Invyr 'Panda' Super Linear Switches (Shipped)

[luumii]

Would love a full review on these soon seems very promising tho

[Neo.X]

Order #79 from Canada, still waiting....

Any update on this?

[johntron25]

It looks like the cylindrical switch legs are actually some sort of holtite. Pretty nice!

Custom mkb switches + massive niche board game = best photo.

(I'm delayed on my next planned build because Gloomhaven is taking up the table where I typically do my soldering)

Hahaha! Gloomhaven is pretty fun!

[duynguyenle]

Any news on when EU orders will start shipping out?

[gnarlsagan]

Here is my first impression of the switch.

So less scratchy than cherry blacks and with less wobble?  ****... give me some lube and sign me up
Edit: did you try to lube them yourself?  Seems to me that the factory lube sounded good in theory but just can't be as nice as a good personal lube.

Just got my switches as well and agree with many of the impressions already given in this thread.

Stock Pandas are scratchier than stock Gateron blacks, but less scratchy than Cherry blacks.

So I opened the stock Panda and saw very little if any lube. I applied GH v4 thick lube from Zeal to the sliders and to the sides of the Panda stem. This very noticeably improved the smoothness, making it actually smoother than a stock Gateron black. I did not try adding GH v4 lube to the stock Gateron, because I am quite satisfied with the smoothness of the lubed Panda.

I also tried a few mods. I put the Panda slider in a Gateron housing, a Zealio (Gateron) housing, and a Cherry housing. While this improved smoothness to varying degrees, all non-Panda housings resulted in a bit less stability than the Panda housing. The Gateron housing had the most wobble; Cherry had only slightly more wobble than the stock Panda. This is probably the most stable switch I've tried.

I would highly recommend adding some GH v4 thick lube to these Panda switches. I will also be using 85g SPRiT edition springs, and am pretty excited about my build now. The only drawback is waiting for the PCB mount Panda bottoms to come in.

[Faux]

Here is my first impression of the switch.

So less scratchy than cherry blacks and with less wobble?  ****... give me some lube and sign me up
Edit: did you try to lube them yourself?  Seems to me that the factory lube sounded good in theory but just can't be as nice as a good personal lube.

Just got my switches as well and agree with many of the impressions already given in this thread.

Stock Pandas are scratchier than stock Gateron blacks, but less scratchy than Cherry blacks.

So I opened the stock Panda and saw very little if any lube. I applied GH v4 thick lube from Zeal to the sliders and to the sides of the Panda stem. This very noticeably improved the smoothness, making it actually smoother than a stock Gateron black. I did not try adding GH v4 lube to the stock Gateron, because I am quite satisfied with the smoothness of the lubed Panda.

I also tried a few mods. I put the Panda slider in a Gateron housing, a Zealio (Gateron) housing, and a Cherry housing. While this improved smoothness to varying degrees, all non-Panda housings resulted in a bit less stability than the Panda housing. The Gateron housing had the most wobble; Cherry had only slightly more wobble than the stock Panda. This is probably the most stable switch I've tried.

I would highly recommend adding some GH v4 thick lube to these Panda switches. I will also be using 85g SPRiT edition springs, and am pretty excited about my build now. The only drawback is waiting for the PCB mount Panda bottoms to come in.

I would be wary of putting in the Zeal's thick lube. It's designed for tactile switches. I talked to Zeal about this, and he said that he also doesn't recommend it. It ends up making the switch pretty gummy.

[gnarlsagan]

Here is my first impression of the switch.

So less scratchy than cherry blacks and with less wobble?  ****... give me some lube and sign me up
Edit: did you try to lube them yourself?  Seems to me that the factory lube sounded good in theory but just can't be as nice as a good personal lube.

Just got my switches as well and agree with many of the impressions already given in this thread.

Stock Pandas are scratchier than stock Gateron blacks, but less scratchy than Cherry blacks.

So I opened the stock Panda and saw very little if any lube. I applied GH v4 thick lube from Zeal to the sliders and to the sides of the Panda stem. This very noticeably improved the smoothness, making it actually smoother than a stock Gateron black. I did not try adding GH v4 lube to the stock Gateron, because I am quite satisfied with the smoothness of the lubed Panda.

I also tried a few mods. I put the Panda slider in a Gateron housing, a Zealio (Gateron) housing, and a Cherry housing. While this improved smoothness to varying degrees, all non-Panda housings resulted in a bit less stability than the Panda housing. The Gateron housing had the most wobble; Cherry had only slightly more wobble than the stock Panda. This is probably the most stable switch I've tried.

