons and scroll wheel) that has lost its "skates", and I'll gladly pay $3 + shipping to fix it.
posted by mrbill at 10:21 PM on January 25, 2004

Same thing happened to my mouse. I found a couple of dabs of superglue did the trick. It shrinks to nothing, so doesn't create any bumps.

Make sure the surfaces are clean of the old gloop before applying or you'll be re-attatching to the sliding-about gloop. Use methylated spirits/alcohol or whatever to clean before applying the superglue.
posted by Blue Stone at 6:18 AM on January 26, 2004