[IC] geekhack key chains and vinyl stickers! (updated with more pictures!)

[Asininity]

Hello!

We’ve had a wonderful assortment of geekhack related merchandise fueling our ability to express our affinity for this website and our thirst for anything mechanical keyboard related. I have access to a laser and vinyl cutter so the answer was decals, key chains, and maybe a coaster.

Interest check: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1hNDWWN7uVWbltu4vOQ_lakfdZlD4jujIi5fbt-PUTPI/viewform

Designs and materials

The two materials I had in mind for the laser cutter are wood and acrylic. The acrylic colors I was thinking of are clear, orange, and black. Leather is up in the air. There’s a multitude of leathers to choose from and then there are dyes that could be used on them.

There are a number of options for wood. The least expensive option is most like 1/4th inch thick plywood. The type used for cabinets and the like. Understandably plywood is not everyone’s preference and other woods are available. I'd personally rather not used it. The cost will largely depend on what wood is chosen. There are two more options for the wood. First is staining and second is sanding the edges as they will be burned from the laser. Both increase price.

For vinyl colors I was thinking metallic gold, metallic silver, orange, and black. In regards to black and orange a question is whether people want matt, glossy, or both. Update: Following the interest check it seems like we'll be going with matt.

Current designs:

If you have any suggestions for any designs, especially vinyl, let me know!

Cost

First and foremost I would do my best to make these items as inexpensive as possible. The cost of the item would be composed of material + time. Laser cutting and picking at vinyl with an exacto blade is unfortunately a very time consuming process. As such a small “handling/production fee” would be included in the price.

These costs are rough estimates and only speculation. The prices could go up or down. Each key chain would come with a key chain ring and a jump ring.

$1-1.50 Small laser etched/cut key chain (clear material)
$1.50-2.50 Layered laser cut key chain (black/orange, clear/black, clear/orange)
$1-2 Wood laser etched/cut key chain
 $2-3 Stained wood/sanded edge laser etched/cut key chain
Unknown Small leather etched/cut key chain
$0.50-0.75 Small vinyl cut geekhack logo
$0.75-1.25 Small metallic vinyl cut geekhack logo

Once the materials and designs are locked down I’ll be able to give a more precise cost. A prominent issue is demand and selection. This will affect both price and turnaround time. A wider selection items would not increase price (it may increase turnaround) but what would increase the price is the diversity of materials used.

Vinyl comes in relatively large rolls and there would have to be a lot of orders to fill up those rolls. Because those rolls will need to be paid for the more stickers purchased the less expensive each sticker will be. The best way to get a lower price is to limit the number of colors available. One method of helping address this issue for is minimum purchases of stickers. For example, a minimum purchase of 10. An incentive could also be added. For example, one free sticker for every five stickers bought after 10. I.E two free stickers when you buy 20.

Turnaround

I would aim for a 1-2 week turnaround time with an extra few days just in case. I would try to purchase all of the materials once enough individuals are committed. This would help reduce the strain on me and decrease the turnaround.

Shipping would be inexpensive since everything could be mailed by envelope.

Examples

I decided to use what materials I had to make some examples to show.




Leather:
Typos have been fixed.



The holes for the key rings are too close to the edge in these versions. I will be moving them away from the edges so they don't tear off.
Note: Leather wouldn't be limited (and may not even include) these exact leathers. These were made from some leather I have sitting around for my leather work. If there are other types of leather or dyes are you interested in let me know. I am fairly sure I can find duplicate leathers to these if need be.

Acrylic:
Typos have been fixed.
I have ordered a sheet of black and orange acrylic to make some test keychains. I'm looking forward to how two layered key chains will look!



Vinyl:
Typos have been fixed.

Unfortunately I only had access to a few tiny scraps of vinyl.

Wood:
Typos have been fixed.


Without stain

After a very light stain.

s.



I really like how it turned out. However, I'm not sure how many I would make available. Unfortunately I'll have a lot to take care of as is.



I like how the lighter colored leather came out. At this size the darker leather (which is lighter) didn't come out nearly as well. If I enlarged it shouldn't be a problem.


