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geekhack Community => Keyboard Keycaps => Topic started by: frew on Tue, 18 June 2013, 17:27:16

Title: Zodiac Keycaps
Post by: frew on Tue, 18 June 2013, 17:27:16
I think it would be really cool to replace F1-F12 with the signs of the zodiac.  I didn't realize what I was getting into and emailed SP about it and discovered how expensive it would be to get these on my own.  So would anyone else be interested in this?  The symbols are


If your browser doesn't render these correctly for whatever reason, check them out on wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astrological_symbols#Signs_of_the_zodiac

Since they are so simple it might be cool to get them doubleshot, but that might be too expensive since I didn't even get the price to make a new mold from SP...
Title: Re: Zodiac Keycaps
Post by: Photekq on Tue, 18 June 2013, 17:29:07
I wouldn't be interested in these myself but I do think it's a very cool idea.
Title: Re: Zodiac Keycaps
Post by: rowdy on Tue, 18 June 2013, 17:38:50
Even WASD seems to be $10 for a single custom printed keycap.  Although it drops to $3.50 each for 10, but I guess that is probably for 10 of the same design.
Title: Re: Zodiac Keycaps
Post by: tp4tissue on Tue, 18 June 2013, 17:40:22
You guys remember Ronin Warriors?
Title: Re: Zodiac Keycaps
Post by: frew on Wed, 19 June 2013, 08:56:25
Even WASD seems to be $10 for a single custom printed keycap.  Although it drops to $3.50 each for 10, but I guess that is probably for 10 of the same design.

Oh wow that's way cheaper.  For SP it's 10x as much.  I may actually do this then, though laser etching is considerable less pretty than dye sub or double shot.
Title: Re: Zodiac Keycaps
Post by: SeriouSSpotS on Wed, 19 June 2013, 09:09:37
These are kind of cool
Title: Re: Zodiac Keycaps
Post by: kmiller8 on Wed, 19 June 2013, 09:16:42
Oh wow that's way cheaper.  For SP it's 10x as much.  I may actually do this then, though laser etching is considerable less pretty than dye sub or double shot.

The reason is, you're probably asking SP to make custom doubleshots, which is $45 per mold IIRC, and then they have a pricing tier starting at $20 each for five, down to $.41 each for 1000.

WASD will do you a small run, but the laser is a much different quality than you can get with doubleshots.

WASD:
(http://i.imgur.com/DqMOa.jpg)

SP Doubleshot:
(http://i.imgur.com/laAI9.jpg)

You might be able to get someone to help you do a GB for these if you want to get the SP ones at a decent price.
Title: Re: Zodiac Keycaps
Post by: frew on Wed, 19 June 2013, 12:34:06
You might be able to get someone to help you do a GB for these if you want to get the SP ones at a decent price.

Yeah, I totally want to do that.  What's the protocol on getting that started?  Do we need X people first?  So far the interest has been less than I'd hoped.
Title: Re: Zodiac Keycaps
Post by: HongKongFui on Wed, 19 June 2013, 13:13:11
start an interest check in the interest check section...