I really hope a buyer surfaces who will continue production of the current profiles, even while innovating. Almost all of my zillion boards sport SA caps; nothing else remotely feels write to type on. The clone caps all feel weirdly light and cheap, have clear issues with their doubleshot legend uniformity, and lack any sense of specialness that comes from involvement from an actual designer.
The wait times are much shorter again now - six to eight weeks, I think was mentioned? The only SA sets I know of pending are Green Screen, Metaverse (both due in a couple weeks) and ASCII. Haven't heard of anything coming after those.
Following the release of DCS Lilly in August 2013, Signature Plastics has manufactured over 300 custom keysets for enthusiasts worldwide in the mechanical keyboard community. Ten years later, the company is now adjusting to several major changes in the marketplace and in the business.
Interest in group-buys, with their traditional long lead times, is giving way to customers wanting off-the-shelf products delivered to their door the next day, even though lead times for new group-buy keysets are currently only six to eight weeks. The post-COVID era saw the emergence of dozens of small start-ups eager to capitalize on the mechanical keyboard wave. Unfortunately, this resulted in many of the more popular keyset designs being copied, without designer approval, which negatively impacted the creative spirit that once flourished in the enthusiast community. The future of this unique art form is now in jeopardy as fewer designers are willing to have their creations compromised. Even though the market is being flooded with low-quality, inexpensive, keyset clones, interest in high quality double-shot keysets being produced by companies like GMK and Signature Plastics is still very strong.
One of the biggest challenges Signature Plastics will experience in 2024 will be a change in ownership as Bob Guenser prepares for retirement and Melissa Petersen, the Queen of Keycaps, contemplates new opportunities outside the world of keycaps. It’s been a great ride, and it’s not an easy decision, but we both feel the time has come to end this journey and move on. We are currently searching for buyer candidates who appreciate the role the company has played in the evolution of computer keyboards over the past 50 years, and who are also committed to preserving and continuing the legacy tied to that history.
If you are interested in owning/operating a small injection molding company, with a successful track record in the commercial and consumer keycap markets, please contact us. bguenser@solutionsinplastic.com mpetersen@solutionsinplastic.com
Logged in for the first time in a long time just to reply to this thread. Thank you Signature Plastics for supporting this community! I still have my DSA Dolch set from years ago that I love.
2009 holy ****
2009 holy ****
Seriously, that was back in the black/orange days, not a hint or red on the site yet.