Author Topic: [IC] XMI Vintage Support Extension Set - GB thread live! (Read 13461 times)

masje · « **on:** Sun, 03 September 2023, 10:34:46 »

XMI Vintage Support Extension Set - Support Vintage Layouts!

TL;DR: i like vintage layouts. there are more and more modernized vintage boards. i want keycap support for these boards, and i want them to be accessible(cheap).
UPDATE 23-10-06: I've changed manufacturers due to JC Studio not being able to produce this kit. The new manufacturer is XMI, please check photos below!! I will also be offering this as a full kit, as opposed to the originally proposed "extension kit"
GB THREAD!

Story
When I was prototyping the Muramasa project (shameless) with F107 layout, I couldn't find a keycap set that could fit my 3X5 nav. So, as a wise man once said: "Be the change you want to see."

I want this to have an actual chance of making it, and I want it to be accessible to as many people as possible. Therefore, I have chosen to go with dyesub PBT, from ~~JC Studio (aka leekbros)~~ XMI. From what I've seen before from them, they have pretty decent quality for the price. In addition, they also have plenty of beige sets that can match this kit. For all your vintage board needs.

DISCORD LINK
IC FORM

Kitting
~~This "kit" will be made up of different small sets, and will be bundled up into one extensions kit.~~ This kit will include a base kit, plus all the including extensions:
- Programmable function keys PF1 - PF24
- ~~Blank keys 6 x R4, 3 x R3, 3 x R2, 6 x R1~~
- SSK-style numpad (w/front print)
- 3 x 5 Navigation cluster
- Cross Navigation cluster, with 'Rule' 'Clear' 'Attn' 'Meta' 'Turbo' keys
- 1800 Numpad support
*Note: Cherry R1-R4 rows are flipped from China R1-R4 rows - Cherry R1 = China R4, etc...

Specs
- Dyesub PBT
- XMI beige colors

Target price & timeline
- $60 - $70 (updated due to shipping prices)
- Fulfillment targeted to be about two months after GB ends

Gallery
NOTE: These renders are old renders. The GB kit will use icon mods instead of icon + text. Also no mod spacebar.
Please view these photos as reference only. Refer to the kitting render for kitting, and sample photos for font references.

Muramasa FRL100%+XT

Muramasa FRL100%+XT

Cross Nav Support

Introducing the MFR-CE (More F-Rows - Cuck Edition), the antithesis to all the FRLs and WKLs.

What's next?
- GB soon!
- Prototypes made! Check photos below

Full layout - 1.25u shift missing in photo, but will be included in the kit!

Function keys in proper rows!!

Special thanks to Pontus for feedback on vintage boards.
Also special thanks to my discord server members for inspiring this idea!

masje · « **Reply #1 on:** Sun, 03 September 2023, 10:53:14 »

Reserved for updates.

Rob27shred · « **Reply #2 on:** Sun, 03 September 2023, 11:13:23 »

Pretty interesting kit! Would be perfect to match with a Frog 8k! I wonder how well the JC studio beige matches with CRP or OG ePBT? Although with JC studios full sets going for $35 as well I'd be willing to grab one to use these with.

trashem · « **Reply #3 on:** Sun, 03 September 2023, 11:33:56 »

excellent, I’m in! would you consider white or black as a potential future run? (cart before the horse, I know, but just curious)

mmayhem17 · « **Reply #4 on:** Sun, 03 September 2023, 13:31:09 »

very nice extensions.

would it be possible to include AltGr 1.5u and 1.25u? Most of JC sets have only alt keycap....

xef · « **Reply #5 on:** Sun, 03 September 2023, 13:33:32 »

In for sure. Also curious about colour comparisons to CRP

dcsenjoyer · « **Reply #6 on:** Sun, 03 September 2023, 14:24:04 »

rush rush

DirtyGingy · « **Reply #7 on:** Sun, 03 September 2023, 15:59:48 »

I'm curious why I don't see any BAE

Rob27shred · « **Reply #8 on:** Sun, 03 September 2023, 17:12:07 »

Quote from: mmayhem17 on Sun, 03 September 2023, 13:31:09

very nice extensions.

would it be possible to include AltGr 1.5u and 1.25u? Most of JC sets have only alt keycap....

