Yeah I would like to see more Alps board showcased. What's the story with that colourful number you have there?
Ah, that is cool that you managed to snag that well travelled board.Yeah I would like to see more Alps board showcased. What's the story with that colourful number you have there?
Uhh so this was originally esoomenona's board (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=35672.msg1034865#msg1034865) and he ended up giving it away for the cost of shipping in the free stuff thread and neverused picked it up. I commented wanting it for my daughter in case neverused backed out for some reason and neverused ended up seeing my message and ended up graciously sending it to me after esoomenona sent it to him.
Unless you were asking about the board itself? in that case i have no idea but it's called the kidboard so whatever info you can find about it will be more than i know.
Evo_Spec, you have one of my grail boards :(
Dibs! It'll work great for the MA52!Evo_Spec, you have one of my grail boards :(
This thing is pretty damn sexy. Considering i got this for free i may just pass it on after my daughter is done with it but that may take years.
Ok, I'll just post the one in front of me atm. My daily driver at work: orange alps modded AEKII, orange leds and orange dyed keys. Love it so very very much!Show Image(http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/10/15/9db03a01eebf6a750106f498ffbfd7ff.jpg)
Ok, I'll just post the one in front of me atm. My daily driver at work: orange alps modded AEKII, orange leds and orange dyed keys. Love it so very very much!Show Image(http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/10/15/9db03a01eebf6a750106f498ffbfd7ff.jpg)
(Attachment Link)
V80-MTS-C w/ TaiHao Dolch
(just ignore that nasty FC660M in the background)
(Attachment Link)
V80-MTS-C w/ TaiHao Dolch
(just ignore that nasty FC660M in the background)
Why is the FC660M nasty?
Ok, I'll just post the one in front of me atm. My daily driver at work: orange alps modded AEKII, orange leds and orange dyed keys. Love it so very very much!Show Image(http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/10/15/9db03a01eebf6a750106f498ffbfd7ff.jpg)
Oh yeah, I remember that one. Can you link to the post you made about that? I too want one.
Ok, I'll just post the one in front of me atm. My daily driver at work: orange alps modded AEKII, orange leds and orange dyed keys. Love it so very very much!Show Image(http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/10/15/9db03a01eebf6a750106f498ffbfd7ff.jpg)
Oh yeah, I remember that one. Can you link to the post you made about that? I too want one.
This could be thread you are referring to: https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=49407.0 (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=49407.0)
(https://farm1.staticflickr.com/659/21836946584_d5678f530d_h.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/zgE4r3)
Filco Zero owners FTW!Show ImageShow Image(https://farm1.staticflickr.com/659/21836946584_d5678f530d_h.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/zgE4r3)
(https://farm1.staticflickr.com/743/22433658726_a7cc58363d_h.jpg)
[url=https://flic.kr/p/zW5ecW](https://farm1.staticflickr.com/612/22271689000_681b681a9b_h.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/Abonaq)
These are all really cool keyboards. It's a shame ALPS is no longer as common as it once was.
I'm having a difficult time deciding whether to use Blue or Green alps for a 60% build. Any suggestions? ^-^
Whynotboth.png
Seriously though, really depends on if you like linear or clicky more.
I was happy to see her using it, made it worth it. I'm sorry it took so long to ship, back to back FDA and ISO audits can such up your life quickly.Evo_Spec, you have one of my grail boards :(
This thing is pretty damn sexy. Considering i got this for free i may just pass it on after my daughter is done with it but that may take years.
Why is there a fox on the R key? Is it a rabbit pretending to be a fox so as not be noticed by the other foxes, or did the fox already catch the rabbit, and has taken his place for ... unspecified reasons?That "fox" has two big front teeth...
Yeah you're right. Maybe it's supposed to be a bat?Why is there a fox on the R key? Is it a rabbit pretending to be a fox so as not be noticed by the other foxes, or did the fox already catch the rabbit, and has taken his place for ... unspecified reasons?That "fox" has two big front teeth...
These are all really cool keyboards. It's a shame ALPS is no longer as common as it once was.
I'm having a difficult time deciding whether to use Blue or Green alps for a 60% build. Any suggestions? ^-^
My V60-MQC with Olivetti (home/work)Ooo Ooo--I remember Midwest Micro! Can't believe how many quality keyboards there were out there, even on the PC compatibles in that era...Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/U7OzDSQ.jpg)
And my MidWest Micro Elite with Monterey Blues on my CNC/3D Printer machineShow Image(http://i.imgur.com/u7aMbq8.jpg)
I also have a half dozen older apple keyboards in various states of dissassembly that will be soon remixed into 60% and other fun creations.
Awesome shot! I really like the caps!Show Image(https://farm1.staticflickr.com/620/22429598910_39ffcbaf6d.jpg)
Cross posted (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=42336.msg1914954#msg1914954) because I really like this shot. Yoe made me an Alps logo pin <3. Kingsaver custom with SKCM Blue Alps switches, Wang 724/Acer 6131 caps in TW layout.
Filco Zero with SKCL Greens. Need to find a white spacebar and matching modifier keys :)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/884iLO2.jpg)
IIRC those alphas are Tai Hao doubleshots and you should probably wait for those Tai Hao ALPS caps to pop up on MassDrop again.
The profile and text would match perfectly. :thumb:
Does Tai Hao make any more flavors of Alps keycap sets?
Here's some of mine :):
My original Blue Alps board that I bricked. :XShow Image(http://i.imgur.com/OcdcWfY.jpg)
My Infinity that re-purposed those parts:Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/uDUpeAx.jpg)
And then of course, the two boards I've restored which are my current favorites as far as vintages go,
Dell AT101:Show Image(http://imgur.com/sziMPvR.jpg)
Retrobrighted and sanded and repainted the plate with a similar color to the original:Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/1HJjzj4.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/FXYsQbw.jpg)
Umph. Those coils~Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/ebdEfyr.jpg)
And my beloved FAME TH-5539 with blue alps:
After my NTC 6151N died, I needed something else to fill my heart, and it's odd how similar this board turned out to be. Metal back, Blue Alps, and even the PCB... It has positions for MX and Alps just like the NTC.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/MOeVxEs.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/pUgg5Vx.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/8jJ4lKH.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/36hlRGK.jpg)
Those stains are bromine, not just grease or something. D: Also, those pics are from the reseller, hehe.
Modified to ANSI layout, added a vintage Samsung sticker from a Chicony 5161 :DShow Image(http://i.imgur.com/jDthZpE.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/NgznzMM.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/CrCFItM.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/50gJy8m.jpg)
I definitely went past restoration with this one and personalized it, but I'm very happy with it! It was a ridiculous board. Half quality and half crap--it originally had pad-printed caps, NO stabilizers whatsoever mounted. So I had to add all the inserts and wires myself. The Big Ass Enter wasn't stabilized at the top, so I cut a hole in the plate and noticed an extra position beneath that spot. Yeah I didn't check that before hand, lol. The quality part comes from the overall build quality though. It's very solid and unlike a lot of similar boards (AT101, Chicony 5161), it has brass threaded inserts instead of just screws boring into plastic.
Then I wired up the key above the enter key to function as a "|\" key, and rewired the original "|\" key to the side of the short right shift to be another pause break key. Which, if I ever use one of those USB-ready soarer's converters, I'll make an FN key. :D
Here's some of mine :):
My original Blue Alps board that I bricked. :XShow Image(http://i.imgur.com/OcdcWfY.jpg)
My Infinity that re-purposed those parts:Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/uDUpeAx.jpg)
And then of course, the two boards I've restored which are my current favorites as far as vintages go,
Dell AT101:Show Image(http://imgur.com/sziMPvR.jpg)
Retrobrighted and sanded and repainted the plate with a similar color to the original:Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/1HJjzj4.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/FXYsQbw.jpg)
Umph. Those coils~Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/ebdEfyr.jpg)
And my beloved FAME TH-5539 with blue alps:
After my NTC 6151N died, I needed something else to fill my heart, and it's odd how similar this board turned out to be. Metal back, Blue Alps, and even the PCB... It has positions for MX and Alps just like the NTC.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/MOeVxEs.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/pUgg5Vx.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/8jJ4lKH.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/36hlRGK.jpg)
Those stains are bromine, not just grease or something. D: Also, those pics are from the reseller, hehe.
Modified to ANSI layout, added a vintage Samsung sticker from a Chicony 5161 :DShow Image(http://i.imgur.com/jDthZpE.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/NgznzMM.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/CrCFItM.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/50gJy8m.jpg)
I definitely went past restoration with this one and personalized it, but I'm very happy with it! It was a ridiculous board. Half quality and half crap--it originally had pad-printed caps, NO stabilizers whatsoever mounted. So I had to add all the inserts and wires myself. The Big Ass Enter wasn't stabilized at the top, so I cut a hole in the plate and noticed an extra position beneath that spot. Yeah I didn't check that before hand, lol. The quality part comes from the overall build quality though. It's very solid and unlike a lot of similar boards (AT101, Chicony 5161), it has brass threaded inserts instead of just screws boring into plastic.
Then I wired up the key above the enter key to function as a "|\" key, and rewired the original "|\" key to the side of the short right shift to be another pause break key. Which, if I ever use one of those USB-ready soarer's converters, I'll make an FN key. :D
:eek:
Those Salmons, that plate... :thumb:
I think they have the capability to make more colors but they haven't released more than what MK and MD have.
I think they have the capability to make more colors but they haven't released more than what MK and MD have.
Ill pick up a set of Olivette then, the colors of the caps themselves are perfect, i just wish the font was black.
@E3E Wow nice work, the extra key next to the short right shift is awesome, i wish more boards had that. The blue paint makes the SKCM Blues look even better :)
May I ask what keycap options do we have for ALPS right now?
May I ask what keycap options do we have for ALPS right now?
You can get the 104-key Tai-Hao Dolch and Olivetti sets on MechanicalKeyboards.com. I just sold off the last remaining spots in my Alpine Winter GB, but maybe someone will be selling their extra sets once they start shipping in late December/early January.
Other than that, you'll have to harvest caps from old keyboards.
May I ask what keycap options do we have for ALPS right now?
You can get the 104-key Tai-Hao Dolch and Olivetti sets on MechanicalKeyboards.com. I just sold off the last remaining spots in my Alpine Winter GB, but maybe someone will be selling their extra sets once they start shipping in late December/early January.
Other than that, you'll have to harvest caps from old keyboards.
And you can get Matias ABS sets from Keyboardco, or direct from Matias. They also have some PBT caps in the pipeline but haven't been released yet.
May I ask what keycap options do we have for ALPS right now?
You can get the 104-key Tai-Hao Dolch and Olivetti sets on MechanicalKeyboards.com. I just sold off the last remaining spots in my Alpine Winter GB, but maybe someone will be selling their extra sets once they start shipping in late December/early January.
Other than that, you'll have to harvest caps from old keyboards.
And you can get Matias ABS sets from Keyboardco, or direct from Matias. They also have some PBT caps in the pipeline but haven't been released yet.
And OLKB has Alps DSA http://ortholinearkeyboards.com/keycaps/dsa-keycaps
EDIT: Wait whoa holy **** OEM too? http://ortholinearkeyboards.com/keycaps/oem-keycaps
May I ask what keycap options do we have for ALPS right now?
You can get the 104-key Tai-Hao Dolch and Olivetti sets on MechanicalKeyboards.com. I just sold off the last remaining spots in my Alpine Winter GB, but maybe someone will be selling their extra sets once they start shipping in late December/early January.
Other than that, you'll have to harvest caps from old keyboards.
And you can get Matias ABS sets from Keyboardco, or direct from Matias. They also have some PBT caps in the pipeline but haven't been released yet.
And OLKB has Alps DSA http://ortholinearkeyboards.com/keycaps/dsa-keycaps
EDIT: Wait whoa holy **** OEM too? http://ortholinearkeyboards.com/keycaps/oem-keycaps
Mini Tactile Pro with Matias Clickies https://www.instagram.com/p/-E3tpFnGTI/Pretty! How do you like it? Have you tried it in comparison to other alps or cherry/bs?Show Image(https://instagram.fsnc1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xpf1/t51.2885-15/e35/12237233_1665248593758297_534591554_n.jpg)
Mini Tactile Pro with Matias Clickies https://www.instagram.com/p/-E3tpFnGTI/Show Image(https://instagram.fsnc1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xpf1/t51.2885-15/e35/12237233_1665248593758297_534591554_n.jpg)
It's pretty cool. Its click is way more fun than MX Blues', for sure.QFT
So so so so very jelly over here!
Love all your alps boards E3E!
So so so so very jelly over here!
Love all your alps boards E3E!
Aww, haha. Thanks man. Alps are so nice. :) It's nice to have boards that you've put a lot of work into.
I need to play around with some greens and yellows. Really nice kb!
I need to play around with some greens and yellows. Really nice kb!
Thanks. :D If I was some PCB wizard like skullydazed or could rig my own backlighting setup, it'd be a lot easier, but I had to use a Duck Eagle PCB since the fact it is MX + Alps meant it had LED positions meant for the Cherry switches which I could rig to use for this purpose.
To get this working for Alps, well... I had to hand drill LED holes in the bottom housing of every switch since linear alps don't have LED holes unless it's a switch used for an indicator light. It was worth the effort though. I haven't seen any documented cases of complicated linears being used with whole board backlighting, so it sounded like a really fun project to do!
