Chips under keycaps?

[msimon]

Is it normal to have chips under keycaps, is it the normal process in which they are made?.

I was talking to a friend who also had hes SP bottoms chipped and we were wondering if they are seconds or if its a normal thing to see.

[Autolyze]

You're referring to the sprue marks. It's where the plastic enters the mold during the process of creating the keys. You usually see it on the back of keycaps, towards the bottom. Unfortunately SP has them on the bottom front of their ABS keycaps for some reason, but their PBT caps seem to have them in the "normal" back spot.

[msimon]

You're referring to the sprue marks. It's where the plastic enters the mold during the process of creating the keys. You usually see it on the back of keycaps, towards the bottom. Unfortunately SP has them on the bottom front of their ABS keycaps for some reason, but their PBT caps seem to have them in the "normal" back spot.

My awsome face keys and disapproval face are suppose to be PBT but those have it at the bottom front.

[Autolyze]

My awsome face keys and disapproval face are suppose to be PBT but those have it at the bottom front.

The Awesome Face and Look of Disapproval keycaps from the Round 3 Group Buy and the Novelty Keycap Group Buy are doubleshot ABS, not PBT. One easy way to check: if you look at the underside of the keycap, where the stem is, do you see two colors of plastic (doubleshot ABS) or just the one base color?

[net2522]

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[Awful]

I think mine have Duritos under them

[msimon]

The Awesome Face and Look of Disapproval keycaps from the Round 3 Group Buy and the Novelty Keycap Group Buy are doubleshot ABS, not PBT. One easy way to check: if you look at the underside of the keycap, where the stem is, do you see two colors of plastic (doubleshot ABS) or just the one base color?

Yep there doubleshots, well that answered that.

So is PBT dye sub a better quality key?

[Autolyze]

They both have their pros and cons.

Doubleshots are generally considered better for the appearance of the legends on the keys, since you can have more contrast between the two colors and a more sharply defined border of the image.

PBT wears much better than ABS though, so the keycaps will retain their nice texture for longer before getting smooth and shiny. I've heard people say that they'll withstand six times as much use as ABS keys before showing obvious wear, but I'm not sure where that number originated from. The PBT dye sublimated keycaps can also have more than two colors on them, but the all of the dye has to be darker than the color of the plastic.

PBT is usually a little more expensive, and you definitely want to go with PBT for blanks, but I think doubleshot ABS makes sense for these novelty keys in particular.

[msimon]

Thanks for for answering my questions with the trolling or spam.

[Autolyze]

No problem, they were legitimate questions and I feel like it's good to keep some real content in the forums.

[hazeluff]

By the way, PBT Dyesubs will still have spruemarks. On SP's PBTs they are on the top side (not top of key).

[msimon]

Well reading ripsters wiki and having seen the key, i am pleased to see a lot of interest with imsto and qtan keycaps.

I am pleased to see the beeker GB being done by member of the community because at least they know how not to **** things up, and yeah who the frick puts the marks on the front.

[hazeluff]

You cant see the marks when you place it onto your keyboard. So i dont see all the fuss about it. My starcraft modifiers got crushed round the edges during shipping. Yet i put them on my board and still cant tell that theve been seveely damaged.