ErgoDock for your ErgoDox

[kurplop]

i'm glad to read that you finally received your Dock and that you like it. Which hole is off? I hope others don't have the problem as well. I'm glad you have the resources to fix it. Unfortunately, I didn't have a unit to test the fit with because I helicoiled and ground flush the screws on mine. It wouldn't have fit anyways because I shaped the perimeter so much that it is probably a quarter inch smaller that stock.

I found that just using a spray can of polyurethane was most convenient. I used Minwax brand on mine. The mahogany and walnut seem to respond best to solvent based urethane to best enhance their grain color however I prefer water-borne finishes for lighter woods like maple because the solvents add an amber tint which I don't like as much on maple. The exception of course would be if your trying to color match an existing piece of furniture.

If you use a rattle can, you will probably need 5+ coats to get a good build. A trick I use on open grained woods like mahogany and walnut is to spray a coat and when it's tacky I rub the finish into the open grain to speed up the build. I just use my finger to do this. Usually by the second coat the depressions from the grain are filled pretty well. Sand lightly between coats. I also would suggest waxing your Dock after the final coat. I rubbed out and waxed my tray and six months later it is still like new in spite of daily abuse from my less than office-like hands. If you do wax it, make sure you won't be applying any more finish. It won't adhere without a complete stripping.

If it were me, I wouldn't stain any of the Docks i made unless I were matching something existing. I might stain or paint the plywood however to match the darker woods, but probably not. 

It just occurred to me that most of you have clear ErgoDoxes. That could factor into how you color the plywood as well.

[Larken]

I also would suggest waxing your Dock after the final coat. I rubbed out and waxed my tray and six months later it is still like new in spite of daily abuse from my less than office-like hands. If you do wax it, make sure you won't be applying any more finish. It won't adhere without a complete stripping.

hi kurplop, I have a question about finishing (or more accurately, maintenance of wood), and was hoping that you could enlighten me on it. I'd read that its a bad idea to apply wax on polyurethane finished wood (mostly what I could find is regarding poly-finished floors), is the adherence problem the reason?

So far, the poly coat seems to be holding up fairly well on my ergodox (I used a Ronseal satin coat marked as 'Ultra-tough' if it matters), but I had been wondering if it would remain that way another 6 months down the road. I was thinking if I should apply wax on it every few months in way of maintenance, but I'm hesitant to do so after what I read online about wax on polyurethane finishes.

 

[kurplop]

 Good question. I have never had a problem waxing over polyurethane but you never know with the constantly changing formulations. I know that waxing a floor can be unsafe if you walk around in socks. It turns your floor into a giant slip and slide.  I wonder if that is the reason?

The thing I like about waxing is it tends to repel oil, dirt, moisture, grime, just about anything. I've had woodwork that has gotten grimy from hand oils and dirt over time. It can make the finish gummy. The rubbing out and waxing seems to be the best solution I've found.

I've never tried Ronseal but I'm impressed that it is 'ultra tough'. I wonder how that compares with what I use which is rated as being 'super durable'? 

[Larken]

oh you kid    I am very much just a dabbler, so I just buy what's on the shelf after reading what I can on the back of the can, and hope for the best afterwards 

I think most of what I read was concerned with having to strip the floors in the event of wanting to refinish the floor, and a few comments on wax eventually breaking down, yellowing and no longer giving a shine after buffing - at which point the only option was to strip the wax off totally and refinish (along with many comments of 'don't use wax on poly floors' - which got me a little wary).

Though I imagine that a high traffic wooden floor to a keyboard that rests on the table is probably not a good comparison in terms of how much wear they undergo.

I haven't had any problems with the finish going gummy yet, but I do like what you say about waxing repelling oil and dirt. I'd probably have to go look into it when I can. Thanks for the reply, very reassuring 

[vivalarevolución]

Newb question with zero experience in finishing wood products.  What sort of wax are you guys using after applying those polyurethane coats?

[kurplop]

I have used paste waxes made for furniture and also paste car waxes.

[vivalarevolución]

I have used paste waxes made for furniture and also paste car waxes.