Both done on the lighter colored leather.


Darker leather. I accidentally ran it at a lower power and the edges are messy.



Stained wood.






Note: These were cut from some 1/4th inch plywood and some scrap wood I had sitting around. I will buy some higher quality wood to test on.

Here are several examples of what I’ve made in the past:

More

If you look closely you can see a small amount of carbon buildup on the surface. This can easily be removed with some water and a towel.


Note: Each vinyl cut would come with application tape, as shown

Vectorized by Krogenar

[SpAmRaY]

Good luck!

[Zapheo]

The designs are nice. I would be interested!

[rowdy]

Would you consider making these with people's usernames, like the ones Moz did (for those of us who missed out on those)?

For example just a keychain with username on it, or perhaps one of the long ones that says "^geekhack.com _{keyboard enthusiasts}" with "^<username> _{keyboard enthusiast}".

[Badwrench]

I would be down for stickers, especially if there are multiple sizes.   

[Asininity]

Good luck!

Thanks!

The designs are nice. I would be interested!

Thank you! If you have any suggestions let me know.

Would you consider making these with people's usernames, like the ones Moz did (for those of us who missed out on those)?

For example just a keychain with username on it, or perhaps one of the long ones that says "^geekhack.com _{keyboard enthusiasts}" with "^<username> _{keyboard enthusiast}".

Yes. This is certainly possible.

I would be down for stickers, especially if there are multiple sizes.   

Awesome! I am hoping to have several different sizes.

[dimmu]

looks great. would definitely be interested with a magnetic one, too. if it's possible.

[Zapheo]

Wow I really like the design with our username on it! When will these be available for purchase?

[Asininity]

Wow I really like the design with our username on it! When will these be available for purchase?

I'm glad rowdy suggested the idea! Availability will be largely dependent on interest. This is especially crucial for vinyl as there will be enough individuals interested in purchasing enough stickers to cover the purchase of vinyl. Once the designs and materials in in two place I'm hoping for around a 1-2 week turnaround.

looks great. would definitely be interested with a magnetic one, too. if it's possible.

Do you mean something like a fridge magnet? I like the idea but that would be another item to source and put together. If you wanted I could always not cut a whole for the key chain ring in a acrylic

 I like the idea but that would be another item to source and put together. You could always hot glue a magnet to a layered acrylic key chain. For example and I could not cut a hole for the key chain ring and you could hot glue a magnet to it.

[suicidal_orange]

If we're going for usernames I'll need a rectangle one please )

Leather gets creased and discoloured and I'm not sure how wood handles rain, so the frosted acrylic with imprinted text works best for me.  Orange text better still if that's possible.

Not sure how they'd like international shipping though, to get it here would cost many times the price of the keyring... probably worth setting up a proxy but it's a bit soon for that!

[Asininity]

If we're going for usernames I'll need a rectangle one please )

Leather gets creased and discoloured and I'm not sure how wood handles rain, so the frosted acrylic with imprinted text works best for me.  Orange text better still if that's possible.

Not sure how they'd like international shipping though, to get it here would cost many times the price of the keyring... probably worth setting up a proxy but it's a bit soon for that!

Yes! I will design a alternative key chain that will be more comparable with longer usernames.

I am rather fond of the weathered battered leather look. Discoloration is less of an issue depending on the leather. I've used the darker leather for moccasins for 18th century reenacting and they have minimal discoloration. I have ordered black and orange acrylic for the expressed purpose of making a two layered key chain.

I have not thought of a solution for international shipping. Shipping might not be overly expensive due to the package size. A 5 ounce envelope to England seems to cost only $6.04.   

[Asininity]

Rectangle concept.

[akikun]

Count me in. I especially like the idea of having "geekhack/keyboard enthusiasts" on once side, and then "username/keyboard enthusiast" on the other, so the text could be proportioned the same (depending of course, on the length of the username). I suppose that could get dicey with the acrylic, but I think it would be awesome on leather. It's true that leather creases and stains, but I kind of think that could add to its charm. Granted, a leather that ages nicely might be more expensive.

