@alh84001: Yes, I think SKCM White Alps get underrated and underappreciated. There is a huge difference between "Pine" and "Bamboo" White Alps as well. I have a Northgate Omnikey 101 with White Bamboo Alps that is very rattly, but I just received another one with Pine White Alps that is smooth and rattle-free out of the box without cleaning or lubing.
@alienman82: I understand being bored with Topre, but I like the style of its tactility, which in a sense is like that of buckling springs -- they each involve a catastrophic collapse, of a rubber dome in Topre, and of a spring in the buckling spring. And with Model F and Topre, the sensing mechanism is capacitive in each instance.
In my earlier days on GH and DT, I kept getting recommendations to try the HHKB, and I kept putting it off. I wasn't sure if I would like the 60% form factor or the "alien" layout. Then there was also the high price. Finally, I knew I would not have peace of mind until trying it, and I was amazed at how quickly and how much I liked every aspect of the HHKB. It took much less time than I anticipated to get accustomed to the layout, and now I remap all my keyboards to something as close as I can get to the HHKB configuration. This is one of the reasons I cannot use a BAE layout -- I need a key directly above an ANSI Enter for a Backspace key.
I'm typing this on my HHKB (silenced and lubed; black case; blank black mods and spacebar; blue alphas; red Esc and red Fn). However, on the bench behind me is a Zenith 163-73 with Yellow Alps ready for transplanted parts from SKCM Pine White Alps -- the parts are cooking in the ultrasonic cleaner.
I guess I like variety ....
