[GB] Polaris - GB Complete

[nathanchere]

Bud, the WKL plate supports Tsangan, HHKB and WKL.. the other plate option was for universal which allowed for UK ISO.

The universal supports split space bar too which is what I want.

[Khers]

You can't go around being upset they don't have a plate you never ordered actively removed from your cart.

If you really want a specific plate that kbd currently don't have; the files are available, you could just have it cut yourself.

[SuddenlyDonkey]

Did anyone get a dead key on a PCB or have any PCB issues?

[syberghost]

Bud, the WKL plate supports Tsangan, HHKB and WKL.. the other plate option was for universal which allowed for UK ISO.

The universal supports split space bar too which is what I want.

There were only four plate configurations:

Full plate WKL
Full plate Universal
Half plate WKL
Half plate Universal

It sounds like your complaint is that you didn't receive something that nobody received because it didn't exist.

[nathanchere]

Bud, the WKL plate supports Tsangan, HHKB and WKL.. the other plate option was for universal which allowed for UK ISO.

The universal supports split space bar too which is what I want.

There were only four plate configurations:

Full plate WKL
Full plate Universal
Half plate WKL
Half plate Universal

It sounds like your complaint is that you didn't receive something that nobody received because it didn't exist.

Full plate universal doesn't exist?....

[nathanchere]

Universal plate, split space support.
WKL, no split space support.

[Banbu]

Show Image

Universal plate, split space support.
WKL, no split space support.

  Forgive me if I'm missing something, but the split spacebar support shown there is for a standard layout/top, and you've mentioned you bought HHKB? I don't believe it actually has support for split spacebar as HHKB. :(

[nathanchere]

Show Image

Universal plate, split space support.
WKL, no split space support.

  Forgive me if I'm missing something, but the split spacebar support shown there is for a standard layout/top, and you've mentioned you bought HHKB? I don't believe it actually has support for split spacebar as HHKB. :(

It works with 1u 1.25u to the left of the space bars which I prefer anyway

[syberghost]

Full plate universal doesn't exist?....

So now they are saying pay an extra $40, and my only choices are for a metal or FR4 plate (not what I wanted) in WKL (I ordered HHKB not WKL)
And you still think this is just 'user error'?

[oldcat]

Did anyone get a dead key on a PCB or have any PCB issues?

Better reach out to Wei, I am sure he will get it fixed or replaced for you. He is usually very fast in responding.

[zian_]

To make it more bull****, the latest email:

HI
Just pay USD$40  via PayPal directly
   Our PayPal account is kbdfans@gmail.com
   Then show me the payment record, we will add it for you

and we have 2 plates for choice , 1 WKL brass Full Steel gold one  2  WKL FR4 Full Steel
which one do u want ?

My payment confirmation included this:

[GB] Polaris 60% Keyboard × 1
E-White / HHKB / Black matte PVD
Plate: Universal Layout - Poly Full

So now they are saying pay an extra $40, and my only choices are for a metal or FR4 plate (not what I wanted) in WKL (I ordered HHKB not WKL)
And you still think this is just 'user error'?

I had the same issue and had to PP them $40. Definitely user error on our end. I don't even care at this point. I just want to board so I can be done with KBDfans.

[kidpid]

My payment confirmation included this:

[GB] Polaris 60% Keyboard × 1
E-White / HHKB / Black matte PVD
Plate: Universal Layout - Poly Full

The universal supports split space bar too which is what I want.

If you wanted split space then you probably shouldn't have ordered an HHKB case. The HHKB and WKL cases only support a 7u spacebar, and the the only split spacebar option is with a 6u spacebar. So the only reason to get a universal plate for an HHKB case would be to use an ISO enter and split left shift.

Nevermind, I'm wrong. It does work with the 1.25u keys on each side of the space, like you said.

[zian_]

KBDFans told me today that their manufacturer said they’d be complete at the end of the month?

[Aorozco6]

Jus out of curiosity am I the only one who still hasn’t gotten their shipping notification?

[ninjacore]

Jus out of curiosity am I the only one who still hasn’t gotten their shipping notification?

There are still some in discord who mentioned they haven't received theirs.

[1391401]

I thought manufacturing finished in January. WTF is going on.

probably COVID

[nathanchere]

KBDFans told me today that their manufacturer said they’d be complete at the end of the month?

I thought manufacturing finished in January. WTF is going on.

You're asking in the wrong thread. kbdfans can do no wrong here. This is clearly another in a 6+ month series of "user errors' 

[ai03]

Just received word from KBDfans and the factory:
Some units which arrived at KBDfans were showing imperfections on the weight; additional weights have been re-ordered to replace the faulty ones before the very last units ship.
This should not take too long, since it is just the weights and not a full case replacement.

[krautcat]

Jus out of curiosity am I the only one who still hasn’t gotten their shipping notification?

Greetings from Russia. We have shipping issues. Hope we would get our Polaris this year. 

