FUN! LIGHT SWITCH BOX

Experience Level: Intermediate  |    Time Required: 4 Hours

Built by ClubJameco designer ignoblegnome

An incredibly fun and engaging toy for kids and adults. Press a button and something lights up. Flip a switch, and everything changes. You'll be amazed at how such incredibly unpredictable behavior can be achieved through cleverly connected switches and pushbuttons.

Build you own kit... The kit can be found on the Jameco website: Fun Light Switch Box

Required Tools & Parts:

Soldering iron and solder
Drill press (preferred) or hand drill
Drill bits (1/4", 9/32", 13/32", 15/32", 9/16", 5/8", 13/16")
X-Acto knife
Small flat or triangular file
Phillips head screwdriver
Wire cutters
Wire strippers
Needle nose pliers
8x AA batteries
Double-sided foam tape

Kit Includes:

Switch, push button, black, OFF-(ON)
Switch, rocker, DPST, red, illuminated, ON-OFF
Case, ABS, 7.5" x 4.25" x 2.25"
Switch, push button, red, illuminated, OFF-(ON)
Switch, toggle, DPDT, (ON)-OFF-(ON)
Resistor, 1/4W, 680Ω
Switch, push button, green, OFF-(ON)
Switch, toggle, DPDT, ON-OFF-ON
Battery holder, 8xAA, wire leads
Switch, push button, red, OFF-(ON)
Switch, rocker, SPST, black
Heat shrink, 1/16" x 4ft, black
Switch, basic, pull-to-cheat
Lamp, panel, red, 12V
Prototype board, 3.5" x 2.5"
Switch, mini toggle, DPDT, ON-ON
Lamp, panel, green, 12V
Stranded mounting wire set, 10 color
Switch, sub mini toggle, SPDT, ON-OFF-ON
Lamp, panel, white, 12V
Wire jumper kit, 140pcs, 5 colors
Switch, mini toggle, DPDT, (ON)-OFF-(ON)
Lamp, panel, red, 12V
Header, vertical male, 1 row, 40 pin, 0.1"

In addition to the kit:

Drill bits: A variety of drill bit sizes makes the project look cool, but requires some work to find the odd sizes. Sizes are: 1/4, 9/32, 13/32, 15/32, 1/2, 9/16, 5/8 and 13/16 inch.

Soldering iron and solder: If you are fairly new to soldering, try watching an instructional video on YouTube. It is well worth your time. This project requires a fair amount of soldering, but it is pretty easy if you know the right technique.

Drill press (preferred) or hand drill and center punch: You have to make some pretty precise holes. A center punch is a must.

X-Acto knife: Used to clean up burrs from drilled holes. You could use a utility knife or file or sanding paper instead.

Small flat file or triangular file: Used for making the rectangular cut outs and for cleaning up burrs.

Wire cutters, wire strippers and a small pair of needle nose pliers.

Phillips head screwdriver: Used for attaching the lid.

8 AA batteries: A set of alkaline AA batteries should last a really long time in this project. I don't recommend rechargeable for this project, because they don't have the shelf life of alkaline.

Double-sided foam tape: For attaching components inside the project box.

1) Download the drilling template from this link and print it out. Be sure to print it at a 1:1 ratio (no scaling).

Confirm the printout is scaled properly by measuring the width from the left to right 'cut here' lines is 7 3/8 inches.

2) Cut the template along the lines indicated by the arrows. This line represents the inner rim of the project box lid.
3) Cut out the little squares in the corners of the template. This leaves room for the screw holes for the lid, and allows the drilling template to fit nicely on the inside of the lid.
4) The template should just fit inside the back of the project box lid. If it is too loose, it will move around and you won't get precisely placed holes. If it is too big it won't lay flat and you'll have problems too. Trim the paper as needed.

1) Lay the lid of the project box upside down and place the drilling template inside with the printed side facing you.
2) Take a center punch and carefully punch a single time at the center of each marked hole.
3) Remove the paper template, but save if for reference.

Note: A stepped drill bit is very useful here. When drilling holes in flat stock, a stepped bit lets you start with a small hole that is easier to keep on center and work your way up. If you don't have a stepped bit, then drill all the holes with the smallest size (1/4 inch) and work up to larger sizes as you change out drill bits.
Another Note: A drill press is much better for this, but you can get by with a hand drill if you clamp your work piece down and have a steady hand.
1) Drill out all 7/32 inch holes and the 1/4 holes.
2) Next drill out the 9/32 inch holes.
3) Next drill out the 13/32 inch and 15/32 inch holes.
4) Keep working up through the 1/2 inch holes.

