Filco keyboard - key coating already coming off?

[Doskungen]

Hello again!

Now I have just discovered another thing about my almost brand new Filco keyboard that I am a little worried by.

I know as well as you do that wear on the keys, and them becoming shiny with use is a normal occurance that happens over time, however now I have *already* started noticing this happening to some of the keys on my keyboard!

The backspace key has like this area on it that looks very shiny already, and then we have the letter keys, most notably the 'A' and the 'N' key for some reason - on those its like the special top coating that they apparently put on the Filco keys for that certain textured feel is coming off....

I can see how there is like an uneven "blotch" on the key where it lighter. I have had the keyboard since around the end of January of this year, and been typing on it daily. However I have made sure my hands has been clean the whole time. No eating in front of the computer or the like.

And just to be clear, its not that they actual print on the key is coming off or anything, just the very top layer that is supposed to provide texture...

Do you know if it is actually NORMAL for the keytops on the Filco to become like this after such a short time? I had my old scissor type keyboard (Logitech UltraflatX Premium) for much longer than that before the keys became shiny. And of course that keyboard didn't have any coating to speak of at all. It just went from not shiny to shiny.....

[Twitchy]

It's not unusual at all. I dare say that someone who is a heavy handed neanderthal that regularly bottoms out on his keys (such as myself) will experience faster wear than a skilled typist with a light touch. I guess that oily skin may be a factor too, I think there was someone here whose keys went shiny really quickly and it turned out to be the hand cream/moisturiser that he was using.

[Tony]

All the keyboard supplier are very happy to deliver the keycaps with high prices. Perhaps that's why the keycap quality is very good and nice to look at, but never durable.

[Doskungen]

So I guess then that I can assume that the wear I am seeing to the A and N keys already (as well as the backspace key) is normal for this keyboard. This I have to say surprised me quite a bit.

Now Tony you say that they are happy to deliver keycaps with high prices that are good quality and nice to look at but never durable. My question is if you know if there are such a thing as durable keycaps?

I mean, of course I could always fit the blank keycaps that I purchased along with this keyboard but I think its really a shame that they should start to show wear *already*.

I don't use any sort of moisturizer or anything but I guess the composition of different peoples skin oils can affect the key coating differently. But as I said my cheapo $20 scissor switch keyboard from before didn't get the keycap wear this quickly at all. ---- Or maybe it did but I just didn't notice so quickly or paid so much notice to what happened with the keys over time because I hadn't spent some $140-150 on that keyboard as I did with the Filco. :-P

Anyway I really like the typing sensation I get from the Filco, so in my book its still a very good thing that I got it.

Thanks again for everyones input on the subject. I really do appreciate it.

[itlnstln]

The plastic is pretty smooth to begin with on the Filco keycaps, so it doesn't take long for them to become shiny.  This part of the reason you notice this on Filcos vs., say, IBMs or Cherrys.  The other part of the equation is the plastic used in the keycaps.  Some plastics are more resistant to wear than others.  You can read more in the Geekhack "All About Keys" and the "Key Reference..." wikis.

[Doskungen]

Yes, but in my experience now - the backspace key is the only one which exhibits a "shine" at this point. The A and N keys respectively show more of an effect where the *coating* has actually started to come off. Much like when the top layer of the finish on a car comes off, so that the color is still there underneath but .... it looks dull.... I know it may be a poor way of explaining it but I have no good camera to take a picture of it right now.

Just a little bit annoying it happening so quickly on a keyboard so expensive and of such good quality otherwise....

[itlnstln]

It's still somewhat common.  This is one of the reasons Elitekeyboards stopped carrying them and is trying to move to the Leopolds.  Diatec's QA of Costar's work seemed to be slipping on the caps, and Diatec didn't seem interested in doing anything about it.

[bytemeavaj]

Well, I type over 10 hours a day, and I still don't see shine on my Filco.

[Peter]

Some genius at Cherry decided that Double-Shots were to durable .
Personally I think he deserves a kick in the nuts

[Twitchy]

It's really hard to come to any conclusions about this when so much is subjective. For example, I've just sold my first Filco in the classified section. In my ad I said:

Condition – Some keys are going shiny, particularly u,i,o,p, and h.

In my opinion shine was starting to be quite noticable on maybe half of the alpha keys, five of them in particular. When the buyer (gregounech) rated me however he said:

(Careful he might say in his future sells that some keys are shiny even though they are perfectly new )

Without being able to get the keyboards of different owners together for side by side comparisons, can we really judge whether or not one guy might be really sensitive to shininess while the other is not?

[Doskungen]

I have sent Keyboardco an e-mail (where I bought this board) to ask them about the issue with the keycaps. Now it seems A, N and M is affected. This is starting to get on my nerves for a bit here, because I now have this wonderful keyboard that is like a dream to type on, but having had it only since around the end of last month its already starting to look bad.

