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geekhack Community => Keyboards => Topic started by: router.exe on Sat, 14 June 2014, 20:41:51

Title: cherry mx stem source
Post by: router.exe on Sat, 14 June 2014, 20:41:51
this is probably not the right sub to post this under, but probably the best crowd to ask.

i broke a stem on a cherry mx brown when closing my keyboard tray and having the key get impaled by the tray rail.  the switch still works.  i just want to replace the stem if possible.  where can i locate just stems?
Title: Re: cherry mx stem source
Post by: exitfire401 on Sat, 14 June 2014, 20:43:05
this is probably not the right sub to post this under, but probably the best crowd to ask.

i broke a stem on a cherry mx brown when closing my keyboard tray and having the key get impaled by the tray rail.  the switch still works.  i just want to replace the stem if possible.  where can i locate just stems?

PM me your address, I have a ton of extra browns from a switch swap. I'll get a few stems out to you on Monday.
Title: Re: cherry mx stem source
Post by: router.exe on Sat, 14 June 2014, 20:44:10
awesome thank you so much.   :thumb:
Title: Re: cherry mx stem source
Post by: tp4tissue on Sat, 14 June 2014, 21:18:48
um... to anyone else who's looking for stems...

it's much easier to just replace the whole switch.. the stems don't come much if at all cheaper.. (if you can even find them)
Title: Re: cherry mx stem source
Post by: Puddsy on Sat, 14 June 2014, 21:58:23
um... to anyone else who's looking for stems...

it's much easier to just replace the whole switch.. the stems don't come much if at all cheaper.. (if you can even find them)

+1

if you want you can just swap stems from the new switches but it's so much easier to find switches than it has been in the past.
Title: Re: cherry mx stem source
Post by: False_Dmitry_II on Sun, 15 June 2014, 05:04:04
OMGWTFBBQ, A broken *cherry* stem. These things must have absolutely terrible QC. -10/10, don't buy again.
Title: Re: cherry mx stem source
Post by: router.exe on Sun, 15 June 2014, 22:24:13
OMGWTFBBQ, A broken *cherry* stem. These things must have absolutely terrible QC. -10/10, don't buy again.

puff puff pass
Title: Re: cherry mx stem source
Post by: False_Dmitry_II on Sun, 15 June 2014, 23:49:58
OMGWTFBBQ, A broken *cherry* stem. These things must have absolutely terrible QC. -10/10, don't buy again.

puff puff pass

Sorry, you're new here. That was my reaction against cherry as there has been an absurd proliferation of reactions against Kailh - and with far less actual evidence against Kailh. It's true to say I've seen far more problems with cherry switches than anything with Kailh. Especially current-gen Kailh, which has a total number of problems of 0.
Title: Re: cherry mx stem source
Post by: Oobly on Mon, 16 June 2014, 03:22:01
OMGWTFBBQ, A broken *cherry* stem. These things must have absolutely terrible QC. -10/10, don't buy again.

puff puff pass

Sorry, you're new here. That was my reaction against cherry as there has been an absurd proliferation of reactions against Kailh - and with far less actual evidence against Kailh. It's true to say I've seen far more problems with cherry switches than anything with Kailh. Especially current-gen Kailh, which has a total number of problems of 0.

How many Cherry switches are out there? How many new Kailhs?

Reported failure number divided by the number of switches in use will give some perspective of quality of the switches. I suspect the new Kailhs are decent, but I would rather go with a switch that has a long term proven track record unless I'm experimenting / trying something new. Copies are rarely better than originals, unless they have found some fundamental flaw in the original design and fixed that in theirs. The only thing I would fix with Cherry MX are the slightly loose stems and switch tops and not quite smooth slider on new switches (scratchy feeling of new Browns and Clears). Also, a new slider design with built in rubber dampers top and bottom would be nice. Bump size between Browns and Clears, Brown spring, rubber dampers for quietness, smooth and tight slider and top case.. Endgame switch. No mods needed.

The fact that Kailh have partnered with a company with a poor quality control track record (Razer) doesn't help their image, either.
Title: Re: cherry mx stem source
Post by: False_Dmitry_II on Mon, 16 June 2014, 04:39:02
Actually, I've been seeing problems with recent cherry more and more often, especially stuff like non-clicking blues. It's because of the upswell of demand, which is still occurring.

Kailh switches are in the same style of cherry, and with the same pinout, but they aren't copies as much as any of the noname switches that are also cherry style. They're doing their own thing, and are clearly labeling all their stuff. It's in the same sport as calling Matias switches clones, and therefore worse, than Alps; but the biggest difference here is that Alps is dead and cherry is not.