+1 for AltGr 1.5u & 1.25u here too.

phatmasterq · « **Reply #9 on:** Sun, 03 September 2023, 17:44:55 »

looks awesome. count me in.

& rush rush (obvi)

51p50x · « **Reply #10 on:** Sun, 03 September 2023, 19:54:23 »

looks really good, please consider AltGr 1.5u and 1.25u

& rush rush

Rhienfo · « **Reply #11 on:** Sun, 03 September 2023, 20:23:32 »

Great project. Agree with adding AltGr 1.5 and 1.25u. I would also like to see 1.5/1.25/1u codes and supers if it's reasonable as I like to have all of them in a kit (I should have filled out the IC form with a lot more of my suggestions my bad)

Some other things that could be nice would be BAE, 10u spacebar and 1.5u bottom row caps lock (this is thing on boards like the model f and it's reasonable to have, though not many people would use it) but these might not be as reasonable due to 2 out of the 3 requiring unique molds.

Espically leekbrothers this is a must have.

GLWIC

also rush rush

CoolPenguin1 · « **Reply #12 on:** Sun, 03 September 2023, 21:00:43 »

Quote from: Rhienfo on Sun, 03 September 2023, 20:23:32

Great project. Agree with adding AltGr 1.5 and 1.25u. I would also like to see 1.5/1.25/1u codes and supers if it's reasonable as I like to have all of them in a kit (I should have filled out the IC form with a lot more of my suggestions my bad)

Some other things that could be nice would be BAE, 10u spacebar and 1.5u bottom row caps lock (this is thing on boards like the model f and it's reasonable to have, though not many people would use it) but these might not be as reasonable due to 2 out of the 3 requiring unique molds.

Espically leekbrothers this is a must have.

GLWIC

+1 on BAE and 10u. While unlikely (especially since JC just uses XMI molds I think) I would love for those to happen. Also consider adding 1u plus, 1u minus and 1u equals for maybe some sort of numpad extension kit, as a numpad enjoyer it's annoying that those aren't in the basekit

also rush rush

Rayndalf · « **Reply #13 on:** Sun, 03 September 2023, 21:07:17 »

The Discord link currently links to http://discord%20link/
Which I don't believe in the intended link. The correct link can be found in the IC form though.

aicyborg · « **Reply #14 on:** Sun, 03 September 2023, 21:29:16 »

Would you be willing to consider NorDeUK and ES/FR internationalisation kits with this?

This is a niche but useful thing that absolutely should exist. If your goal here is a support set, please consider international support. I don't know what manufacturer or MOQ you have to meet but if it's low, I'd love international support. GMK Hineybeige didn't run a NorDeUK for instance which for me is a massive L.

WK · « **Reply #15 on:** Mon, 04 September 2023, 01:10:27 »

Quote from: aicyborg on Sun, 03 September 2023, 21:29:16

Would you be willing to consider NorDeUK and ES/FR internationalisation kits with this?

This is a niche but useful thing that absolutely should exist. If your goal here is a support set, please consider international support. I don't know what manufacturer or MOQ you have to meet but if it's low, I'd love international support. GMK Hineybeige didn't run a NorDeUK for instance which for me is a massive L.

There's PBTFans Retro and Retro 100 both in IC currently which will have NorDeUK if they reach threshold.

Meepergon · « **Reply #16 on:** Mon, 04 September 2023, 03:12:02 »

this is sick. need it for 21xx.

masje · « **Reply #17 on:** Mon, 04 September 2023, 05:35:30 »

Quote from: Rayndalf on Sun, 03 September 2023, 21:07:17

The Discord link currently links to http://discord%20link/
Which I don't believe in the intended link. The correct link can be found in the IC form though.

Thanks!! I have changed the link

masje · « **Reply #18 on:** Mon, 04 September 2023, 05:38:40 »

Thanks for all the kind words!

