So, here's the skinny:
I've decided to go with gateron blues. I used a dremel tool to remove the plastic bit, which you can see in the video.
There was that ~10Hz flicker I mentioned in the last video; I fixed that entirely by setting the teensy to 96 MHz overclocked.
After playing around with some code, I've gotten it to run some mildly interesting animations, which you'll see in the video. The moving rainbow, a breathing effect, pong, conway's game of life, and 'ghosting', but not the bad kind, the key you press just lights up and fades away.
I actually reeeeaaally want to program tetris into it next.
Anyway, materials have been ordered: 12x12 double sided copper clad FR4 board, a 3 to 8 decoder
http://www.digikey.com/product-search/en?vendor=0&keywords=568-1417-1-ND, and an A105054-ND
http://www.digikey.com/product-detail/en/5-146130-6/A105054-ND/1125654 header to solder to the underside of the teensy so we can access those much needed GPIOs.
I've decided to just use Express PCB to create the schematic instead of going through the hassle of learning kicad, and have I got a treat for you;
current mockup:
More
single block:
More
And for those playing along at home, just let me know if you want the actual express pcb file, and i can email it to you.
Now for some game changing developments, I have actually looked into, and subsequently been getting really excited about getting a 3d milling machine. In particular, the xcarve
https://www.inventables.com/technologies/x-carve, a desktop sized 3 axis milling machine with up to 75 micrometer accuracy. With this, I can mill my case out of plastic, cut out the circuit board and drill the holes in one go (2 for double sided circuits) instead of etching it with chemicals, and even shave just a hair-thin layer off of the keycaps to engrave the lettering! The head could also be swapped out to create a lathe, 3d printer, laser cutter, pick and place machine, and drill press! Given the parts I have laying around, I could build it for $600. That's pretty damn good in my opinion. Plus, I may decide to create my own switched in the future, which I could use this machine to create =D
So, I'm currently in the process of finishing up the design and then I'ts just a matter of creating the board, assembly, and programming the teensy.
Please let me know if theres anything else you want me to cover!
note: link to video coming soon