I don't have any numbers on sales, but the only fair way to do measurements would be of cherry switches since the new gen of Kailh - to be defined as when the Razor switches came out - against said generation of Kailh. Allowing vintage blues or whites or anything else in doesn't make sense.
Title: Re: cherry mx stem source
Post by: davkol on Mon, 16 June 2014, 09:42:36
especially stuff like non-clicking blues.
You must be new here. Non-clicky blues are nothing new. AFAIK it was the reason why Filco originally didn't make Majestouch with blues. That was how many years ago?
Title: Re: cherry mx stem source
Post by: jdcarpe on Mon, 16 June 2014, 09:44:59
Great. Now we have Kailh fanboi?
Title: Re: cherry mx stem source
Post by: router.exe on Mon, 16 June 2014, 12:20:57
just so everyone is clear, i broke the stem of a cherry switch with a large shearing force.  I slammed an adjustable height keyboard drawer shut without checking the height before doing so..  pretty sure that any plastic hit with a force of that magnitude and type would not survive.
Title: Re: cherry mx stem source
Post by: False_Dmitry_II on Mon, 16 June 2014, 14:47:31
especially stuff like non-clicking blues.
You must be new here. Non-clicky blues are nothing new. AFAIK it was the reason why Filco originally didn't make Majestouch with blues. That was how many years ago?

I've been here longer than you have, though I will say that I don't pay super close attention to all things cherry. Just noticed that I've seen alot of threads about that recently.


Great. Now we have Kailh fanboi?

Not at all, I just think the hate they get is extreme, and without all that much in the way of reason. But I prefer virtually everything else to MX. If that weren't true I'd probably get a Kailh to see for myself.


just so everyone is clear, i broke the stem of a cherry switch with a large shearing force.  I slammed an adjustable height keyboard drawer shut without checking the height before doing so..  pretty sure that any plastic hit with a force of that magnitude and type would not survive.


And for all I know, the pics of broken original gen Kailh switches were exactly the same.
Title: Re: cherry mx stem source
Post by: router.exe on Mon, 16 June 2014, 14:55:00
especially stuff like non-clicking blues.
You must be new here. Non-clicky blues are nothing new. AFAIK it was the reason why Filco originally didn't make Majestouch with blues. That was how many years ago?

I've been here longer than you have, though I will say that I don't pay super close attention to all things cherry. Just noticed that I've seen alot of threads about that recently.


Great. Now we have Kailh fanboi?

Not at all, I just think the hate they get is extreme, and without all that much in the way of reason. But I prefer virtually everything else to MX. If that weren't true I'd probably get a Kailh to see for myself.


just so everyone is clear, i broke the stem of a cherry switch with a large shearing force.  I slammed an adjustable height keyboard drawer shut without checking the height before doing so..  pretty sure that any plastic hit with a force of that magnitude and type would not survive.


And for all I know, the pics of broken original gen Kailh switches were exactly the same.

what on earth are you prattling on about?
Title: Re: cherry mx stem source
Post by: iloveucla on Thu, 19 June 2014, 19:39:56
What about a old cheap keyboard to get the mx clear stems? The new clear costs about $55 @110 pics, but I just want the stems.

any ideas?
Title: Re: cherry mx stem source
Post by: tp4tissue on Thu, 19 June 2014, 20:11:48
What about a old cheap keyboard to get the mx clear stems? The new clear costs about $55 @110 pics, but I just want the stems.

any ideas?

buy the switches..

the time it takes to desolder an older keyboard is NOT worth it.
Title: Re: cherry mx stem source
Post by: Puddsy on Thu, 19 June 2014, 20:13:11
What about a old cheap keyboard to get the mx clear stems? The new clear costs about $55 @110 pics, but I just want the stems.

any ideas?

buy the switches..

the time it takes to desolder an older keyboard is NOT worth it.

+1

old keyboards do not take well to being taken apart
Title: Re: cherry mx stem source
Post by: vvp on Fri, 20 June 2014, 03:39:30
the time it takes to desolder an older keyboard is NOT worth it.

It is about 30 seconds per switch. Maybe a minute if you are slacking a lot. At least a solder sucker is needed. Compared to other parts switches are easy to desolder since the switch leads do not have tight fit in its hole on PCB. The fit cannot be tight because switch leads are rectangular and they must fit a round hole.

If iloveucla has a keyboard to scrap then he should try it and he will see whether it is worth to him.