I need to play around with some greens and yellows. Really nice kb!
Thanks. :D If I was some PCB wizard like skullydazed or could rig my own backlighting setup, it'd be a lot easier, but I had to use a Duck Eagle PCB since the fact it is MX + Alps meant it had LED positions meant for the Cherry switches which I could rig to use for this purpose.
To get this working for Alps, well... I had to hand drill LED holes in the bottom housing of every switch since linear alps don't have LED holes unless it's a switch used for an indicator light. It was worth the effort though. I haven't seen any documented cases of complicated linears being used with whole board backlighting, so it sounded like a really fun project to do!
That's really cool! I would have loved to see that on making stuff together ;)
X-post from Post your Korean keyboard:Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/asP0zn5.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/KSMiHxL.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/baz3rzQ.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/j3z0TsQ.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/CbRNsUP.jpg)
:)
X-post from Post your Korean keyboard:Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/asP0zn5.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/KSMiHxL.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/baz3rzQ.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/j3z0TsQ.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/CbRNsUP.jpg)
:)
my god can you hook me up with some green alps please.
X-post from Post your Korean keyboard:Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/asP0zn5.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/KSMiHxL.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/baz3rzQ.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/j3z0TsQ.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/CbRNsUP.jpg)
:)
my god can you hook me up with some green alps please.
Sadly, I don't have enough for another 60%, but I do have some brown linear alps (which are very seldom seen) and some yellow linears. Brown and yellow are actually the same exact weight as I measured last night. The difference is that yellows use a short contact plate while browns use a long contact plate. This makes the browns feel a bit smoother, I think.
Greens are pretty much like MX reds. I weighed around 45g actuation and 50g bottom out.
Yellows and linear Browns = 60g actuation 70g bottom out
X-post from Post your Korean keyboard:Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/asP0zn5.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/KSMiHxL.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/baz3rzQ.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/j3z0TsQ.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/CbRNsUP.jpg)
:)
my god can you hook me up with some green alps please.
Sadly, I don't have enough for another 60%, but I do have some brown linear alps (which are very seldom seen) and some yellow linears. Brown and yellow are actually the same exact weight as I measured last night. The difference is that yellows use a short contact plate while browns use a long contact plate. This makes the browns feel a bit smoother, I think.
Greens are pretty much like MX reds. I weighed around 45g actuation and 50g bottom out.
Yellows and linear Browns = 60g actuation 70g bottom out
what about the smoothness of these green alps? aren't they tiers above mx reds
@ E3E Wow backlit Alps omg those look perfect very very impressive. I would be nervous drilling SKCL Greens, did the LEDs work right away when installed or was there anything extra involved other than drilling the switches?
Also very interesting the V60 MTS PCB allows for in-switch LEDs, do you think they would light up when installed or would something firmware sided be involved? I ended up ordering a second Z-150 with Greens, so i might attempt to add LEDs to them if it would work with a V60 MTS PCB.
Olivetti keycaps arrived yesterday and they blend in nicely with the Cyrillic caps, i would say its complete for now :)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/OarGeQv.jpg)
Thanks, Luigi. :)
Yeah, I used a little pin vise hand tool with a miniature drill bit to drill the underside of the switches. Even though I eyed them up as best as I could, some weren't perfectly aligned with the LED holes and I had to widen the holes a bit more. I probably should have used a bigger diameter bit.
Yeah, that's it! I just bought some 2x5x7mm LEDs and slipped them in the sockets and they worked just fine. No other hassles! I grinded down the flanges of the LEDs to make them easier to insert and remove, but I've just found that this isn't necessary. I thought it'd be difficult to remove or insert them without taking care of the flange, but testing this with a switch from my Z-150, I now see that it works fine with a flange. Just a little bit tighter fitting.
I'm not sure. Apparently the V60 and V60MTS run on the same firmware, so it should be possible to get the LEDs working without much of a challenge.
Oh, what were you using your first Z-150 again? :D
Also, that Olivette looks perfect with your Cyrillic caps. Is that board using the blue alps from the Bulgarian Chicony 5161?
Finally got around to building my hasu Alps64 today.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/5iIGRJo.jpg)
Plate from nubbinator's AEKII plate buy (my design), with dampened cream Alps, and keycaps from the AEKII. Imsto R2 alu case.
Thanks, Luigi. :)
Yeah, I used a little pin vise hand tool with a miniature drill bit to drill the underside of the switches. Even though I eyed them up as best as I could, some weren't perfectly aligned with the LED holes and I had to widen the holes a bit more. I probably should have used a bigger diameter bit.
Yeah, that's it! I just bought some 2x5x7mm LEDs and slipped them in the sockets and they worked just fine. No other hassles! I grinded down the flanges of the LEDs to make them easier to insert and remove, but I've just found that this isn't necessary. I thought it'd be difficult to remove or insert them without taking care of the flange, but testing this with a switch from my Z-150, I now see that it works fine with a flange. Just a little bit tighter fitting.
I'm not sure. Apparently the V60 and V60MTS run on the same firmware, so it should be possible to get the LEDs working without much of a challenge.
Oh, what were you using your first Z-150 again? :D
Also, that Olivette looks perfect with your Cyrillic caps. Is that board using the blue alps from the Bulgarian Chicony 5161?
Thats fantastic they worked right away, im certainly going to try that mod :D Great news if the V60 and V60 MTS use the same firmware, time for me to order a thin drill bit and see if it works.
I used my first Z-150 with green alps on my Filco Zero thats pictured above. The blue alps Bulgarian Chicony 5161 should arrive tomorrow, i thought it was going to arrive yesterday but it didnt. I'm gong to order two V60 MTS boards and put the blue alps in one of them, then with my second Z-150 that i just ordered im going to use the green alps and do the LED mod to them for the second V60 MTS.
@ jdcarpe Nice hasu Alps64, wish i didnt miss that buy. I want that case, nice shade of blue.
@ E3E Wow backlit Alps omg those look perfect very very impressive. I would be nervous drilling SKCL Greens, did the LEDs work right away when installed or was there anything extra involved other than drilling the switches?
Also very interesting the V60 MTS PCB allows for in-switch LEDs, do you think they would light up when installed or would something firmware sided be involved? I ended up ordering a second Z-150 with Greens, so i might attempt to add LEDs to them if it would work with a V60 MTS PCB.
Olivetti keycaps arrived yesterday and they blend in nicely with the Cyrillic caps, i would say its complete for now :)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/OarGeQv.jpg)
Finally got around to building my hasu Alps64 today.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/5iIGRJo.jpg)
Plate from nubbinator's AEKII plate buy (my design), with dampened cream Alps, and keycaps from the AEKII. Imsto R2 alu case.
Can anyone with a V80MTS confirm if it too has LED hole positions?
Finally got around to building my hasu Alps64 today.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/5iIGRJo.jpg)
Plate from nubbinator's AEKII plate buy (my design), with dampened cream Alps, and keycaps from the AEKII. Imsto R2 alu case.
Oh my... That looks amazing
Edit: The board looks so cool I managed to put my comment within the quote!
Looks like you've got a lot planned! Definitely post your V60 builds! I'd love to see some more backlit Alps :D
Yeah, I definitely need some more blues after my trades. There's someone who I know who says they'll be in town in May and they've got a board for me, so... Long wait, but that works.
Ya know, when I first got into the idea of doing a hotswappable Alps build, I thought I'd want create a stock of every Alps switch for fun, but... I'm quickly learning that I might just rather hover around my absolute favorites now. Blue Alps, Green Alps, and Orange Alps. The last switch types I have to try that may or may not surprise me are Amber Alps (which I have a board for coming in soon :D ) and Brown Tactile Alps.
Other than that, I haven't tried black alps, white alps, or green tactile alps. I feel like none of them will be all that great compared to my favorites though.
Can anyone with a V80MTS confirm if it too has LED hole positions?
Oh my... That looks amazing
Edit: The board looks so cool I managed to put my comment within the quote!
Thanks im extremely happy with how it turned out, i was very lucky to find someone selling Russian Cyrillic Alps caps :)Looks like you've got a lot planned! Definitely post your V60 builds! I'd love to see some more backlit Alps :D
Yeah, I definitely need some more blues after my trades. There's someone who I know who says they'll be in town in May and they've got a board for me, so... Long wait, but that works.
Ya know, when I first got into the idea of doing a hotswappable Alps build, I thought I'd want create a stock of every Alps switch for fun, but... I'm quickly learning that I might just rather hover around my absolute favorites now. Blue Alps, Green Alps, and Orange Alps. The last switch types I have to try that may or may not surprise me are Amber Alps (which I have a board for coming in soon :D ) and Brown Tactile Alps.
Other than that, I haven't tried black alps, white alps, or green tactile alps. I feel like none of them will be all that great compared to my favorites though.
Can anyone with a V80MTS confirm if it too has LED hole positions?
Certainly a lot, im going to work on the first V60 with blue alps then after the second V60 with green alps + LEDs
The only alps ive tried is the stock Fukka switchs in the Filco Zero which i couldnt stand, SKCL Greens, and as of today SKCM Blues. The Chicony arrived today and it is very very yellowed and the plate had a bunch of dust on it, the SKCM Blues are much nicer than MX Blues, but its still hard to decide if i prefer blues or greens more, they both are great. I already desoldered all the switches and am waiting for the V60 to arrive. :)
Im going to retrobright the keycaps and casing tomorrow, ill use the keycaps from it on my V60 and pickup another Olivetti set to match it with.
I want to try SKCM Greens but havent been able to find any. Ill probably try SKCM Whites then SKCM Oranges next.
We have the same board haha. What switches does yours have? Mine has Acer Blacks. I really need to retrobright mine. Hopefully one day i can use these caps on a 60% Alps ISO build.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/vXFjRJB.jpg)
What attracted you to greens? Just curious. :) They seem similar to Alps Salmon with their short plate and spring weight. If the tactile leaf really is different, then that's the only difference. D:
I just swapped the mods for my ANSI 104 Eagle to be SKCL browns and they actually feel much nicer than I thought while mounted. I've now learned to never judge a switch until it's mounted on a board. It's very smooth! The SKCL greens are like a pitfall which feels amazing. Browns are like opening a parachute right before you touch down, haha. They are equally as smooth.
Made a little video.
Alps SKCM blues on alphas, Oranges on number stripe since my left over stock of loose blues was only enough for the alphas themselves. Plan on filling all the missing spots with Amber SKCM and putting orange springs in them if the really are too heavy.
feature=youtu.be
Here's a little typing video! I also made a sleeved carbon fiber cable (real CF, and it was only around 9 dollars for 4 yards of it :D).
Carbon fiber is apparently good at dampening high frequency vibrations so the spring ping that I usually hear with blue alps was practically silent here. On the infinity with its stainless plate and the vintages I've had with metal backs and steel plates, it pinged all over the place. I even took the time to lube every single Green Alps spring on my other Duck Eagle so there would be no spring ping at all (before realizing this quality of carbon fiber). D:
Caps seemed to have straightened themselves out too as they were crooked in the last photo. :D
EDIT: I really need to make a build log! Once the Hammer case comes in, I shall!
We have the same board haha. What switches does yours have? Mine has Acer Blacks. I really need to retrobright mine. Hopefully one day i can use these caps on a 60% Alps ISO build.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/vXFjRJB.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/drPUrrl.jpg)
I mainly was interested in greens because the leaf is different than others in Alps and i havent really heard much about them.
From the description it sounds like i might like SKCL browns a lot, they seem to be also extremely rare though.
The typing video sounds great it will be even better once your Hammer case arrives :D and OMG does the Duck board support reactive LED? That is seriously the ultimate alps board. I didnt know real carbon fiber plates was a thing, did you have it custom made? Although i dont mind the ping at all, my Zero has very slight ping.
Finally got around to building my hasu Alps64 today.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/5iIGRJo.jpg)
Plate from nubbinator's AEKII plate buy (my design), with dampened cream Alps, and keycaps from the AEKII. Imsto R2 alu case.
Finally got around to building my hasu Alps64 today.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/5iIGRJo.jpg)
Plate from nubbinator's AEKII plate buy (my design), with dampened cream Alps, and keycaps from the AEKII. Imsto R2 alu case.
What sizes are the modifiers?
Finally got around to building my hasu Alps64 today.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/5iIGRJo.jpg)
Plate from nubbinator's AEKII plate buy (my design), with dampened cream Alps, and keycaps from the AEKII. Imsto R2 alu case.
What sizes are the modifiers?
AEK II bottom row is 1.5, 1.25, 1.5, 6.5, 1.5, 1.25, 1.5
Frankly the most sensible bottom row I've seen. Split the right shift and it'd be perfect.
It's pretty cool. Its click is way more fun than MX Blues', for sure.Interesting. Thank you for sharing! :thumb:
Blacks? I think the one you have might be the Acer 6311, is that a possibility? I know there are "Acer" switches that look very similar to Black SKCM but are actually some kind of membrane switch. :confused:
Yeah, that is a pretty intriguing aspect of those along with SKCM browns. I wonder how the greens feel! In my own little made up rarity tier for Alps I've made in my head, SKCL browns and SKCM greens are practically on the same level. Then Amber and SKCM brown, blue, green, yellow, then SKCM orange and salmon, then dampened cream and ivory, then SKCM white and finally SKCM blacks. I guess? It might not be totally true, but it seems that way.