I would highly recommend adding some GH v4 thick lube to these Panda switches. I will also be using 85g SPRiT edition springs, and am pretty excited about my build now. The only drawback is waiting for the PCB mount Panda bottoms to come in.

I would be wary of putting in the Zeal's thick lube. It's designed for tactile switches. I talked to Zeal about this, and he said that he also doesn't recommend it. It ends up making the switch pretty gummy.

Thanks for the heads up. I also tried a stock Panda lubed with Krytox 103, and it wasn't as smooth as the GH v4. I still have a good amount of time before building, so I'll actuate the GH v4 lubed switch every day for a few weeks and see where it's at.

Seems weird that a linear switch would become "gummy" but not a tactile switch. Zeal usually knows what he's talking about though.

Edit: what lube are you guys using on the Pandas?

[Kafka]

I used gh v4 too, not gummy on mine.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[johntron25]

I'm planning on using Zeal's lube but i'm a bit hesitant now after reading what people have said.

[Kafka]

I'm planning on using Zeal's lube but i'm a bit hesitant now after reading what people have said.

Mine feel super smooth and buttery with Zeal's thick.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Korseir]

Order #79 from Canada, still waiting....

Any update on this?

Same here, still waiting on switches to show up. Any updates as to when canadians will be receiving their orders or as to when they are going to be shipped out?

[breitling]

Another Canadian here waiting.. update would be great thanks!

[Jeu]

Waiting for sales to reopen to get some for ramabae

[Cotay]

Another Canadian here waiting.. update would be great thanks!

Yes, some official response on shipping status would be appreciated. It has been two weeks without a status update or forum post from the folks running the GB/handling shipping.

It looks like folks with order numbers in the 40s have been receiving theirs. I appreciate that folks running this GB have work, family and life commitments, but an update is due.

[jebbra]

Meanwhile Indonesia which is the closest Australia neighbor not yet received these babies 

[Cotay]

Has anyone who paid by PayPal received their order yet?

[T0mb3ry]

Has anyone who paid by PayPal received their order yet?

Nope.

[Saiph]

Has anyone who paid by PayPal received their order yet?

Yeah, I have.

[mmdango]

Been playing around with these a lot lately (not on a board, unfortunately) to figure out what switches I want on my next build, but something has been really bothering me.

There is definitely a bump near the bottom when pressing down. I'm not sure if it's the stem or the housing, but I think that gumminess some people are feeling might actually be that bump. Someone else did explicitly notice a bump earlier, though. It is much more emphasized if you press it down at an angle while pressing down. The side that you have to push towards changes for every switch it seems like. That slight tactile feeling is really ruining the experience of these switches for me :/

Also if it helps anyone else, I tried using MechLube 2 (only lube I got) and it doesn't really do much.

[Jumie]

Hey zisb.. any update on Asia's shipment?

[Unforgivable]

.

[gnarlsagan]

Been playing around with these a lot lately (not on a board, unfortunately) to figure out what switches I want on my next build, but something has been really bothering me.

There is definitely a bump near the bottom when pressing down. I'm not sure if it's the stem or the housing, but I think that gumminess some people are feeling might actually be that bump. Someone else did explicitly notice a bump earlier, though. It is much more emphasized if you press it down at an angle while pressing down. The side that you have to push towards changes for every switch it seems like. That slight tactile feeling is really ruining the experience of these switches for me :/

Also if it helps anyone else, I tried using MechLube 2 (only lube I got) and it doesn't really do much.

I've been actuating a thick lubed Panda for a couple days and haven't noticed a bump. I'll check my other switches with I get home and report back.

Also noting that the thick lube has not yet made the switch "gummy". It is still feels incredibly smooth.

[Tally810]

These switch housings looks so cool. Tempted to get PCB switches once available, but the reviews are scaring me.

Same but reviews actually seem good to me if you break them down.  So everyone is saying that there is little wobble which is great.  Then everyone is saying that they are scratchy which just tells me they need some good lube or for the existing lube to break in. So I feel that once properly lubed you will have a smooth non wobbly switch

[wholypantalones]

SHIPPING STATUS
Australia: Sent
Asia: Packed
Oceania: Packed
US: Majority Shipped
CA: Packing
EU: Will be sent after US.

Still waiting on 220 of these or a shipping notification in the US, so how majority is majority shipped at this point? Anyone from the GB or handling the shipping care to give an update as to what's going on?

[shinz0]

Still waiting on my US order.

i get it though. sorting all the switches does not sound like a fun experience.