[oldcat]

I thought manufacturing finished in January. WTF is going on.

probably COVID

To be fair we can't blame everything on Covid, as people tend to these days. Covid is long gone in China (only very small number of cases here and there) and the country is fully operational since early March. As long as we don't see a second wave in China I think manufacturing side will be solid.

In terms of keyboards and keysets that are made and to come out of China, the only things that Covid still affects are increased shipping costs and shipping delays.

[syberghost]

To be fair we can't blame everything on Covid, as people tend to these days. Covid is long gone in China (only very small number of cases here and there) and the country is fully operational since early March. As long as we don't see a second wave in China I think manufacturing side will be solid.

In terms of keyboards and keysets that are made and to come out of China, the only things that Covid still affects are increased shipping costs and shipping delays.

All of that is wrong, but in any event, all that's going on right now with Polaris is shipping delays, so...

[zian_]

Jus out of curiosity am I the only one who still hasn’t gotten their shipping notification?

Greetings from Russia. We have shipping issues. Hope we would get our Polaris this year. 

Same buddy. Same.

[1391401]

To be fair we can't blame everything on Covid, as people tend to these days.

I thought KBDfans said they're having problems shipping things and they were only allowed to ship so many keyboards a day? 

[zian_]

To be fair we can't blame everything on Covid, as people tend to these days.

I thought KBDfans said they're having problems shipping things and they were only allowed to ship so many keyboards a day?

Who knows. That's what they said. Then they told me it was shipping that week (over a month ago).

[Puddsy]

To be fair we can't blame everything on Covid, as people tend to these days.

I thought KBDfans said they're having problems shipping things and they were only allowed to ship so many keyboards a day?

AFAIK those restrictions are still in effect

[nathanchere]

Well mine finally arrived...

without any f**king plate at all  after being charged extra on top of it. Did anyone else who had to pay extra for the plate get it sent in the same parcel or do they send it separately?

[1391401]

I think everyone had to pay extra for a plate if they wanted a plate in that the plate was treated as a separate item which you had to add during checkout.  Copy/pasted my order below and everything came in one box together:

- Polaris 60% Keyboard - E-Yellow / Regular / Black matte PVD $265.00 USD
- Polaris 60% Plate - Universal Layout - Brass Full
---
Total: $308.15 USD

[nathanchere]

I was asked to pay separately and send the payment confirmation which i did. I went to check emails and found they sent this "confirmation" of delivery (attached) which no longer has the plate mentioned in the original confirmation email or the original PayPal receipt. FML...

[ninjacore]

https://imgur.com/a/jQaGqT5

I was never asked to pay extra for shipping - I remember hearing that and thought it was very shady/strange.

The plate does show up on my invoice as a separate line item.

[nsyinc]

I was asked to pay separately and send the payment confirmation which i did. I went to check emails and found they sent this "confirmation" of delivery (attached) which no longer has the plate mentioned in the original confirmation email or the original PayPal receipt. FML...

how soon did you paypal for the plate after receiving the initial email?

[xantiema]

Still haven't gotten a shipping notification  )

[Zach]

Still haven't gotten a shipping notification  )

Same.  I recently contacted them and was told it would be about 3 more weeks... but we'll see :]

[xantiema]

Same.  I recently contacted them and was told it would be about 3 more weeks... but we'll see :]

Great, will check back in 9 weeks then 

[krautcat]

I think we should target shipping time in the end of the year.

[ai03]

Hoping to see full delivery very soon.
All buyers still awaiting delivery have been contacted by KBDfans regarding the weight, which should help speed things up until the last of the units are complete.
As for the other logistical issues, I suggest contacting KBDfans; at this point this project is more or less entirely in their hands save for what I can do regarding assembly support.

[xantiema]

Hoping to see full delivery very soon.
All buyers still awaiting delivery have been contacted by KBDfans regarding the weight, which should help speed things up until the last of the units are complete.
As for the other logistical issues, I suggest contacting KBDfans; at this point this project is more or less entirely in their hands save for what I can do regarding assembly support.

Regarding the weight? Not in the loop. Also haven't been contacted as of yet

[Aorozco6]

I think the email was for people who had gotten brass weight. So what the email basically said was because they were having problems with the clear PVD coating we had 2 choices. We could either go with just a regular clear coat on the brass or we could switch it to a dark grey PVD coat.

[Aorozco6]

I think the email was for people who had gotten brass weight. So what the email basically said was because they were having problems with the clear PVD coating we had 2 choices. We could either go with just a regular clear coat on the brass or we could switch it to a dark grey PVD coat.

Excuse me what I meant to say was the email was probably for everybody who chose that clear PVD coat for the brass weight.

[Aorozco6]

So I had recently gotten my shipping notification which i was excited for but today I got an email notifying me that the package was sent back to the shipper. Has anybody else gotten the same email? And is there anything i should do?

[manzel]

I also had this with another package from KBDFans. In my case, they shipped it again after about a week without me having to do anything.

