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G500
The Logitech G500 was released in 2009 and was widely used by gamers as an upgrade to the MX510. I’ve owned at least two, and they have been reliable even under heavy use. Around 2019, I noticed some errant double clicks and replaced it with a G903 Lightspeed. The stock switches in this mouse seem to be of higher quality than newer ones, considering the time and abuse they’ve been through. While disassembling your mouse, check if the PCB is cracked around the middle button switch. If it is, be very careful when applying pressure, as you may break it, as I did.
To reach the internals of the mouse, we need to disassemble the casing. Flip the mouse over and remove the weight tray, if you use it. Then, remove the Teflon feet with a flat-blade screwdriver. Since we are replacing the Teflon feet with new ones, don’t worry about damaging them. Once the feet are removed, remove the four obvious screws. The final screw is under the sticker, next to the Logitech logo.
Once the screws are removed, flip the mouse the right way up. With the USB cable away from you, pry on the bottom right side and hinge it towards the left side. We do this because there is a ribbon cable between the side switches and the main PCB. Flip the retention lever up to release the cable.
If you violently separated the casing or open the wrong side, the cable may rip out. I’ve done this at least once, and it doesn’t seem to break anything, but still, be careful.
To get better access to the PCB, we will remove the red weight retainer housing. There are three screws: one on the left, one on the right, and one in the bottom center. Remove the three screws and pull straight up to remove the housing.
The other end of the ribbon cable is behind the weight retainer housing we just removed. Flip the retention lever up to release the cable. Turn the mouse around so the USB cable is facing you. To prevent pinching the cable, there is a guide that holds it in place. It is being held in by small plastic protrusions. Take note for later, when we reinstall it. To remove the USB cable, simply pull it up.
To get better access to the PCB assembly, we need to unscrew it from the bottom casing. Unfortunately, the screws are hidden under the scroll wheel assembly, so we need to remove it first. One end of the assembly is being held in by a plastic pin. Looking at the pin like in the pictures below, it needs to be moved left to remove. Push on the end with the same screwdriver used to open the mouse. Pull the pin entirely out.
With the hinge removed, there is nothing holding the scroll wheel assembly in. The other end of the assembly is held in by a metal guard. Gently lift the end which had the plastic hinge pin and pull up. The end with the metal guard has two very small springs, so pay attention if they try to escape. Remove the springs. Small tweezers help, but you can certainly do it by hand.
All the screws holding the PCB assembly are now visible. Two screws that held one end of the scroll wheel assembly also double up as support for the middle click switch, and also hold the PCB down. Remove the two screws and the metal guard. Be very careful with this part of the PCB! Over years of use, mine had cracked the PCB and the first mouse I started writing this article with snapped the section clean off. Even if yours does not appear cracked, the PCB is still thin, so take care!
This is the point where I retrieved my backup mouse to finish this section.
Remove the two screws holding the black plastic scroll wheel standoff, near the middle of the mouse. The screws like to stay in the housing; I left the screws in to ease installation later.
At this point, you have two options:
- Desolder the two PCBs. If you are comfortable soldering, separating the boards will be easier. See the G700s instructions for an example.
- Keep them together, which is what I’ll do for this mouse.
Remove the two final screws holding the PCB in. One screw is located near the ribbon cable we disconnected earlier. The other is located below the middle click button, on the bottom PCB.
With all the screws removed, we can take out the PCB assembly. There is a piece of clear plastic under the middle click button, which will fight you a little bit to remove. Only friction holds it in place. I used a flat-blade screwdriver to get some leverage. Again, be careful with this thin section of the PCB! The PCB assembly will move up with the clear plastic piece, and once it is removed, everything will come out of the case.
Locate the two Omron switches. Each switch has three solder pads on the bottom side (between the PCB assembly) of the PCB. To make removal easier, I recommend adding a small amount of lead-based solder, which lowers the melting point and will make it easier to remove.
If you decided to not desolder the two PCBs, you can still access the solder pads for the switches; it will just be a tight fit.