Note: When you get above 1/2 inch, it is really important to start with a smaller bit and work upwards.
1) Drill out the 9/16, 33/64, and the 5/8 inch holes.
2) Using the stepped bit, I found the 13/16 inch hole. I needed to use a piece of wood as a backer behind the lid in order to keep from hitting the work surface of my drill press.

Clean any rough or raised edges around the drilled holes with an X-Acto knife or other tool. Carefully cut away any rough edges (burrs) from around the drilled holes.

If your work looks like the one in the picture, pause to admire it. Nice job.

1) Create the cut-out for the white snap-in plunger button. Use a triangular file or other tool to expand the two 9/16 inch holes at the top center of the cover into a rectangle.
2) Create the cut-out for the red rocker switch. Again use a triangular file or other tool to
make a rectangular hole by expanding the 33/64 inch and two 1/4 inch holes that are directly below the rectangular hole you just
completed.

Test fit the two switches in the rectangular holes. You may need to adjust your holes a bit if the fit is too tight.
1) The white snap-in plunger button should fit in the rectangular hole you made pretty easily. Don't worry
about trying to make a tight fit; the tabs on the ends of the switch will hold it in place.
2) The red rocker switch may be a tight fit. It can be hard to remove once it is snapped in place,
so try to get the hole cut enough before you snap it all the way in.

Install all the switches, buttons, and lights.
1) Snap the rectangular buttons and the round rocker switch in place.
2) Install all the parts that require threaded nuts. For the toggle switches that have a round washer with a small downwards-facing tab, discard this washer before installing.

Note: The small green, yellow and red lamps already have wires attached. Since they have black
wires, we will stay with that theme and use black wires on the other lamps too. As you will see the colors of the wires are important, to help keep track of what could be a pretty confusing mess.
1) Cut four 8-inch lengths of black wire. Strip off about 1/4 inch of the insulation from each end
each wire.
Tip: I highly recommend twisting the end of each wire until it is in a smooth spiral, then tinning the
ends with solder. This will keep the individual strands from separating. I may not mention this for every step of these instructions, but any time you strip stranded wire in this project, you should twist and tin the ends.
2) Locate the two solder tabs on the back of the large red lamp. Solder a black wire to one end of the
tabs. Repeat for the other tab with a separate wire.
3) Locate the back of the round red illuminated push button (see picture). There are four solder
tabs. Locate the pair labeled '+' and '-', and solder one black wire to each. Note: Take note of which wire is attached to '+'. This will be very important in a future step.

1) Cut eight 8-inch lengths of green wire. Strip off about 1/4 inch of  insulation from each end of each wire. Twist and solder tin the ends of each wire.
2) On the back of the round illuminated red push-button there are four solder
tabs. Refer to the picture. Two are labeled '+' and '-', and should already have black wires soldered to them. Solder a green wire to each of the remaining two tabs.
3) Locate the two solder tabs on the back of the round black push-button. Solder a green wire to each of the tabs.
4) Locate the two solder tabs on the back of the red square push-button. Solder a green wire to each of the tabs.
5) Locate the two solder tabs on the back of the round green push-button. Solder a green wire to each of the tabs.

Note: Switches can have one or more
poles. Each pole controls one signal. A switch with one pole is called SinglePole (SP). A switch with two poles is called Double Pole (DP). Each pole can be switched to one or more contacts, which is called the 'throw'. A pole that only connects to one contact or disconnects to that contact is called Single Throw (ST). A pole that can be alternately connected to one contact or to a second contact is called Double Throw (DT). In these instructions, I will refer to different types of switches, such as:
Single Pole Single Throw (SPST)
Single Pole Double Throw (SPDT)
Double Pole Single Throw (DPST)
Double Pole Double Throw (DPDT)

1) Identify all the double throw switches. There's the big DPDT toggle, the little red SPDT toggle, and the two medium sized blue DPDT switches. Do not wire up any momentary switches in this step, they'll come later.
2) Cut seven 8-inch lengths of grey wire. Strip off about 1/4 inch of the insulation from each end of each wire. Twist and solder tin the ends of each wire.
3) On the back of the big DPDT toggle there are six solder tabs. Refer to the picture. The two at the top are labeled '1' and '4'. Solder a gray wire to each of them.
4) Locate the three solder tabs on the back of the little red SPDT toggle. Solder a grey wire to either one of the side tabs (not the center).
5) Locate the six solder tabs on the back of the two medium blue DPDT toggle switches. Refer to the picture. Solder a grey wire to two of the tabs at one side of one of the switches. Repeat for the other blue toggle switch.

