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geekhack Community => geekhack Media => Topic started by: intelli78 on Thu, 08 May 2014, 21:39:37

Title: Post your Kingsaver : )
Post by: intelli78 on Thu, 08 May 2014, 21:39:37

Several Kingsavers have exchanged hands lately, so let's see 'em. I recently got mine from esoomenona. It came with Matias quiet switches, but I got a Leading Edge DC2014 off eBay for a reasonable price and changed the switches to Blue ALPS last night. It was the biggest soldering project I've done to date. It was a success except I was not careful desoldering one switch (right arrow) and pulled out a bunch of copper. However, I was able to jump the connection and it's working once more.  :thumb:

Photos:

As I received it from esoomenona.

(http://i.imgur.com/1E07ZQG.jpg)

Blue ALPS taken from the Leading Edge donor board.

(http://i.imgur.com/C1ElujW.jpg)

Everything soldered in, but right arrow not working :( I didn't bother changing out F keys, I rarely use them.

(http://i.imgur.com/felyhKy.jpg)

The jumper wire I used to fix the right arrow. Color almost matched the PCB. Came from a variety pack from Radioshack.

(http://i.imgur.com/Q96lVMW.jpg)

My travel setup for work. The board has SGI keycaps with some Wang mods mixed in (tab, caps, shifts, enter, backslash, backspace) because the gray SGI mods don't line up quite right.

(http://i.imgur.com/JJcGIVM.jpg)

Title: Re: Post your Kingsaver : )
Post by: noisyturtle on Thu, 08 May 2014, 21:44:40

[attach=1]
someday I'm gonna post ITT

Title: Re: Post your Kingsaver : )
Post by: AKIMbO on Thu, 08 May 2014, 21:50:18

Dropping all my Kingsaver pron (spare PCB, spare plate, blue alps kingsaver, salmon alps kingsaver, green alps kingsaver)!

(http://i.imgur.com/hqvisN5.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/6YGFIMz.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/Nea48kG.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/PF96xIm.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/q7Uw7Vi.jpg?1)
(http://i.imgur.com/fEGhw0Z.jpg?1)

Title: Re: Post your Kingsaver : )
Post by: intelli78 on Thu, 08 May 2014, 22:11:49

I love the RGB mods. Did you dye those yourself?

Also, how would you say green ALPS compare to other linear alps? (e.g., black, yellow, salmon)

Title: Re: Post your Kingsaver : )
Post by: AKIMbO on Thu, 08 May 2014, 22:13:27

Quote from: intelli78 on Thu, 08 May 2014, 22:11:49

I love the RGB mods. Did you dye those yourself?

Also, how would you say green ALPS compare to other linear alps? (e.g., black, yellow, salmon)

Black and salmon are tactile, not linear. Yellow alps are heavier than green alps (think of the difference b/w black and red mx, just not as pronounced). The RGB mods were dyed by the person I purchased the kingsaver package from.  Right now I'm rocking non-dyed mods.

Title: Re: Post your Kingsaver : )
Post by: intelli78 on Thu, 08 May 2014, 22:17:28

Quote from: AKIMbO on Thu, 08 May 2014, 22:13:27

Quote from: intelli78 on Thu, 08 May 2014, 22:11:49

I love the RGB mods. Did you dye those yourself?

Also, how would you say green ALPS compare to other linear alps? (e.g., black, yellow, salmon)

Black and salmon are tactile, not linear. Yellow alps are heavier than green alps (think of the difference b/w black and red mx, just not as pronounced). The RGB mods were dyed by the person I purchased the kingsaver package from.  Right now I'm rocking non-dyed mods.

Oh, of course, brain fart.

Cool. Maybe I'll try to dye my spare Wang mods as my next project.

Title: Re: Post your Kingsaver : )
Post by: CPTBadAss on Mon, 12 May 2014, 19:27:19

I'll take some better pictures later when there's sunlight. For now, this is my WangSaver. It's going under the knife this week to have it's switches switched to complicated Blue Alps :D.

(http://i.imgur.com/o22vZQ7.jpg?1)
(http://i.imgur.com/u5jylqd.jpg?1)

Title: Re: Post your Kingsaver : )
Post by: intelli78 on Thu, 15 May 2014, 13:05:57

Quote from: CPTBadAss on Mon, 12 May 2014, 19:27:19

I'll take some better pictures later when there's sunlight. For now, this is my WangSaver. It's going under the knife this week to have it's switches switched to complicated Blue Alps :D.

Show Image

(http://i.imgur.com/o22vZQ7.jpg?1)

Show Image

(http://i.imgur.com/u5jylqd.jpg?1)

Looking forward to the results  :D

Title: Re: Post your Kingsaver : )
Post by: jacobolus on Fri, 30 May 2014, 03:50:50

For those of you with the kind of time/money to spend on a Kingsaver, and want something very smooth and solid but also very tactile, I recommend:

For clicky switches: orange Alps with Matias clicky click leaves swapped in [noticeably nicer than white switches].
For tactile switches: orange Alps with Matias quiet tactile leaves swapped in [this beats the pants off salmon switches].
For quiet switches: dampened cream Alps with Matias quiet tactile leaves swapped in.
For clicky w/ no bottom-out switches: dampened cream Alps with Matias clicky click leaves swapped in.

Unless you want light weight switches, in which case the mid-1980s blue/green/ivory Alps switches are just dandy.

Also, all Alps switches get even nicer when lubed.

Title: Re: Post your Kingsaver : )
Post by: CPTBadAss on Fri, 30 May 2014, 07:58:54

You should bring some of these to Keycon for people to try out :D

Title: Re: Post your Kingsaver : )
Post by: jwaz on Fri, 30 May 2014, 10:37:16

Quote from: jacobolus on Fri, 30 May 2014, 03:50:50

For those of you with the kind of time/money to spend on a Kingsaver, and want something very smooth and solid but also very tactile, I recommend:

For clicky switches: orange Alps with Matias clicky click leaves swapped in [noticeably nicer than white switches].
For tactile switches: orange Alps with Matias quiet tactile leaves swapped in [this beats the pants off salmon switches].
For quiet switches: dampened cream Alps with Matias quiet tactile leaves swapped in.
For clicky w/ no bottom-out switches: dampened cream Alps with Matias clicky click leaves swapped in.

Unless you want light weight switches, in which case the mid-1980s blue/green/ivory Alps switches are just dandy.

Also, all Alps switches get even nicer when lubed.

I'm sensing a trend here... Matias leaves makes everything better :P

I'll bring a box of broken blue alps to the Keycon and we can experiment on them!

Title: Re: Post your Kingsaver : )
Post by: jacobolus on Fri, 30 May 2014, 11:22:11

Quote from: jwaz on Fri, 30 May 2014, 10:37:16

I'm sensing a trend here... Matias leaves makes everything better :P

2 advantages: (1) they’re new & fresh and haven’t been worn down by age or use, unlike many 25–30-year-old switches; (2) they’re very crisply tactile, manufactured to a good spec & pretty tight tolerances, it seems. On the flip-side, Matias housings/switchplates are based on the simplified Alps/Forward Electronics switch design, which I don’t like as much as complicated Alps switches, especially the ones with a long switchplate like orange or blue.