For each pad, heat the solder until it melts, and use the desoldering pump to remove as much solder as you can. Ideally, you want to remove it all, but with little room, it is ok to leave some solder. If you were able to remove all the solder, the switch should easily slide out of the holes.
If it doesn’t, don’t worry! You can either add more solder, then remove it with the desoldering pump, or you can “walk” the component off. To walk a component out of the holes, heat one solder pad and while the solder is molten, apply force to lift the component. While lifting the component, remove the soldering iron to harden the solder, which will hold the component in a raised position. Repeat for the other side of the component, and repeat until the switch can be removed. Avoid using a screwdriver to lift the switch: there are traces nearby that are easy to break. When I wrote this review, I had to walk both switches off the PCB.
This is the most tricky and frustrating part of the repair, but I believe in you!
With both switches removed, we need to install and solder the new ones. To make installation easier, I recommend installing the switch and soldering one pin of the component, instead of all three. Check the switch to make sure it is flush with the PCB. Before soldering the other pins, double-check the switch is installed in the correct direction. The white “tab” of the switch should be near the edge of the PCB. Use the photo from the previous section to verify its orientation is correct.
Once you are sure the switch is installed correctly, solder the remaining pins. Do the same for the other switch. Before you continue, check the solder pads to make sure you have the right amount of solder, and check the solder isn’t bridged between pins. It should look like this:
Before we start reassembly, you can check the functionality of the switches. Plug the mouse into a computer, being careful to not touch any metal on the PCB assembly. Check if the left and right-click are working as normal. If they are not, check the orientation of the switch and the solder joints.
Once you have tested the switches, we can start reassembly. Start by placing the PCB assembly in the bottom mouse case, but don’t press it all the way down. Install the clear plastic spacer between the PCBs and press it down until it is flush with the black support pillar. Press the PCB assembly into the case. Be careful not to pinch the USB cable.
Install the two screws into the bottom PCB. One is near the ribbon cable, the other is under the middle click switch.
Attach the metal plate around the middle click switch, and install the screws. Attach the black plastic support for the scroll wheel, and install the screws.
Reinstall the small springs, and be careful not to lose them.
Check the alignment of the scroll wheel sensor. They are the components inside of the main switches; one is black and the other is clear. They should stand straight up. In the picture below, you can see mine was slightly angled in.
Reinstall the scroll wheel assembly. Make sure the front is under the metal tab.
Reinstall the scroll wheel pin. The pin should slightly stick out the right side and go through the clear plastic of the scroll wheel assembly.
Reinstall the ribbon cable. The blue side of the cable should face the locking clip. The white stripe across the blue will help verify it is fully installed. Push the ribbon cable in until the white stripe is barely visible, then engage the lock. If the cable is fully installed, you should see not see the white stripe.
Reinstall the USB cable in its guide. Make sure it is fully seated below the small plastic protrusions. It should sit flat on the bottom. Then, reinstall the red weight housing, installing three screws.
We are almost done, but this is a tricky step. Imagine how difficult it was to hold the pieces together and take the picture with one hand. Reinstall the other end of the ribbon cable in the top mouse casing. As before, the white stripe should not be visible after engaging the lock.
Assemble the two halves of the mouse casing, then reinstall the five screws. With the mouse nearly assembled, test the mouse again and make sure all the buttons and scroll wheel work. If everything works, great!
Use isopropyl (rubbing) alcohol to clean where the new Teflon feet will go. Once the surface is dry, install the new Teflon feet.
Enjoy your refurbished mouse!
Bonus footage to repair my remaining G500 middle-click switch. The original mouse I started repairing for this guide had a functioning middle click button, but this one did not. In the photos above, you can see the middle-click switch is dimpled in. I used a heat gun to remove the functional switch and soldered it to the working mouse. However, the middle switch still did not work, because, like the first one, the PCB was cracked and severed the PCB trace. The smallest wire I had on hand was 26 AWG, which barely fits. I’d recommend something smaller if you have it.
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