[rowdy]

All of those above images

Exactly what I was thinking

Something in yellow would be nice   Or GH colours (classic Nostalgia - orange, dark gray and black).

[mp101]

Cool  +1 on the names, may change my username though

[hking0036]

definitely interested in the vinyl, particularly the non-metallic one.

[yomammary]

The small round leather keychain looks great.

[quochung1989]

Keychain is interesting, man.

[BunnyLake]

in for some leather goodness

[SpAmRaY]

in for some leather goodness

+1

The items in the OP look awesome.

[quake4mhg]

I would be down for stickers, especially if there are multiple sizes.   

Same here

[CommonCurt]

In for a leather keychain, and some stickers.

[inanis]

I'm always down for some stickers. Everything looks great. 

[Asininity]

Count me in. I especially like the idea of having "geekhack/keyboard enthusiasts" on once side, and then "username/keyboard enthusiast" on the other, so the text could be proportioned the same (depending of course, on the length of the username). I suppose that could get dicey with the acrylic, but I think it would be awesome on leather. It's true that leather creases and stains, but I kind of think that could add to its charm. Granted, a leather that ages nicely might be more expensive.

Yes, it would be a dicey maneuver to try that with the transparent acrylic. However, I have ordered orange and black acrylic which is rather opaque. It may turn out alright on those. The issue of course is standardization. The more choices people have the better but the more choices the longer it takes to make everything. So there's a important equilibrium to be found.

The issue with the leather is it has two sides. There's the finished side and the flesh side. The finished side is very smooth and the flesh side is very rough. The only way I know to get around this is to rubber cement two pieces of leather flesh side to flesh side. I'm not sure how well they stick together just with rubber cement as I've always rubber cemented and then stitched the two pieces together which creates a entirely new set of challenges as stitching takes time. The only other alternative is faux leather which I've never used on a laser cutter so I don't know how that would work out.

All of those above images

Exactly what I was thinking

Something in yellow would be nice   Or GH colours (classic Nostalgia - orange, dark gray and black).

I ordered orange and black acrylic sheets. The more colors the more orders have to be made to make use of the materials. At the moment I'm aiming for orange, black, and clear acrylic. For the leather I may try buying a orange dye. We'll have to see. The more variations the more work.

Cool  +1 on the names, may change my username though

Haha. Be sure to thank rowdy!

definitely interested in the vinyl, particularly the non-metallic one.

Thanks!

Keychain is interesting, man.

Thank you!

The small round leather keychain looks great.

I'm glad you like it!

in for some leather goodness

Fantastic! Leather appears to me popular than I first projected.

in for some leather goodness

+1

The items in the OP look awesome.

Thank you!

[suicidal_orange]

Looking good, except the typo which appears randomly throughout the mockups - it's enthusiast, with or without the s on the end.   

A single keycap in a padded envelope costs $6.16 so compared to a $2 keychain that's quite a lot.  I'd get two but only have one small bunch of keys.  Guess I'll have to get some stickers to make it worth it, what a shame!

[Asininity]

Looking good, except the typo which appears randomly throughout the mockups - it's enthusiast, with or without the s on the end.   

A single keycap in a padded envelope costs $6.16 so compared to a $2 keychain that's quite a lot.  I'd get two but only have one small bunch of keys.  Guess I'll have to get some stickers to make it worth it, what a shame!

Thank you! That would have been a horrible typo to have showing up on everything.

It is, but I initially thought it would be more. You can never have enough stickers though!

[akikun]

Count me in. I especially like the idea of having "geekhack/keyboard enthusiasts" on once side, and then "username/keyboard enthusiast" on the other, so the text could be proportioned the same (depending of course, on the length of the username). I suppose that could get dicey with the acrylic, but I think it would be awesome on leather. It's true that leather creases and stains, but I kind of think that could add to its charm. Granted, a leather that ages nicely might be more expensive.

