[IC] gaff. 60 - HHKB | Raffle Closed!

[HannibalChew]

gaff. 60 - HHKB
- Specifications -

• Fixed HHKB layout.
• Seamless design.
• 6° Typing angle.
• Top mount.
• 1.5mm aluminium sprung OR solid plate.
• Internal brass weight.
• Pre-Assembled PCB, designed by MaartenWut.
• QMK compatible.
• USB Type-C.
• USB-C -> USB-C Support.
• ESD protection.

- Layout -




- Renders -









- Colour Options -


There will only be two colour options for the plate and case.

RAL5013


PANTONE Cool Gray 11 C



- Prototype Status -

PCBs - In transit.
Case - In transit.


- Availability and Pricing -

The initial run will be a very small limited batch.
I'd like to try keep the kit price below $300 if possible. We're not able to meet this price point unfortunately. Each base kit will be $400 plus shipping. https://gaff.works/news


- interest check form -

https://gaff.works/interest_check

I've posted an update regarding pricing and availability on the site https://gaff.works/news


23/06/20

I've just received some photos of the completed second prototype. This shows both colour options.









I'm really happy with how the colours are looking from the photos.
It should still be another week away from me. As long as i'm happy with this prototype the raffle can still take please by the end of June or early July.


Typing test with Gateron black inks lubed with Krytox 205g0: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=13zkQQuMaFo






Pencilling July 12th 10th for the raffle!! 

[CrazyAssMonkey]

YES!!!!!!! 60% gang hyyyyyypeeeee

I gotta follow this

[GhostEther]

This looks great in blue! Followed

[packman86]

CG 11 C Pantone 

[ddnomad]

Amount of mount points on the plate looks a bit concerning. But we’ll see

[Sifo]

very nice. good luck with hitting that price point

[txclack]

cool looking plate, how does it work in practice?

[catamscott]

Amount of mount points on the plate looks a bit concerning. But we’ll see

i'm keyboard design dilettante, but i'd agree and would postulate that the side mounts may provide a bit of extra, non-uniform stiffness. not sure how much that would really affect the typing experience, though. either way, this looks nice and i'm interested in seeing how the proto comes out!

[Puddsy]

waiting proto

[ectoplasmatic]

gaff me up baby

[ddnomad]

Amount of mount points on the plate looks a bit concerning. But we’ll see

i'm keyboard design dilettante, but i'd agree and would postulate that the side mounts may provide a bit of extra, non-uniform stiffness. not sure how much that would really affect the typing experience, though. either way, this looks nice and i'm interested in seeing how the proto comes out!

The reason I’m concerned is that I had a random KPRepublic HHKB case which had a similar “not sufficient” amount of mounting points.

This resulted in corners of the plate being softer and bend into the inner side of the case, doing scratchy weird metal to metal sound.

[boost]

Interested!

[Puddsy]

Interested!

if you get boost to come out of whatever cave he hides in that's as good an endorsement as any

[Fredington]

Please consider adding white.

[KingOfMemes]

At a sub 300 price point this is a no brainer purchase

[HannibalChew]

Amount of mount points on the plate looks a bit concerning. But we’ll see

i'm keyboard design dilettante, but i'd agree and would postulate that the side mounts may provide a bit of extra, non-uniform stiffness. not sure how much that would really affect the typing experience, though. either way, this looks nice and i'm interested in seeing how the proto comes out!

This plate in theory should provide a lot of flex. The mounting points on each side are there to stop too much ‘flop’ - the prototype will provide more answers!

Interested!

if you get boost to come out of whatever cave he hides in that's as good an endorsement as any

Thanks for the endorsement

Amount of mount points on the plate looks a bit concerning. But we’ll see

i'm keyboard design dilettante, but i'd agree and would postulate that the side mounts may provide a bit of extra, non-uniform stiffness. not sure how much that would really affect the typing experience, though. either way, this looks nice and i'm interested in seeing how the proto comes out!

The reason I’m concerned is that I had a random KPRepublic HHKB case which had a similar “not sufficient” amount of mounting points.

This resulted in corners of the plate being softer and bend into the inner side of the case, doing scratchy weird metal to metal sound.

There should be enough space for this not to happen. I’ll be sure to look out for this with the prototype. Good to know!

cool looking plate, how does it work in practice?

The design should allow the plate to have a good amount of flex. There are two plates for anyone who would like something more rigid.

Please consider adding white.