[JDragon]

Still waiting on my 220 switches US order. Went ahead and ordered 220 Mod Linear switches off O-co as well.

Hopefully one of these lives up to the "new Vintage Black" billing.

[Saiph]

Still waiting on my 220 switches US order. Went ahead and ordered 220 Mod Linear switches off O-co as well.

Hopefully one of these lives up to the "new Vintage Black" billing.

Let us know how you find the Mod switches! I bought their tactile switches before and liked them after lubing, they were a tiny bit scratchy before that.

[JDragon]

Still waiting on my 220 switches US order. Went ahead and ordered 220 Mod Linear switches off O-co as well.

Hopefully one of these lives up to the "new Vintage Black" billing.

Let us know how you find the Mod switches! I bought their tactile switches before and liked them after lubing, they were a tiny bit scratchy before that.

They're advertised as being non-scratchy and with no "gravelly" feeling so got my hopes up... but then again, the Pandas were supposed to be non-scratchy out of the box and looks like they actually are.

[wholypantalones]

Still waiting on my 220 switches US order. Went ahead and ordered 220 Mod Linear switches off O-co as well.

Hopefully one of these lives up to the "new Vintage Black" billing.

I think gaterons fill that void already. At $35 for 110 gaterons vs $70-ish for 110 mods which are essentially just gateron clones, is it really worth the extra money?

[JDragon]

Still waiting on my 220 switches US order. Went ahead and ordered 220 Mod Linear switches off O-co as well.

Hopefully one of these lives up to the "new Vintage Black" billing.

I think gaterons fill that void already. At $35 for 110 gaterons vs $70-ish for 110 mods which are essentially just gateron clones, is it really worth the extra money?

I'd pay an extra $35 to save myself 3 hours of switch lubing.

[kmba]

Anyone know approx up to what order number has shipped?  #183, US here and just curious.  Thanks

[johntron25]

Anyone know approx up to what order number has shipped?  #183, US here and just curious.  Thanks

I was order#60 and  I received mine last week. It was shipped in a USPS small flat rate box w/o tracking.

[a-c]

Anyone know approx up to what order number has shipped?  #183, US here and just curious.  Thanks

I was order#60 and  I received mine last week. It was shipped in a USPS small flat rate box w/o tracking.

Did it ship from zipcode 94002 (California)? Someone just printed a shipping label to me from that zip.

[wholypantalones]

Still waiting on my 220 switches US order. Went ahead and ordered 220 Mod Linear switches off O-co as well.

Hopefully one of these lives up to the "new Vintage Black" billing.

I think gaterons fill that void already. At $35 for 110 gaterons vs $70-ish for 110 mods which are essentially just gateron clones, is it really worth the extra money?

I'd pay an extra $35 to save myself 3 hours of switch lubing.

From the sounds of these switches you're still going to have to lube them.

[johntron25]

Anyone know approx up to what order number has shipped?  #183, US here and just curious.  Thanks

I was order#60 and  I received mine last week. It was shipped in a USPS small flat rate box w/o tracking.

Did it ship from zipcode 94002 (California)? Someone just printed a shipping label to me from that zip.

Yep, i believe so. I recognize the City name

[OfTheWild]

Ok folks, so I've done the deed and swapped out all 108 of my daily driver keyboard from cherry blacks to the new invyr pandas... and put it through the work week of typing out various commands and ticket comments as well as piles of emails. And so heres my brief review for those that are still wondering whats the big deal about these switches: Heres my full album of this board: http://imgur.com/a/si7Ql

The board they went into was a Ducky 9008, basic run of the mill fullsized well made keyboard. I desoldered all the cherry mx blacks and swapped in the Pandas:


Swapping them out was fine. The added size of the "holtite/sip sockets" was a non-issue and worked perfectly.
Soldering used less solder to fill the joint and this resulted in easier clean-up of the rosin as well.
No problems at all.


Right off the bat you can feel the lighter spring weight making it easier to type away with out missing letters or key strokes on your pinkies. As much as I love the stiff springs I have to admit that when it comes to actual use, the lighter springs are nice.

The sound is the first thing i noticed. I can tell that these are much more of a "pop" than a "clink" if that makes sense. There is definitely a break-in period for the very small amounts of lube in each switch. I would say 10 hours or so gets you in to the normal mode of the switch where everything smooths out and things start to feel glassy.

Solid. I cant reiterate this enough but these switches are just cemented together. I have a habit of wiggling the key caps in a hover while i'm thinking about what to type and these are just rock steady. Almost no wobble at all.