1) Identify all the double throw switches. There's the big DPDT toggle, the little red SPDT toggle, and two medium sized blue DPDT
switches. Do not wire up any momentary switches in this step, they'll come later. There should already be grey wires soldered to oneset of contacts for each switch; now we will wire the contacts on the other side (not the center yet).
2) Cut seven 8-inch lengths of brown wire. Strip off about 1/4 inch of the insulation from each end of each wire. Twist and solder tin the ends of each wire.
3) On the back of the big DPDT toggle there are six solder tabs. Refer to the picture. The two at the bottom are labeled '3' and '6'. Solder a brown wire to each of them.
4) Locate the three solder tabs on the back of the little red SPDT toggle. Solder a brown wire to the tab on the opposite side from the
tab you already soldered grey wires to.
5) Locate the six solder tabs on the back of the two medium blue DPDT toggle switches. Refer to the picture. Solder a brown wire to the two tabs on the opposite side from the set you already soldered grey wires to. Repeat for the other blue toggle switch.

1) Identify  all the double throw switches. There's the big DPDT toggle, the little red SPDT toggle, and two medium sized blue DPDT
switches. Do not wire up any momentary switches in this step, they'll come later. There should already be grey and brown wires soldered to each set of contacts for each switch; now we will wire the center contacts.
2) Cut seven 8-inch lengths of purple wire. Strip off about 1/4 inch of the insulation from each end of each wire. Twist and solder tin the ends of each wire.
3) On the back of the big DPDT toggle there are six solder tabs. Refer to the picture. The two in the center are labeled '2' and '5'.
Solder a purple wire to each of them.
4) Locate the three solder tabs on the back of the little red SPDT toggle. Solder a purple wire to the center contact.
5) Locate the six solder tabs on the back of the two medium blue DPDT toggle switches. Refer to the picture. Solder a purple wire to each of the center tabs. Repeat for the other blue toggle switch.

1) Identify the two Rocker switches
the black round SPST rocker. There's a red rectangular DPST rocker and the black round SPST rocker
2) Cut three 8-inch lengths of yellow wire. Strip off about 1/4 inch of the insulation from each end of each wire. Twist and solder tin the ends of each wire.
3) On the back of the red DPST rocker there are four solder tabs. Refer to the picture. One set are closer together, and one set are placed further apart from each other. Solder a yellow wire to each of the pair that are closer together.
4) Locate the two solder tabs on the back of the black round SPST rocker. Solder a yellow wire to one of the contacts.

1) Identify the two rocker switches. There's the red rectangular DPST rocker and the black round SPST rocker.
2) Cut three 8 inch lengths of orange wire. Strip off about 1/4 inch of the insulation from each end of each wire. Twist and solder tin the ends of each wire.
3) On the back of the red DPST rocker there are four solder tabs. Refer to the picture. One set are should already have yellow wires soldered to them.  Solder an orange wire to each of the other pair of tabs.
4) Locate the two solder tabs on the back of the black round SPST rocker. One tab should already have a yellow wire soldered to it. Solder an orange wire to the other tab.

1) Identify all the double throw momentary switches. There's the big white snap-in plunger switch and two DPDT center-off momentary toggle switches. One is red and the other is black.
2) Cut five 8 inch lengths of white wire. Strip off about 1/4 inch of the insulation from each end of each wire. Twist and solder tin the ends of each wire.
3) On the back of the white snap-in plunger switch there are three solder tabs. Refer to the picture. Solder a white wire to the one labeled 'OPEN'.
4) Locate the six solder tabs on the back of the medium black DPDT momentary toggle switch. Refer to the picture.  Solder a white wire to two of the tabs at one side of one of the switch.
5) Locate the six solder tabs on the back of the medium red DPDT momentary toggle switch. Refer to the picture.  Solder a white wire to two of the tabs at one side of one of the switch.

