Unicomps (internals) are pretty much the same (other than some controller upgrades/changes); there are some threads in the Reviews section you can look at. Personally, I would keep the case and key caps and order just the guts from Unicomp. I think it's a little cheaper that way, and due to the way they're manufactured, they are a ***** to take apart and clean. I would just give Unicomp a call or send them an e-mail, and they should be able to help you out. From what everyone here has said, they are a pretty friendly and helpful group.
I've already contacted them. A very nice guy called Chuck answered my mail and the lots of questions I asked him.
He adviced me to remove keys and reseat them and told me that I should send them the keyboard for repairing (total: 130$) if that didn't work. I am obviously not sending the keyboard, but I'd probably purchase one of their keyboards.
My keyboard is very easy to clean. I can remove keys (two-pieced), clean, dry and put them back. I did that dozens of times and was very easy. Aren't Unicomps built that way?
Besides, I was mainly asking about the keyboard feel when typing. How do Unicomps and vintage Model M keyboards compare when it comes to sound and feel?
One more thing: How 'true' is my Model M. It has part number 1394550, spanish layout and was built on 1/31/97. No Lexmark or Unicomp traces in the sticker, but AFAIK IBM didn't manufacture Model M in 1997. Is it a real Model M or is it just a buckling spring IBM keyboard? It has gray IBM logo with blue letters on top left corner of keyboard and looks exactly like this one:Show Image(http://microhobby.speccy.cz/ibei/nov07/tecladoibmps2_2.JPG)
Best regards.
It's a perfectly "true" Model M. It's more or less the same as the ones IBM made.
The assembly has a black plastic part and a metal plate that hold the springs and keys in place, and house the mechanisms. The plastic and metal plate are held together by plastic rivets which are prone to breakage.
Since most of the keys that failed on your Model M are on the edge of the assembly, rivet failure is the likely culprit in this case.
A unicomp would be essentially identical to your Model M. I have a Customizer 101, and several Model Ms, and I love them all. It won't feel exactly the same, as the springs will be new, rather than 14 years old, but I would wager it actually feels better.
I feel the Customizers are definitely worth the money.
My feeling is that unless you really want to do the nut/bolt mod, I would just get a Unicomp and swap the internals. That said, it does sound like they want a lot of money to fix yours, but maybe they don't typically stock Spanish layouts.
This is almost assuredly a problem of popped rivets, as others have mentioned. Most telling is that all the keys you mentioned are directly adjacent to rivets. The symptoms you describe are typical; broken rivets don't usually interfere very significantly with the mechanical action of the buckling spring, so you'll still feel the snap when you click. But without something hold the membranes firmly, the hammers may not bridge the membrane.
BTW, Ms were made up to '99 or so. If the label says "Manufactured in the United Kingdom", which would be likely for a European layout sample, it left IBM's factory in Greenock, Scotland.
This is almost assuredly a problem of popped rivets, as others have mentioned. Most telling is that all the keys you mentioned are directly adjacent to rivets. The symptoms you describe are typical; broken rivets don't usually interfere very significantly with the mechanical action of the buckling spring, so you'll still feel the snap when you click. But without something hold the membranes firmly, the hammers may not bridge the membrane.
In any case, everyone else's advice in this thread is sound. Your logical choice of action is: buy brand new Unicomp, or attempt a bolt mod.
I'm happy to read that. But building date is 1997. It really comes from IBM?
It's almost certainly a membrane issue at this stage. You could try removing the controller and seeing if there is anything wrong with it.
Oh, out of curiosity, does the chip on the controller board (well, the largest chip) say Lexmark on it?
Fixing the membrane itself is easy, but you just have to break open the rivets and then replace them with nuts and bolts.
And yes - Lexmark did make Model Ms under their own branding.
Gah. I thought you were tim4wmail for a minute (old member).
We are going to cut the rivets in order to see if the membrane has mold. Then we'll clean it and try to put the keyboard together. We are going to use glue (strong professional glue) instead of nuts and bolts. We'll see...
Tim had the same avatar (Japanese Brother BS unit). He was one of our more "colorful" members for awhile.
The glue works.
Good luck. I hope you can fix your Model M, for they are indeed superior to most other keyboards I have ever used. True love to be going through all this trouble for your beloved Model M. I would probably do the same thing.
We've completely taken apart the keyboard, and I finally convinced my dad to use bolts and nuts instead of glue. We have yet to find 2mm bolts, but there is no hurry.
The grey sheet of that cotton looking material that sits between the plastic and the triple PCB was a bit wet just under the two holes that hold the metal bar of the space bar, and one of the springs has a bit of rust.
There were also a dozen of broken rivets, but problem seems to be in the upper PCB (I call "PCB" to the transparent circuits). There are ten or twelve "lanes" in the bit of that PCB that is placed under the chip that holds the leds. At least 4 of these lanes seem to be lacking the silver shiny material present in the others. This explains why some keys worked when the keyboard was inclinated (they made better contact, I guess).
We are taking the PCB to a guy who works with electronics and see if he can fix it. After that, bolt mod.
Here are some pics I took yesterday. Cell phone pics. Sorry for the poor quality:
This is what we thought to be the problem. There is burnt and apparently missing sections in the upper transparent PCB. I think you call this the membrane:
It's hard to be certain from the pictures I see there, but I'm not sure that's "burnt". You mentioned finding signs of a drink spill in an earlier post - I think that might be all it is that you see. Combine that with a popped rivet and you may have found your problem(s). Perhaps try cleaning the membranes with distilled water followed by 50:50 distilled water and isopropyl alcohol (to speed drying in nooks and crannies). Dry thoroughly and reassemble. I guess you have a good source for other Model Ms so saving this one may not be a big concern for you. Generally you want to try to keep it simple - don't start sanding membranes if all they needed was water. :)
Some degree of erosion is common and not particularly bad on a membrane. You really need to do some testing to determine where the fail point is.
You'd probably be OK to hand-wash the rubber mat in warm soapy water. They survive drink spills, water shouldn't hurt. I have not tried this but I wouldn't hesitate to dunk it in water.
Wrap it around your head and few times and report back.
It's rubber.