Yes, it would be a dicey maneuver to try that with the transparent acrylic. However, I have ordered orange and black acrylic which is rather opaque. It may turn out alright on those. The issue of course is standardization. The more choices people have the better but the more choices the longer it takes to make everything. So there's a important equilibrium to be found.

The issue with the leather is it has two sides. There's the finished side and the flesh side. The finished side is very smooth and the flesh side is very rough. The only way I know to get around this is to rubber cement two pieces of leather flesh side to flesh side. I'm not sure how well they stick together just with rubber cement as I've always rubber cemented and then stitched the two pieces together which creates a entirely new set of challenges as stitching takes time. The only other alternative is faux leather which I've never used on a laser cutter so I don't know how that would work out.

Heh. Of course, how could I forget about the two-sidedness of leather? I think the stitched-together look would be absolutely beautiful, and I'd be willing to pay a decent chunk more for it. Perhaps, as a simplification, you could take one strip, fold it in half, and only tack it at the edge opposite the fold (omitting the cement)? Of course, if that's not what people want, or if it's just not logistically feasible for you, then forget I said anything. I think the thing that makes the leather special is that it is a natural material; if we're going with synthetic material, I'd probably just go for the acrylic rather than faux leather, personally.

[Asininity]

Count me in. I especially like the idea of having "geekhack/keyboard enthusiasts" on once side, and then "username/keyboard enthusiast" on the other, so the text could be proportioned the same (depending of course, on the length of the username). I suppose that could get dicey with the acrylic, but I think it would be awesome on leather. It's true that leather creases and stains, but I kind of think that could add to its charm. Granted, a leather that ages nicely might be more expensive.

Yes, it would be a dicey maneuver to try that with the transparent acrylic. However, I have ordered orange and black acrylic which is rather opaque. It may turn out alright on those. The issue of course is standardization. The more choices people have the better but the more choices the longer it takes to make everything. So there's a important equilibrium to be found.

The issue with the leather is it has two sides. There's the finished side and the flesh side. The finished side is very smooth and the flesh side is very rough. The only way I know to get around this is to rubber cement two pieces of leather flesh side to flesh side. I'm not sure how well they stick together just with rubber cement as I've always rubber cemented and then stitched the two pieces together which creates a entirely new set of challenges as stitching takes time. The only other alternative is faux leather which I've never used on a laser cutter so I don't know how that would work out.

Heh. Of course, how could I forget about the two-sidedness of leather? I think the stitched-together look would be absolutely beautiful, and I'd be willing to pay a decent chunk more for it. Perhaps, as a simplification, you could take one strip, fold it in half, and only tack it at the edge opposite the fold (omitting the cement)? Of course, if that's not what people want, or if it's just not logistically feasible for you, then forget I said anything. I think the thing that makes the leather special is that it is a natural material; if we're going with synthetic material, I'd probably just go for the acrylic rather than faux leather, personally.

The laser cutter can streamline the entire process. However, you do get toasty edges. They are far less noticeable on the darker leather and can be sanded down on the lighter colored leather.


Without sanding

With sanding compared to cut leather

This is what the back side of the leather looks like:

Light leather

Dark leather

Laser cut (including the holes for stitching) knife sheath. There's a number of different stitches that could be used. I didn't sand down any of it.

It is feasible, however I would most likely offer a limited quantity (10 of each color or so). Due to my schedule they would most likely have to be shipped seperately. I am making everything in my spare time and that's somewhat limited. I'm not sure what the cost would be but yes, it would be higher due to the amount of time it would take, double the leather, rubber cement, stitching.

[suicidal_orange]

Show Image

I'm really liking the bottom one in this pic but it would look cleaner if the keyring went through the top of the g so the border is the same all the way around, if you're still in the design phase :)

[Noko]

Some quicker solutions for flesh side:
1) would be to just buy a higher grade of veg tan for the final product, Hermann Oak/Wickett and Craig.  Super smooth grain and a perfect flesh side split, it's like dead flat and no fuzzies anywhere.
2) glass slicker and gum tragacanth for fixing up a lower grade flesh side

Man I would so love to have a laser engraver, awesome work

[rowdy]

Is it geekhack.com or geekhack.org?  I've always gone in through geekhack.org.

