Ordering from onlinecomponents

[bloodygood]

I got my shipment in last night. 2 blue, 2 black, 2 clear, 1 shift-lock. Based on using those and my brown switches in my Filco, and swapping a blue spring into a black and vice-versa I have come up with my opinions of all the switches. Rating in order that I would be willing to purchase them.
1. Brown - Tactile with a nice light force, perfect for typing all day and even gaming during breaks.
2. Blue - Tactile very similar to brown but the click is just a little too much for me while not wearing my headphones.
3. Clear with brown/blue spring, I will say that the tactile feel is actually a lot lighter than expected. Not as light as browns, but definitely not as harsh as clears with the clear spring. Comfortable enough that if you have the money for this mod I would recommend it. (i.e buying clear stems for your brown or blue switches)
4. Blue with black spring actually felt kind of good, and if you haven't tried it I highly recommend it just so you know for yourself.
5. Red - Linear which is nice for someone coming from a rubber dome, but I really can't say I would like them for typing on for longer than an hour.
6. Clear - Very tactile, in fact a little too much. While I think they are a nice switch for heavy finger typists, I think it might lead to a little finger strain under long sessions.
7. Black - Linear and a much stronger force than reds, I know some people prefer it for gaming but I just do not feel any connection with them, they feel rather lifeless without even a little tactile bump right at the end of the key press.
8. Blue with clear spring, how can I put this lightly it feels like a on/off switch, if you like playing arcade games then I would say this is your closest match.

With that said I am very happy that Mx brown ended up being my first and probably only choice for switches. I do know it would be possible to sort of glue/stick blue stems but I feel like that ruins the keyboard in that it would have almost no re-sale value. I think I may some day try it with the two blue switches I ordered. Glue one all the way up, the other all the way down, and see which result feels more comfortable.

In an unrelated note, does anyone know why my 3mm LED's won't fit into the socket for 3mm LED's in the key switches? I have a feeling that I am supposed to find 3mm LED's smaller or something. (3mm at the top, 3.9mm at the widest ring just before the leads)

[alaricljs]

I don't see ergo clear (clear w/ brown spring) in your list.  Did you try it and what was your impression?

[bloodygood]

I don't see ergo clear (clear w/ brown spring) in your list.  Did you try it and what was your impression?

I unfortunately don't have any brown switches at the moment that aren't soldered into my keyboard, but if brown and blue use the same spring then I could swap one in right now and test it.

Updated the previous post to show my findings.

[bloodygood]

ALPS has an equivalent On/Off lock switch.  Both types with more pics are in the Wikis.
*snip*
*snip*

Thank you for that, that is where I got the original inspiration to buy the switch, although I didn't find all the pictures I was looking for at the time. It seemed like a good idea to not only mention where to buy it, but to get the word out since it is a great switch for those making custom keyboards or modding their own.

[bloodygood]

I didn't follow the whole thread.

Did you order Browns too?


EDIT:  Looks like it's special order.  Bummer.  Still looking for a good source to add to the wiki.

http://www.onlinecomponents.com/cherry-electrical_mx1ag1dw.html?p=11075434

Actually you didn't have to follow the whole thread, it is at the very top of this exact page. "2 blue, 2 black, 2 clear, 1 shift-lock."
They don't always have everything in stock but they had enough for me to get what I was looking for. By the way this is a better link for the Wiki.
http://www.onlinecomponents.com/KeywordSearch.aspx?Text=mx1a%20cherry&Page=1 searches for all things starting with "MX1A" which are all cherry switches.

[keyboardlover]

GLWNT.

[keyboardlover]

Apparently the Dutch aren't too fond of it. GLWNT.

[7bit]

Yes that's right on how the switch activate. The parts of the switches (except the spring) are not interchangeable with standard cherry switches.
(Attachment Link) 30778[/ATTACH] (Attachment Link) 30779[/ATTACH] (Attachment Link) 30780[/ATTACH]

I'm not sure about what I'm gonna do with those yet but something like a toggle function layer for a numpad or mouse keys could be useful.

Do you know if the lower-shells are interchangable?