For this first small batch I’d like to keep the colours I’ve already chosen. Maybe i'll try something in white in the future.

At a sub 300 price point this is a no brainer purchase

This price point is only an aim and may not be possible, especially in a small batch. If its not possible to keep it below $300 hopefully it doesn’t need to be something ridiculous.




Some questions from the IC form.

Hotswap?

Not for this project, sorry.


ISO?

The PCB does actually support ISO but i haven't made a plate to support it. If there is enough demand it's not a problem to provide. I'd also be happy to put the plate files on Github if the demand was too little to justify having them made.


Left hand USB cutout for standard PCB support?

I think this design suits a center position USB and was designed like that from the start. https://maartenwut.com was also kind enough to edit his current 60% PCB design to suit my needs. 


Thank you for the feedback and questions! I'll have some more updates at the end of the week when the first prototype arrives!

[mrboli]

too classy man 

[boost]

Interested!

if you get boost to come out of whatever cave he hides in that's as good an endorsement as any

hahah, I haven't been excited about a custom keyboard in a longgg time but this is a must for me!

[Vadurr]

This is interesting...

[marshskitow]

  Forgot to ask about ISO on the IC

[CrazyAssMonkey]

Forgot to ask about ISO on the IC

Pffft ISO...Lmaoooooo




 

[adamjohari]

I like it, but feel that a lot of keyboards these days you wouldn't know what brand/name keyboard it is without looking at the bottom. Would be nice to have a subtle logo/name on the side? Or have some design aesthetic that one could know it's the "gaff" just from the side or top profile. Maybe just me. My humble $0.02.

[thestateofmay]

Insta buy if it's available in other materials. HHKB have too many brass or aluminum cases IMO.

[enjoidis]

Now that's a clean looking 60%! 

[HannibalChew]

Thank you to everyone who has filled out the google form. I've had some really great feedback and quite overwhelmed by the positive response!

I woke up early and wanted to answer a few more questions i received last night.


If the kit price is over $300 the group buy should be larger or unlimited to reduce the cost.

I want to keep the first batch small as to not overwhelm myself. At the moment I would like to do a batch of 15. If demand is much higher I may make it larger - this is hopefully something i can confirm in the next few days.


LED indicator.

No LEDs on this project, sorry.


Please DO NOT do FCFS, people can’t keep up with the bots.

Would a raffle be a better way to release? Maybe a vote on how they should be released?


A visible logo/brand so we know it's the "gaff.".

I’ve played with this idea a bit. I liked hiding the branding to keep the clean aesthetic. Maybe a small g. Logo on the far side above the USB?


Other materials?

I'm not going to add more materials to this first batch. I would like to do something with polycarbonate in the future though.

[HorrorStorm]

Please DO NOT do FCFS, people can’t keep up with the bots.

Would a raffle be a better way to release? Maybe a vote on how they should be released?

Yes. Please do a raffle. It's the fairest way, and allows more people to participate.

[jurisitum]

What would the limited quantity you're looking at and also would you offer more plate options like CF or FR4?

[HannibalChew]

Please DO NOT do FCFS, people can’t keep up with the bots.

Would a raffle be a better way to release? Maybe a vote on how they should be released?

Yes. Please do a raffle. It's the fairest way, and allows more people to participate.

Seems like there is a general consensus to release via a raffle system, so I’ve come up with a solution I think will work well.

What would the limited quantity you're looking at and also would you offer more plate options like CF or FR4?

For this first batch the only plate options will be the sprung and solid plate in Aluminium. Adding more options will make the kits more expensive and it’s already going to be a challenge to get the kits close to $300.

The original idea was to only run a limited batch of 15.
After getting a lot more support than anticipated, running just 15 slots is starting to seem like it may leave a large amount of people who want to get involved without the opportunity.

It would definitely be easier to get the price closer to the $300 mark with a larger batch. My main goal is to make a good quality product and have a successful group buy, I don’t want to put that in jeopardy just to meet a higher demand.
It’s still something I’m thinking about.

I mentioned a bit about this here - https://gaff.works/news

 

[youreyesonly]

few questions and remarks...

will you have a prototype of both colors?
Would be nice to add a "G" at the bottom right or left corner. Looking at it from top down doesn't give any special difference from any other HHKB. I think a lot of people like myself enjoy a small front logo. Yes, i know obviously internals are different from others, i am specifically talking about aesthetics.

