geekhack
geekhack Community => Keyboard Keycaps => Topic started by: longweight on Thu, 18 October 2012, 16:35:04
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Hi all,
So one of the WASD sets seems to be dirty mainly due to skin grease, I always wash my hands before touching these caps so I can't think of anything else that could have caused it.
My question is, what do I do to clean them? They seem to be untreated cast aluminium, any recommendations?
Here is a picture of a dirty key next to a clean key:
(http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8195/8101019505_b4c69fcd15_h.jpg)
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Erm, mineral spirits or similar?
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Can you please link me to something? I will try and pick something up tomorrow.
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hey longweight,
these scarface are awesome, did you get them in a group buy?
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Hey,
Thank you :) No I spent 6 months looking for them and found someone willing to sell me a set! I have only seen 3 other sets outside of KBDmania.
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was expecting something like this!
Well then enjoy it ^^
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Haha yeah they were hard to find but I love them more than any other keyboard thing! They are the only reason that I still have an MX board.
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Couldnt you just use dental tabs? Theyre safe on metal
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Maybe...! What are dental tabs?
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Tablets that you add water to for cleaning dentures. I use them all the time to clean my keycaps.
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Ahhhh ok that makes sense :) I will pick some up tomorrow, I also have vinegar to try and I have been recommended this: http://www.quickleen.co.uk/quickleen_aluminium_cleaner.htm (http://www.quickleen.co.uk/quickleen_aluminium_cleaner.htm) on another forum so that will be the last resort!
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That QuickLeen looks abrasive, wouldn't use that myself...
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Looks ok to me, what makes you think that it is abrasive?
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Most metal cleaners are polish which means that they have abrasives in them.
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Tablets that you add water to for cleaning dentures. I use them all the time to clean my keycaps.
say, do u use cold or warm water for the cleaning process?
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Doesn't matter if you let it sit it'll just get cold anyways. :)
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Tablets that you add water to for cleaning dentures. I use them all the time to clean my keycaps.
say, do u use cold or warm water for the cleaning process?
The box says use warm water. I use the hottest water out of the tap. It's nowhere near boiling so it won't warp your caps. Warm water always seems to remove grime better than cold (anyone who's ever done the dishes will know this).
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Most metal cleaners are polish which means that they have abrasives in them.
Yeah but this is designed for untreated aluminium.
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Magic eraser. Yes it is an abrasive. I've use it to clean MBPs. The discoloration is probably oxidation so you need to use abrasives to clean it.
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Most metal cleaners are polish which means that they have abrasives in them.
Yeah but this is designed for untreated aluminium.
Keep in mind that even "untreated" Aluminium will still have a few microns of oxide on the outside, or anywhere in contact with the O2 in air.
Aluminium oxide, or Al2O3, is very hard. Anodyzing is all about making this layer thicker (as well as introducing colour impurities), for better hardness and scratch resistance. I love ceramics.