geekhack
geekhack Community => Keyboards => Topic started by: 1395985 on Tue, 27 March 2012, 20:58:54
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Hey.
Just picked myself up two of these beauties - IBM Model M, type 1395985. They have green text on the left ALT key, and on the right CTRL key it says "Ctrl/Act". Also, these have a speaker installed in them, which I hear is not so common?
Here's the birth certificate of my personal, daily use Model M (I got them yesterday):
(http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7248/7022619345_00f4f9f83d_o.png)
1991 is a special year for me, as I was 16, left school and started my first job as an electronic repair technician. I stripped both these boards right down, removed mechanisms, scrubbed and brushed the casings with household anti-bacterial spray, ensuring all grime, dust & dirt was completely and utterly gone (I'm meticulous - why leave a job half done?). The entire black plastic key well mouldings were hoovered, scrubbed, all keys & caps removed and soaked in warm water + shampoo + anti-bacterial cleaner over a few hours. Next, keys & caps were rinsed, drained, then hand brushed and scrubbed (the grime just slid off with ease!). Next, the wet keys and caps were left on a towel in the sun to dry - halfway through, I slapped the keys against my trouser leg, ensuring all water trapped deep inside was ejected right out (saves a LOT of drying time).
When dry, they were re-assembled (spent 20 mins looking for two missing keycaps, searching the grass outside where I took 'em to dry, only to find them sitting on the bathroom chair, later!), tested, curly cords cleaned, and then boards tested... THEY GLEAM!!
I'm amazed that being ~20 years old, the key caps have no wear whatsoever, a true testament to high build quality and decent plastics!
I love this keyboard. My friend said "Wow that's SO loud"... yeah, but so much better than modern rubbish!
Shook off my laziness, and uploaded a photo of the birth certificate of the second, Lexmark Model M I just got:
(http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6215/6876704982_93cc01c73b_o.png)
Ping! ---> http://audioboo.fm/boos/732636-lexmark-1395985-model-m-pings
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Congrats! yep, the speaker is not commonly in the Model M.
Does that make them worth more? Not that I care to sell.
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Great Keyboard, Great Story. Mine, too, has green ALT keys.
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(http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k221/undarken/keyboard%20randoms/TROLOLOL1.jpg)