Author Topic: Filco Majestouch - Sore Thumbs? Try reversing the space bar! (Read 22002 times)

GreatGreen · « **on:** Sun, 14 February 2010, 01:15:47 »

I recently bought and received my first mechanical keyboard a few days ago, a Filco Tenkeyless Majestouch keyboard with Cherry MX Brown Switches, and it's great.

However, there was one thing that really bugged me about the Filco: the space bar. It's angled to such a degree that it really digs into your thumbs unless you hold them a very specific, slightly awkward way. So, I fixed the problem. How? Simple, I just reversed the space bar. The problem of the sharp space bar is now completely eliminated for me. Seriously.

It's really simple to do this, and I think it vastly improves the feel of the keyboard.

1. Completely remove the space bar from the keyboard.

2. Reverse the plastic guides on the underside of the space bar. There are two small plastic pieces that a small piece of metal fits into in order to help guide and stabilize the space bar. Use a pair of needle-nosed pliers to pull these guides straight out of their holes (if you twist them, they'll break, so don't do that), reverse their orientation, and simply put them back in their places.

3. Reapply the space bar in the opposite orientation of how you first removed it.

4. Profit! Seriously, you won't believe how much better the keyboard feels to type on with the space bar oriented like this.

Enjoy!

majestouch · « **Reply #1 on:** Sun, 14 February 2010, 01:45:42 »

The spacebar on FILCOs is actually rather forgiving as far as spacebars go; drastically compared to Topre or PFU's.

It appears (from the photo) that you type with the legs down so the edges of the keys angle toward you more. Do you do this because you're used to typing on flat laptop boards? I'm not sure any keyboards are ever meant to be used with the legs down, it's more of a method to make the keyboard more compact for shipping and storage. Having the legs down requires you to arch your palms and hands up excessively if your desk is level to your bent forearms (as a desk should be).

In any case, before flipping a spacebar I usually recommend trying some good ol' fashioned typing posture; i.e. sit forward in your chair, back straight, forearms close to level, palms raised OFF the desk (or use a palm rest), and slightly curl your fingers and thumbs. You'd be surprised how much good form will improve your comfort and typing speed:)

GreatGreen · « **Reply #2 on:** Sun, 14 February 2010, 02:08:35 »

Even with the legs extended, I find the mod to be just as effective in improving the feel of the keyboard. In both cases, it seems to me that my thumbs fit better with the reversed space bar. Even when I experiment with different "postures" and ways to hold my hands, the reversed space bar is significantly more comfortable for me.

Who knows, you might like it better stock, but I'm definitely keeping my Filco's space bar reversed.

trievalot · « **Reply #3 on:** Sun, 14 February 2010, 02:52:27 »

well, it certainly looks different.
to me its like getting Eliza Duskus breasts and putting them on backwards.

hyperlinked · « **Reply #4 on:** Sun, 14 February 2010, 03:28:11 »

Pardon me, but I just find this bizarre. Green, you must have a very peculiar typing style that causes your thumbs to wear on the spacebar the way they do.

Rajagra · « **Reply #5 on:** Sun, 14 February 2010, 07:27:38 »

I've seen another keyboard here somewhere that had a spacebar with a very different slope to the other keys, and I remember thinking what a good idea it was. All keyboards seem guilty of having sharp edged keys (inevitable given the thickness of material used, I guess) and the spacebar is where you are most likely to suffer from it. I think you did well to discover it's even possible to reverse the space bar, it can't be done on most keyboards.

If (OK, when) I buy a Filco, I'll be sure to consider this.

EDIT> You've inspired me with an idea. When moving keys to match a different layout (Dvoark, Colemak etc) you could invert the two home keys so they feel different to make up for the lack of nubs.

nanu · « **Reply #6 on:** Sun, 14 February 2010, 09:10:01 »

The angle of the second picture exaggerates the flatness of the board, so this mod is actually weirder if an non-crooked picture were taken. Just sayin'

Also, are the spacebar's stabilizer clips of the 104 majestouches the same as the 87s? I was too chicken to pull them out before first shaving some of the plastic with a blade, in the gap between the metal plate and the PCB, to loosen its 1-way-ness. In comparison, the other keys' guides feel more permanently stuck.