Also I am wondering how it could be that the problem has yet to affect any other keys than A, N and M. I am starting to get the shine on some of the other keys but still nothing on the other keys like the top layer of the coating is coming off or something.

I hope that Keyboardco will continue to be as fantastic as they've been up until now and that there is something to be done about this issue. I'd feel rather sad if I would have to live with a keyboard looking like this... if all the keys had gone very shiny I wouldn't mind that at ALL but this looks as if its getting scarred or something.

HERE is a good picture of what it looks like. http://geekhack.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=9647&d=1272892516

[Tony]

Aww that looks dirty and awful.

Have you tried to clean your keycaps with your detergent or dental cleaner as decribed somewhere in the forum? If that scar is permanent then you have a right to replace it.

[manfaux]

I have sent Keyboardco an e-mail (where I bought this board) to ask them about the issue with the keycaps. Now it seems A, N and M is affected. This is starting to get on my nerves for a bit here, because I now have this wonderful keyboard that is like a dream to type on, but having had it only since around the end of last month its already starting to look bad.

Also I am wondering how it could be that the problem has yet to affect any other keys than A, N and M. I am starting to get the shine on some of the other keys but still nothing on the other keys like the top layer of the coating is coming off or something.

I hope that Keyboardco will continue to be as fantastic as they've been up until now and that there is something to be done about this issue. I'd feel rather sad if I would have to live with a keyboard looking like this... if all the keys had gone very shiny I wouldn't mind that at ALL but this looks as if its getting scarred or something.

HERE is a good picture of what it looks like. http://geekhack.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=9647&d=1272892516

totally normal, if you visit any korean/Chinese keyboard forums at all, you'd find that newbies (no offense) rage about their Filco's top coating peeling off all the time.

Get PBT keycaps or some double-shots, Filco keys are crap anyways.

[HaveANiceDay]

I have the same problem.
But it's the ALT key for me, as I use it extensively for push-to-talk in teamspeak

Can't wait to test those SP double shots.

[woody]

hmm... that kerning......

Eek ... Hack!

[sixty]

Regarding geekhack key: We only had like what... 2000 of those keys made now? Why is everyone still using the same mold I had made for the first ever geekhack key? It should take like 2 minutes with our vector wizards aboard (sup bugfix) to get the kerning corrected for the next batch! Do it!

Ontopic: Yeah, Filco keys suck. I also sweat acid, resulting in very shiny keys very fast. Leopold wears better, but loses contrast like ripster said.

Did you know lasered keycap printing was invented with the purpose of getting dirty?

Lasered keycaps almost react in the opposite way, at least on light-colored keycaps. Due to dirt-particles rubbing off onto the rough, lasered legend during daily use, the contrast of lasered keys usually increases the more they are being used. In any case: lasered keycaps are entirely wear-proof.

From how a keyboard is made (part 2/2)

[bugfix]

I think the kerning might be related to the molding process (?)

[Twitchy]

Regarding geekhack key: We only had like what... 2000 of those keys made now? Why is everyone still using the same mold I had made for the first ever geekhack key? It should take like 2 minutes with our vector wizards aboard (sup bugfix) to get the kerning corrected for the next batch! Do it!

Perhaps an all lower case version?

[Pylon]

Regarding geekhack key: We only had like what... 2000 of those keys made now? Why is everyone still using the same mold I had made for the first ever geekhack key? It should take like 2 minutes with our vector wizards aboard (sup bugfix) to get the kerning corrected for the next batch! Do it![/URL]

And change the font too.

[Doskungen]

totally normal, if you visit any korean/Chinese keyboard forums at all, you'd find that newbies (no offense) rage about their Filco's top coating peeling off all the time.

Get PBT keycaps or some double-shots, Filco keys are crap anyways.

PBT keycaps? doubleshots? Where would I find these things to begin with?
I think that I am slowly coming to accept that this is how the keycaps are on these keyboards. However I stand by them being SO fantastic to type on that I simply don't care about the top coat peeling off........

[Doskungen]

Also I want to make an update on this whole business with the keycaps:

I got EXCELLENT help from keyboardco - they actually sent out a whole new set of keys for me to fix the issue. SO now I have a set of spare keys for when I need them. If anyone here is living in Europe and wants to order keyboards I would WHOLEHEARTEDLY recommend this company. They are very customer friendly - always helpful.

[colbabe]

Hi all, sorry, a little late to the thread but I, too, type over 10 hours a day and I've experience the same problem with the keycaps, and as well very disappointed.  However, the quality otherwise is perfect and so I can overlook the cosmetic issue.  In fact, as far as feel, there is no negative effect whatsoever.

Still a proud owner.


Col