[Adelscott]

Same here with my Polaris, a few days later it shipped again

[ai03]

Just got a close-to-final word from KBDfans:

All Polaris orders are in the process of shipping save for one order: the buyer purchased a Polaris case and assembly service without ordering a plate, making board assembly impossible.
If you are the one who purchased this configuration, KBDfans has sent you many emails in an attempt to reach out; please check your inbox and spam folder.
If there is no response, we will simply make do with whatever spare plate we have on hand.

Aside from that, this group buy is basically as close to concluded as can be for the time being.

---

Now the next challenge is to handle the over 300 QC rejected brass parts, recoating them with a different finish and matching them to brand new cases. Hopefully such will be a significantly more environmentally friendly choice than throwing them all out, and will open up opportunities for more people to obtain a unit if they missed the GB.

[kevchigga]

Just got a close-to-final word from KBDfans:

All Polaris orders are in the process of shipping save for one order: the buyer purchased a Polaris case and assembly service without ordering a plate, making board assembly impossible.
If you are the one who purchased this configuration, KBDfans has sent you many emails in an attempt to reach out; please check your inbox and spam folder.
If there is no response, we will simply make do with whatever spare plate we have on hand.

Aside from that, this group buy is basically as close to concluded as can be for the time being.

---

Now the next challenge is to handle the over 300 QC rejected brass parts, recoating them with a different finish and matching them to brand new cases. Hopefully such will be a significantly more environmentally friendly choice than throwing them all out, and will open up opportunities for more people to obtain a unit if they missed the GB.

WOOHOO! I would love to purchase a Polaris with one of the rejected weight that did not make QC or something since I missed out on the initial GB ):

[nathanchere]

Just got a close-to-final word from KBDfans:

All Polaris orders are in the process of shipping save for one order: the buyer purchased a Polaris case and assembly service without ordering a plate, making board assembly impossible.
If you are the one who purchased this configuration, KBDfans has sent you many emails in an attempt to reach out; please check your inbox and spam folder.
If there is no response, we will simply make do with whatever spare plate we have on hand.

Aside from that, this group buy is basically as close to concluded as can be for the time being.

---

Now the next challenge is to handle the over 300 QC rejected brass parts, recoating them with a different finish and matching them to brand new cases. Hopefully such will be a significantly more environmentally friendly choice than throwing them all out, and will open up opportunities for more people to obtain a unit if they missed the GB.

Or maybe even just offer them as-is B-stock. It's not like you see it most of the time anyway, and I imagine there are people who would be happier to get it refinished themselves with something like cerakote.

[krautcat]

Wow, there're no emails from KBDFans. I don't have assembly service. I haven't got any words about my order. Just... Silence.

I love Wei.

I think my Polaris just doesn't exist and my existence is invalid.

[ai03]

Wow, there're no emails from KBDFans. I don't have assembly service. I haven't got any words about my order. Just... Silence.

I love Wei.

I think my Polaris just doesn't exist and my existence is invalid.

I have also heard one notice that there exist orders which are simply impossible to ship due to the logistics chain being broken from KBDfans to the delivery target (i.e. shipments halted or temporarily suspended due to the pandemic). As much as it is important to contact KBDfans regarding the matter, please verify that it is indeed possible to deliver to the specified address as of the time being.

[TopreMoon]

Now the next challenge is to handle the over 300 QC rejected brass parts, recoating them with a different finish and matching them to brand new cases. Hopefully such will be a significantly more environmentally friendly choice than throwing them all out, and will open up opportunities for more people to obtain a unit if they missed the GB.

What's the best way to keep up to date about these? This thread?

[Knoxx]

Now the next challenge is to handle the over 300 QC rejected brass parts, recoating them with a different finish and matching them to brand new cases. Hopefully such will be a significantly more environmentally friendly choice than throwing them all out, and will open up opportunities for more people to obtain a unit if they missed the GB.

What's the best way to keep up to date about these? This thread?

The ai03 discord.

[ai03]

Polaris GB complete (as much as it can be for the time being)

It's been quite an eventful 12 months, but at last all 1000+ units of Polaris have shipped, save for a single unit for which there is no logistic route available (shipping route suspended due to covid/political reasons). This last order will be shipped as soon as the route is re-opened; aside from that, the Polaris GB is complete for the time being.
Thank you once again for everyone who has supported me and Kevinplus along the way on our first very-high volume GB, and to KBDfans for making it possible. We will continue to put in our best efforts with the other upcoming projects.


Polaris extra units

Yes, this will happen. We will refinish a massive pile of hundreds of QC reject brass weights to A-stock standards, manufacture new cases and PCBs to pair them with, and sell them once they are ready.
This may be a chance to obtain a Polaris if you missed out on the original group buy. As is typical, there is no estimate on completion date since manufacturing takes quite some time.

[Rafa_n]

Congrats on the GB, you made an excellent board. The quality and features are especially incredible considering the price it was sold for.

Well done, and good luck on you next boards, I'm hopping for another 60% in the future myself