Car waxes?  Interesting.  I have plenty of that laying around.

[Larken]

Another question, after the polyurethane cures, what grits of sandpaper would you recommend to begin with and go up to before one should start applying wax?

[daerid]

i'm glad to read that you finally received your Dock and that you like it. Which hole is off? I hope others don't have the problem as well. I'm glad you have the resources to fix it. Unfortunately, I didn't have a unit to test the fit with because I helicoiled and ground flush the screws on mine. It wouldn't have fit anyways because I shaped the perimeter so much that it is probably a quarter inch smaller that stock.

I found that just using a spray can of polyurethane was most convenient. I used Minwax brand on mine. The mahogany and walnut seem to respond best to solvent based urethane to best enhance their grain color however I prefer water-borne finishes for lighter woods like maple because the solvents add an amber tint which I don't like as much on maple. The exception of course would be if your trying to color match an existing piece of furniture.

If you use a rattle can, you will probably need 5+ coats to get a good build. A trick I use on open grained woods like mahogany and walnut is to spray a coat and when it's tacky I rub the finish into the open grain to speed up the build. I just use my finger to do this. Usually by the second coat the depressions from the grain are filled pretty well. Sand lightly between coats. I also would suggest waxing your Dock after the final coat. I rubbed out and waxed my tray and six months later it is still like new in spite of daily abuse from my less than office-like hands. If you do wax it, make sure you won't be applying any more finish. It won't adhere without a complete stripping.

If it were me, I wouldn't stain any of the Docks i made unless I were matching something existing. I might stain or paint the plywood however to match the darker woods, but probably not. 

It just occurred to me that most of you have clear ErgoDoxes. That could factor into how you color the plywood as well.

It's the top middle one. It's slightly too far left. The left hand fits perfectly (and it's actually snug due to the way the bolts rest against the edges of the insets).

How long does the entire finishing process usually take? I only ask because I'm officially addicted to this thing, and want to know how long my hands have to suffer for

[kurplop]

Another question, after the polyurethane cures, what grits of sandpaper would you recommend to begin with and go up to before one should start applying wax?

If your finish is pretty flat, that is, no orange peel, you could begin with 600 grit and then go progressively finer. I recently tried Micro-Mesh soft pads  http://www.amazon.com/Micro-Mesh-Soft-Touch-Pads/dp/B003ELH7AI/ref=sr_1_12?ie=UTF8&qid=1382399945&sr=8-12&keywords=12000+grit+sandpaper  and they work great. They will take your finish all the way to a gloss finish if you go all the way to the 12000 grit.
Super smooth finish.  I bought mine at Rockler for about $15 and they will last a long time.

It is good to wait a few days after final coat before polishing to further cure. I frequently jump the gun and regret it later.

The finishing process takes a few days. You can spray 3 or four coats on a warm dry day, sanding between coats to knockdown orange peel and imperfections. You can stop there and it will be usable the next day. If you rub it out and wax I'd recommend waiting a few days before doing so. You can use it in the meantime. If you do rub the finish out and use a rattle can, I'd recommend 5 coats minimum because the finish goes on thinner than non-aerosol finishes and you don't want to burn through the finish. When I sand finish I try not to over sand the convex areas, they are prone to oversanding and the finish naturally pulls away from the outside corners as it self levels making it thinner there to begin with.

[Larken]

thanks again. I messed up on rubbing out the first time by burning through the poly using 320 grit, and applying way too much pressure (did about 3 layers then) - and had to redo the finishing all over again. Haven't redone the rubbing out since. Those micro mesh pads should makes things alot easier.

[daerid]

Well, I finally got off my ass and got some poly for the dock. Two coats on so far. I'm waiting about 2 hours in between coats, probably going to take some 400 paper to it before the next coat (I'm using satin finish poly as my hands really sweat on glossy surfaces). Wish me luck

[daerid]

kurplop, thank you once again. The mahogany looks absolutely fantastic after five coats of satin poly.

[Glod]

so happy for you guys, looks great daerid! mine is all beat up and scratched up and currently not using right now due to my classic hand ergodox has a messed up trrs and usb connector i have to fix.