[suicidal_orange]

Is it geekhack.com or geekhack.org?  I've always gone in through geekhack.org.

Good spot - I've always gone to .org and going to .com gets me a security warning followed by a 403 (forbidden) on https and a redirect to .org on http so should be .org.

[Asininity]

Show Image

I'm really liking the bottom one in this pic but it would look cleaner if the keyring went through the top of the g so the border is the same all the way around, if you're still in the design phase :)

That will do much better, thanks! It has been re-designed.

Some quicker solutions for flesh side:
1) would be to just buy a higher grade of veg tan for the final product, Hermann Oak/Wickett and Craig.  Super smooth grain and a perfect flesh side split, it's like dead flat and no fuzzies anywhere.
2) glass slicker and gum tragacanth for fixing up a lower grade flesh side

Man I would so love to have a laser engraver, awesome work :thumb:

Thanks for the info!

According to their website I can get Hermann Oak at Tandy. However, I cannot find their leather on the Tandy website. Fortunately there's a store somewhat nearby. Pricing however is a standing issue. Keeping prices manageable is important.

I should get a glass slicker. I haven't really had a need for one. If need be hopefully I can find something that will fill that roll for the time being if needed.

[Noko]

Some quicker solutions for flesh side:
1) would be to just buy a higher grade of veg tan for the final product, Hermann Oak/Wickett and Craig.  Super smooth grain and a perfect flesh side split, it's like dead flat and no fuzzies anywhere.
2) glass slicker and gum tragacanth for fixing up a lower grade flesh side

Man I would so love to have a laser engraver, awesome work

Thanks for the info!

According to their website I can get Hermann Oak at Tandy. However, I cannot find their leather on the Tandy website. Fortunately there's a store somewhat nearby. Pricing however is a standing issue. Keeping prices manageable is important.

I should get a glass slicker. I haven't really had a need for one. If need be hopefully I can find something that will fill that roll for the time being if needed.

Lower price and way better service than Tandy at http://springfieldleather.com/, best leather store in the USA for sure, they're great.
They have very flexible wholesale pricing too, again way cheaper than Tandy even if you don't have a business number you can borrow: http://springfieldleather.com/14/Wholesale/

Yeah glass slicker is a really situational tool... I just got one myself cause I outgrew a rolling pin for that stuff  
Actually, you might be able to cut a rectangle out of thick acrylic, round and then buff the edges really really well, that would work just fine too.

[Asininity]

Is it geekhack.com or geekhack.org?  I've always gone in through geekhack.org.

It's geekhack.org. I have it changed but haven't uploaded a new image of the mockup.

I have two files, one is mock-ups and the other is the cut lines. I need to update the mockup. I'll double-check but I should have all of the typos squared on away on the cut file.

Lower price and way better service than Tandy at http://springfieldleather.com/, best leather store in the USA for sure, they're great.
They have very flexible wholesale pricing too, again way cheaper than Tandy even if you don't have a business number you can borrow: http://springfieldleather.com/14/Wholesale/

Yeah glass slicker is a really situational tool... I just got one myself cause I outgrew a rolling pin for that stuff  
Actually, you might be able to cut a rectangle out of thick acrylic, round and then buff the edges really really well, that would work just fine too.

Thanks! A benefit of Tandy's is being able to sort through potential clearance items and avoiding shipping costs. Shipping has a habit of ruining good deals. I wish I had a business number to use but I don't.

For the price of thick acrylic I could probably buy a glass slicker. I'm sure I can find a surrogate if need be.

[Photekq]

I'd love some geekhack stickers as much as the next guy, but am I the only one that thinks GHs logo is absolutely terrible, ugly and tasteless?

Meanwhile at OTD..

[SpAmRaY]

I'd love some geekhack stickers as much as the next guy, but am I the only one that thinks GHs logo is absolutely terrible, ugly and tasteless?

Meanwhile at OTD..

Show Image

we can't all be korean

[Photekq]

we can't all be korean

Unfortunately

But we can try and emulate them by getting a more aesthetically pleasing logo..