Note: The picture for this step shows a closeup of only one switch, and also shows the blue wires from the next step as well as the red wires for this step.
1) Identify all the double throw momentary switches. There's the big white snap-in plunger switch and two DPDT center-off momentary toggle switches. One is red and the other is black.
2) Cut five 8 inch lengths of red wire. Strip off about 1/4 inch of the insulation from each end of each wire. Twist and solder tin the ends of each wire.
3) On the back of the white snap-in plunger switch there are three solder tabs. Solder a red wire to the one labeled 'CLOSED'.
4) Locate the six solder tabs on the back of the medium black DPDT momentary toggle switch. Refer to the picture. Solder a red wire to the two tabs at the center of the switch.
5) Locate the six solder tabs on the back of the medium red DPDT momentary toggle switch. Solder a red wire to the two tabs at the center of the switch.

Note: The picture for this step shows a closeup of only one switch, and also shows the red wires from the previous step as well as the blue wires for this step.
1) Identify all the double throw momentary switches. There's the big white snap-in plunger switch and two DPDT center-off momentary toggle switches. One is red and the other is black.
2) Cut five 8 inch lengths of blue wire. Strip off about 1/4 inch of the insulation from each end of each wire. Twist and solder tin the ends of each wire.
3) On the back of the white snap-in plunger switch there are three solder tabs. Solder a blue wire to the one labeled 'COMMON'.
4) Locate the six solder tabs on the back of the medium black DPDT momentary toggle switch. There should already be white wires on one side and red wires on the center contacts. Solder a blue wire to each of the two tabs at the other end of the switch.
5) Locate the six solder tabs on the back of the medium red DPDT momentary toggle switch. Refer to picture. There should already be white wires on one side and red wires on the center contacts. Solder a blue wire to each of the two tabs at the other end of the switch. 

Take a look at the picture and compare it to your actual circuit board.. The colored blue, red, and pink areas indicate connections on the board.
Each strip of blue connects all the contact pads. So if you connect a wire or header pin to a pad, it will be electrically connected to all the other contiguous contacts in the same color strip.
In the next few steps, we will solder in components, header pins, and wires to build our circuit.

1) Ensure the batteries are not installed in the battery holder.
2) Feed the red and black wires up through the larger holes in the board from the bottom, and place the stripped and tinned ends of the wires as shown in the picture. The black battery wire connects to the upper red ground bus. The red battery wire connects to the lower red power bus.
3) Solder the black and red battery wires in place.
4) Insert the 680 1/4 Watt resistor into circuit board in the position shown in the picture. One end connects to the red power bus. The other side of the resistor connects to the second contact from the top of one of the blue contact pads as shown.

Note: Using header pins and jumpers, you will be able to interconnect switches, buttons and lamps... and reconfigure them later if desired. In this step we are soldering in all the headers.

1) Snap off one 16-pin header from the row of 40 snap off pins.
2) Snap off seventeen 3-pin headers.
3) Snap off three 2-pin headers.
4) Snap off one 5-pin header.
5) Refer to the picture. Insert each set of header pins and solder in place one at a time.

Note: When soldering the headers, use of a helping hands or soldering vice are recommended. Place a header in place, and solder in one pin only. Check the header to be sure the pins are straight, and inserted all the way so that the black plastic base of the header is flush with the circuit board. If it is not in correctly, reheat the one pin and position it correctly. Once the header is in place correctly, solder all the pins in place.

Note: An interesting technique is to cross connect the opposite contacts of two poles on a DPDT switch. This provides the ability to operate both poles together to alternately switch two signal between two targets. So in one position, signal 1 goes to destination one and signal 2 goes to destination two. In the other position, the signals swap and signal 1 goes to destination 2 and signal 2 goes to destination 1. Clear? Maybe not, but just connect wires as shown in the figure, and you'll be fine.

1) Solder three pair of short wires as shown in the picture.

Note: In this step we are connecting all the lamps to the circuit board. The lamp inside the round red illuminated pushbutton is actually an LED, and requires the external resistor to limit the current. Otherwise the LED will blow out immediately.

