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geekhack Community => Keyboards => Topic started by: FKSSR on Thu, 16 February 2012, 12:05:23
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I tried searching for this, but all I find is a bunch of threads about Ergo Clears and not much about the other combination.
EDIT (I mixed them up before):
Can someone tell me what the difference between an Ergo Clear (Clear Stem + Brown Spring) and Brown Stem + Clear Spring?
Scenario:
I have a Filco TKL with Brown switches right now. I'm buying 87 Clear switches through the Phantom Group Buy.
So, I was going to convert the keyboard to Ergo Clears using the new Clear stems and the "old" brown springs.
I wanted to see if I could do anything useful with the Brown stems and Clear springs I have left over.
Also, I am thinking of buying a Filco numpad/keypad that has Brown switches, which I would want to feel similar to the TKL.
Now, I'm thinking of making every key on the TKL an Ergo Clear except the Function keys, Print Screen, Scroll Lock, and Pause keys. Instead, I'll make the numpad Ergo Clears with the Clear switches I have left (again, since I only ordered 87).
I may also just make the spacebar a Clear switch entirely to make it a little firmer. The Escape key may be nice as a reg. Clear switch as well...
Thanks!
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edit:
OK, backtrack... I read your post wrong, and you read Solutor's post wrong. Ergo Clear is brown springs and clear stems.
'beige' is what Solutor called the same thing as Ergo Clear before there was consensus on it being called Ergo Clear.
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EDIT: I knew I would do that!! I mixed up the combination in the OP. I just fixed it.
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Stiffer springs remove tactility, so a clear spring (which is stiffer than a black one), and a brown stem would probably remove a lot of the tactility from the brown stem.
Edit: I lot of the reason people like Ergo Clears, is because they're more tactile than a brown stem. A brown/blue/red spring with a clear stem has very low force, and high tactility. Unfortunately the tactile bump on a clear stem is so high, that when coupled with a low force spring, they sometimes get stuck in the down position. Make sure if you're doing an ergo clear mod that the stem is properly lubed on the sliding posts, or that your springs aren't too worn. From the POS board I harvested clear stems from, I had fresh springs, but the old used stems weren't lubed at all. I had a few sticking switches, and had to apply translucent silicon grease to get them rebounding correctly. Because of that, the lubed switches ultimately felt smoother, so I had to redo my whole project, cleaning and relubing every clear stem.
Just something to consider if you want to do an ergo clear mod.
Edit again: There's also a "Panda Clear", clear stem with a black spring. This will probably fix any rebounding issues, remove some of the tactility, and increase the force of actuation.
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Thanks, that does help.
I'll put this in my OP, but here's what I'm doing, which may help out...
I have a Filco TKL with Brown switches right now. I'm buying 87 Clear switches through the Phantom Group Buy.
So, I was going to convert the keyboard to Ergo Clears using the new Clear stems and the "old" brown springs.
I wanted to see if I could do anything useful with the Brown stems and Clear springs I have left over.
Also, I am thinking of buying a Filco numpad/keypad that has Brown switches, which I would want to feel similar to the TKL.
Now, I'm thinking of making every key on the TKL an Ergo Clear except the Function keys, Print Screen, Scroll Lock, and Pause keys. Instead, I'll make the numpad Ergo Clears with the Clear switches I have left (again, since I only ordered 87).
I may also just make the spacebar a Clear switch entirely to make it a little firmer. The Escape key may be nice as a reg. Clear switch as well...
I hope this isn't too confusing. :P
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So, I may end up not putting Clear Springs in Brown Stems after all, unless I hear more from someone here about that combo or just decide to try it out for fun. :P
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I actually use a brown stem with a clear spring in my G80-3000 spacebar. Well..it's a grey stem, but that's the same thing as a brown. It's nice, but it really just feels like an even less tactile brown. It's nice in the spacebar because the force removes a lot of the wobbling in the spacebar itself, so the rebound feels solid. But I think for the smaller keys, that would be overkill.
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Well..it's a grey stem, but that's the same thing as a brown.
This is wrong the light grey stem is the same as a clear stem not a brown one.
As for the original question I think browns with heavier springs are the worst switch mod of them all. It is a heavy switch with a bump is so slight that it may as well just be a black.
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Yeah, that's kind of what I was thinking. I don't think it's worth it. I'll just find something else to do with the springs and stems I have left over after making Ergo Clears.
Thanks!
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This is wrong the light grey stem is the same as a clear stem not a brown one.
holy crap, I did not know that. Thanks!