Also, keeping it limited to 15 and already mentioning a second round with larger quantity... wouldn't it be best to just wait for round two for most people. It will be cheaper due to more quantity and likely fix any issues you have with round one. It seems like the first round is kind of a prototype round to get ready for round 2 aka the real release. I love this keebs design but it just seems like a strange direction.

[HannibalChew]

few questions and remarks...

will you have a prototype of both colors?
Would be nice to add a "G" at the bottom right or left corner. Looking at it top down doesn't give any special difference from any other HHKB. I think a lot of people like myself enjoy a small front logo.

Also, keeping it limited to 15 and already mentioning a second round with larger quantity... wouldn't it be best to just wait for round two for most people. It will be cheaper due to more quantity and likely fix any issues you have with round one. It seems like the first round is kinda a prototype round to get ready for round 2 aka the real release. I love this keeb but it just seems like a strange direction to go through.

The prototype we're waiting on is in black as it was in production before the colours were picked. The second prototype will have both colours - one for the plate one for the case.

I've played with the idea of a logo on the corners but it never felt right, i'd like to keep it clean how it is now.

Keeping the batch small is just so I feel comfortable. A second round has only been an idea after having many people express their worry that they may miss out. It's a tough balancing act of keeping it something i can manage and having people not feel like they're missing out.

[CrazyAssMonkey]

few questions and remarks...

will you have a prototype of both colors?
Would be nice to add a "G" at the bottom right or left corner. Looking at it top down doesn't give any special difference from any other HHKB. I think a lot of people like myself enjoy a small front logo.

Also, keeping it limited to 15 and already mentioning a second round with larger quantity... wouldn't it be best to just wait for round two for most people. It will be cheaper due to more quantity and likely fix any issues you have with round one. It seems like the first round is kinda a prototype round to get ready for round 2 aka the real release. I love this keeb but it just seems like a strange direction to go through.

The prototype we're waiting on is in black as it was in production before the colours were picked. The second prototype will have both colours - one for the plate one for the case.

I've played with the idea of a logo on the corners but it never felt right, i'd like to keep it clean how it is now.

Keeping the batch small is just so I feel comfortable. A second round has only been an idea after having many people express their worry that they may miss out. It's a tough balancing act of keeping it something i can manage and having people not feel like they're missing out.

Yeah I feel you on that, its a fine line between wanting to help everyone and being able to handle it. Your design is beautiful so I'm definitely one of those hoping for more stock but I'd rather you do it comfortably rather than stressing out. I'll try for R1, but I might need to level up.

[BIG_BUCKNUT]

I'm definitely keeping an eye on this one. Unfortunately "very small limited batch" sounds like I'll be waiting for a round two to ship in 2022.

[FearsomeCubedWarrior]

~

[HannibalChew]

Well, looking at board name and your userpic I assume that origami unicorn will be the best logo for this board.Somewhere over USB port cutout.
You can use the same picture as on Laser keyset novelty, I guess.

 
I love this idea!! I think the origami unicorn may be too complicated for such a small space though. Perhaps using the unicorn on something else could be cool.
Thanks!

[FearsomeCubedWarrior]

~

[HannibalChew]

Well, it fitted ok on GMK keycap and AFAIK molds are CNC machined, so with proper size end mill it is possible. However, it will make the price a bit higher.


That's the original origami unicorn used in GMK Laser, btw:

Show Image

I love this. Will definitely have to do something with it in the future.

[DiscoCrocodile]

Revisiting this IC today and it looks so clean.

[HannibalChew]

The first prototype has now reached Europe, it should arrive in the next few days.

I've made some changes to the flex plate for the second prototype. I've changed the placement of the 'bridges' along the bottom row to allow better flex for the spacebar. I've also decreased the size of the flex cuts from 2mm to 1mm, in turn increasing the width of the outer edge.

[kidpid]

The inner chamfer looks a little large. Do you have any renders with keycaps? I'm curious to see if the inner chamfer exaggerates the appearance of the gap between the caps and the sides of the board.

[HannibalChew]

The inner chamfer looks a little large. Do you have any renders with keycaps? I'm curious to see if the inner chamfer exaggerates the appearance of the gap between the caps and the sides of the board.

Its 7mm from the top of the plate to the top of the case. The inner chamfer is 1mm.
I don't have any renders with caps at the moment - i'll try do some!