GreatGreen · « **Reply #7 on:** Sun, 14 February 2010, 12:23:08 »

Quote from: hyperlinked;158254

Pardon me, but I just find this bizarre. Green, you must have a very peculiar typing style that causes your thumbs to wear on the spacebar the way they do.

Not really.

My typing posture is pretty much standard. I sit up straight and I'd say my keyboard is just about even or a little bit higher than my belly button. My hands are fairly in-line with my forearms, with no obvious bend in my wrists when I type, really.

Quote from: Rajagra;158260

I've seen another keyboard here somewhere that had a spacebar with a very different slope to the other keys, and I remember thinking what a good idea it was. All keyboards seem guilty of having sharp edged keys (inevitable given the thickness of material used, I guess) and the spacebar is where you are most likely to suffer from it. I think you did well to discover it's even possible to reverse the space bar, it can't be done on most keyboards.

If (OK, when) I buy a Filco, I'll be sure to consider this.

EDIT> You've inspired me with an idea. When moving keys to match a different layout (Dvoark, Colemak etc) you could invert the two home keys so they feel different to make up for the lack of nubs.

Thanks! I felt like MacGyver when I discovered the mod, and that it was possible to do without actually doing anything that couldn't be quickly reversed, haha.

Quote from: nanu;158264

The angle of the second picture exaggerates the flatness of the board, so this mod is actually weirder if an non-crooked picture were taken. Just sayin'

Also, are the spacebar's stabilizer clips of the 104 majestouches the same as the 87s? I was too chicken to pull them out before first shaving some of the plastic with a blade, in the gap between the metal plate and the PCB, to loosen its 1-way-ness. In comparison, the other keys' guides feel more permanently stuck.

Yeah, the second picture does kind of exaggerate the angle of the space bar. It's not nearly that obvious when you're just looking at the board.

I'm not sure if the Filco with the number pad has the same space bar assembly method as the Tenkeyless, or even whether they can be altered on any of the keyboard's other keys, so I can't answer your question with certainty. However, if I had to put money on it, I'd assume the Filco with the number pad uses the same space bar assembly process as the Tenkeyless version. I see no reason for it not to.

Also, I'm not sure about the metal plate or the PCB. This mod didn't really require anything that intense. I just pulled the space bar off and switched around the little plastic guides to match.

itlnstln · « **Reply #8 on:** Mon, 15 February 2010, 08:17:22 »

I don't remember what keyboard they did it on, but a member did this same mod before a loooong time ago for the same reason. It is kinda weird, though that the spacebar digs into some people's thumbs like that.

trievalot · « **Reply #9 on:** Mon, 15 February 2010, 15:12:12 »

Quote from: ripster;158460

Weirdness is in the thumb of the beholder. I like this mod - linked to it in the "All About Keys Wiki". Anybody that posts "you're weird" in a mods post is acting like this guy.

Show Image

I kid, I kid. Sort of. Not really.

I think you're thinking of the guy that did this key reversal to a Topre. The Topre DOES have a sharper edge. The Filco is rather forgiving as Majestouch said.

Left to Right: Filco, Topre, Cherry, IBM
Show Image

The Topre is easy to spot. It has the doggie chew marks. My dog finds the Filco to have overtones of Plum and Clearcoat. The IBM tends to Grassy and Flame Retardant. Cherrys are: Fruity (duh). Topres are expensive but tasty - stupid dog.

you said a few weeks ago when i posted a pic of a spacebar - dont let the dog chew it. Now it makes sense!

elservo · « **Reply #10 on:** Tue, 16 February 2010, 13:05:16 »

Did you scream like a woman when you saw your dog eating your Topre spacebar?

itlnstln · « **Reply #11 on:** Tue, 16 February 2010, 13:35:17 »

Quote from: ripster;158658

How do you know I'm not a woman?

If I saw a woman that looked like you... let's just say i wouldn't be interested.

Armando Penblade · « **Reply #12 on:** Thu, 03 March 2011, 21:01:32 »

You know, I am almost considering doing this with my Filco, but I'm going to see if my thumb adapts after a few days or not. It may just be sensitive thanks to how hard I have to whack my spacebar at work, since it's mostly broken. As it is, my thumb hits it almost entirely sideways, so it's just jamming into the side of the thumb rather than the big beefy part that might absorb the impact better. . .