Overall i think that once you get away from micro-scrutiny of holding individual switches up and comparing each in your ear I think people will find that these are incredibly well made switches that have been put together very well. There are plenty of factory assembled switches that go for this rate and the fact someone put these together by hand makes them worth it for me. I do like some vintage blacks, dont get me wrong. But even those require a bit of tweaking to get them to 'korean kustom' level of endgame. These are breaking in nicely with about 50 hours of typing since I loaded them up. I definitely recommend grabbing a set and trying them out.

Thanks! 

[JDragon]

Still waiting on my 220 switches US order. Went ahead and ordered 220 Mod Linear switches off O-co as well.

Hopefully one of these lives up to the "new Vintage Black" billing.

I think gaterons fill that void already. At $35 for 110 gaterons vs $70-ish for 110 mods which are essentially just gateron clones, is it really worth the extra money?

I'd pay an extra $35 to save myself 3 hours of switch lubing.

From the sounds of these switches you're still going to have to lube them.

Unfortunate, but I don't mind putting money towards things that advance the hobby overall, even if they don't work out as well as I like.

[kmba]

I buy almost every new switch that comes out.  Pure curiosity. 

[kustom3]

Ok folks, so I've done the deed and swapped out all 108 of my daily driver keyboard from cherry blacks to the new invyr pandas... and put it through the work week of typing out various commands and ticket comments as well as piles of emails. And so heres my brief review for those that are still wondering whats the big deal about these switches: Heres my full album of this board: http://imgur.com/a/si7Ql

The board they went into was a Ducky 9008, basic run of the mill fullsized well made keyboard. I desoldered all the cherry mx blacks and swapped in the Pandas:

Show Image

Swapping them out was fine. The added size of the "holtite/sip sockets" was a non-issue and worked perfectly.
Soldering used less solder to fill the joint and this resulted in easier clean-up of the rosin as well.
No problems at all.

Show Image

Right off the bat you can feel the lighter spring weight making it easier to type away with out missing letters or key strokes on your pinkies. As much as I love the stiff springs I have to admit that when it comes to actual use, the lighter springs are nice.

The sound is the first thing i noticed. I can tell that these are much more of a "pop" than a "clink" if that makes sense. There is definitely a break-in period for the very small amounts of lube in each switch. I would say 10 hours or so gets you in to the normal mode of the switch where everything smooths out and things start to feel glassy.

Solid. I cant reiterate this enough but these switches are just cemented together. I have a habit of wiggling the key caps in a hover while i'm thinking about what to type and these are just rock steady. Almost no wobble at all.

Overall i think that once you get away from micro-scrutiny of holding individual switches up and comparing each in your ear I think people will find that these are incredibly well made switches that have been put together very well. There are plenty of factory assembled switches that go for this rate and the fact someone put these together by hand makes them worth it for me. I do like some vintage blacks, dont get me wrong. But even those require a bit of tweaking to get them to 'korean kustom' level of endgame. These are breaking in nicely with about 50 hours of typing since I loaded them up. I definitely recommend grabbing a set and trying them out.

Thanks! 

Thanks for the review, made me even more undecided about my next build. V. blacks, MOD-M or Pandas... Decisions, decisions.

[aznreaper]

Thanks for the review OfTheWild, do you feel like it would make a difference lubricating the switches now that you've used them for a solid amount of time?

Plus, anyone got updates on when the rest of the switches will be heading out with zisb having personal issues to deal with? Is anyone helping to get these switches out? And did anyone ever confirm who's sending out the Canadian switches?

[Jeu]

I remember seeing a post somewhere but wanted to check. Aristotle stems fit in these housing? Had heard certain switch tops don't go well with stotle stems.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[odd]

I'm looking to buy 5 - 10 on these if anyone wants to sell me any. I don't know what the aftermarket price is ( I'm thinking $2 per switch?) but give me a price in a PM if you can spare some. I'm in the US, Berkeley CA to be exact. 

[ns90]

I remember seeing a post somewhere but wanted to check. Aristotle stems fit in these housing? Had heard certain switch tops don't go well with stotle stems.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I only tried it with one, and it did fit, but I do believe that Aristotle stems can have some inconsistencies. It felt...different. I much prefer the Gatistotles and Zealiostotles to the Invyrstotles.

[Korseir]

Thanks for the review OfTheWild, do you feel like it would make a difference lubricating the switches now that you've used them for a solid amount of time?

Plus, anyone got updates on when the rest of the switches will be heading out with zisb having personal issues to deal with? Is anyone helping to get these switches out? And did anyone ever confirm who's sending out the Canadian switches?

