geekhack
geekhack Community => Keyboards => Topic started by: purdeaandrei on Fri, 02 August 2019, 07:54:27
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Hey guys,
I just bought a grey badge Model M SSK from ebay (Date: 1991/07/29), already screw-modded by someone.
The keyboard feels amazing, I would say it feels better than a square silver badge keyboard that I also just bought,
It feels more solid, less rattly. Not sure if it's due to the screw mod, or due to the custom clear keycaps it has.
Unfortunately, opening it up, it's full of cracks on the barrel plate. Please see the attached images.
The seller claims the cracks developed over time after the screw mod.
This makes me really scared. I had plans to bolt mod another model M of mine,
but I really don't want this to happen to it.
Has anyone else experienced cracks like these forming over time on bolt-modded and especially screw-modded keyboards?
If this is not wide-spread, I'm wondering why this could have happened, so I can avoid it in the future.
* Could this batch of keyboards have been made from more brittle plastic?
* I noticed that they didn't use self-tapping screws.
* Maybe the modder drilled holes that were too tight for the screws?
* Based on this keyboard I'm thinking that a bolt mod would be safer than a screw mod, as it wouldn't add any
sideways pressure in the hole.
I am thinking of buying a Unicomp barrel plate for this keyboard, just in case they run out of stock in the future, and
the current barrel plate deteriorates further. I think I will only have to cut off plastic around the drainage holes, to
make it fit. Any other parts I should buy for an emergency backup kit, that are likely to not be available in the future?
One thing is for sure, I am not making any modifications to it now, it feels amazing, and I'll let it be as it is, until it
becomes necessary to change it.
Andrei
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I think that there is a natural tendency to tighten screws and nuts just because you can.
Remember, you have replaced little tendrils of plastic with shafts of steel, and all that you really need to do is to hold all the pieces in place, not crank them down hard.
On Model M bolt mods, I have always advocated for tightening things just barely "finger tight" and, if you want to adjust the feel, consider loosening first rather than tightening in your tuning.
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Ow. It just hurts looking at that.
A new barrel plate would be a good idea.
Good Luck.