[vivalarevolución]

Here are photos of the mahogany Ergodock  with a few coats of satin poly. No staining. Looks better than I ever could have expected.

[Glod]

looks so much better than mine. I think my beta version has custom dimensions, I think kurplop made mine thicker

[kurplop]

The finish looks great guys. How are they in use? Thanks for posting pictures.

[daerid]

The satin poly (5 or 6 coats) is holding up great. My hands/wrists sweat profusely on glossy surfaces, so the satin is definitely a better choice for me, and the finish is holding up great. It also feels great, and the the little rubber feet you included do wonders for dampening the bottom out feeling as well as the harsh "clack" sound.

[balanar]

I've finally got some time to work on the ergodocks I received so long ago. Very eager to get cracking on these.

[nacitar]

Are these still available?  I'm interested.

[ijprest]

I *finally* got my ErgoDox kit from MassDrop last night, so I can now put my beautiful ErgoDock to use.  And fortunately I'm on vacation, so I have some free time!  I assembled the ErgoDox partly last night, and finished it off this morning.

So now I'm off to Home Depot to get some polyurethane and wax to finish off my ErgoDock.  Wish me luck.  I'll post photos when it's done!

[ijprest]

And here's the (intermediate) result... turned out great, I think:





That's just four coats of clear poly (MinWax, water-based, brushed on).  I've got some finishing wax I intend to try, but I want to let the poly cure really well first, so I'll tackle that when I get back from visiting family over Christmas.

I love the look of cherry wood... I wasn't sure how I'd like it "au naturel" (you normally see it stained darker), but it turned out great.

Thanks again, kurplop!

[kurplop]

Very nice job.

Cherry has a nice clean look. You will find that it will darken over time and take on an even warmer tone. I like the anodized aluminum too.

[Wildcard]

I love this thread. I need to make one of these for my Ergodox.

[Wildcard]

Also, I really like some of the leather wrist rests that have been coming out.

[vivalarevolución]

Finally got around to pairing the Ergodock with an assembled Ergodox.

[jroes]

So the ErgoDock will help you tent your Ergodox too?

Is there something more comfortable that can be used as opposed to the wood?

I'd really like to tent my ergodox with some comfortable wrist rests, but having trouble finding a solution.

[daerid]

Is there something about wood you find uncomfortable? I've found that my wood ErgoDock is way more comfortable than the hacked up Grifiti pad I was using before.

[jroes]

Yeah I guess you're right. And technically it doesn't need to be that comfortable because you shouldn't be resting your hands for a long time there anyways. The more comfortable it is, the more I might be likely to just keep my wrists down when typing.

But anyways, the ErgoDock is no longer available, right?

[daerid]

You'll have to check with kurplop, but yeah I don't think he's making any more.

[cloud_c]

This is such an awesome mod. I'm really digging the mahogany wrist rest with the white (maple?) base plate.
An even more awesome mod would be to have an all wood ergodox case with a contrasting colour base plate and middle plate for the keys.
I don't suppose there are any inkling of such an upcoming project?

[litster]

The dock looks very nice.  If I had a pair, I might actually use my ErgoDox!  :-p

[skcheng]

Wow!!  Great thread!!   Would love an ErgoDock in some exotic hardwood.   Burl?   Rosewood??   Ebony......as long it doesn't check!!   

[azth]

How does a classic + ergodock compare to a full hand ergodox?

[skcheng]

And here's the (intermediate) result... turned out great, I think:

(Attachment Link)

(Attachment Link)

That's just four coats of clear poly (MinWax, water-based, brushed on).  I've got some finishing wax I intend to try, but I want to let the poly cure really well first, so I'll tackle that when I get back from visiting family over Christmas.

I love the look of cherry wood... I wasn't sure how I'd like it "au naturel" (you normally see it stained darker), but it turned out great.

Thanks again, kurplop!

Natural cherry is the BEST.    It will darken on it's own to a rich burnished red over time.    My kitchen cabinets started out that color and now they're beautifully rich and red.   