On the other hand, I just blew $150 on this board and haven't had it 12 hours yet. Not sure I want to go pulling it apart and risking breakable parts just yet!

TommySprat · « **Reply #13 on:** Thu, 31 March 2011, 13:46:24 »

I just did this to my Xarmor u9bl-s and it's awesome. No more wall of china to climb for my thumbs before being able to tap that spacebar. I forgot to take pictures before i started but you can find images and videos of the original board easily.

Removing and putting the spacebar back was scary though. The white plastic pieces holding the metal bar were thinner than they looked on pictures I've seen. I ended up lifting them out with a small screwdriver. When attaching the key to the metal bar again I either bent or snapped one of those white pieces, no indications of damage showed up though (it all works fine). Great tip!

mattdurham · « **Reply #14 on:** Thu, 31 March 2011, 14:56:24 »

Agreed, did this and really digging it.

aggiejy · « **Reply #15 on:** Thu, 14 April 2011, 10:04:48 »

I did this too. I have good typing posture (I think), but I have very large hands and long fingers. The result is that my thumbs are lower off the bottom of the keyboard; this makes the most common impact point right on the ridge.

Well, regardless of the reason, I like this a lot better.

Even though it looks funny.

oddsratio · « **Reply #16 on:** Sun, 15 May 2011, 19:37:01 »

Quote from: TommySprat;322112

I just did this to my Xarmor u9bl-s and it's awesome. No more wall of china to climb for my thumbs before being able to tap that spacebar. I forgot to take pictures before i started but you can find images and videos of the original board easily.

Show Image

Show Image

Show Image

Removing and putting the spacebar back was scary though. The white plastic pieces holding the metal bar were thinner than they looked on pictures I've seen. I ended up lifting them out with a small screwdriver. When attaching the key to the metal bar again I either bent or snapped one of those white pieces, no indications of damage showed up though (it all works fine). Great tip!

I use the three modifier keys to the left of the spacebar a lot and ended up flipping those around too. The lettering looks funny upside down, but it feels so much nicer. The stabilizers are pretty flimsy, but I can probably get those from a donor board.

Zet · « **Reply #17 on:** Thu, 19 May 2011, 00:19:55 »

Seems like I'm definitively gonna try this once my Filco arrives!

Orphagn · « **Reply #18 on:** Fri, 20 May 2011, 01:55:11 »

I do this with my Poker and I love the feel of it.

ethics- · « **Reply #19 on:** Mon, 23 May 2011, 11:47:41 »

I just did this and it feels great!

Spinifex · « **Reply #20 on:** Tue, 12 July 2011, 15:06:49 »

Been using this little mod on my Filco TenKeyless for a couple of months now. I had to go back to a rubber dome piece of crap for a few hours when my wife refused to relinquish the Filco (the same Filco she gave me no end of diatribe over spending close to $200 Aussie on) and, WOW, I really notice the difference in space bar. I hadn't realised how use to the new angle I had gotten. I really feels differend, better, less aggressive on your thumb.

The difference in the angle of contact for the thumb is excellent. Such a little thing that makes such a difference in the usage experience.

Thanks for this mod. This is one of the easiest, safest, quickest mods on GeekHack, and a mod I am thoroughly happy with.

I'll be doing this mod on every keyboard I use (and that is can be done on).

Have fun.

pyro · « **Reply #21 on:** Sun, 17 July 2011, 18:08:39 »

this tip just improved the quality of my life by 50%.

Oqsy · « **Reply #22 on:** Sun, 17 July 2011, 18:16:05 »

Quote from: pyro;382188

this tip just improved the quality of my life by 50%.

That's a big improvement in QoL for turning your spacebar around. We should tell Africa.

Mo0rbid · « **Reply #23 on:** Wed, 30 November 2011, 09:53:48 »

I did this on my ZOWIE Celeritas and it feels a lot better! By looking at that Filco keyboard it seem to be extremely similar to the celeritas

obra · « **Reply #24 on:** Mon, 30 January 2012, 00:21:34 »

I did this on my Poker. It's fantastic.

News:

Author Topic: Filco Majestouch - Sore Thumbs? Try reversing the space bar! (Read 22002 times)