I still think greens are more unique feeling compared to any other linear switch I've felt. Browns are kind of like blacks, but with a shorter throw. They are pleasant!
Since SKCL yellow are the same weight but with short plates, you could either just use them or pop their springs into SKCL greens for some "ghetto SKCL browns" if you really wanted to!
The typing video sounds great it will be even better once your Hammer case arrives :D and OMG does the Duck board support reactive LED? That is seriously the ultimate alps board. I didnt know real carbon fiber plates was a thing, did you have it custom made? Although i dont mind the ping at all, my Zero has very slight ping.
Yeah, I had to modify the board to support the ANSI 104 layout though, since the Eagle totally underestimates the Alps compatibility and doesn't include short right shift + 1 or the 6.25u bottom row or Cherry-style stepped Caps Lock. The stepped caps lock we usually see with Alps is in-between the non-stepped and Cherry-stepped. It's not as far to the left. The Eagle supports this and non-stepped. I'd imagine if we got some stepped Caps Lock keys from SP, they would be Cherry-style stepped and so that needed to be added.
Er, I'm blabbering again! Either way, I'm super happy the modified board works well!
Haha, thanks. It's definitely probably the ultimate Alps 60% PCB to use for now! I love all the lighting options on Duck boards.
Yep, the CF plates are real CF. I got them from Leandre! He was really awesome to deal with. He's running a GB now! Just be wary that to use the plate, you need Cherry stabs and caps that can work with them.
This means most Alps caps won't work, so you'd have to either stem swap (I had to do this for the 7u space bar and the 6.25u one came from my Olivette Tai Hao Alps set), or get a keyset from SP.
So sorry for all this writing; I get passionate when it comes to Alps and my personal projects. :)
MoreMine is the Acer Blacks Acer 6312, it has a membrane sheet under it, its not completely horrible though. I only bought it because it had ISO Alps keycaps, it also has a very interesting Nordic + Bulgarian Cyrillic layout, ive never seen that combination before.
It seems like SKCM Green and browns are the rarest. SKCL Greens are my favorite switch at the moment, although that might change once i get the SKCM Blues in the V60 mounted in a aluminum case. The next alps switches ill try are Whites then Orange because their easier to find. Will try and keep an eye open for SKCM Greens haha.
Ah nice i saw Leandre GB, i didnt think at first they would work with Alps though. How would i go about doing a stem swap? Where can one buy a keyset from SP?
No worries Alps talk is the most interesting. I doubt i will find anything more interesting than Alps keyboard related stuff. I think its much more fun than MX.
I just started to Retro bright the Chicony case and keycaps, im using the advice given from this thread: https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=36719.0 and my second Z-150 should arrive in the mail in an hour or two, so ill be desoldering all those switches today. The V60 hopefully will arrive Friday then i can install the SKCM Blues and try them out in a aluminum case.
Can anyone with a V80MTS confirm if it too has LED hole positions?
I'll be bringing it home from work this week (now that I've finished zealioing the 660m) so I can crack it open and take a look...
Can anyone with a V80MTS confirm if it too has LED hole positions?
I'll be bringing it home from work this week (now that I've finished zealioing the 660m) so I can crack it open and take a look...
Here are a few photos of my V80MTS pcb. I don't really know what I'm looking for re: LED hole positions, so I'll just leave these here...
(Attachment Link)
(Attachment Link) (Attachment Link) (Attachment Link) (Attachment Link)
Pretty sure those will accept MX switches as well as Alps. One PCB to rule them all.
Can anyone with a V80MTS confirm if it too has LED hole positions?
I'll be bringing it home from work this week (now that I've finished zealioing the 660m) so I can crack it open and take a look...
Here are a few photos of my V80MTS pcb. I don't really know what I'm looking for re: LED hole positions, so I'll just leave these here...
(Attachment Link)
(Attachment Link) (Attachment Link) (Attachment Link) (Attachment Link)
Haha, aww yeeeah! Thanks for these, man.
It seems like the V80MTS does indeed have LED positions just like the V60MTS. Why is this never mentioned in and advertising? Why is it even included? I'm guessing they just modified the positions on the original design to accept Alps while removing the stem well holes? I dunno, but it's both awesome yet quirky that they do indeed of LED positions.
Pretty sure those will accept MX switches as well as Alps. One PCB to rule them all.
Can anyone with a V80MTS confirm if it too has LED hole positions?
I'll be bringing it home from work this week (now that I've finished zealioing the 660m) so I can crack it open and take a look...
Here are a few photos of my V80MTS pcb. I don't really know what I'm looking for re: LED hole positions, so I'll just leave these here...
(Attachment Link)
(Attachment Link) (Attachment Link) (Attachment Link) (Attachment Link)
Haha, aww yeeeah! Thanks for these, man.
It seems like the V80MTS does indeed have LED positions just like the V60MTS. Why is this never mentioned in and advertising? Why is it even included? I'm guessing they just modified the positions on the original design to accept Alps while removing the stem well holes? I dunno, but it's both awesome yet quirky that they do indeed of LED positions.
If they used my switch holes in the plate, the plate could accept MX or Alps, as well.
Dyed my modifiers today. Still need to retr0brite my spacebar, and get a spacebar stabilizer wire for it. The alphas could use a bath, as well.Show Image(http://imgur.com/pCtDT5z.jpg)
Dyed my modifiers today. Still need to retr0brite my spacebar, and get a spacebar stabilizer wire for it. The alphas could use a bath, as well.Show Image(http://imgur.com/pCtDT5z.jpg)
Thank you!Dyed my modifiers today. Still need to retr0brite my spacebar, and get a spacebar stabilizer wire for it. The alphas could use a bath, as well.Show Image(http://imgur.com/pCtDT5z.jpg)
They came out very nicely, what was the dye?
Dyed my modifiers today. Still need to retr0brite my spacebar, and get a spacebar stabilizer wire for it. The alphas could use a bath, as well.Show Image(http://imgur.com/pCtDT5z.jpg)
Thank you!Dyed my modifiers today. Still need to retr0brite my spacebar, and get a spacebar stabilizer wire for it. The alphas could use a bath, as well.Show Image(http://imgur.com/pCtDT5z.jpg)
They came out very nicely, what was the dye?
I used Rit liquid for synthetics, in Sapphire Blue. I put about a 1/3 of the bottle with a few cups of filtered water, in a saucepan, once the water was boiling. I did a test with some spare caps to see how long to dye them. About 2.5 minutes was the best match to the case. I did them in batches, using one of those gold coffee filter baskets to prevent the caps from lying on the bottom of the pan. Agitated throughout the process.
Thank you!Dyed my modifiers today. Still need to retr0brite my spacebar, and get a spacebar stabilizer wire for it. The alphas could use a bath, as well.Show Image(http://imgur.com/pCtDT5z.jpg)
They came out very nicely, what was the dye?
I used Rit liquid for synthetics, in Sapphire Blue. I put about a 1/3 of the bottle with a few cups of filtered water, in a saucepan, once the water was boiling. I did a test with some spare caps to see how long to dye them. About 2.5 minutes was the best match to the case. I did them in batches, using one of those gold coffee filter baskets to prevent the caps from lying on the bottom of the pan. Agitated throughout the process.
I'm trying to find a dye that will match nicely with sniper grey cerakote. I honestly don't even know if that color would even be possible with the dies available... I'm thinking maybe a mix of blue and black would do it and just hope it doesn't come out purple or brown.
Edit: Or if I can successfully dye something grey, that would work if I add a tinge of blue.
...On an off topic note I don't think I have ever used the word 'tinge' in conversation before.
Dyed my modifiers today. Still need to retr0brite my spacebar, and get a spacebar stabilizer wire for it. The alphas could use a bath, as well.Show Image(http://imgur.com/pCtDT5z.jpg)
Thank you!Dyed my modifiers today. Still need to retr0brite my spacebar, and get a spacebar stabilizer wire for it. The alphas could use a bath, as well.Show Image(http://imgur.com/pCtDT5z.jpg)
They came out very nicely, what was the dye?
I used Rit liquid for synthetics, in Sapphire Blue. I put about a 1/3 of the bottle with a few cups of filtered water, in a saucepan, once the water was boiling. I did a test with some spare caps to see how long to dye them. About 2.5 minutes was the best match to the case. I did them in batches, using one of those gold coffee filter baskets to prevent the caps from lying on the bottom of the pan. Agitated throughout the process.
I'm trying to find a dye that will match nicely with sniper grey cerakote. I honestly don't even know if that color would even be possible with the dies available... I'm thinking maybe a mix of blue and black would do it and just hope it doesn't come out purple or brown.
Edit: Or if I can successfully dye something grey, that would work if I add a tinge of blue.
...On an off topic note I don't think I have ever used the word 'tinge' in conversation before.
I think I picked up the same RIT series dye that JD used, albeit in a different color. It might work for your build!Show Image(http://puu.sh/lL19u/367ebc3ed4.JPG)
I have been meaning to dye some thin AT101 PBT caps (not my baby's caps) but I haven't gotten around to it (as you can see, I've been too lazy to even open the package :P ). Truth be told, I think I'd like more colors than just black or "graphite" though.
I thought of mixing blue or "sapphire" with "graphite" to come up with some steely grayish blue, but I've been too lazy to pick up more colors. Good luck in finding what you need! :D
That's exactly what I'm going for! If you end up doing that post some pics for me ;)
That's exactly what I'm going for! If you end up doing that post some pics for me ;)
Will do, good sir! :D You mean the blue grey mix, right?
Pretty sure those will accept MX switches as well as Alps. One PCB to rule them all.
Can anyone with a V80MTS confirm if it too has LED hole positions?
I'll be bringing it home from work this week (now that I've finished zealioing the 660m) so I can crack it open and take a look...
Here are a few photos of my V80MTS pcb. I don't really know what I'm looking for re: LED hole positions, so I'll just leave these here...
(Attachment Link)
(Attachment Link) (Attachment Link) (Attachment Link) (Attachment Link)
Haha, aww yeeeah! Thanks for these, man.
It seems like the V80MTS does indeed have LED positions just like the V60MTS. Why is this never mentioned in and advertising? Why is it even included? I'm guessing they just modified the positions on the original design to accept Alps while removing the stem well holes? I dunno, but it's both awesome yet quirky that they do indeed of LED positions.
If they used my switch holes in the plate, the plate could accept MX or Alps, as well.
I was wondering that too, but I kept getting the feeling this was untrue for the V60/80s. I love me some MXAlps PCBs though. :D
Pretty sure those will accept MX switches as well as Alps. One PCB to rule them all.
Can anyone with a V80MTS confirm if it too has LED hole positions?
I'll be bringing it home from work this week (now that I've finished zealioing the 660m) so I can crack it open and take a look...
Here are a few photos of my V80MTS pcb. I don't really know what I'm looking for re: LED hole positions, so I'll just leave these here...
(Attachment Link)
(Attachment Link) (Attachment Link) (Attachment Link) (Attachment Link)
Haha, aww yeeeah! Thanks for these, man.
It seems like the V80MTS does indeed have LED positions just like the V60MTS. Why is this never mentioned in and advertising? Why is it even included? I'm guessing they just modified the positions on the original design to accept Alps while removing the stem well holes? I dunno, but it's both awesome yet quirky that they do indeed of LED positions.
If they used my switch holes in the plate, the plate could accept MX or Alps, as well.
I was wondering that too, but I kept getting the feeling this was untrue for the V60/80s. I love me some MXAlps PCBs though. :D
So... if I can track down some SMD LEDs, and learn how to do SMD soldering, I could just bung them in there and they would work? Is that what you guys are saying?
My Alps64
How does the dye come out on a spacebar? Anyone tried that yet?
My Alps64
I could have sworn I've seen this board 3 times already from three different people, lol. This dye scheme and those AEK/AEKII caps are very popular! Looks good, man. :)
EDIT: Oh yeah, at the time, the only aftermarket plate available was the AEK plate. Still, the blue and white dye job. I keep seeing it! Haha.
My Alps64
I could have sworn I've seen this board 3 times already from three different people, lol. This dye scheme and those AEK/AEKII caps are very popular! Looks good, man. :)
EDIT: Oh yeah, at the time, the only aftermarket plate available was the AEK plate. Still, the blue and white dye job. I keep seeing it! Haha.
Not a whole lot of options for alps boards. Hopefully that'll change. AEK caps are nice pbt, if you don't mind the font, and easily obtained.
My Alps64
Once I get my new plates in, I'm changing to a different layout where I can use my Tai Hao WoB double shots with the modifiers from Badwrench.
I don't like PBT much at all, and the AEK II caps have centered nubs on the D and K keys. *shudder*
My Alps64
Did you dye sub the modifiers?
My TEX grey non-lip case arrived today and im extremely impressed with the quality, it matches my grey Ducky Mini perfectly :). I got my V60 mounted in it, the case makes the switches feel and sound so much better than the stock V60 case. I have a new daily driver :D Just need to get some keycaps for it now.
