geekhack
geekhack Community => Keyboards => Topic started by: mushman on Wed, 12 October 2016, 10:26:44
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As you may or may not know The Van Keyboards is currently running a group buy for a DSA Alps keyset called LightCycle. (https://thevankeyboards.com/products/lightcycle-keycap-set)
This keyset has me interested in Alps again, however for someone with limited knowledge there may be some issues.
I've heard from multiple sources that these keycaps engage super tight on the switch. Or as someone had eloquently described: "like prom night." Would it make sense to put a very light grazing of lubricant on the stems? If so, what would seem appropriate?
Now you might be saying to yourself "Once you put these caps on your board you'll never remove them - there are not many options for swapping." This is all true. A good vacuum and brush should take care a lot of the hair/debris that falls through. However I've read that Matias switch QC is in the toilet which makes me hesitant to use those. Matias swears these are made of higher quality of materials than of the vintage variety but I'm not sure. Chattering and sticking are two repeating culprits I've read about on Amazon/Massdrop. I've also read these wobble like a drunken sailor even compared to Vintage which were wobbly already.
For the sake of limited keycap removal would it make sense to go with "as close to new as possible - preferably NOS" vintage Alps and call it the day? If this were a set of $20 TaoHao's I probably wouldn't care as much. But to be honest if it weren't for this LightCycle set I probably wouldn't transition back into Alps waters either. I'm just trying to create as less "stress" on these keycaps as I can.
I am not planning on using a V80/V60: I would like to wait for BlueNalgene's board. That said, does anyone know if the DSA Alps space bar or other stabilized keys will have an issue on the V80/V60 since that seems to be "standard" right now?
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The thing with SP's Alps sets is that they don't have any tapering on the stem (chamfering, I suppose) like original Alps-made key sets have, and on top of that, DSA also has a much longer stem than usual which makes pulling out a PITA, all analogies considered. Seriously though, the stem's lack of chamfer and length makes them fit very, very tightly.
There have been two recommendations I've heard from the community:
1) Remove all flash molding from the stem by inserting and removing it from a switch
2) Add chamfer to the stem yourself with a tool of some kind (x-act, dremel).
That claim by Matias certainly sounds a bit dubious. Also, Alps wobble isn't that bad. If you want bad wobble, try Gaterons or Zealios.
(http://i.imgur.com/Lh00SYr.jpg)
Here's the chamfering detail from original Alps-made PBT caps.
Even some old Alps keysets fit tightly though, and in my experience. I've had caps fit tightly on one board but loosely on another. I'm not sure if this is simply differences in tolerances between sliders/caps or a loosening of the slider's mounting recess, but there is some variance in terms of fit when it comes to geuine SKCM/SKCL Alps.
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Lack of keycap sets have been preventing me from even trying alps keycaps, I have a weird feeling that, if I even try Alps once, I could never go back to MX again, so I never even tried, too much investment on MX
After seeing your post and noticing that LightCycle have the alps option ... I'm very tempted
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Lack of keycap sets have been preventing me from even trying alps keycaps, I have a weird feeling that, if I even try Alps once, I could never go back to MX again, so I never even tried, too much investment on MX
After seeing your post and noticing that LightCycle have the alps option ... I'm very tempted
This is how I feel on the opposite end. I feel far too invested in Alps to make any meaningful investment in Cherry again (key cap sets, Novatouch sliders, things that would incentivize more MX purchases) because of how much I've put into Alps at this point. There are some fantastic options for Alps compared to Cherry from the vintage world, though many of the best (or at least most interesting) options are quite hard to find.
Lightcycle DSA looks brilliant though.
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DSA was designed to be for long term use. Your best bet is a little sand paper and some determination.