Installation Guide

Welcome to the S-Tier of Gaming Mouse skates. This guide is intended for owners of SAPPHIRE SKATES or future owners, or anyone simply curious. 

NOTICE: The installation process is quite simple, so you can consider this as some recommendations and advanced tips to get the best possible glide.

PART 0: Preparation.

In a clean and undistracted space, carefully unbox all the contents.

PART 1: Cleaning Your Mouse.

Before you install SAPPHIRESKATES, you must remove the previous mouse feet as well as any adhesive left over. 

To do this easily, use a card to flick the edge of the skate (or a piece of paper, but not a credit card since it's too thick). Once enough of it is lifted, gently pull it off. Be careful with mice such as Logitech G Pro Wireless as it has a double layer of adhesive: both layers must be removed. 

You will have some adhesive left over. Open up the alcohol prep pad and wipe it away. Then, use one side of a microfiber cloth to clean off any remaining bits. 

PRO TIP: for the most stubborn adhesive, you can use the included piece of sandpaper to remove it. Just be careful not to remove material from the mouse itself. 

PART 2: Placement & Installation

Before you stick them on, you must consider the placement strategy. In general, here are some tips: 

1. Focus on placing them at the maximum lengths both in terms of vertical axis and horizontal (think: what are the max diagonal corners you can use).

2. Ensure placement of the skates is symmetrical in regards to the horizontal axis (skates should line up from left to right). 

3. If you are using 4 SAPPHIRESKATES, also align them in the vertical direction (like the wheels on a car). 

4. If you are using 5 SAPPHIRESKATES, you should slightly offset inward the front two skates (see diagram). The reason for this is to increase the stability, and also based on the fact that most mice are a bit wider in the back.  With this setup, place a 5th skate at the base of the mouse. A lot of action happens via pivoting at the wrist, so that's why this placement is used.

5. In most situations, placement should be within the mouse channel. Some of these channels are recessed: if that's the case, it is mandatory to do this. If it is un-recessed (example: Finalmouse Ultralight 2), you can technically place them anywhere, but it's still recommended to place them in the channel. Ensure that they are NOT standing on top of the edges of the cutouts.

6. For mice with holes, you can place them at the intersection of where the lines meet. The adhesive is strong enough to hold it in place. Just pay attention to this area, as you may need to remove dust from the extra adhesive.

7. After placing each of the mouse feet, press down for 10 seconds. 

8. Allow 24 hours to adjust to the new skates for muscle memory. Be sure to check occasionally to see if there is any dust on the bottom of the mouse. The adhesive will continue to cure during this period , but you can still use the mouse.

PRO TIP: You can use your fingernail to check to see if there's anything stuck to the surface of SAPPHIRESKATES. The good thing is that it's perfectly safe to do this: due to sapphire's hardness, you never risk scratching them.

9. It is possible to make small adjustments by pushing down on the skate, and slightly in a new direction. But for any large changes in position, you should use new adhesive. 

10. For the center ring skate, you have two options: 1) leave on the previous skate while using SAPPHIRESKATES for the rest of the mouse. 2) simply use the mouse with the center skate removed. We suggest to just leave the ring on there as it won't interfere with SAPPHIRESKATES and can act as a back-up in case there is any flex to the bottom of the mouse.

PART 3: Adjusting Lift-Off & Sensor Height (if needed). 

This part should not be required. You should not have any loss in tracking or sensor accuracy with SAPPHIRESKATES, but if you must, you can make some tweaks to change sensor height and L.O.D. 

Understand that sensor height and L.O.D. are two separate things. Lift-off distance is the threshold in which tracking cuts off. This is by design and can be changed in hardware or software on some mice.

L.O.D. is often conflated with sensor accuracy, depending on varying heights. 

Based on data from sensor manufacturer Pixart, the sensor can track accurately within quite a large range of 1 full millimeter. (Approximately 2 to 3 millimeters.) 

Doing the following may void your mouses warranty. But here's how you can LOWER the actual distance of the sensor to the mousepad. 

1. You can sand down the part of the mouse bottom on which the mouse skates will be placed. 

2. If you are comfortable opening your mouse, you can sand down the stand-offs on which the mouses printed circuit board (PCB) sits. 

PART 4: Applying New Adhesive

When it's time to switch mice, you can bring SAPPHIRESKATES with you.

If you ever need to apply new adhesive or switch mice, here are some tips: 

1. Be sure to clean off any remaining residue from the SAPPHIRESKATES themselves. You can use rubbing alcohol / microfiber cloths to do this. 

2. The hardest part is going to be removing the sticker release-liner from the die-cut spare 3M adhesive. But if you follow these tips, it should be pretty easy. 

You should use something like tweezers or a tooth pick to make this easier. 

Holding the adhesive in one hand, use the other hand to gently flick back and forth on the edge of the sticker, until the two layers begin separating. Take a close look and you'll see one side has adhesive on it, and the other does not. Use your tool or finger to first remove the side without the adhesive. 

Now, you'll have the remaining sticky side still on your tool or hand: try to make minimal contact with it while it is still in your hand. 

Pick up the SAPPHIRESKATE, center-align it and lightly stick it on. You now have your hands free and can make final adjustments. Press down to get the adhesive stuck to the skate.

NOTICE: the spare adhesive has a smaller diameter than the mouse feet themselves. This is 100% intentional because the adhesive will evenly spread out when applied to the mouse. 

Now you are ready to install. Using a fingernail or tool, gently flick off a side of the adhesive until a flap lifts up. Then, peel it all off. At this point, it may be hard to pick up and place the SAPPHIRESKATE. You can allow a small part of the adhesive to stick on your finger, and then carefully move it to it's intended position, and once it's stuck to the mouse bottom you can make final adjustments.

WRAP-UP

Hopefully these tips help if you are using SAPPHIRESKATES or even any other mouse skates. Again, these are just some recommendations. I suggest you experiment a little bit (since that's why many of you have decided to visit this site, I presume!).

If you ever have any questions, feel free to email me at phil@sapphireskates.com.