I also soldered a single LED to the V60 just to test if it would light up and work with breathing mode like the MX V60, but i noticed the V60 MTS doesnt come with resistors installed.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/kOmMgCR.jpg)
My TEX grey non-lip case arrived today and im extremely impressed with the quality, it matches my grey Ducky Mini perfectly :). I got my V60 mounted in it, the case makes the switches feel and sound so much better than the stock V60 case. I have a new daily driver :D Just need to get some keycaps for it now.
I also soldered a single LED to the V60 just to test if it would light up and work with breathing mode like the MX V60, but i noticed the V60 MTS doesnt come with resistors installed.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/kOmMgCR.jpg)
That looks epic, man! Glad to finally see it put together. Did you have to do any drilling for the plate?
Looks like getting one of these backlit will be a bit of a process, but I'm looking forward to seeing it happen! SMD resistors eh? If you don't mind burning out an LED, you can always test one without any resistors to see if it even lights up :P
My TEX grey non-lip case arrived today and im extremely impressed with the quality, it matches my grey Ducky Mini perfectly :). I got my V60 mounted in it, the case makes the switches feel and sound so much better than the stock V60 case. I have a new daily driver :D Just need to get some keycaps for it now.
I also soldered a single LED to the V60 just to test if it would light up and work with breathing mode like the MX V60, but i noticed the V60 MTS doesnt come with resistors installed.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/kOmMgCR.jpg)
That looks epic, man! Glad to finally see it put together. Did you have to do any drilling for the plate?
Looks like getting one of these backlit will be a bit of a process, but I'm looking forward to seeing it happen! SMD resistors eh? If you don't mind burning out an LED, you can always test one without any resistors to see if it even lights up :P
Thanks im really happy with this case, TEX is awesome and got it shipped to me really fast. I didnt have to do any drilling :) I used the same method that czarek did, i put the left screw in first, then put the board in, tightened the left screw, and slid the board all the way to the left(a good amount of pressure was required) then i installed and tightened the right screw and slid the board in the center, after i removed the spacebar and installed the third screw. The only downside to this method is it takes a bit of patience to do and a very thin flat head screw driver.
I will still drill the V60 plate when i desolder the SKCM Blues and swap them into the Hasu PCB once i get all the parts prepared for it.
I did solder a LED, but it didnt light up at all, probably because there wasnt any resistors, im going to email KBP and ask them what resistors they use on the MX V60 then buy some and install them.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/NBfXoiF.jpg)
My TMK ALPS64 in KBP V60 case.
(Attachment Link)
The second Cyrillic caps arrived, they are in perfect condition and match my other set. Very glad i got them, going to pickup a second Olivette set to complete the modifiers. I have another Cyrillic set coming soon in ISO, im going to cut the plate from the board and use it to complete my Alps64.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/tCe24CZ.jpg)
I also bought a NTC KB-6251 with Green linear Hua-Jie AK switches in QWERTZ layout, interested in comparing them side by side with SKCL Greens.
Спасибо :) i try as much as possible, more Cyrillic is always awesome. Almost all my Cherry boards have Cyrillic except two. Both sets were from slider over dome boards, the ISO set has some type of clone switches with a Costar sticker on the back of the board, cant wait to receive it and open it up. I think Cyrillic Alps PBT dyesub caps exist but they are ultra rare, ill always be searching for more Cyrillic stuff :)The second Cyrillic caps arrived, they are in perfect condition and match my other set. Very glad i got them, going to pickup a second Olivette set to complete the modifiers. I have another Cyrillic set coming soon in ISO, im going to cut the plate from the board and use it to complete my Alps64.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/tCe24CZ.jpg)
I also bought a NTC KB-6251 with Green linear Hua-Jie AK switches in QWERTZ layout, interested in comparing them side by side with SKCL Greens.
You're like a Russian Cyrillic demi-god, man. The fact you found practically unused caps in the Alps world itself speaks to your otherwordly powers. If you ever happen upon some unused PBT caps, hook me up! :P
Seriously though, looking good! They're gonna look fantastic with Olivette. :)
Daily Driver at work ;D
Matias Quiet Clicks with Hasu Alps64 PCB in a Tex Acrylic case
Been thinking of retrobrighting the spacebar, but I don't really mind the yellowingShow Image(http://i.imgur.com/U8ExaaZ.jpg)
Bonus: Printed out a label for the back tooShow Image(http://i.imgur.com/PFSNqcP.jpg)
KBP V60MTS-C with dye-sub PBT caps from an IBM 5140 "portable" computer keyboard.
(Attachment Link)
The mods and spacebar are blank black ABS from Matias.
How do you clean the yellowed keycaps bro? Retrobrite? Can you share with me the tutorial.
Thank you for the answer bro Now what I need is order all this stuffHow do you clean the yellowed keycaps bro? Retrobrite? Can you share with me the tutorial.
Yeah, sure. I find that it's much more... carefree to retrobright caps in sunny weather than indoors with a strong UV light like I do, or maybe I just do it for too long.
Either way, I have a medium-sized / large cardboard box that I have lined with the shiny side of aluminum foil, then I cut the top to allow it to be raised so I can examine the inside, I rest a UV lamp in the entrance of the box and then cover it. It's not the most flawless or best way of doing it, but it works okay. I'd recommend this for cases only.
For caps, I would implore you to use the liquid form of H2O2 and soak the caps in it using a clear plastic container, shining the UV down at it through the open area. This would just be mainly set and forget since they'll be immersed. It's too easy to stain caps using the hair salon developer creme solution. I've gotten streaks on some caps using it. No streaks when used outside in the sun, but definitely when I used the artificial light indoors.
I used Matt3o's recommened recipe of 4 parts H2O2 creme developer to 1 part water, and 1/2 parts Oxygen bleach, like oxyclean. I use some home cleaning stuff that is already in a liquid form.
Outside, you might get away with spraying and leaving for an hour before respraying, but do it for 30 minutes if you want to be safe.
Indoors, 30 minutes is best, but if you're careful, you can do an hour. I'd recommend washing the stuff off during every respray so it doesn't dry on the plastic, or else you will have to be really sure that you sprayed the plastic down well to keep the creme moist.
Yeah, it's an annoying process. My Leading Edge board took two days. Around 16 + hours of retrobrighting and it wasn't even that bad. The Dell AT101 was worse and it cleared up faster. :eek:
Thank you for the answer bro Now what I need is order all this stuffHow do you clean the yellowed keycaps bro? Retrobrite? Can you share with me the tutorial.
Yeah, sure. I find that it's much more... carefree to retrobright caps in sunny weather than indoors with a strong UV light like I do, or maybe I just do it for too long.
Either way, I have a medium-sized / large cardboard box that I have lined with the shiny side of aluminum foil, then I cut the top to allow it to be raised so I can examine the inside, I rest a UV lamp in the entrance of the box and then cover it. It's not the most flawless or best way of doing it, but it works okay. I'd recommend this for cases only.
For caps, I would implore you to use the liquid form of H2O2 and soak the caps in it using a clear plastic container, shining the UV down at it through the open area. This would just be mainly set and forget since they'll be immersed. It's too easy to stain caps using the hair salon developer creme solution. I've gotten streaks on some caps using it. No streaks when used outside in the sun, but definitely when I used the artificial light indoors.
I used Matt3o's recommened recipe of 4 parts H2O2 creme developer to 1 part water, and 1/2 parts Oxygen bleach, like oxyclean. I use some home cleaning stuff that is already in a liquid form.
Outside, you might get away with spraying and leaving for an hour before respraying, but do it for 30 minutes if you want to be safe.
Indoors, 30 minutes is best, but if you're careful, you can do an hour. I'd recommend washing the stuff off during every respray so it doesn't dry on the plastic, or else you will have to be really sure that you sprayed the plastic down well to keep the creme moist.
Yeah, it's an annoying process. My Leading Edge board took two days. Around 16 + hours of retrobrighting and it wasn't even that bad. The Dell AT101 was worse and it cleared up faster. :eek:
From my album:
https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=71457.0
60% Duck V2 in blue aluminium, fully programmableShow Image(http://i.imgur.com/yeMWW9bh.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/D7uj494h.jpg)
Teaser of my newly restored Zenith, I'm calling him "Donatello"Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/FPpdc0t.jpg)
I'll let you know once it's all soldered back together and running So far it feels nice, I've added dampening and lubed the ends of the springs after disassembling and cleaning the switches. I'll post a little build log once I have some time to sort through some of the pictures. I love the layout so I'm hoping cleaning it up and tuning it will have the results I'm hoping for!Teaser of my newly restored Zenith, I'm calling him "Donatello"Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/FPpdc0t.jpg)
Hey! Did you end up liking the Zenith after all? Jeez, the green hue these have is far more vivid than any I've seen. :eek:
Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/n8z5wxz.jpg)
This board is heavy :cool:
Thanks :D It certainly has come a long way, and the case made it complete. It also improved the typing feel a lot. My Blue Alps board should arrive tomorrow or the next day, so i might have replica of this board in the next few days but with Blue Alps, although if its in good condition i might not desolder it.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/n8z5wxz.jpg)
This board is heavy :cool:
Such a nice board. <3
Thanks :D It certainly has come a long way, and the case made it complete. It also improved the typing feel a lot. My Blue Alps board should arrive tomorrow or the next day, so i might have replica of this board in the next few days but with Blue Alps, although if its in good condition i might not desolder it.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/n8z5wxz.jpg)
This board is heavy :cool:
Such a nice board. <3
The board i thought was a Chicony 5161 is actually an OEMMAX MCK-101-A :)) I have an Acer KB-101AS that should be here in about 8 hours. I bought my second Filco Zero on Jan 6th, it was $98 so i had to buy it hahaha. The case is the Vortex TKL aluminum case, i had to remove the ferrite bead from the stock cable and sand down the plate about 0.5mm to make the Filco Zero fit, without doing that the case would not close 100% flat. I have a feeling the Acer KB-101AS might be too nice to take the switches from though.Thanks :D It certainly has come a long way, and the case made it complete. It also improved the typing feel a lot. My Blue Alps board should arrive tomorrow or the next day, so i might have replica of this board in the next few days but with Blue Alps, although if its in good condition i might not desolder it.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/n8z5wxz.jpg)
This board is heavy :cool:
Such a nice board. <3
Wait, didn't you already have the Chicony 5161 with blue Alps? :D Which one is this that you speak of? Damn, you got two of these cases AND Filco Zeros? You mad man! What is this case exactly?
Huh that's good to know that you can put a Filco Zero into a Vortex TKL case....maybe I should do that with mine haha.
The board i thought was a Chicony 5161 is actually an OEMMAX MCK-101-A :)) I have an Acer KB-101AS that should be here in about 8 hours. I bought my second Filco Zero on Jan 6th, it was $98 so i had to buy it hahaha. The case is the Vortex TKL aluminum case, i had to remove the ferrite bead from the stock cable and sand down the plate about 0.5mm to make the Filco Zero fit, without doing that the case would not close 100% flat. I have a feeling the Acer KB-101AS might be too nice to take the switches from though.Thanks :D It certainly has come a long way, and the case made it complete. It also improved the typing feel a lot. My Blue Alps board should arrive tomorrow or the next day, so i might have replica of this board in the next few days but with Blue Alps, although if its in good condition i might not desolder it.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/n8z5wxz.jpg)
This board is heavy :cool:
Such a nice board. <3
Wait, didn't you already have the Chicony 5161 with blue Alps? :D Which one is this that you speak of? Damn, you got two of these cases AND Filco Zeros? You mad man! What is this case exactly?
Huh that's good to know that you can put a Filco Zero into a Vortex TKL case....maybe I should do that with mine haha.
Very true, only reason i took apart my MCK-101 was because the plate was rusted and it was so yellowed that it was almost orange. I sanded the plate down and its nice and silver looking now, i dont think im going to paint it because the silver looks nice. I just need to retrobright the case and decide what switches to put into it, im thinking either Green, Orange, or White.The board i thought was a Chicony 5161 is actually an OEMMAX MCK-101-A :)) I have an Acer KB-101AS that should be here in about 8 hours. I bought my second Filco Zero on Jan 6th, it was $98 so i had to buy it hahaha. The case is the Vortex TKL aluminum case, i had to remove the ferrite bead from the stock cable and sand down the plate about 0.5mm to make the Filco Zero fit, without doing that the case would not close 100% flat. I have a feeling the Acer KB-101AS might be too nice to take the switches from though.Thanks :D It certainly has come a long way, and the case made it complete. It also improved the typing feel a lot. My Blue Alps board should arrive tomorrow or the next day, so i might have replica of this board in the next few days but with Blue Alps, although if its in good condition i might not desolder it.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/n8z5wxz.jpg)
This board is heavy :cool:
Such a nice board. <3
Wait, didn't you already have the Chicony 5161 with blue Alps? :D Which one is this that you speak of? Damn, you got two of these cases AND Filco Zeros? You mad man! What is this case exactly?
There are far too many blue Alps boards that I have that I consider too nice to take apart for their switches. Only F AT or F XT layout 84 key blue Alps boards are ones I have no remorse for (sorry DC-2014).
Nice find on the Acer though, as that one is quite coveted! Where'd you happen upon that one, good sir?
Huh that's good to know that you can put a Filco Zero into a Vortex TKL case....maybe I should do that with mine haha.