[HannibalChew]

Prototype!
The first prototype arrived today, heres some quick photos of it.
I'll be able to get some better photos and videos next week.









https://i.imgur.com/81IEG8e.gif

https://i.imgur.com/fYIiSlk.gif

- Machining and finish quality.
Not great, the attention to detail and finish is far below what I want. The manufacturer has clearly cut some corners. I've already spoken with another manufacturer that has been recommended to me. Hopefully the second prototype comes out better in this aspect.

- Case design.
The case has already changed a bit from when this prototype went into production, notably the weight and spaces for the silicone feet.
I've already moved the bottom mounting screws in a fair bit as they're far too close to the edge, i think this looks awful.
Apart from that i'm happy with the overall design and aesthetic.

- Plate (the main event).
I think the plate came out better than I had thought. However it will still need some changes.
It has a good flex to it, more than i actually want.
The outer edge is too thin, it bends in my finger way too easily. I've already changed this on the latest design as it was something I feared.
I've made some more changes to the plate to lessen the flex slightly.



I'd love to hear any thoughts and advice on the new plate design before I get the new prototype into production.

Cheers.

[CrazyAssMonkey]

Man that looks exciting!

One quick question about the sides of the plate. Would that position allow the flex to occur somewhat evenly? Since the plate is not rectangular and mounting points don't align, as would occur for a hhkb style. I'm not knowledgeable about plate design but could you give methe reasoning behind those cuts and mounting points like why the sides are so narrow and sparse?
Thanks 

PS That color is really pretty

[logo4poop]

Very nice, GLWIC

[HannibalChew]

Man that looks exciting!

One quick question about the sides of the plate. Would that position allow the flex to occur somewhat evenly? Since the plate is not rectangular and mounting points don't align, as would occur for a hhkb style. I'm not knowledgeable about plate design but could you give methe reasoning behind those cuts and mounting points like why the sides are so narrow and sparse?
Thanks 

PS That color is really pretty

I've left the two side mounting point to sort of act as 'anchors', fearing without them the plate would have too much movement. They're centered to the whole plate and don't take into account the missing corners with the thought being you're still using the full height of the plate even without the corners. I've changed the cuts on the bottom row to allow the spacebar a better flex, and i've removed the outer edges on the corners because i don't think they're doing much at all based on the prototype.

[CrazyAssMonkey]

Man that looks exciting!

One quick question about the sides of the plate. Would that position allow the flex to occur somewhat evenly? Since the plate is not rectangular and mounting points don't align, as would occur for a hhkb style. I'm not knowledgeable about plate design but could you give methe reasoning behind those cuts and mounting points like why the sides are so narrow and sparse?
Thanks 

PS That color is really pretty

I've left the two side mounting point to sort of act as 'anchors', fearing without them the plate would have too much movement. They're centered to the whole plate and don't take into account the missing corners with the thought being you're still using the full height of the plate even without the corners. I've changed the cuts on the bottom row to allow the spacebar a better flex, and i've removed the outer edges on the corners because i don't think they're doing much at all based on the prototype.

Ahhh that makes sense. Comparing the updated design to the prototype I can somewhat see what you mean. I'm definitely curious to see how the updated design fares. Would you happen to have pics of the inside of the bottom piece? I was hoping to see what it looked like if you had the weight and stuff.

[econeuler]

Looks like a very nice project! Following for sure 
Are the manufacturers also in the UK?

[HannibalChew]

Looks like a very nice project! Following for sure 
Are the manufacturers also in the UK?

The prototyping is being done in China at the moment, i've also been talking to manufacturers in the EU. I'd like to do it all the EU, just have to weigh up pricing at the moment.
Unfortunately i don't think it's going to be possible to keep the base kit price below $300 dollars either way. 

[econeuler]

Looks like a very nice project! Following for sure 
Are the manufacturers also in the UK?

The prototyping is being done in China at the moment, i've also been talking to manufacturers in the EU. I'd like to do it all the EU, just have to weigh up pricing at the moment.
Unfortunately i don't think it's going to be possible to keep the base kit price below $300 dollars either way. 

I see, thanks! Looking forward to the development 

[Sabin]

Very nice design, so hard to find options like these with hot swap pcbs

[malde]

Looks like a very nice project! Following for sure 
Are the manufacturers also in the UK?

The prototyping is being done in China at the moment, i've also been talking to manufacturers in the EU. I'd like to do it all the EU, just have to weigh up pricing at the moment.
Unfortunately i don't think it's going to be possible to keep the base kit price below $300 dollars either way. 

Will the GB production units be shipped directly from China or from the UK?