[kurplop]

I have had a quite a few people contact me about making more ErgoDocks. Unfortunately, I will not likely have time to do so in the near future. If anyone is interested in selling theirs, PM me and I can refer you to a possible buyer.

[oystein.krog]

I decided to make my own after seeing these.
I'm still experimenting a lot with tenting, once I find the ideal setup I'll make a better base as well.
I just grabbed some old scrap oak. cut it, sanded it down and applied a layer of some old teak oil I found:p

With czarek case:
   
Rebuilt with AKmalamute metal case:

[Fluctuation]

I'll also be making one for myself as soon as it arrives from the GB. Can't wait to work on it.

[kurplop]

Looks great!  My original hope was to make a simple to build, tent-able wood wrist rest for the ErgoDox that others could use as a springboard for designing and building their own. It's nice to see it happening.

[rosciol]

If anyone is making these or has a 3D diagram I could have printed, that would be awesome.

[docwlad]

If anyone is making these or has a 3D diagram I could have printed, that would be awesome.

I'll second that. These look awesome! Anybody still making these?

[cruzin]

Once I get my Ergodox, I'll also be wanting this. They look great!

[cruzin]

Just following up on this. Are these still being made? Is anyone selling theirs?

[pfooti]

Does anyone have any suggestions or hints for making one of these? I'm interested in hearing about wood choices, patterns, tools, and so forth.

I'm moderately handy. I've printed out the full-hand acrylic case cad files by litster, and confirmed that they line up and so forth. I have a standard size acrylic case (from a massdrop run), so the full-hand size is probably a good starting model. Basically, I just want to get something to provide support and tenting (and keep the keyboard from rattling in the tray; right now I have it sitting on a handwoven gamp).

I'm planning on cutting the pieces with a plain old jigsaw, again - moderately but not highly handy, shaping the wrist rest using a disc sander, and just doing the old clamp + glue to put it all together. Cut little notches where the nuts are on the keyboard case so it sits in nicely, and do something to keep it in place but still removable (I take my ergodox with me when I travel for long periods of time, as I have gotten really used to it, but don't want to take the whole setup necessarily).

So, any advice at all would be welcome.

[kurplop]

It seems like you have a good grasp of how to do it. I'd recommend a moderately hard wood for wear and a urethane finish that is then waxed for easy cleaning.

[pfooti]

My first try worked out medium-well. I got a rough cut of the base and wrist-rest that are close enough to the correct shape to be encouraging. However, the holes I drilled in the base (to situate the nuts on the ergodox) are too close to the edge, and things are already starting to crack in the plywood I'm using ("premium" 3/8" beech from home depot).

At this point, my choices would be: enlarge the base to get more space between the holes and the edge, thicken the base and don't drill full 1/4" wide holes (for the whole nut) and instead drill 1/8" shallow divots (for the rounded top of the nut to settle in to), or maybe redesign the base entirely and find a different way to attach the ergodox to the base - it doesn't actually have to be as wide as the whole keyboard, just wide enough for the tenting wedge to attach somewhere useful.

Again, I'm open to any suggestions. Here's a link to two photos of the WIP. You can see the poor job I did with drilling out the nut-holes (but I'm pretty sure even a good job drilling wouldn't leave enough material to be stable long-term), and the general theory I had for assembling it.

[kurplop]

I think that I used 1/4" baltic birch which probably has more integrity, especially helpful when drilling close to the edges. I used a forester bit in a drill press and even then I had to be careful being that close to the edges.
I wonder if you could get buy a set of full hand bottom plates and replace your existing classic ones. Then you could just attach the wood palm rest and legs to them. That would deemphasize the base and direct attention to the wood rest and the ErgoDox, which is where you would want it.

[romevi]

Hi peeps. Seeing as I'm always late to the party, being sorta newish here to GH, I was wondering if anyone is happening to unload their ErgoDock. I realize it's a far cry considering how amazing these are, but I figured it doesn't hurt to ask. I was going to wait until Massdrop did another Infinity ErgoDox, but who knows when that'll happen...

Would prefer mahogany as the red color matches my mostly black office furniture, but any PMs would be appreciatively considered!

[Calraquin]

Wow really well done!