Ya and it certainly does improve the typing feel, its a PITA to sand the edge of the plate down though with the board still attached, i taped the whole board up before doing it. Removing the ferrite bead was easy though, i just crushed it with some pliers then opened up the heatshrink to remove it.Very true, only reason i took apart my MCK-101 was because the plate was rusted and it was so yellowed that it was almost orange. I sanded the plate down and its nice and silver looking now, i dont think im going to paint it because the silver looks nice. I just need to retrobright the case and decide what switches to put into it, im thinking either Green, Orange, or White.The board i thought was a Chicony 5161 is actually an OEMMAX MCK-101-A :)) I have an Acer KB-101AS that should be here in about 8 hours. I bought my second Filco Zero on Jan 6th, it was $98 so i had to buy it hahaha. The case is the Vortex TKL aluminum case, i had to remove the ferrite bead from the stock cable and sand down the plate about 0.5mm to make the Filco Zero fit, without doing that the case would not close 100% flat. I have a feeling the Acer KB-101AS might be too nice to take the switches from though.Thanks :D It certainly has come a long way, and the case made it complete. It also improved the typing feel a lot. My Blue Alps board should arrive tomorrow or the next day, so i might have replica of this board in the next few days but with Blue Alps, although if its in good condition i might not desolder it.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/n8z5wxz.jpg)
This board is heavy :cool:
Such a nice board. <3
Wait, didn't you already have the Chicony 5161 with blue Alps? :D Which one is this that you speak of? Damn, you got two of these cases AND Filco Zeros? You mad man! What is this case exactly?
There are far too many blue Alps boards that I have that I consider too nice to take apart for their switches. Only F AT or F XT layout 84 key blue Alps boards are ones I have no remorse for (sorry DC-2014).
Nice find on the Acer though, as that one is quite coveted! Where'd you happen upon that one, good sir?
I got the board from Ebay, ohaimark from DT posted it, if he never posted it i would have never known about it. Huge thanks to him!!!!!! It was $125(buy it now) + $23 for shipping, which is great considering the prices Blue Alps boards have been selling for on Ebay recently.
The Acer KB-101AS arrived and this board is NICE, there is no way im ever going to take the switches from this. Its one of the most solid boards ive used. Most importantly the switches in this board are mint and feel perfect, there is some yellowing and the keycaps and board need to be cleaned a bit, but there are no cracks or dents on the case so thats good. Its the same as the one Chyros has, with angled DIN connector, his is labeled KB-101A and mine is KB-101AS anyone know what the difference could be?Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/DVQfGfL.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/JNDw3ib.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/2jToKaZ.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/95Kkb6F.jpg)
I wonder if theres a place that i could pay to add red dyesub Russian Cyrillic legends to the keycaps.
Huh that's good to know that you can put a Filco Zero into a Vortex TKL case....maybe I should do that with mine haha.
Ya and it certainly does improve the typing feel, its a PITA to sand the edge of the plate down though with the board still attached, i taped the whole board up before doing it. Removing the ferrite bead was easy though, i just crushed it with some pliers then opened up the heatshrink to remove it.Very true, only reason i took apart my MCK-101 was because the plate was rusted and it was so yellowed that it was almost orange. I sanded the plate down and its nice and silver looking now, i dont think im going to paint it because the silver looks nice. I just need to retrobright the case and decide what switches to put into it, im thinking either Green, Orange, or White.The board i thought was a Chicony 5161 is actually an OEMMAX MCK-101-A :)) I have an Acer KB-101AS that should be here in about 8 hours. I bought my second Filco Zero on Jan 6th, it was $98 so i had to buy it hahaha. The case is the Vortex TKL aluminum case, i had to remove the ferrite bead from the stock cable and sand down the plate about 0.5mm to make the Filco Zero fit, without doing that the case would not close 100% flat. I have a feeling the Acer KB-101AS might be too nice to take the switches from though.Thanks :D It certainly has come a long way, and the case made it complete. It also improved the typing feel a lot. My Blue Alps board should arrive tomorrow or the next day, so i might have replica of this board in the next few days but with Blue Alps, although if its in good condition i might not desolder it.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/n8z5wxz.jpg)
This board is heavy :cool:
Such a nice board. <3
Wait, didn't you already have the Chicony 5161 with blue Alps? :D Which one is this that you speak of? Damn, you got two of these cases AND Filco Zeros? You mad man! What is this case exactly?
There are far too many blue Alps boards that I have that I consider too nice to take apart for their switches. Only F AT or F XT layout 84 key blue Alps boards are ones I have no remorse for (sorry DC-2014).
Nice find on the Acer though, as that one is quite coveted! Where'd you happen upon that one, good sir?
I got the board from Ebay, ohaimark from DT posted it, if he never posted it i would have never known about it. Huge thanks to him!!!!!! It was $125(buy it now) + $23 for shipping, which is great considering the prices Blue Alps boards have been selling for on Ebay recently.
The Acer KB-101AS arrived and this board is NICE, there is no way im ever going to take the switches from this. Its one of the most solid boards ive used. Most importantly the switches in this board are mint and feel perfect, there is some yellowing and the keycaps and board need to be cleaned a bit, but there are no cracks or dents on the case so thats good. Its the same as the one Chyros has, with angled DIN connector, his is labeled KB-101A and mine is KB-101AS anyone know what the difference could be?Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/DVQfGfL.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/JNDw3ib.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/2jToKaZ.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/95Kkb6F.jpg)
I wonder if theres a place that i could pay to add red dyesub Russian Cyrillic legends to the keycaps.
Beautiful board
It doesnt have NKRO, just tested it, only four keys register on the asdf row.Huh that's good to know that you can put a Filco Zero into a Vortex TKL case....maybe I should do that with mine haha.
Ya and it certainly does improve the typing feel, its a PITA to sand the edge of the plate down though with the board still attached, i taped the whole board up before doing it. Removing the ferrite bead was easy though, i just crushed it with some pliers then opened up the heatshrink to remove it.Very true, only reason i took apart my MCK-101 was because the plate was rusted and it was so yellowed that it was almost orange. I sanded the plate down and its nice and silver looking now, i dont think im going to paint it because the silver looks nice. I just need to retrobright the case and decide what switches to put into it, im thinking either Green, Orange, or White.The board i thought was a Chicony 5161 is actually an OEMMAX MCK-101-A :)) I have an Acer KB-101AS that should be here in about 8 hours. I bought my second Filco Zero on Jan 6th, it was $98 so i had to buy it hahaha. The case is the Vortex TKL aluminum case, i had to remove the ferrite bead from the stock cable and sand down the plate about 0.5mm to make the Filco Zero fit, without doing that the case would not close 100% flat. I have a feeling the Acer KB-101AS might be too nice to take the switches from though.Thanks :D It certainly has come a long way, and the case made it complete. It also improved the typing feel a lot. My Blue Alps board should arrive tomorrow or the next day, so i might have replica of this board in the next few days but with Blue Alps, although if its in good condition i might not desolder it.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/n8z5wxz.jpg)
This board is heavy :cool:
Such a nice board. <3
Wait, didn't you already have the Chicony 5161 with blue Alps? :D Which one is this that you speak of? Damn, you got two of these cases AND Filco Zeros? You mad man! What is this case exactly?
There are far too many blue Alps boards that I have that I consider too nice to take apart for their switches. Only F AT or F XT layout 84 key blue Alps boards are ones I have no remorse for (sorry DC-2014).
Nice find on the Acer though, as that one is quite coveted! Where'd you happen upon that one, good sir?
I got the board from Ebay, ohaimark from DT posted it, if he never posted it i would have never known about it. Huge thanks to him!!!!!! It was $125(buy it now) + $23 for shipping, which is great considering the prices Blue Alps boards have been selling for on Ebay recently.
The Acer KB-101AS arrived and this board is NICE, there is no way im ever going to take the switches from this. Its one of the most solid boards ive used. Most importantly the switches in this board are mint and feel perfect, there is some yellowing and the keycaps and board need to be cleaned a bit, but there are no cracks or dents on the case so thats good. Its the same as the one Chyros has, with angled DIN connector, his is labeled KB-101A and mine is KB-101AS anyone know what the difference could be?Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/DVQfGfL.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/JNDw3ib.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/2jToKaZ.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/95Kkb6F.jpg)
I wonder if theres a place that i could pay to add red dyesub Russian Cyrillic legends to the keycaps.
Check and see if it has NKRO. Perhaps the S might stand for that sort of thing, or maybe it doesn't have an AT/XT switch and is AT only? Does this one have a switch? I'm not sure what services would be available for dyesubbing ABS, but keep an eye out for Acer 6011 boards. Close relatives of the KB101, and same ANSI layout in some configurations. There are PBT versions you could likely send out for dyesubbing. Originative does dyesubbing for $3 per cap; you could talk to them about it.
Where'd you happen upon this one by the way?
And yes, everyone has seen this board because of Chyros. :))
It doesnt have NKRO, just tested it, only four keys register on the asdf row.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/tfCAOkL.jpg)
Mine has the same three position style AT/XT switch also. Oh awesome :D :D :D :D, can Originative dyesub ABS caps? If so and they can copy the Cyrillic legends used on the enjoypbt caps then im totally fine paying $3 per cap for that.
I got the board from Ebay, ohaimark from DT posted it, because of Chyros's review of the Acer KB-101A i bought it instantly before even asking the seller to remove a cap since someone probably would of have bought it before me if i waited for the seller to respond.
It doesnt have NKRO, just tested it, only four keys register on the asdf row.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/tfCAOkL.jpg)
Mine has the same three position style AT/XT switch also. Oh awesome :D :D :D :D, can Originative dyesub ABS caps? If so and they can copy the Cyrillic legends used on the enjoypbt caps then im totally fine paying $3 per cap for that.
I got the board from Ebay, ohaimark from DT posted it, because of Chyros's review of the Acer KB-101A i bought it instantly before even asking the seller to remove a cap since someone probably would of have bought it before me if i waited for the seller to respond.
I'm not sure about ABS, but like I've said, Acer has boards with the same ANSI layout in their 6011 series and even 6311 series that can be PBT, so if you find a set, you can possibly have those sent toOriginativeIMSTO (my bad, I mixed these two up) and have them dye sub them for you, but I don't know if this is something you can really do. http://imsto.cn/index.php?route=product/product&path=59&product_id=93
I'd definitely shoot them an email about it if you are interested. :)
It seems like board was won by a $125 bid, if this is the same one. (http://www.ebay.com/itm/Acer-kb-101as-vintage-keyboard-/111868643247?hash=item1a0be407af%3Ag%3A2kIAAOSwJkJWjtQK&nma=true&si=k6ICFVEof38ltWuPPmm7Zfn9SZ0%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557)
So that's weird. Did you send them an offer outside of the auction?
Perhaps the AS could be toward something on the PCB that's different? I know my FAME has a layout that allows for an ISO enter, though this is not supported on the plate (this is what I used to ANSI mod it).
x-post from the general photography thread. :)That looks great! What switches does it have?
Is it normal to not love Alps right away? :-XShow Image(https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1467/23992765303_3d06e8f04a_k.jpg)
Hasu Alps (https://flic.kr/p/Cyacei) by HoffmanMyster (https://www.flickr.com/photos/99522542@N03/), on Flickr
x-post from the general photography thread. :)That looks great! What switches does it have?
Is it normal to not love Alps right away? :-XShow Image(https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1467/23992765303_3d06e8f04a_k.jpg)
Hasu Alps (https://flic.kr/p/Cyacei) by HoffmanMyster (https://www.flickr.com/photos/99522542@N03/), on Flickr
Also, they don't seem to be entirely consistent with the tactility, but maybe that's just me imagining things.
Is it normal to not love Alps right away? :-XFirst, some people don’t like any Alps-style switches ever. For instance, Dorkvader, who is a buckling spring and hall effect fan.
[...]
It's got Matias quiet clicks in it. I like the tactility of them, but they feel too tactile for their own good (read: they are too light). :-/ Maybe it just because I need to adjust? I'm coming from 45g Topre at the moment.
Also, they don't seem to be entirely consistent with the tactility, but maybe that's just me imagining things.
The Acer KB-101AS arrived and this board is NICE, there is no way im ever going to take the switches from this. Its one of the most solid boards ive used. Most importantly the switches in this board are mint and feel perfect, there is some yellowing and the keycaps and board need to be cleaned a bit, but there are no cracks or dents on the case so thats good. Its the same as the one Chyros has, with angled DIN connector, his is labeled KB-101A and mine is KB-101AS anyone know what the difference could be?Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/DVQfGfL.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/JNDw3ib.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/2jToKaZ.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/95Kkb6F.jpg)
I wonder if theres a place that i could pay to add red dyesub Russian Cyrillic legends to the keycaps.
The Acer KB-101AS arrived and this board is NICE, there is no way im ever going to take the switches from this. Its one of the most solid boards ive used. Most importantly the switches in this board are mint and feel perfect, there is some yellowing and the keycaps and board need to be cleaned a bit, but there are no cracks or dents on the case so thats good. Its the same as the one Chyros has, with angled DIN connector, his is labeled KB-101A and mine is KB-101AS anyone know what the difference could be?Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/DVQfGfL.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/JNDw3ib.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/2jToKaZ.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/95Kkb6F.jpg)
I wonder if theres a place that i could pay to add red dyesub Russian Cyrillic legends to the keycaps.
