geekhack
geekhack Community => Keyboards => Topic started by: mcc on Thu, 10 December 2015, 08:22:43
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Hi,
(I am no native english speaker...)
with the last cleaning I bend a spring of my beloved IBM model M
keyboard accidentially too much ...
Removeing the spring was easy...but how to insert a new one?
From the internet and the forums here I found some ways to do
it but either I didn't had the materials or it does not work for me.
So I found one of my own...from which I hope it may help in one
or the other situation.
You need (beside the keyboard and a replacement spring itsself):
I pencil like this one:
http://www.faber-castell.com/~/media/Products/Product%20Repository/TK%209500/24-24-03%20Mechanical%20pencil/139500%20Clutch%20pencil%20TK%209500%202mm%20HB/Images/139500_1.ashx?bc=White&h=600&w=600
(this is the model I had and used for this, but any other pencil with 2mm pencil lead
and the accordingly sized pencil will work)
Do as follows:
Pull off the keycap and the stencil of the key in question. Remove
the demaged spring by carefully pulling it out.
Pull out the pencil lead turn it 180 degree (flat back side to front) and insert it
again. It has to stay out about 3 mm shorter than the length of the unconpressed
spring.
Move the spring over the pencil lead and open the c;amp (word???) of the pencil
a little to it can grab the spring.
Now the lead can move easily in the spring.
Put the free and of the spring over the little
socket of the hammer in the key housing. Try to place the pencil perpendicular
to the surface of the hammer and in line with the socket.
Let the pencil lead fall down onto the socket, which will prevent the spring
from buckling.
Now turn the pencil, so the spring gets widened (in my case this was a
counterclockwise turn...but I dont know, whether this is identical for all
model M variants...). While doing this gently press down the spring with
the pencil.
If the spring is fastened, open the clamp of the pencil completely and pull
out the pencil (keep an eye on the pencil lead to not to break it.
Finally pull out the pencil lead by hand.
Done.
The first attempt of this procedure ends with an fully functional key.
But it does not click anymore.
Reason: The spring was not fully moved down the socket.
I simply repeated the steps above and now it works as before
the spring was damaged.
Hopefully this is of help for other...
Best regards,
mcc
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Nice. Very similar to the pop rivet method as well : https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=63278.0
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Very similar to the pop rivet method as well : https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=63278.0
Thank you so much for linking this!
I have looked for it again several times with no luck. It would have helped if "spring replacement" and/or "pop rivet" was in the title.