Here are things that I am considering changing/adding:
- Alt Gr 1.25u 1.5u
- ISO support (split left shift)
- M1-M10 changed into F1-F10

Unfortunately BAE/10U might not be possible, that will be a separate discussion with the manufacturer.

treeleaf64 · « **Reply #19 on:** Mon, 04 September 2023, 06:51:40 »

I am sure Pontus will Love this set because There is a 21xx and 31xx

Maybe this one can be for Big chad but I do not think that will be created any time soon

hunos · « **Reply #20 on:** Mon, 04 September 2023, 17:14:55 »

Interested for sure. SSK numpad is hot

Some feedback
-I don't see the use for the top 3x2 Nav cluster as it should be in the base kit already
-M1-10 macros highly preferred personally
-Would love to see BAE/10u/stepped 1.5us/R5 but understandable if it can't be done

aicyborg · « **Reply #21 on:** Mon, 04 September 2023, 18:00:32 »

Quote from: WK on Mon, 04 September 2023, 01:10:27

Quote from: aicyborg on Sun, 03 September 2023, 21:29:16
Would you be willing to consider NorDeUK and ES/FR internationalisation kits with this?

This is a niche but useful thing that absolutely should exist. If your goal here is a support set, please consider international support. I don't know what manufacturer or MOQ you have to meet but if it's low, I'd love international support. GMK Hineybeige didn't run a NorDeUK for instance which for me is a massive L.

There's PBTFans Retro and Retro 100 both in IC currently which will have NorDeUK if they reach threshold.

Yeah, this wouldn't really work for extending beige GMK sets because PBTfans doesn't use Cherry-style font.

Anyway, doesn't seem like something the designer here's interested in. Still, I tried.

Rhienfo · « **Reply #22 on:** Mon, 04 September 2023, 18:23:37 »

Quote from: aicyborg on Mon, 04 September 2023, 18:00:32

Yeah, this wouldn't really work for extending beige GMK sets because PBTfans doesn't use Cherry-style font.

Anyway, doesn't seem like something the designer here's interested in. Still, I tried.

Plus pbtfans is doubleshot pbt and leekbrothers is dye sub so that's another inconsistency.

Hopefully they reconsider, cause this is the perfect opportunity to fill out all of the kitting issues that leekbrothers have. I seriously doubt I will get all the things I suggested (though I wish they would add 1u and 1.5u codes and supers both but I can compromise with just supers I guess, just use both codes and supers and I think those options would be nice to have)

Maybe ask in the discord if you haven't already. Maybe we could have a separate kit covering everything else (which could also be done in the future which would be good as well)

stomaha · « **Reply #23 on:** Mon, 04 September 2023, 19:40:49 »

Would love to see a CRP side-by-side

masje · « **Reply #24 on:** Mon, 04 September 2023, 22:42:56 »

Quote from: stomaha on Mon, 04 September 2023, 19:40:49

Would love to see a CRP side-by-side

Working on it!

masje · « **Reply #25 on:** Mon, 04 September 2023, 22:45:56 »

Quote from: aicyborg on Mon, 04 September 2023, 18:00:32

Quote from: WK on Mon, 04 September 2023, 01:10:27
Quote from: aicyborg on Sun, 03 September 2023, 21:29:16
Would you be willing to consider NorDeUK and ES/FR internationalisation kits with this?

This is a niche but useful thing that absolutely should exist. If your goal here is a support set, please consider international support. I don't know what manufacturer or MOQ you have to meet but if it's low, I'd love international support. GMK Hineybeige didn't run a NorDeUK for instance which for me is a massive L.

There's PBTFans Retro and Retro 100 both in IC currently which will have NorDeUK if they reach threshold.

Yeah, this wouldn't really work for extending beige GMK sets because PBTfans doesn't use Cherry-style font.

Anyway, doesn't seem like something the designer here's interested in. Still, I tried.

Yeah, sorry I didn't respond earlier.

I am considering widening support for JC sets, not only just for vintage kits - including numpad support, ISO support, and hopefully NorDeUk. I'll need some time to figure out the logistics of it though, cause NorDeUk is quite a big set, isn't it? (~50keys)

masje · « **Reply #26 on:** Mon, 04 September 2023, 22:59:58 »

Quote from: treeleaf64 on Mon, 04 September 2023, 06:51:40

I am sure Pontus will Love this set because There is a 21xx and 31xx

Maybe this one can be for Big chad but I do not think that will be created any time soon

Thanks, Mr. Treeleaf, I will keep working on the keycaps and the recaps

VXQN · « **Reply #27 on:** Tue, 05 September 2023, 02:14:01 »

This is great! Hopefully it can be well matched to L9 & U9.