Damn that's a great find. I'm really digging that keyboard. So happy to see people enjoying the boards instead of stripping em for the SKCM Blues. I'm pretty guilty for stripping boards I should have left alone but I will say for my Blues, I grabbed em out of some random Clone XT board.
Quote from: HoffmanMysterIs it normal to not love Alps right away? :-XFirst, some people don’t like any Alps-style switches ever. For instance, Dorkvader, who is a buckling spring and hall effect fan.
[...]
It's got Matias quiet clicks in it. I like the tactility of them, but they feel too tactile for their own good (read: they are too light). :-/ Maybe it just because I need to adjust? I'm coming from 45g Topre at the moment.
Also, they don't seem to be entirely consistent with the tactility, but maybe that's just me imagining things.
They’re very different from Topre switches. Topre has a kind of “rounded” tactile feel, without any clear sharp snap point. Matias quiet switches are much crisper, with a huge drop in force after the tactile point. Topre switches also give you some bounce on the upstroke from the dome un-buckling, something Matias switches don’t do.
The dampers in Matias quiet switches make them a bit spongey at bottom out, and combined with the lack of sound that’s something some people dislike. You could try typing on someone’s board with undamped switches to see if that makes a difference, though if you like Topre that part is probably not a big deal.
Also, Matias switches are pretty wobbly front to back, much more than complicated Alps switches, and will click slightly differently depending on the press angle (e.g. if you press down on different keycap corners you’ll get slightly different sound/feel). Some people can’t get over the wobble, but it doesn’t really bother me personally.
Personally I don’t like typing on any Topre boards, so I’m the probably the wrong person to ask though. :-)
Haven’t you tried typing on people’s Alps keyboards at Keycon and other meetups? What did you think then?
Quote from: HoffmanMysterIs it normal to not love Alps right away? :-XFirst, some people don’t like any Alps-style switches ever. For instance, Dorkvader, who is a buckling spring and hall effect fan.
[...]
It's got Matias quiet clicks in it. I like the tactility of them, but they feel too tactile for their own good (read: they are too light). :-/ Maybe it just because I need to adjust? I'm coming from 45g Topre at the moment.
Also, they don't seem to be entirely consistent with the tactility, but maybe that's just me imagining things.
They’re very different from Topre switches. Topre has a kind of “rounded” tactile feel, without any clear sharp snap point. Matias quiet switches are much crisper, with a huge drop in force after the tactile point. Topre switches also give you some bounce on the upstroke from the dome un-buckling, something Matias switches don’t do.
The dampers in Matias quiet switches make them a bit spongey at bottom out, and combined with the lack of sound that’s something some people dislike. You could try typing on someone’s board with undamped switches to see if that makes a difference, though if you like Topre that part is probably not a big deal.
Also, Matias switches are pretty wobbly front to back, much more than complicated Alps switches, and will click slightly differently depending on the press angle (e.g. if you press down on different keycap corners you’ll get slightly different sound/feel). Some people can’t get over the wobble, but it doesn’t really bother me personally.
Personally I don’t like typing on any Topre boards, so I’m the probably the wrong person to ask though. :-)
Haven’t you tried typing on people’s Alps keyboards at Keycon and other meetups? What did you think then?
I have tried many Alps boards at various KeyCons and meetups (and have another of my own, as mentioned). My experience with Alps was very cautious at first since I really didn't like anything about them, but then as I tried more and more boards I found variations I like and the switch in general grew on me. I have never used Matias switches before, at least not knowingly, that I can recall.
The different actuation/pressure points of Alps switches have always thrown me, so maybe that's a major contributing factor here. I'll just need to give the board some time and see how it goes. :thumb:
Oh and I'm definitely a fan of clicky switches in general (I love the worn blues in my Dolch board), so I don't think my aversion is solely because I'm used to Topre vs clicky switches. But maybe it is Topre vs clicky/tactile Alps?
Regardless, I'm excited for this first foray into the world of custom Alps. :D
I don't like blue alps as much as model f or even cherry blue. Brown alps seem promising though need to get around to making something with them
My experience with Alps was very cautious at first since I really didn't like anything about them, but then as I tried more and more boards I found variations I like and the switch in general grew on me.Any that you can remember liking in particular?
Oh and I'm definitely a fan of clicky switches in general (I love the worn blues in my Dolch board),You might try clicky SMK (“Monterey blue”) switches, which are not quite like Alps or Alps clone switches, but take Alps-compatible keycaps. My personal opinion is that these are sort of "the concept of Cherry MX blue but done right.” To use these in a custom board you’d need an MX plate with square holes and either hand wiring or a custom PCB on the back.
Does an Alps number pad count?Is that the rare alpsulator?Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/G1LvG0v.jpg)
Does an Alps number pad count?Is that the rare alpsulator?Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/G1LvG0v.jpg)
My experience with Alps was very cautious at first since I really didn't like anything about them, but then as I tried more and more boards I found variations I like and the switch in general grew on me.Any that you can remember liking in particular?
Personally, I wouldn’t use Matias quiet click or cream Alps switches anywhere except an open office setting with coworkers who insisted against keyboard noise. I like them okay, but I really appreciate audio feedback when typing.
If you’re going for tactile, perhaps get a cheap Apple M0116 with orange Alps switches as a donor board.
Or if you want something closer to a 55g Topre feel on the downstroke, brown Alps have a more “rounded” type of tactile feel (but are too stiff for me personally).QuoteOh and I'm definitely a fan of clicky switches in general (I love the worn blues in my Dolch board),You might try clicky SMK (“Monterey blue”) switches, which are not quite like Alps or Alps clone switches, but take Alps-compatible keycaps. My personal opinion is that these are sort of "the concept of Cherry MX blue but done right.” To use these in a custom board you’d need an MX plate with square holes and either hand wiring or a custom PCB on the back.
Complicated blue Alps switches are also very nice, a much more elegant soft clicky switch than either of those, with in particular a really nice sound.
Another switch you might be interested in, though it’s substantially different than Alps SKCM (“complicated Alps”) is the Alps plate spring switch. You can find them in IBM P70 or P75 luggables. I really like them. These have a coil spring over a buckling plate spring similar to IBM beam spring switches or Marquardt switches, but not as stiff. This results in a snappy upstroke when the plate spring unbuckles, somewhat similar to the upstroke when a Topre dome unbuckles but more tactile. However, if you want to make a custom board out of them you’ll need to design a new PCB or chop the one they come in down to size (the latter might be easier as they’re a huge pain in the ass to desolder, with four bent-down leads per switch).
Does an Alps number pad count?Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/G1LvG0v.jpg)
MoreA x-post from the GB thread so more people can revel in my glory.And now it is time for me to do my little reveal.
My GB has been built upon some lies.
It was never about the Alps, and it was never about me.
So why did I do it?
...to make the best Christmas present ever.
So here is how the con went down. It was the middle of August when I was trying to stay on top of the game. I was racking my brain, trying to figure out a great Christmas gift idea for the girlfriend. You see, last year she got me a Tom Baker scarf. Never heard of it? There is a whole website (http://www.doctorwhoscarf.com/) dedicated to researching the colors and lengths used to replicate this iconic bit of knit extravagance. And she didn't just go on Etsy and pay a few hundred $$$ for some subpar knockoff. No, she hand-knit the entire thing. She had secretly knit every day for months on the bus, between work, at home, this 18 foot monstrosity. It was genius. I refused to be outdone.
So I decided to give her this gift.
In the middle of August, I put feelers out to a few select individuals about making this happen. The next day, the IC was up. After a month of ****ering over the details, the GB went live on Sept. 23rd. At the end of that month, I realized I would need stabilizers to complete my goal, so I started a SECOND IC/GB to raise interest. By the 5th of October, I was shutting down the entries. I had a deadline to make, and I didn't have time to let stragglers hold me back. I started the ordering process before I had all of the invoices paid, risking my own cash to front the bill and keep things moving full steam. Things started rolling in during the last half of November. By December, I didn't have any room left in my living room. I spent hours getting everything sorted and taken care of before finally building my boards.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/TR1aCit.jpg)
Some folks politely suggested when I first started running this that I was overstepping my bounds by making a catch-all GB for first time. I quietly assured them that I was competent, not revealing my true motives. I had to get all of the parts built for my boards by December. I couldn't wait for someone else to run a plate buy while someone else ran the PCB buy, leaving me hoping that everything turned out ok. I had to take fate into my own hands. I had to be the collected resource.
I spent a lot of time doing the extracurricular projects for this GB. I made cute little photoshopped headers to advertise the sale. I sculpted and produced a limited run of caps from scratch so people could get excited about a little contest to encourage them to participate. I made sure to answer as many questions as possible as soon as possible, so much that my advisor started getting frustrated by the time I was spending on this, rather than my research. I had to have the support of the participants. I needed to draw you in.
The girlfriend knew I was working on this. I couldn't hide it from her. I was spending hours of my time making sure everything went smoothly. But she never knew. I placated her with lies about how I was doing this for selfish keyboard greed. I told her about every move I made save the most critical ones. She never saw it coming. I told her I was making the board blue because it was related to my screenname, not that I made them blue because it is her favorite color. I got a little Cherry switch tester early on and had her tell me about which switch she liked most. I used that information to choose to make an Alps board. She didn't know that they were a thing, and she didn't know that she was describing qualities about the switches she liked which happened to match the Alps peculiarities.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/Nvhl34f.jpg)
I took more time than I expected when etching the cases. Each hand scrawled engraving needed to have something personal to connect each board, his and hers, to each other. A half-heart outlined as yin on one side; a half-heart shaded in as yang on the other. Names. A cat snuggling a tufted titmouse, myself and my ornithologist respectively. Little symbols that have meaning only to us. For her I doodled and practiced to get them just the way I wanted.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/PSdium1.jpg)
The reveal to her when she unwrapped it was worth it all. The box contained her keyboard, but not her gift.
"The keyboard wasn't her gift?", you ask yourself.
No.
Like Helen of Troy, her gift was something more than a golden apple trinket.I raised an army for her.
So there you have it. My big reveal. All of you were pawns in my game all along. I can look back and say this now, because I took pains to make sure the only thing I gained from this was the support of my minions. I took no profit. I took no easy path. I hope no one feels too betrayed by this. I may not be the Alps crusader you assumed or the GB messiah I strove to be, but I still hope you enjoyed the ride.
I'm typing on my half of the whole now. I really do like it. I get a special sort of joy every time I use it. I have even been writing more because I enjoy the board so much.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/ww7iAFA.jpg)
To all of you, thanks for helping me achieve my goal.
Scheming nalgene? What's going on?
Also, here is my brown alps videowriter
(Attachment Link)
Scheming nalgene? What's going on?
Also, here is my brown alps videowriter
(Attachment Link)
Didn't know brown alps came in anything other than IBM 5140s. How much was it if you don't mind me asking? I'd love a cheaper way to get brown alps.
Scheming nalgene? What's going on?
Also, here is my brown alps videowriter
(Attachment Link)
Didn't know brown alps came in anything other than IBM 5140s. How much was it if you don't mind me asking? I'd love a cheaper way to get brown alps.
Today I learned: Brown Alps aren't limited to IBM 5140s and the other boards listed here (https://deskthority.net/wiki/Alps_SKCM_Brown#Keyboards).
Scheming nalgene? What's going on?
Also, here is my brown alps videowriter
(Attachment Link)
Didn't know brown alps came in anything other than IBM 5140s. How much was it if you don't mind me asking? I'd love a cheaper way to get brown alps.
Today I learned: Brown Alps aren't limited to IBM 5140s and the other boards listed here (https://deskthority.net/wiki/Alps_SKCM_Brown#Keyboards).
Some early 80s Texas Instruments keyboards had either tactile or linear brown Alps as well.
It is starting to seem like the Xerox 6085 keyboards, an older brother to the Xerox Docutech (for tactile green Alps) keyboards have brown tactile Alps as well.
There's a brown tactile TI keyboard on TaoBao right now. It's got a good portion of its caps broken off, so you'll have to perform some surgery to get them out of the Alps sliders and who knows what state the switches are in, but you would get around 100 of them. Cheap price if not for EMS shipping.Show Image(https://gd2.alicdn.com/imgextra/i2/725692091/TB2UzRbkXXXXXXRXXXXXXXXXXXX_!!725692091.jpg)
https://item.taobao.com/item.htm?spm=a230r.1.14.127.hv3oyU&id=526983266788&ns=1&abbucket=20#detail
Also note the strange cap profile. Is that a match to the AEK profile I wonder? Very nice, but disgusting yellow, condition in general, and the F and J keys have the oddest kind of home row indentifiers ever.
Nice yellow keycaps :)
Also interesting FJ markers.
Nice yellow keycaps :)
Also interesting FJ markers.
They're so yellow, it looks like they were designed to be that color. :P
Think I can finally call this finished, now that it has a new badge (thanks E3E!) and some GH caps (thanks JD!)
This board had a ridiculous amount of ping when I got it, so I not only lubed the springs after cleaning out the switches, but took a page out of the Model F book and cut neoprene foam to fit between the PCB and plate. No more ping and it retains the flex it has due to the way the plate is mounted to the top of the case that was lost when I had padded the case with dampening foam. I've been slacking on putting a small build log together, but I might get to that eventually.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/9S1d1ek.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/01lCG3G.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/qTbY6mo.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/gicUmAT.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/2Xdod1q.jpg)
looks like that was a lot of work! Really nice!
