Hi folks, new here to the site & mech/diy kbd community
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I'm working on a mini-board project, where the switches are closer together than normal. So the standard keycaps are out the window, and I gotta make my own.
A few thoughts that have guided my efforts: preferably cheap (<$2 per cap), the lower profile the better, no bigger than 14x14mm.
I just received my first batch of 3d printed (laser sintered) prototypes. They're based on the standard keycaps, and I just cropped them down using a 3d design program. I tried circular and square options in different sizes, offsets, materials, and even one with braille for the home row.
Let's do the show-and-tell first:Full, standard keycap - wanted to be able to compare apples to apples with the stock keycap
Cut cap - the original idea that started me off in this direction. ABS cuts pretty easy with an xacto knife. Gotta lean into it, and make sure it doesn't go off course, but easier than expected. However, it's not so easy that I would consider doing it ~50 times to get a full set for this board.
Circles - got 10mm and 8mm diameter circles. My fingers can feel the edges of the 8mm cap as I type, not so much on the 10mm. I prefer the 10mm circle the most out of this whole batch.
Squares - Rounded the corners because ML switches can bind if you press on the keycap too far from center, or at a weird angle. Tested this one in a few different materials. Couldn't really feel a difference when typing. White was cheapest, so will probably just continue with that.
Braille & Offset stem - As I've seen quite a few other people talk about, I too thought a braille keyboard would be awesome. Tested out a J for the home row, and the bumps came out MUCH better than expected. Probably wouldn't be comfortable to have this on all keys because of the rough material, but I'm really considering keeping this idea for whatever keys I end up printing for the full board. Maybe reducing the height of the bumps would help the feel.
For the offset stem - tested just printing the cap without the 'skirt'. The standard keycap is offset because the stem of ML switches are offset. As expected, easier to make the keycap bind with the offset. Doesn't work so good.
Group shots
Questions:As I think more about this I am struck by the vast ocean of options in front of me: shape, size, profile, material, etc, etc. So I want to pick your brain before I get too far along. I'm not looking for perfection here, just want to avoid big mistakes and adopt any best practices you folks know of.
- Are there any sources of information/thinking on keycap design? I'm searching the forum, and am almost through all my bookmarked threads without much info directly about this. Found this really helpful so far (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=83853.0)
- Any advice or best-practices you have if you've ever made or printed keycaps before?
- Specifically about the edges, is there a reason most keycaps have a 'skirt'? Is this just for looks, so you can't see the switches, or is there a function to this like protecting the switch or making it harder to accidentally pop off the keycap?
- Another about the edges, is there any benefit or drawback of having raised edges like a border around the keys, either a hard 90degree border, or a softer sloping 45 degrees? Read in another thread that the border can help your fingers self-center as you touch-type without looking at the keys.
- Any other sources I should be looking at for custom keycaps like this, other than 3d printing?
Thoughts?
