Reflection | A dual-mount XT FRLTKL (GB starts Oct. 20th)

[Farhandsome]

Reflection

An XT FRLTKL by Han Boards

Reflection GB Thread

The group buy will be live from 10/20 to 11/20! See the GB page for full details.

Notion | Discord | Han Boards

Design Summary

External

Reflection features a three-piece / three-tone design with a silver base, copper weight, and top color variants. It is an XT FRLTKL (basically a TKL with the F-row removed and a macro column on the side). The board features a large swept cut copper weight that follows the curve of the top piece side profile. The front of the board has a cherry lip of sorts - with the lip being the deepest in the middle and gently flowing into the chamfer on the side edges. There is a gentle cut on the sides and back of the board to give the perimeter some flair. Two engravings are present - one left justified on the back of the board and one on the underside of the board (see Inspiration). The mirrored engraving on the aluminum bottom is half the depth of the one of the copper weight to give the appearance of a “reflection”.

Internal

The board features an internal screw system to keep the weight design as clean as possible. The final screws will be black oxidized and recessed slightly below the plate to be as hidden as possible. The aluminum inner frame has an open bottom so the copper is effectively a through weight giving a nice contrast on both the bottom as well as the inside of the keyboard. The daughterboard is installed upside-down with the cable being colinear with the PCB molex connector eliminating the need to bend the jst cable in a channel. There are small press-fit bumpers placed next to the screw holes to eliminate any chance of case ping. There are no adhesives anywhere on the board so it can be unassembled fully.

Inspiration

More

This keyboard is largely an homage to my home country of Bangladesh. The green colorway is based on the country flag and the engravings are inspired by Bengali architecture.

The image above is a photo I snapped of the National Martyr’s Monument. Not only does it have a lot of cultural significance representing the events leading up to Bangladesh’s recognition as a sovereign nation, but also has been praised for it’s architectural excellence. It towers over the surrounding garden space and really is a marvel to behold.

There is also a small pool placed in front of the monument - when viewed straight on, this gives a nice reflection of the entire structure. This is why I chose to name it “Reflection” and added an mirrored engraving of Bengali script on the front side of the board which states the name of the board.

Gallery

v2 Prototype - Sand

v1 Prototype - Green

Collab Renders w/ KKB Alhambra

More

Scene Renders

More

Color Renders

Green (anodized)

Black (anodized)

Brown (anodized)

Silver (anodized)

Sand (e-coat)

Sound Tests

Prototype v1: Carbon fiber plate built with Punkshoo Runners and GMK Botanical r2 (Nainaigogo)

Prototype v1: Aluminum plate built with Obscuras and GMK Wasabi (Nainaigogo)

Technical Specifications

General Details

Material (case):	Sandblasted 6063 Aluminum
Material (weight):	Sandblasted Clear-Coat Copper
Variants:	WK and WKL
Weight:	7 lbs (3.2 kg)
Typing Angle:	7 deg
EKH:	23mm
Plate Options:	Aluminum, Carbon Fiber, PP, POM - full/half options (determined by IC)
Colors:	Green, Black, Brown, Silver, Sand

Layout

Solder

Hotswap

Support

• Split Backspace
• ISO (solder only)
• Split Right Shift
• Stepped Caps Lock
• 10U Spacebar (7U and 8U stab placement)
• 7U bottom row / 6.25U bottom row (WK only)

PCB Details

Type:	Solder & Hotswap
Structure:	1.6mm FR4
Processor:	STM32F072
Software:	QMK/VIAL
Switch Type:	MX
ESD Protection:	Onboard Fuse
Daughterboard:	Custom DB - based on UDB C3
Cable Type:	Molex EZMate

Mounting Options

Gasket Plug Mount

The gasket plugs are secured into the plate tabs and the overall assembly is dropped into the bottom case. The top case is then placed over it. This should make for a more flexible typing experience.

Burger O-Ring Top Mount

The plate is fixed to the top chassis using a screw and two small o-ring gasket pieces. This provides a stiffer typing experience overall.

Group Buy Details

Kit Contents

• Keyboard case (top, bottom and weight)
• Aluminum full plate (other plates will be extras)
• PCB
• Custom daughterboard and Molex cable
• Gasket kit
• Top mount kit
• ESD protective sheet
• Assembly hardware
• Geon rectangular feet
• Carrying case
• Microfiber cloth

Schedule
The group buy will take place on October 20th and will end on November 20th.
Expected fulfillment is end of Q1 2024.