Think I can finally call this finished, now that it has a new badge (thanks E3E!) and some GH caps (thanks JD!)
This board had a ridiculous amount of ping when I got it, so I not only lubed the springs after cleaning out the switches, but took a page out of the Model F book and cut neoprene foam to fit between the PCB and plate. No more ping and it retains the flex it has due to the way the plate is mounted to the top of the case that was lost when I had padded the case with dampening foam. I've been slacking on putting a small build log together, but I might get to that eventually.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/9S1d1ek.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/01lCG3G.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/qTbY6mo.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/gicUmAT.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/2Xdod1q.jpg)
Think I can finally call this finished, now that it has a new badge (thanks E3E!) and some GH caps (thanks JD!)
This board had a ridiculous amount of ping when I got it, so I not only lubed the springs after cleaning out the switches, but took a page out of the Model F book and cut neoprene foam to fit between the PCB and plate. No more ping and it retains the flex it has due to the way the plate is mounted to the top of the case that was lost when I had padded the case with dampening foam. I've been slacking on putting a small build log together, but I might get to that eventually.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/9S1d1ek.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/01lCG3G.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/qTbY6mo.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/gicUmAT.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/2Xdod1q.jpg)
Cool man! Nice to see the finishing touches on that restoration/personalization. What did you paint the plate with? :D
Also, what was your source for the neoprene foam? That's a fantastic idea. Did you cut that all out by hand? How does one go about that process?
Yeah, the cool thing about any metal-backed boards is that they're typically always top-mounted like that because the metal portion is usually just a simple stamped sheet, so it has no stand-offs. I'm not sure which I like more, top or bottom mounted PCBs, but I definitely like metal-backed vintages. :)
Do you use this one a lot, pr0xy?
Think I can finally call this finished, now that it has a new badge (thanks E3E!) and some GH caps (thanks JD!)That's just awesome man
This board had a ridiculous amount of ping when I got it, so I not only lubed the springs after cleaning out the switches, but took a page out of the Model F book and cut neoprene foam to fit between the PCB and plate. No more ping and it retains the flex it has due to the way the plate is mounted to the top of the case that was lost when I had padded the case with dampening foam. I've been slacking on putting a small build log together, but I might get to that eventually.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/9S1d1ek.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/01lCG3G.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/qTbY6mo.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/gicUmAT.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/2Xdod1q.jpg)
Think I can finally call this finished, now that it has a new badge (thanks E3E!) and some GH caps (thanks JD!)
This board had a ridiculous amount of ping when I got it, so I not only lubed the springs after cleaning out the switches, but took a page out of the Model F book and cut neoprene foam to fit between the PCB and plate. No more ping and it retains the flex it has due to the way the plate is mounted to the top of the case that was lost when I had padded the case with dampening foam. I've been slacking on putting a small build log together, but I might get to that eventually.
My production Monarch in Burnt Bronze with SKCM Blues ;DShow Image(http://i.imgur.com/2g1EjGZ.jpg)
(https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1680/26021756695_b18fdcdda4_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/FDsiFv)
(https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1680/26021756695_b18fdcdda4_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/FDsiFv)
(https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1680/26021756695_b18fdcdda4_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/FDsiFv)
This will be mine soon but with the Tai-Hao Aruz switch :3The keycaps is really thick maneShow Image(http://i.imgur.com/3WVl9gz.jpg)
Mainly got it for the awesome caps!Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/jOXLSoW.jpg)
(https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1680/26021756695_b18fdcdda4_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/FDsiFv)
Brotherman, tell me you like it more than Cherry! DO IT NAAAAO! :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: >:D >:D >:D
Looking good though. Got some caps from a beige SGI Granite, eh? Where are the extra arrow keys from that you used for the 1u spaces on the bottom row? :D
And nice touch with the Zenith sticker! You've resurrected the ZKB-2 with the Orion v2!
Dayum !Show Image(http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160325/59c1487e7a17e37c57bdf3ac4fee863a.jpg)
Dat keyboard...
Really really beautiful mane!
That badge is a nice touch!
This will be mine soon but with the Tai-Hao Aruz switch :3Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/3WVl9gz.jpg)
Mainly got it for the awesome caps!Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/jOXLSoW.jpg)
It's finished.... My Orion v2 w/ SKCL greens and a SKCL yellow on spacebar :cool: :cool:
Doubleshot alps are not rare but thick doubleshot alps are rare.This will be mine soon but with the Tai-Hao Aruz switch :3Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/3WVl9gz.jpg)
Mainly got it for the awesome caps!Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/jOXLSoW.jpg)
ohhh thats sick didn't know they made double shot alps
My production Monarch in Burnt Bronze with SKCM Blues ;DI really like this keyboard! Maybe I'll see one in the future :)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/2g1EjGZ.jpg)
Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/p291HVR.jpg)
From first to last. The F row on this contains the first Alps novelties ever made as far as I can tell on geekhack as well as the latest.
Escape through F10 are from booper's cmykeydelic sale (http://omniclectic.com/blog/57-cmykeydelic-sale) which went down a couple weeks ago.
F11 and F12 came off a geekhack spacesaver (https://web.archive.org/web/20130425061614/http://5k177keyboards.wordpress.com/2010/11/26/the-geek-hack-space-saver-available-now) which as far as I can tell, was one of the earliest GBs on geekhack which included custom stuff. Came with a canvas bag and some Alps doubleshots (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=42602.0), which were definitely the first Alps novelties ever made....I think lol.
Plus the board just looks lovely ;).
Great looking board CPT! Very jealous of all the custom alps love. I wish I could find a set of those green caps from the OG buy, love the shade of green.
Sadly, this guy doesn't see much use anymore. :'(Show Image(https://i.imgur.com/nQvPafW.jpg)
Its the bottom one for those unaware.
the only pic I have of the sweet sweet board.
Thanks bud, It's click modded damp creams.Sadly, this guy doesn't see much use anymore. :'(Show Image(https://i.imgur.com/nQvPafW.jpg)
Its the bottom one for those unaware.
the only pic I have of the sweet sweet board.
That bottom one is the one that caught my eye, too. Looks lovely. What switches?
Thanks bud, It's click modded damp creams.Sadly, this guy doesn't see much use anymore. :'(Show Image(https://i.imgur.com/nQvPafW.jpg)
Its the bottom one for those unaware.
the only pic I have of the sweet sweet board.
That bottom one is the one that caught my eye, too. Looks lovely. What switches?
Sent from my local payphone
I like em alot! I know they're not popular among Alps enthusiasts though.Thanks bud, It's click modded damp creams.Sadly, this guy doesn't see much use anymore. :'(Show Image(https://i.imgur.com/nQvPafW.jpg)
Its the bottom one for those unaware.
the only pic I have of the sweet sweet board.
That bottom one is the one that caught my eye, too. Looks lovely. What switches?
Sent from my local payphone
What do you think of them? I pulled some to click mod for a 60% (if I can get a plate), but have been thinking about maybe using something else.
I only have 2 Alps boards left. GHSS and Filco Zero. GHSS is basically a vintage SIIG Minitouch with some customizations made available to members of Geek Hack some years back (2010 IIRC) by didjamatic via his website (5k177). It has built in numpad layer and dedicated arrow keys.
Excerption from his blog:
"The original, Vintage SIIG Minitouch is one of the smallest, if not the smallest fully mechanical keyboard ever made. Not to be confused with the later made Minitouch Plus which is not a mechanical keyboard. The Original, Vintage SIIG Minitouch is incredibly well built, very sturdy and houses ALPS-style micro switches that Northgate and Vintage keyboard fans have touted for decades. These particular switches provide very tactile response and a distinct audible click that is very clean compared to many variations of ALPS switches. These don't have the "frictiony" feel that many sliders have."
Geek Hack Space SaverShow Image(http://i.imgur.com/gAYjUAz.jpg)
Filco Zero is well, it's a Filco. lol Oh and it's discontinued. :)
From Keyboardco:
The Zero Series "Tenkeyless" has the same reduced footprint 87 key form as Majestouch models, but instead uses clicky XM white mechanical switches. N-key Rollover is standard functionality and this board has textured keycaps.
N-key Rollover allows multiple simultaneous key presses to be recognized by your computer. True N-key Rollover works only with the included PS/2 adapter. Using the USB connection will limit the N-key Rollover function to 6 keys at a time. USB with PS/2 adapter (PS/2 must be used for full N-key Rollover).
- 87 Key US ANSI Layout
- XM White key switches with clicky mechanical feel, 3.5mm travel, 20 million actuations
- Blue LEDs
Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/414XzPl.jpg)
nice. I soon will show off my LZ GH with SKCM brown alps
****ing sorry I've said this so much. If hat bothers you you have way to much to complain about.
:eek: :-X >:D
how do you keep doing it E3E? That is the coolest NCR adaptation I have ever seen.
Also are those FAME caps? I would love a set of those. I guess you were the guy that Dra sent them to?
I never noticed the little wrist incline on the NCR case... Looks nice.
Is the |\ key from the fame or the cherry ?
Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/CZeCBbN.jpg)
Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/CZeCBbN.jpg)
(This thread has died down a bit, so time to bump it.)
I simply love how LEDs shine through F and J keys. Might even be useful in dark :D
Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/CZeCBbN.jpg)
(This thread has died down a bit, so time to bump it.)
I simply love how LEDs shine through F and J keys. Might even be useful in dark :D
Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/CZeCBbN.jpg)
(This thread has died down a bit, so time to bump it.)
I simply love how LEDs are discernible on F and J keys. Might even be useful in dark :D
Recently, I was lucky to find two Leading Edge DC-3014 boards in rapid succession. I've installed an internal converter and micro-USB connector on each of them.
(Attachment Link)
For the moment, I am keeping the stock keycaps and case finish on one, but I've painted the case and changed keycaps on the other (SGI Granite dye-sub PBT alphas along with caps from a Tai-Hao DS WoB set and blank black keys and spacebar from Matias).
(Attachment Link)
The logo badge on the red one was scratched when I received it; I might replace it with a badge from an extra DC-2014 case.
Mixing apples with orangesShow Image(http://i.imgur.com/s6Po0rW.jpg?1)
Mixing apples with orangesShow Image(http://i.imgur.com/s6Po0rW.jpg?1)
Yo, alh, your boards are losing weight. :eek:
New Apple tribute Alps64 I just finished this morning.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/3TG6Ojm.jpg)
Big thanks to emdude for helping out with the plate design.
There seems to be some kind of rift in the space-time continuum that sends these bits and pieces to a parallel universe.
I'm saving the brown components in case I want to reverse the process. I haven't quite decided if I prefer the much lighter feel of the brown to blue transformants. However, if I do decide to part with the brown bits, XMIT has already spoken for them.
That reminds me of this one time that I lost a space invaders spring. It just shot out of the switch, and I looked everywhere. I finally gave up and decided that F24 key will be sacrificed at the altar of keyboard-space-time gods. I found it peeking at me innocuosly couple of days later on the blanket on my bed. The same bed I feverishly moved around and looked inside of and under, and the same blanket I took off the bed and shaked a few times. There's no logical explanation for it. Except maybe for it to get stuck in my clothes or something. So that's the first thing I do now, stay still and check the clothes :)
@Hypersphere luckily I got another batch of 60-odd SKCM Browns coming in. I was asking more because I now you always play around with the Alps parts :)
@E3E pine spring is different from bamboo SKCM greens? and I always forget if it's the same with tactile leaf as well.
I wish I had those problems :))
Too bad the spring is different, as I already thought about making ghetto pine greens by putting bamboo spring into browns :)
Haha, and I just mentioned that to someone else about an hour ago, that lighter springs don't necessarily mean much difference in browns.
So, if tactile leaves are the same and springs are not having much of an impact, what is the main cause of difference between pine and bamboo? Slider material?
So, SKCM Brown + bamboo top case + black bamboo spring = ghetto bamboo green? Damn, I wish I hadn't sold my SKCM black board :)
Yep, I agree. I first noticed the pine/bamboo difference when I got a Northgate Omnikey 101 with SKCM white Alps in pristine condition. I was surprised that the board had clattering keys, almost like those in my V60 with Matias Click switches. It turned out that the new Northgate had bamboo white switches. I replaced the bamboo tops with pine tops and the sound was transformed -- it sounded like my older Northgate with pine white switches. Apparently, the slits in pine switches create a little cantilevered plastic spring in the switch top that partially absorbs the shock of the return stroke of the slider, thereby attenuating the return-stroke "clack" (well, at least that's a theory).Haha, and I just mentioned that to someone else about an hour ago, that lighter springs don't necessarily mean much difference in browns.
So, if tactile leaves are the same and springs are not having much of an impact, what is the main cause of difference between pine and bamboo? Slider material?
Yeah, lighter springs are pretty ineffective in tactile browns and greens, sadly.
Nope, when talking about pine vs bamboo SKCM Green, it's almost certainly the slits in the top housing; if you put pine housings on bamboos, they will feel practically identical.