1) Identify the black wire coming from the round red illuminated pushbutton that is soldered to the tab labeled '+'. Refer to the picture. Solder this wire to the circuit board so that it connects to one side of the resistor.
2) Identify the black wire coming from the round red illuminated pushbutton that is soldered to the tab labeled '-'. Refer to the picture. Solder this wire to the circuit board so that it connects to the header pins at the bottom of the board, closest to the resistor.
3) Find the black wires connected to the small red lamp. Refer to the picture. Solder one black wire to the positive power bus (connected to the red wire from the battery box). Solder the other black wire from this lamp to the header pins at the bottom of the board, just to the left of the one from the round red illuminated pushbutton '-' wire.
4) Find the black wires connected to the large red lamp. Refer to the picture. Solder one black wire to the positive power bus (connected to the red wire from the battery box). Solder the other black wire from this lamp to the header pins at the bottom of the board, just to the left of the one from the small red lamp.
5) Find the black wires connected to the yellow lamp. Refer to the picture. Solder one black wire to the positive power bus (connected to the red wire from the battery box). Solder the other black wire from this lamp to the header pins at the bottom of the board, just to the left of the one from the large red lamp.
6) Find the black wires connected to the green lamp. Refer to the picture. Solder one black wire to the positive power bus (connected to the red wire from the battery box). Solder the other black wire from this lamp to the header pins at the bottom of the board, just to the left of the one from the small yellow lamp.

Note: The four pushbuttons along the bottom of the front panel each have two green wires. One of these green wires will be soldered to the negative power bus that connects to the black wire from the battery box. The other green wire from each pushbutton will connect to the group of header pins at the bottom right of the circuit board. Refer to the picture and note where the green wires are connected.

1) Identify the two green wires from the small green pushbutton. Solder one green wire to the negative power bus near the top of the circuit board. Solder the other green wire to one of the solder pads that connect to one of the four available header pins at the bottom left of the circuit board.
2) Identify the two green wires from the square red pushbutton. Solder one green wire to the negative power bus near the top of the circuit board. Solder the other green wire to one of the solder pads that connect to one of the three remaining available header pins at the bottom left of the circuit board.
3) Identify the two green wires from the small red pushbutton. Solder one green wire to the negative power bus near the top of the circuit board. Solder the other green wire to one of the solder pads that connect to one of the two remaining available header pins at the bottom left of the circuit board.
4) Identify the two green wires from the round red illuminated pushbutton. Solder one green wire to the negative power bus near the top of the circuit board. Solder the other green wire to one of the solder pads that connect to the last remaining available header pins at the bottom left of the circuit board.

Same Picture for Steps 26, 27, and 28

Note: The DPDT toggle switches have brown wires connected to the pair of contacts on one side of the switch, purple wires on the pole contacts, and gray wires connected to the pair of contacts on the other side of the switch. In this step we will solder all the wires from the big toggle to the circuit board. Refer to the picture for each step.

1) Identify the two brown wires coming from the big toggle switch. Solder the wires to the circuit board as shown.
2) Identify the two purple wires coming from the big toggle switch. Solder the wires to the circuit board as shown.
3) Identify the two gray wires coming from the big toggle switch. Solder the wires to the circuit board as shown.


Same Picture for Steps 26, 27, and 28

Note: The SPDT toggle switch has a brown wire connected to the contact on one side of the switch, a purple wire on the pole contact, and a gray wire connected to the contact on the other side of the switch. In this step we will solder all the wires from the small red toggle to the circuit board. Refer to the picture for each step.

1) Identify the brown wire coming from the small red SPDT toggle switch. Solder the brown wire to the circuit board as shown.
2) Identify the purple wire coming from the small red SPDT toggle switch. Solder the purple wire to the circuit board as shown.
3) Identify the gray wire coming from the small red SPDT toggle switch. Solder the gray wire to the circuit board as shown.


Same Picture for Steps 26, 27, and 28

Note: The white snap-in plunger is a SPDT switch. Is has a red wire connected to the pole, which is labeled 'COMMON'. It has a blue wire connected to one contact labeled 'CLOSED', and a white wire connected to the other contact labeled 'OPEN'. In this step we will solder all the wires from the snap-in plunger to the circuit board. Refer to the picture for each step.

1) Solder the white wire to the circuit board as shown.
2) Solder the red wire to the circuit board as shown.
3) Solder the blue wire to the circuit board as shown.