Price & Quantity
Pricing will be between $440 - $475 depending on configuration. See below image for details

Vendors

• Han Boards - USA
• ProtoTypist - International

Content Line-up

• Nainaigogo
• nearLucid
• TheKeyCircle
• CaptainSterling
• Keypothecary
• Alexotos
• Xinxinwong
• Eleagnifolia
• Kimlynnwin
• LightningKeyboards

Thank You

• Jan, Nainaigogo, and MatthewDias for causing me great distress at all times
• My friend MelghiDoodles for providing the art for the board
• OCM for transforming the artwork to the keyboard world
• Olivia (OJ Designs) for the fantastic render work
• Jan (again) for the insane pictures

Signature

Code: [Select]

[url=https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=120288.0][img width=375 height=120]https://i.imgur.com/fLo4wJE.jpg[/img][/url]

[Farhandsome]

05-15-2023

Ordered a new prototype in the sand colorway

• Added bumpers near the screw holes as a force-break mechanism
• Increased side bezel width slightly to match the interior bezels
• Thickened plate tabs slightly to avoid deformation

Updated the original post to include a design summary

05-31-2023

IC Form Results

• Green, black, and sand will definitely be offered. The other ones will most likely be seeing the level of interest.
• There will be a WK version which will have 6.25U support.
• There will be a hotswap PCB with all the same compatibility except for ISO.
• The plates offered will be aluminum, carbon fiber, and PP.  (tbd on half plate options!)
• I will design and get quotes on a foam kit. TBD on if it will be offered during the GB. At the very minimum, it will be open sourced for people to get foam cut.

Next Steps

• The sand prototype will arrive to me in mid-June.

07-19-2023

Current Progress

• Changed PCB MCU to STM32F072 - the MCU change allows for many more combo options for the macro cluster
• Added prototype pics to the album
• Added collab pictures with KKB Alhambra - a very cool set that you should check out!

Next Steps

• Waiting on v3 plate - beefed up the tabs a bit due to the edges of the board being too flexy
• Announce vendors - waiting on one more response
• Finalize pricing

08-09-2023

Current Progress

• Ordered final prototypes (including one in a new brown colorway) - will arrive to me mid-September
• Pricing tentatively set at $450 - $475 depending on options
• GB tentatively set for mid-October to mid-November

Next Steps

• Schedule content
• Announce vendors

09-25-2023

Updated page with all group buy details! The group buy will be ran from Oct. 20th - Nov. 20th and will be vendored by Han Boards and ProtoTypist.

[irithyll]

Looks interesting!
Definitely worthy of the 10u spacebar support.
GLWIC!

[matthewdias]

in for 12

[warhopper]

Board looks fantastic! Sign me up for one already. Really excited about the added 10u support too!

[nainaigogo]

I didn't know it, but I've been waiting for this my entire life.

[HubertThemad]

Honestly, very interested in this. GL!

[white_rabbit]

Very cool, love the green and copper.

[twitchytheinsideman]

so good

why not just use Geon Tadpoles for your gasket mount?

[Rhienfo]

10u spacebar is always based

[Farhandsome]

I didn't know it, but I've been waiting for this my entire life.

Board looks fantastic! Sign me up for one already. Really excited about the added 10u support too!

Looks interesting!
Definitely worthy of the 10u spacebar support.
GLWIC!

Honestly, very interested in this. GL!

in for 12

Very cool, love the green and copper.

10u spacebar is always based

Thank you all 

[Farhandsome]

so good

why not just use Geon Tadpoles for your gasket mount?

Thank you! I was thinking of using the tadpoles - but I wanted a custom mold to fit an M2 profile since the top mount kit is in an M2 size. This allows all the screws across the entire board to be the same size only needing one driver.

[.jan]

give this to me

[RLKeebs]

This looks amazing, will definitely be keeping my eye on this project!