SKCM blue AlpsulatorShow Image(http://i.imgur.com/2u33FBT.png)
PSA: taking apart an Alpsulator is not recommended, you have to almost break it to get the pcb out
SKCM blue AlpsulatorShow Image(http://i.imgur.com/2u33FBT.png)
PSA: taking apart an Alpsulator is not recommended, you have to almost break it to get the pcb out
That came out awesome though!
Finished this alps64 build a little while ago, but finally got around to setting up the firmware..Congratulations on your project! Looks good!Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/qfvrUDZ.jpg)
Alps64 PCB
SGI Bigfoot keycaps + plate
Matias QC switches
Royal Glam case
I truly love this board though, growing up around early days CG I've always had a place in my heart for SGI. This was the dream project that got me into the hobby and I'm super happy to be using it daily.
Finished this alps64 build a little while ago, but finally got around to setting up the firmware..Congratulations on your project! Looks good!Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/qfvrUDZ.jpg)
Alps64 PCB
SGI Bigfoot keycaps + plate
Matias QC switches
Royal Glam case
I truly love this board though, growing up around early days CG I've always had a place in my heart for SGI. This was the dream project that got me into the hobby and I'm super happy to be using it daily.
I once had an SGI octane in my lab; it was my first molecular modeling workstation, runing Irix (of course!).
Although technically Matias, not ALPS, I'm happy with how this came out.Sharp looking V60MTS-C! What brand of alu case did you use? What's lurking in the background with the split spacebar?
KBParadise V60 in Matias Clicky flavour. High-profile aluminium case, Alpine Winter DCS caps:Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/gtdvMbS.jpg)
Although technically Matias, not ALPS, I'm happy with how this came out.Sharp looking V60MTS-C! What brand of alu case did you use? What's lurking in the background with the split spacebar?
KBParadise V60 in Matias Clicky flavour. High-profile aluminium case, Alpine Winter DCS caps:Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/gtdvMbS.jpg)
Thanks! I'm not sure what brand the case is to be honest, it may just be a Chinese one, but it feels good and the quality is great. Got it from MechBoards.co.uk:Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/dOesVNr.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/ykRij59.jpg)
Although it's not visible in the photo, the DIP switches are all accessible and the Mini USB port lines up perfectly. I was only able to use 3 of the cases mounting points due to the design of the plate/PCB, but it seems to sit securely, allbeit with a slight recess around the plate. I padded the case with wrapping foam too to dampen the sound, it's a noticeable improvement from before.
The board in the background is my MiniVan, which I got a couple of months ago, absolutely love it. It came built, with MOD-L switches. I rearranged some caps and programmed and flashed my own layout / layers, which was a good first experience.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/qEjOjxL.jpg)
First alps board!Show Image(http://img4.hostingpics.net/pics/558357IMG3001.jpg)
First alps board!Show Image(http://img4.hostingpics.net/pics/558357IMG3001.jpg)
I didn't know the VE.A PCB supported alps, I would've bought one had I known.
First alps board!Show Image(http://img4.hostingpics.net/pics/558357IMG3001.jpg)
I didn't know the VE.A PCB supported alps, I would've bought one had I known.
Aww, that's a shame. It does! I didn't get one, but yep, it does indeed. I'm actually working on hot swap modding one for Alps switches for a customer of mine this week.
Today installed new switches into a dell AT101w. i chose to install brown alps switches because i ran across an old at&t terminal keyboard that had brown alps switches. i thought that they felt better than the black ones that were in it originally.That's quite an understatement! Black Alps are arguably the worst-feeling switches in the Alps lineup, whereas brown Alps have a unique tautness and pronounced tactility. The only drawback to brown Alps is that some people find them too stiff for prolonged typing sessions. In any event, you've made an excellent swap. Enjoy your transformed Dell!
(Attachment Link)
Today installed new switches into a dell AT101w. i chose to install brown alps switches because i ran across an old at&t terminal keyboard that had brown alps switches. i thought that they felt better than the black ones that were in it originally.That's quite an understatement! Black Alps are arguably the worst-feeling switches in the Alps lineup, whereas brown Alps have a unique tautness and pronounced tactility. The only drawback to brown Alps is that some people find them too stiff for prolonged typing sessions. In any event, you've made an excellent swap. Enjoy your transformed Dell!
(Attachment Link)
Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/Vgr9HPd.jpg)
Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/Vgr9HPd.jpg)
When I finally build a board with my SKCM Browns I want it to look this good.
Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/Vgr9HPd.jpg)
When I finally build a board with my SKCM Browns I want it to look this good.
Oranges are fine but they're no replacement for SKCM Browns.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/Vgr9HPd.jpg)
When I finally build a board with my SKCM Browns I want it to look this good.
you got me hooked on those browns at the asheville meet... i've been searching since and haven't been able to find any :'( I've got a alps plate and pcb coming for my LZ CLS thats going to get browns (or greens) and most likely a clean set of SGI granite caps - eventually. :thumb: I do have a set of Orange from an AEK that might suffice. I do love the Salmon minivan i have but its definitely got that irritating "off-center press sticky switch thing".
Yeah true. I'm going to get them cleaned up and see how they go.
CPT, miss that dude's antics... I wonder what he's been up to this year.
I blame CPTBADASS for hyping SKCM blues. Browns I think I just discovered them. I tried ambers recently but they were really dirty, so I can't say. IBM still made the best clicky switchI still really like SKCM blues though, mine feel crisp and buttery smooth. Certainly better than any clicky MX style switch.
Long time lurker, first time poster. I am most active on r/mechanicalkeyboards as u/thebeephaha but found this thread and wanted to share.:thumb:
Here's my Alps Brown build:Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/AlVId2S.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/7NXhwjd.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/3321XET.jpg)
Long time lurker, first time poster. I am most active on r/mechanicalkeyboards as u/thebeephaha but found this thread and wanted to share.I recognize that big ass stepped enter from meetup!
Here's my Alps Brown build:Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/AlVId2S.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/7NXhwjd.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/3321XET.jpg)
Snip
Likewise dude, lovely boards btw!
On the hunt for the rest of my Alps switches now ;D
Yeah probably Orange tactiles, I tried Rory's spring-swapped ones before I left and they were perfect
Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/JhLZFen.jpg)
A little blue number
Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/JhLZFen.jpg)
A little blue number
what's the right shift key from on this..
Fat Alps!
Texas Instruments Business-Pro Keyboard from 1985
(Attachment Link)
(Attachment Link)
(Attachment Link)
Full post here:
https://imgur.com/a/gl1DS
https://deskthority.net/photos-videos-f64/texas-instruments-low-profile-customizable-layout-fat-brown-alps-t17569.html
That is an impressive collection of Alps boards.
A couple more of mine.
Prism N5 (BSI branded) portable computer keyboard
(Attachment Link)
Ortek MCK-142 Pro
(Attachment Link)
That is an impressive collection of Alps boards.
A couple more of mine.
Prism N5 (BSI branded) portable computer keyboard
(Attachment Link)
Ortek MCK-142 Pro
(Attachment Link)
Oh?
There is no Windows key in " Prism " v1.
Is it mixed with v1 and v2 ?
Think I can finally call this finished, now that it has a new badge (thanks E3E!) and some GH caps (thanks JD!)
This board had a ridiculous amount of ping when I got it, so I not only lubed the springs after cleaning out the switches, but took a page out of the Model F book and cut neoprene foam to fit between the PCB and plate. No more ping and it retains the flex it has due to the way the plate is mounted to the top of the case that was lost when I had padded the case with dampening foam. I've been slacking on putting a small build log together, but I might get to that eventually.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/9S1d1ek.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/01lCG3G.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/qTbY6mo.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/gicUmAT.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/2Xdod1q.jpg)
SKCM blue swapped v60, mostly Wang keycaps, and all my alps artisans
(Attachment Link)
Very nice! Is that the V60 I sold you?
Chicony KB-5160AT
(Attachment Link)
(Attachment Link)
(Attachment Link)
(Attachment Link)
(Attachment Link)
(Attachment Link)
Chicony KB-5160AT
Show Image(https://i.imgur.com/1Ws3CuP.jpg)Show Image(https://i.imgur.com/h00cJ4K.jpg)
Siiick, really wish my set of Alpine winter had the arrow keys. How did you mount the 6.5u spacebar with cherry stabilizers?
Siiick, really wish my set of Alpine winter had the arrow keys. How did you mount the 6.5u spacebar with cherry stabilizers?
I bent it myself! I've got a ton of wyse boards that have 10u stab wires. It usually takes me 2-3 tries to get it right. I was originally planning on using the 6u spacebar with the build so I could use a full 1.25u bottom row, but the spacing on that 6u bar is nonstandard and wasn't compatible with the plate or pcb iirc. Somehow I didn't know that Alpine Winter had a 6.5u spacebar and I really didn't want to build it with a 6.25u spacebar as I didn't like the non symmetry of the bottom row with that layout so I ended up building the board with a JIS bottom row.Show Image(https://i.imgur.com/jY18ReA.jpg)
About a week ago I found the 6.5u spacebar and decided to rebuild the board with a more standard bottom row as I couldn't get accustomed to the split spacebar. The spacing seemed really awkward to me and my thumb would end up pressing almost perfectly between the two spacebars.
Show Image(https://i.imgur.com/Uf9wyU8.gif)
Show Image(https://i.imgur.com/RmX0yj9.jpg)
Show Image(https://i.imgur.com/Uf9wyU8.gif)
neat looking, what case is this? and is that foam dampener on the plate?
Show Image(https://i.imgur.com/Uf9wyU8.gif)
neat looking, what case is this? and is that foam dampener on the plate?
looks like a GSKT-00 and i am about 80% sure that that's some weird plate material (some kind of plastic?) as opposed to foam on the plate
Show Image(https://i.imgur.com/Uf9wyU8.gif)
neat looking, what case is this? and is that foam dampener on the plate?
looks like a GSKT-00 and i am about 80% sure that that's some weird plate material (some kind of plastic?) as opposed to foam on the plate
It is indeed a GSKT-00 and the plate is ABS.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Show Image(https://i.imgur.com/Uf9wyU8.gif)
Show Image(https://i.imgur.com/Uf9wyU8.gif)
Hard want.
Not the best pic but whatever.
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Just a few from this year.
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That is an absolute unit of a board. Where'd you find it?
Is that a Chinese keyboard? I mean a keyboard that outputs Chinese :eek:
Is that a Chinese keyboard? I mean a keyboard that outputs Chinese :eek:
It's a Japanese Kanji keyboard with many borrowed Chinese characters!
https://www.japan-experience.com/to-know/some-vocabulary/kanji
https://deskthority.net/viewtopic.php?t=21937
Hey guys,
Two years ago when I started this hobby, I found this photo in the old family album and I was determined to find the keyboard within the pictures but couldn't figure it out. So I was asking around and later got information that it called "Datacomp DFK101". So my hunt has begin, trying to find this Datacomp thingy.
Three months ago, I started asking "6664 Mech Keyboard Mod" (A Thai keyboard modder, you can find him on facebook) to help me find and restore this Datacomp DFK101. He happens to have the case laying around in his backyard. He calling up some people to hunting for PCB and vintage black coil so he can put this back for me. It has blue Alps switches and I love the feel and sound of the blue! What do you think? :)
Sorry for my English
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My firts build ever :Show Image(https://i.redd.it/pgjd6hkwh9h31.jpg)
https://imgur.com/gallery/hBCB9IV
(already posted on another post but I can’t resist, sorry.
Hey guys,
Two years ago when I started this hobby, I found this photo in the old family album and I was determined to find the keyboard within the pictures but couldn't figure it out. So I was asking around and later got information that it called "Datacomp DFK101". So my hunt has begin, trying to find this Datacomp thingy.
Three months ago, I started asking "6664 Mech Keyboard Mod" (A Thai keyboard modder, you can find him on facebook) to help me find and restore this Datacomp DFK101. He happens to have the case laying around in his backyard. He calling up some people to hunting for PCB and vintage black coil so he can put this back for me. It has blue Alps switches and I love the feel and sound of the blue! What do you think? :)
Sorry for my English
(Attachment Link)
Hey guys,
Two years ago when I started this hobby, I found this photo in the old family album and I was determined to find the keyboard within the pictures but couldn't figure it out. So I was asking around and later got information that it called "Datacomp DFK101". So my hunt has begin, trying to find this Datacomp thingy.
Three months ago, I started asking "6664 Mech Keyboard Mod" (A Thai keyboard modder, you can find him on facebook) to help me find and restore this Datacomp DFK101. He happens to have the case laying around in his backyard. He calling up some people to hunting for PCB and vintage black coil so he can put this back for me. It has blue Alps switches and I love the feel and sound of the blue! What do you think? :)
Sorry for my English
(Attachment Link)
PingJr Alps SKCC GreenShow Image(https://i.imgur.com/Vv495Ph.jpg)
Show Image(https://i.imgur.com/Obv12p1.jpg)Show Image(https://i.imgur.com/mM4yamg.jpg)
Made a blocker for Lunar. Not sure if I want to use it or not yet..
Show Image(https://i.imgur.com/Obv12p1.jpg)Show Image(https://i.imgur.com/mM4yamg.jpg)
Made a blocker for Lunar. Not sure if I want to use it or not yet..
Dang that's a really cool board
Where did you get those keycaps from?