Note: The red rocker is a DPST switch. Is has two yellow wires connected one side of the switch, and two orange wires connected to the other side of the switch. In this step we will solder all the wires from the red rocker switch to the circuit board. Refer to the picture for each step. In case it is not clear from the picture, we are soldering each yellow-orange wire pair to the solder pads that connect to a 2-pin header.

1) Solder the two yellow wires to the circuit board as shown.
2) Solder the two orange wires to the circuit board as shown.

Note: The round rocker is a SPST switch. Is has a yellow wire connected one side of the switch, and an orange wire connected to the other side of the switch. In this step we will solder all the wires from the round rocker switch to the circuit board. Refer to the picture for each step. In case it is not clear from the picture, we are soldering the yellow-orange wire pair to the solder pads that connect to a 2-pin header.

1) Solder the two yellow wires to the circuit board as shown.
2) Solder the two orange wires to the circuit board as shown.

Picture below is for Steps 31, 32, 33, and 34

Note: The DPDT toggle switches have brown wires connected to the pair of contacts on one side of the switch, purple wires on the pole contacts, and gray wires connected to the pair of contacts on the other side of the switch. In this step we will solder all the wires from the two medium sized DPDT toggles to the circuit board. Refer to the picture for each step. In case it is not clear from the picture, each set of wires from one pole (purple) and its associated two contacts (one brown, one gray) are connected to the solder pads connecting to a 3-pin header.

1) Pick one of the blue DPDT toggle switches (we'll call it 'blue toggle 1'). Identify one set of brown, purple and gray wires, all on the same side of the switch. Solder these wires, each to its own solder pad, to connect them to the 3-pin header at the upper side of the circuit board as shown.
2) Staying with blue toggle 1, identify the other set of brown, purple and gray wires. Now solder each of those wires in turn so they connect to the 3-pin header on the lower side of the circuit board, just below the first set, as shown.
3) Pick the other blue DPDT toggle switch (we'll call it 'blue toggle 2'). Identify one set of brown, purple and gray wires, all on the same side of the switch. Solder these wires, each to its own solder pad, to connect them to the 3-pin header at the upper side of the circuit board as shown.
4) Staying with blue toggle 2, identify the other set of brown, purple and gray wires. Now solder each of those wires in turn so they connect to the 3-pin header on the lower side of the circuit board, just below the first set, as shown.

Refer to the image in Step 31

Note: The momentary DPDT switches will be used like the pushbuttons are, to provide a path to ground for the light circuits. Refer to the picture for each step.

1) Locate the set of blue, red and white wires coming from one side of the black momentary DPDT toggle switch. Solder these wires as shown at the top left of the circuit board, as shown.
2) Locate the set of blue, red and white wires coming from the other side of the black momentary DPDT toggle switch. Solder these near the last set, leaving one space between, as shown in the picture.

Refer to the image in Step 31

Note: The momentary DPDT switches will be used like the pushbuttons are, to provide a path to ground for the light circuits. Refer to the picture for each step.

1) Locate the set of blue, red and white wires coming from one side of the red momentary DPDT toggle switch. Solder these wires as shown at the mid left of the circuit board, as shown.
2) Locate the set of blue, red and white wires coming from the other side of the red momentary DPDT toggle switch. Solder these near the left bottom, leaving one space between this and the last set, as shown in the picture.

Note: Good news. You are DONE soldering!!

Refer to the image in Step 31

Note: Connecting the jumpers in this and the next few steps is how you "program" the box. You can re-program it later by changing how the connections are made. The suggested connection instructions should provide some fun results, but you don't need to stick to them exactly. Just keep in mind the following:
* Each lamp is hardwired to positive voltage from the batteries; You light them by providing a path to the ground (the negative voltage connection) via the buttons and switches.
* It is best to ensure that every switch, button and lamp is used somehow.
* You need at least one momentary connection in each circuit. Otherwise you might leave a lamp on indefinitely, and run down the battery.
* Route connections through switches in addition to momentary buttons/toggles in order to change how a circuit operates.

Note 2: Refer to the picture for each step. I have removed the labels in the picture for all the connections so far, to try to simplify the diagram. Only the jumpers for this step will be shown for each step.

1) Connect four jumper wires at the left side of the circuit board to the header pins that connect to the four red wires from the momentary DPDT toggle switches.
2) Connect the other side of each of the four jumper wires to the one of the available header pins on the ground bus. This will provide a path to ground through each of the momentary DPDT toggle switches.