[VIMFXRTHEHEVD]

I NWEEWDDDDDFJFJFKFJDJD DIIIIDDDD JFJFJDLSLZBXXKZK

[Farhandsome]

Thanks all for the responses and the comments so far. The IC responses have been great! Here's a brief update:

05-15-2023

Ordered a new prototype in the sand colorway

• Added bumpers near the screw holes as a force-break mechanism
• Increased side bezel width slightly to match the interior bezels
• Thickened plate tabs slightly to avoid deformation

Updated the original post to include a design summary

[doctorboy]

Thanks for sharing this project, it looks cool. Quick question/suggestion from my side:
- Would you have considered the usage of the unified daughterboard? Is there any rationale to use a custom version?

It would also be great if you could share some photos from the prototypes. Thanks.

[Kooks]

Clean design through and through. Engraving is nice and lip is interesting as well

[.jan]

It would also be great if you could share some photos from the prototypes. Thanks.

I have some news for you

[mr_foggy]

this looks insanely good

[Farhandsome]

Clean design through and through. Engraving is nice and lip is interesting as well

this looks insanely good

Thanks so much for following 

[Farhandsome]

Thanks for sharing this project, it looks cool. Quick question/suggestion from my side:
- Would you have considered the usage of the unified daughterboard? Is there any rationale to use a custom version?

Great question - the sole reason I made a modified version is for ease of use. I always found the cable routing to be a small annoyance in a lot of my builds, so the DB I made is electrically the same as the unified DB, just slightly elongated and with a 90-degree rotated connector port. This makes the DB connector directly line up with the connector on the PCB for a straight cable channel.

I realize the pitfall of that is the fact that the Unified DB is open source and can be easily obtained - I will open-source my own version to keep in this spirit.

It would also be great if you could share some photos from the prototypes. Thanks.

As Jan pointed out so illustriously, the images you see in the "Gallery" section are pictures taken by him 
However, I see now that there aren't any internal pics so I will take some of those as soon as I get the chance and update the post with them!

Thanks for your comments   

[Farhandsome]

Hi all - just another update here! The IC form has had almost 150 responses which is amazing. This allows me to keep the price low and keep the options open. Hoping to continue gaining interest on this one 

05-31-2023

IC Form Results

• Green, black, and sand will definitely be offered. The other ones will most likely be seeing the level of interest.
• There will be a WK version which will have 6.25U support.
• There will be a hotswap PCB with all the same compatibility except for ISO.
• The plates offered will be aluminum, carbon fiber, and PP.  (tbd on half plate options!)
• I will design and get quotes on a foam kit. TBD on if it will be offered during the GB. At the very minimum, it will be open sourced for people to get foam cut.

Next Steps

• The sand prototype will arrive to me in mid-June.

[silverductape]

I realize the pitfall of that is the fact that the Unified DB is open source and can be easily obtained - I will open-source my own version to keep in this spirit.

My two cents as someone who's always anxious about broken pcbs turning my keyboards into paperweights: I don't think open sourcing the DB would necessarily address the main issue w/ proprietary daughterboards, which is accessibility. Since there's so many boards using the Unified DB, lots of vendors keep them in stock for ~$10. Even though the DB for this board is open sourced, wouldn't the actual cost of getting them made be prohibitive unless someone happens to run a GB for it?

Otherwise, I'm extremely excited for this board and hope it runs smoothly!

[yiuoterw]

Wow, i love the backweight design on this!

[Farhandsome]

I realize the pitfall of that is the fact that the Unified DB is open source and can be easily obtained - I will open-source my own version to keep in this spirit.

My two cents as someone who's always anxious about broken pcbs turning my keyboards into paperweights: I don't think open sourcing the DB would necessarily address the main issue w/ proprietary daughterboards, which is accessibility. Since there's so many boards using the Unified DB, lots of vendors keep them in stock for ~$10. Even though the DB for this board is open sourced, wouldn't the actual cost of getting them made be prohibitive unless someone happens to run a GB for it?

Otherwise, I'm extremely excited for this board and hope it runs smoothly!

Thanks for the comment. I definitely see where you're coming from - getting one-off PCBs made is pretty cost prohibitive. I've looked at it and I can actually make the DB mounting holes compatible with both my custom DB as well as the UDB so I will most likely go that route. That way, replacements can be easily sourced from any vendor carrying the new UDB C4. Thanks for the feedback!

[NoPunIn10Did]

Even though the DB for this board is open sourced, wouldn't the actual cost of getting them made be prohibitive unless someone happens to run a GB for it?

Otherwise, I'm extremely excited for this board and hope it runs smoothly!

