FRuMMaGe's Guide to Wiimote Surgery
Here is a quick guide I threw together about how to disassemble (and spray-paint) a Wiimote.
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Step 1
You will need a Triwing screwdriver for this.
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Step 2
Remove the battery cover and unscrew the four screws from the back of the Wiimote.
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Step 3
You may find it useful to use the battery cover as a container for the screws so you don't lose any of them.
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Step 4
Gently pry open the Wiimote clips with a screwdriver. Be gentle, as you don't want to break them.
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Step 5
Detach the bottom half of the Wiimote from the top half and place it down gently. At this point it doesn't matter if any of the buttons fall out, because we will have to remove them later anyway.
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Step 6
Remove the main circuit board from the body of the Wiimote. The force-feedback module (marked in red on the picture) is sometimes glued down. Grab it with your fingers or some tweezers and just pull it off, this will not damage it (do NOT pull it by the cables).
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Step 7
Be sure to keep your work-station tidy and try to avoid losing any buttons or screws during this process.
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Step 8
Remove the trigger button by pushing it upwards from bottom of the Wiimote.
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Step 9
This step is optional, but recommended if you are planning on spray-painting your Wiimote. Remove the battery contact from the back of the Wiimote.
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Step 10
Place the 3 parts of the Wiimote down on some newspaper, with the part that would normally be on the outside facing up. Now gently spray them from about 6 inches away until they are completely covered in a THIN layer of paint.
Wait approximately 30 minutes for it to completely dry, then repeat this process 2 more times, giving you 3 layers of paint.
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Step 11
When they are all dry, turn the pieces over and spray-paint a VERY thin layer onto them. You only need to do 1 layer on this side.
CAUTION: Do not attempt this step until the previous layers are dry, or you will get newspaper stuck to your Wiimote.
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Step 12
Now we are ready to reassemble our Wiimote. Put the trigger back and then replace the circuit board, making sure to put the force-feedback module back into it's original slot.
If you are not sure which way the circuit board goes, just look at the bottom of it. The Nunchuck slot must be at the bottom.
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Step 13
Now place the buttons carefully back on the circuit board. Use tweezers if you don't have steady hand.
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Step 14
The reason we did not put the speaker back with the buttons was because it is very difficult to get in exactly the right spot. Instead, put it into the top of the Wiimote as shown on the picture.
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Step 15
The speaker has a very annoying tendency to fall out of the Wiimote when you are attempting to replace the top. I have found that if you place something metal (such as your screwdriver) against the speaker holes on the Wiimote, the speaker will stay in place because of it's magnetism.
With this in mind, try to place the top part of the Wiimote down over the buttons and back into place.
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Step 16
Push the top down until it clicks into place.
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Step 17
Use your Triwing to replace the screws into the four holes on the back of the Wiimote.
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Step 18
Return the battery contacts to their original position.
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Step 19
Use your imagination! Remember, you do not have to spray-paint each part of the Wiimote the same colour.
Be sure to post your results here.