I hear there's a few talented graphic designers here. *cough* lastpilot *cough*

[SpAmRaY]

we can't all be korean

Unfortunately

But we can try and emulate them by getting a more aesthetically pleasing logo..

I hear there's a few talented graphic designers here. *cough* lastpilot *cough*

Personally I have nothing against the geekhack logo, I like it just fine.

But there's only so much you can do with a G and an H right?

[Asininity]

I'd love some geekhack stickers as much as the next guy, but am I the only one that thinks GHs logo is absolutely terrible, ugly and tasteless?

Meanwhile at OTD..

Show Image

I'm in the middle of the road. Sure, the logo could be loads better but so could the majority of all logos. I'm not much of a fan of the OTD logo myself. I'd like something with a 1920's twist but I may be alone on that front.

Something like this

we can't all be korean

Unfortunately :-[

But we can try and emulate them by getting a more aesthetically pleasing logo..

I hear there's a few talented graphic designers here. *cough* lastpilot *cough*

If anyone has a alternative GH logo design I would be open to trying to make it!

[evolveS]

I'm interested in many, many stickers.

[CommonCurt]

we can't all be korean

Unfortunately

But we can try and emulate them by getting a more aesthetically pleasing logo..

I hear there's a few talented graphic designers here. *cough* lastpilot *cough*

Personally I have nothing against the geekhack logo, I like it just fine.

But there's only so much you can do with a G and an H right?

I like the GH logo.  So if you do decide to go come up with something new please make some stickers with current logo also.

[Asininity]

I'm coming closer to solidifying the selection of key chains available. The only key chains I haven't made are the two layered acrylic ones. Black and orange acrylic should show up on my porch in the next day or two.

Here's some new images.



I really like how it turned out. However, I'm not sure how many I would make available. Unfortunately I'll have a lot to take care of as is.



I like how the lighter colored leather came out. At this size the darker leather (which is lighter) didn't come out nearly as well. If I enlarged it shouldn't be a problem.


Both done on the lighter colored leather.


Darker leather. I accidentally ran it at a lower power and the edges are messy.



Stained wood.

[CommonCurt]

I'm coming closer to solidifying the selection of key chains available. The only key chains I haven't made are the two layered acrylic ones. Black and orange acrylic should show up on my porch in the next day or two.

Here's some new images.

Show Image

Show Image

I really like how it turned out. However, I'm not sure how many I would make available. Unfortunately I'll have a lot to take care of as is.

Show Image

Show Image

These are looking good. Really want some of the lighter leather ones.

[meow a cat]

I would be interested in a leather or wooden keychain, and some stickers!

[LXXXIX]

Do you think you could add a metal eyelet to these? It would make it so much more sturdy.

[Asininity]

These are looking good. Really want some of the lighter leather ones.

Glad you like them! The leathers has been a lot more popular than I thought it would be.

I would be interested in a leather or wooden keychain, and some stickers!

Why not all three?

Do you think you could add a metal eyelet to these? It would make it so much more sturdy.

Show Image

Show Image

Eyelets would certainly make them stronger. However, even without them the thicker leather is rather durable. I could increase the amount of leather between the hole in the 'g' and the edge. Something I'm going to do with the other leather key chains. I do like the look of eyelets. Though the eyelets would most likely be too large for some of the smaller leather key chains. The eyelets have to be large enough to accommodate the key chain so there's a limit to how small they can be.

There's a load of stuff I'd like to do but I have to be considerate of the cost and time. With each new element there's something new to buy and something new to do. If there's enough demand for eyelets and the cost was displaced enough to where people would like them it's a definite option. However, I don't know how many orders would be made for the key chains that would have eyelets.

[JaccoW]

I really like how the stitched leather keychain came out. I would so rock that one as a zipper pull on a Lanbag or something.

[Asininity]

I really like how the stitched leather keychain came out. I would so rock that one as a zipper pull on a Lanbag or something.

I'm glad you like it!

[Skuloth]

I'm definitely in for some vinyl stickers.

I like these:



and these: