@Chyros: Do you have some sort of keyboard superpower that guides you to these incredible finds? It isn't fair to us mere mortals.
@emdude: I agree with your assessment of SKCM brown Alps. Based on trying these switches in an IBM 5140 and a Magnavox Videowriter 250, I had thought that these swtiches would be delightfully tactile and perfect for a custom 60% board. However, when I received the custom board, I was quite surprised at how heavy the swtiches felt. It is fun to type on, but it gets fatiguing after a while.
When I tested the brown Alps in the IBM and Videowriter, the keyboards were not actively connected to a working computer. I find that I do not get the full impression of a keyboard unless I can see the letters on the screen and test my speed and accuracy along with the feel and sound of the keys. Isolated switch testers are even worse -- almost completely useless for me.
I admire your skill in grafting the spacebar post. I expect if I tried this it would not end up standing vertically. I am also not a fan of these stabilizer posts. I can usually get by with just the stabilizer wire and the center switch with a red O-ring on the switch.
Actually, I am not a fan of stabilizers, period. Somewhere on my long to-do list is to make a custom build of a 60% with no stabilized keys at all, including the spacebar. The HHKB Pro 2 is almost there with only three stabilized keys: Enter, Left Shift, and Spacebar. I almost never use the Left Shift, and for either shift key, all I need is 1.25x. Same with Enter -- 1.25x would be ample. For the Spacebar, I have never tried the maximum size for an unstabilzed key, which I think is 1.75x, but this might be pushing it. I would probably need two of these -- one under each thumb.
At the moment, I am working on cleaning up and converting to USB a non-ADB US ANSI NeXT keyboard with SKCM tactile cream Alps. It is in good shape with only a single spot of corrosion on the plate near the Control key. The switches are smooth and nicely tactile, and the keycaps are thick doubleshots. Overall, the keyboard has a very solid sound and feel.