If you want to make one of these beauties, then read on:
Shopping List
Heltec StickLite V2 (LoRa32 board) - search on AliExpress (Heltec no longer sell)
915MHz 'glue rod' antenna with SMA pigtail - https://heltec.org/product/glue-rod-antenna-sma/
Heltec 1.5" OLED (I2C interface) - https://heltec.org/project/154-oled/
Blackberry Q10 keyboard module - https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005005789759925.html
Mini GPS module with external antenna - https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005001704030454.html
1S Lithium battery (approx 1200mAh) - https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4001350242091.html
Momentary button - https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005004001434474.html
10K resistor
And, to put it all in a nice 3D printed case: Download from the store/extras
And finally, the engine that drives it all: Download the firmware from the store/extras
3D Print The Case
Use your fav slicer, like Cura, to print the two halves of the case. No supports are needed. Usual defaults are fine. These two will be held together with 4x m2 screws, in the 4 corners.
Arranging the Components
You will be working with the 'Lite-top' part facing downwards, as in the pic below. The various components will be placed in the place-holders:
NOTE the two columns of standard header pin connectors in the case in the mid-section. Place 2x 4-pin headers into these for mounting the StickLite board into place later. The early stages of the build should look like so:
NOTE: You will need to de-pin the 1.54" OLED. (ie. remove the 4 pin connectors). Also be very gentle with the ribbon cable! And be very careful with the soldering iron when near it!
What it will look like
This is skipping ahead a bit, but this is how the components should be arranged once you're done:
The Wiring
The wiring is a bit time consuming, but reasonably straight forward. Following the wiring diagram below. Cut various wires to length as you go, as the locations of the components are known.
NOTE: the DS3231 realtime clock is optional. If this is not detected, the time is obtained from the GPS satellites on startup.
Also note, the StickLite comes with a wiring harness which you plug into the underside of the board, and you connect this harness to the lipo, with either the red or black wire going via the on/off switch (not pictured below):
Setting the various components in place
When setting the various components in place, like the momentary button, OLED screen, GPS antenna, etc, there are vertical posts that are part of the 3D print which you melt with a soldering iron and push over the component to fix it into place. It's a handy way to fix the components without resorting to glue. You need to be very careful doing it. Here's a close-up:
Flashing the firmware
Please refer to this post about flashing ESP32 boards.
Initial Testing
You should see the 'Powered by Ripple' logo showing on the OLED display when powering it up. Diagnosing faults or problems might be too complicated for this build guide, and I might put various tips to try in a subsequent post, but do the best you can with a multi-meter and check all your wiring first.
If everything is working fine, then you might opt to use some hot-glue to secure various things, even wires, so they don't stray once everything is secured. For the battery, some double-sided tape is usually fine for fixing it in place.
Use 4x m2 screws to complete the build. I quite like using tapered m2 bolts, so that the bolt heads align flush with the case with fully screwed in.