One suggestion for me: a set of single column macro keys — M1 down to M5.

aicyborg · « **Reply #28 on:** Tue, 05 September 2023, 18:56:06 »

Quote from: masje on Mon, 04 September 2023, 22:45:56

Yeah, sorry I didn't respond earlier.

I am considering widening support for JC sets, not only just for vintage kits - including numpad support, ISO support, and hopefully NorDeUk. I'll need some time to figure out the logistics of it though, cause NorDeUk is quite a big set, isn't it? (~50keys)

Thank you for the reply.

I know that it's not within the scope of what you're doing here - I just know that there's currently no way (or at least not an easy one) to add international support to GMK beige sets and a support kit could, in theory, help resolve that problem in time if wanted!

HungerMechanic · « **Reply #29 on:** Tue, 05 September 2023, 20:56:53 »

The thing about displaying side-by-side with CRP is that ... CRP sets vary slightly by round.

For example, R3 and R4 have slightly different base keycap colours. The R3 is a bit more white/cream/grayish, whereas R4 is a bit more red/yellow/orange. The differences are subtle, but it means that base keycap colours are not uniform within CRP. So you would have to at least mention which round you are using.

masje · « **Reply #30 on:** Fri, 06 October 2023, 06:04:35 »

I thought this was dead. Now it's undead.

GB will be running soon!

Rob27shred · « **Reply #31 on:** Fri, 06 October 2023, 07:29:17 »

Rob27shred · « **Reply #32 on:** Fri, 06 October 2023, 07:29:59 »

Quote from: Rob27shred on Fri, 06 October 2023, 07:29:17

Quote from: masje on Fri, 06 October 2023, 06:04:35
I thought this was dead. Now it's undead.
GB will be running soon!

Glad to hear & also glad you decided on a full kit with the manu change

mmayhem17 · « **Reply #33 on:** Fri, 06 October 2023, 08:14:36 »

Kinda sad to hear the change, as I preferred JC, anyway it is a great project for the price.

One question now: what blanks will XMI use? I ask because I'm not a fan of that thick latest sets of them, kinda hoping for more thin keycaps in the 1.3~1.4 range.....would be nice if you share the bottom of your sample keycaps.

Rhienfo · « **Reply #34 on:** Fri, 06 October 2023, 09:06:54 »

Shame about JC not working out but at least the extensions/set will run.

Considering that this is similarly priced and sometimes cheaper to some XMI base kits with more keys is very nice. If I was gonna buy XMI than I would get this set.

GLWGB masje

masje · « **Reply #35 on:** Fri, 06 October 2023, 13:15:51 »

Quote from: Rhienfo on Fri, 06 October 2023, 09:06:54

Shame about JC not working out but at least the extensions/set will run.

Considering that this is similarly priced and sometimes cheaper to some XMI base kits with more keys is very nice. If I was gonna buy XMI than I would get this set.

GLWGB masje

thanks for the support!!

masje · « **Reply #36 on:** Fri, 06 October 2023, 13:18:00 »

Quote from: mmayhem17 on Fri, 06 October 2023, 08:14:36

Kinda sad to hear the change, as I preferred JC, anyway it is a great project for the price.

One question now: what blanks will XMI use? I ask because I'm not a fan of that thick latest sets of them, kinda hoping for more thin keycaps in the 1.3~1.4 range.....would be nice if you share the bottom of your sample keycaps.

From my own keycap comparisons, JC does have a little thicker legends, but quality-wise they seem pretty similar to me.

I don't have a caliper on hand, but here is a rough thickness comparison - they also feel quite similar.
(top: XMI, bottom: JCS)

masje · « **Reply #37 on:** Sat, 07 October 2023, 02:18:53 »

GB thread is live here: https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=121567
Thank you for your consideration

News:

Author Topic: [IC] XMI Vintage Support Extension Set - GB thread live! (Read 13461 times)