UPDATE TIME

Since getting everything in I have begun work on packing everything into packs of 110. I will be sending out 27's bathtub of switches soon aswell. He will be proxying for Canadian orders. My US & EU proxies will also be receiving theirs soon. If you are anywhere in Australia, you will probably get it earlier for what feels to be the first time.

I am also in the middle of moving houses, so this means that I need to move 100kg of pandas to my new "business" area (I will give photos <3).

Photos & Videos are rendering at the moment and will take like a day to upload (No joke, this is Australia).

Uhhh yeah I think that's about it. Ill get around to more specific questions once I'm done with the videos.

Paging US and CA buyers, N3RDLY said he's gotten the first shipment of switches and will be sending them out soon for US. He also said the Canadian batch was received by the Canada proxy in the past couple days. Source is the newest topclack podcast episode.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

TL;DR 27 is the Canadian proxy, and he should have had the switches since January 27 2017

[gnarlsagan]

I remember seeing a post somewhere but wanted to check. Aristotle stems fit in these housing? Had heard certain switch tops don't go well with stotle stems.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I only tried it with one, and it did fit, but I do believe that Aristotle stems can have some inconsistencies. It felt...different. I much prefer the Gatistotles and Zealiostotles to the Invyrstotles.

I'll try adding an Aristotle stem into a Panda housing when I get home. I can attest to the inconsistencies in Aristotle stems. My favorite switch is a Cherristotle, and about 5 of the hundredish Aristotle stems didn't fit correctly I'm the Cherry housings. The rest fit perfectly and offer more stability than Zealiostotles.

Btw I tried 3-in-one silicone lube on my Pandas and it's been wonderful. I prefer it to think lube because it works just as well to smoothen the accuation, but allows the switch to slide up and down a little more freely. The GH thick lube v4 seems to add just a bit of noticeable drag of the switch comparatively.

Link to silicone lube: https://www.amazon.com/3-IN-ONE-All-Temperature-Silicone-Drip-Oil/dp/B0122T2X9M

[ns90]

I remember seeing a post somewhere but wanted to check. Aristotle stems fit in these housing? Had heard certain switch tops don't go well with stotle stems.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I only tried it with one, and it did fit, but I do believe that Aristotle stems can have some inconsistencies. It felt...different. I much prefer the Gatistotles and Zealiostotles to the Invyrstotles.

I'll try adding an Aristotle stem into a Panda housing when I get home. I can attest to the inconsistencies in Aristotle stems. My favorite switch is a Cherristotle, and about 5 of the hundredish Aristotle stems didn't fit correctly I'm the Cherry housings. The rest fit perfectly and offer more stability than Zealiostotles.

Btw I tried 3-in-one silicone lube on my Pandas and it's been wonderful. I prefer it to think lube because it works just as well to smoothen the accuation, but allows the switch to slide up and down a little more freely. The GH thick lube v4 seems to add just a bit of noticeable drag of the switch comparatively.

Link to silicone lube: https://www.amazon.com/3-IN-ONE-All-Temperature-Silicone-Drip-Oil/dp/B0122T2X9M

I didn't have any problem using 70 of them in Zealios housing, but I imagine that there's more room for the sliders in those housings. I know making Cherristotles is supposed to be a bit of a crapshoot. The Invyr housings seem pretty tight, so I'd have some concerns making a large batch of them.

[shinz0]

I'm looking to buy 5 - 10 on these if anyone wants to sell me any. I don't know what the aftermarket price is ( I'm thinking $2 per switch?) but give me a price in a PM if you can spare some. I'm in the US, Berkeley CA to be exact.

PM me if you haven't found anybody. I'll have some leftovers and can sell to you at cost + shipping.

[27]

UHHHHHHHHHHH I wasn't informed about being the Canadian proxy.  I paid for 15,000 switches and received 15,000 switches.  I'll talk to Zisb about this asap.

[cribbit]

UHHHHHHHHHHH I wasn't informed about being the Canadian proxy.  I paid for 15,000 switches and received 15,000 switches.  I'll talk to Zisb about this asap.

What crazy keyboard are you building with 15000 switches?

[kawasaki161]

UHHHHHHHHHHH I wasn't informed about being the Canadian proxy.  I paid for 15,000 switches and received 15,000 switches.  I'll talk to Zisb about this asap.

What crazy keyboard are you building with 15000 switches?

Didn't you see the picture of him in a bathtub full of switches? That alone was worth it.