Note: Refer to the picture for each step. I have removed the labels in the picture for all the connections so far, to try to simplify the diagram. Only the jumpers for this step will be shown for each step. Because it is getting a bit confusing, each connection is labeled with the associated step below.

1) Connect a jumper wire from position 1 shown in the picture to the header pin connecting to the orange wire that leads to the red rocker switch.

2) Connect a jumper wire from position 2 shown in the picture to one of the header pins connecting to the black wire that leads to the round red illuminated pushbutton.

3) Connect a jumper wire from position 3 shown in the picture to one of the header pins connecting to the purple wire that leads to one of the poles of one of the two blue DPDT toggle switches.

4) Connect a jumper wire from position 4 shown in the picture to one of the header pins connecting to the black wire that leads to the round red illuminated pushbutton.

5) Connect a jumper wire from position 5 shown in the picture to one of the header pins connecting to the black wire that leads to the round red illuminated pushbutton.

Note: Refer to the picture for each step. I have removed the labels in the picture for all the connections so far, to try to simplify the diagram. Only the jumpers for this step will be shown for each step. Because it is getting a bit confusing, each connection is labeled with the associated step below.

1) Connect a jumper wire from position 1 shown in the picture to the header pin connecting to the lower purple wire that leads to the blue DPDT toggle switch.

2) Connect a jumper wire from position 2 shown in the picture to one of the header pins connecting to the purple wire that leads to the small red SPDT toggle switch.

3) Connect a jumper wire from position 3 shown in the picture to one of the header pins connecting to the black wire that leads to the big red lamp.

4) Connect a jumper wire from position 4 shown in the picture to one of the header pins connecting to the purple wire that leads to the big toggle switch.

Note: Refer to the picture for each step. I have removed the labels in the picture for all the connections so far, to try to simplify the diagram. Only the jumpers for this step will be shown for each step. Because it is getting a bit confusing, each connection is labeled with the associated step below.

1) Connect a jumper wire from position 1 shown in the picture to the header pin connecting to one of the black wires that leads to the lamps.
2) Connect a jumper wire from position 2 shown in the picture to the header pin connecting to a second one of the black wires that leads to the lamps.
3) Connect a jumper wire from position 3 shown in the picture to one of the header pins connecting to the black wire that leads to the big red lamp.
4) Connect a jumper wire from position 4 shown in the picture to the header pin connecting to a third one of the black wires that leads to the lamps.

P.S.    By now you are probably jumping out of your seat.
           Jumping for joy.
           So many jumpers....

Note: Refer to the picture for each step. I have removed the labels in the picture for all the connections so far, to try to simplify the diagram. Only the jumpers for this step will be shown for each step. Because it is getting a bit confusing, each connection is labeled with the associated step below.

This is the last step in "programming" the box. After this, you're just about finished!

1) Connect a jumper wire from position 1 shown in the picture to the header pin connecting to one of the black wires that leads to the lamps.
2) Connect a jumper wire from position 2 shown in the picture to the header pin connecting to one of the black wire that leads to the same lamp as in the last step.
3) Connect a jumper wire from position 3 shown in the picture to the header pin connecting to one of the black wire that leads to the same lamp as in the last two steps.
4) Connect a jumper wire from position 4 shown in the picture to the header pin connecting to a second one of the black wires that leads to the lamps.
5) Connect a jumper wire from position 5 shown in the picture to the header pin connecting to a third one of the black wires that leads to the lamps.
6) Connect a jumper wire from position 6 shown in the picture to the header pin connecting to a forth one of the black wires that leads to the lamps.
7) Connect a jumper wire from position 7 shown in the picture to the header pin connecting to the same black wire that leads to the lamp you connected in step 5 above.
8) Connect a jumper wire from position 8 shown in the picture to the header pin connecting to the same black wire that leads to the lamp you connected in step 4 above.

That's it! No more tiny connections to make!

1) Add AA batteries to the battery holder. Test out your box before moving on from here. If it isn't working, you should go back and troubleshoot.
2) Position the battery holder on one side of the project box. Test that you can fit the circuit board and wires and shut the lid. Secure the battery holder in place firmly with the double sided sticky tape.
3) Carefully route the wires as neatly as you can, and close up the box. Screw it shut with the four screws that came with the project box.

4) Have fun!