From experience, for something as small as a daughterboard, it’s not really that expensive. More expensive than in-stock, definitely. And I think there’s still a good case to be made for using standardized parts in general. But getting replacement PCBs of that size is not difficult if the design is open source.

[Farhandsome]

I realize the pitfall of that is the fact that the Unified DB is open source and can be easily obtained - I will open-source my own version to keep in this spirit.

My two cents as someone who's always anxious about broken pcbs turning my keyboards into paperweights: I don't think open sourcing the DB would necessarily address the main issue w/ proprietary daughterboards, which is accessibility. Since there's so many boards using the Unified DB, lots of vendors keep them in stock for ~$10. Even though the DB for this board is open sourced, wouldn't the actual cost of getting them made be prohibitive unless someone happens to run a GB for it?

Otherwise, I'm extremely excited for this board and hope it runs smoothly!

Thanks for the comment. I definitely see where you're coming from - getting one-off PCBs made is pretty cost prohibitive. I've looked at it and I can actually make the DB mounting holes compatible with both my custom DB as well as the UDB so I will most likely go that route. That way, replacements can be easily sourced from any vendor carrying the new UDB C4. Thanks for the feedback!

By adopting this cutout - we are able to accommodate both the custom DB as well as three points on the C4 model 

So aftermarket UDBs can be used.

[Farhandsome]

Hi all! Just a quick plug here -

Nainaigogo will be live with the first Reflection prototype here in about 10 minutes (6:30 pm CST)! There will be some QOL improvements between this one and the GB units but it's a good first look at the design and sound signature of the board.

https://www.twitch.tv/nainaigogo

Check her out! 

[Soums]

Damn, if only this was reversible, would instantly buy out moq

Jokes aside, looks great

[Farhandsome]

Another update for ya! Things have been moving smoothly 

07-19-2023

Current Progress

• Changed PCB MCU to STM32F072 - the MCU change allows for many more combo options for the macro cluster
• Added prototype pics to the album
• Added collab pictures with KKB Alhambra - a very cool set that you should check out!

Next Steps

• Waiting on v3 plate - beefed up the tabs a bit due to the edges of the board being too flexy
• Announce vendors - waiting on one more response
• Finalize pricing

So far so good !! Can't wait to see this come to life.

[Sieglinde]

The "Lip" is final correct? Not a fan of it but overall the board looks great.

[Farhandsome]

The "Lip" is final correct? Not a fan of it but overall the board looks great.

Thank you! Yes - I would say the lip is final, I think it helps to have the board stand out from a top-down view!

[Farhandsome]

Update!

08-09-2023

Current Progress

• Ordered final prototypes (including one in a new brown colorway) - will arrive to me mid-September
• Pricing tentatively set at $450 - $475 depending on options
• GB tentatively set for mid-October to mid-November

Next Steps

• Schedule content
• Announce vendors

Finally getting close to GB time!

[HubertThemad]

OOF, that brown is great. Can't wait for the GB!

[shendoo]

Really nice project! GLWIC!

[trashem]

the colors are absolutely stunning, can’t wait to see how this goes!

[cabotagecop]

I really like this design and color.

[Farhandsome]

Hi all! We have all the group buy details set now! Also added a silver colorway.

09-25-2023

Group Buy Details

• GB: Oct 20th - Nov 20th
• Fulfillment Period: End of Q1 2024
• Priced between $440 - $475 depending on configuration. See main post for details.
• Vendored by Han Boards (USA) and ProtoTypist (international)

Can't wait to kick this one off!

[n1l]

I am curious as to why you chose to handle the vendor process by yourself (USA)?

[iwobobul]

The curves are amazing, GLWGB

[Farhandsome]

I am curious as to why you chose to handle the vendor process by yourself (USA)?

Good question! We've ran group buys before and are fully set up to house the incoming materials, do QC, and ship in a timely manner for the US based orders. I don't imagine this GB to be on a massive scale by any means given the response to the IC so I believe the team that I have locally has the experience to fulfill ourselves CONUS.

[Farhandsome]

Added a small explosion diagram too for anyone curious. GB is set to go live 2 days from now! Will be posting the GB page shortly.

[Farhandsome]

The GB thread has been created!

[Farhandsome]

The GB is now live!

USA Group Buy Page
International Group Buy Page

I hope you will consider Reflection for your next purchase 

Please follow along the GB thread for all updates moving forward.