I am a bit new at this, but I desperately want/need a set of vintage-looking Cherry-compatible keycaps like what Signature Plastics offers. I used these kind of keys back in the 80s, so it's a return to my childhood (my father used to have Compugraphic typesetting computers that had similar keycaps and I used to play with them as a child).SP are the only ones with molds fit to do doubleshot sphericals other than the cheap Filco ones. If you really want you can watch the classifieds or massdrop/pmk, but either of those is going to take waiting, and if you're going to do that you may as well wait and find a colorway you like. SA doubleshots are booked through for the next 12-18 months so I'm sure you'll see plenty coming along. In terms of cost, SP really isn't that bad. When they do have QC issues they're quick to fix them and in my experience their sets are perfectly fine. Compared to GMK sets SP is cheap, and they're made of the same material. Injection molding as a process is pricy. If you went back a few years you'd see that GMK wouldn't even do group buys for a while. If you choose to take the WASD route you're going to get paper thin cylindricals with lasered legends. If that's what you want, go for it, but as far as sphericals go SP provides the best service.
However, I find the whole process a bit daunting. Signature Plastics/Pimpmykeyboard NEVER has a full set available. Are you supposed to just wait for a group buy on Massdrop? Any suggestions on this for a novice?
I know they have some custom options available. But there have been numerous complaints online about their quality control, and the prices are pretty absurdly high.
It’s frustrating that it’s really hard to get a hold of these keysets, which are also really expensive. I mean, it’s plastic after all. Yes, I know, PBT, doubleshot, small batches, etc.. But it’s still just plastic, probably $3 worth for the $100 you spend.
It makes me think of Lego toys. Why can’t we have keycaps like those? They have really tight tolerances for consumer-grade plastic in many colors, and boxes of hundreds of colored pieces sell for $20-50 and up. I realize that Lego is a huge operation — but wait, so is SP (they have large corporate clients). SP just seems like a rip-off. What a business model! Sell really limited batches of plastic for really high prices - toys for adults.
Any recommendations on ways to actually GET one of their sets? Or should I just go and get a custom keys instead (WASD Keyboards for example)? Any opinions?
Thanks!
The 'cheap' Filco sets are made by SP from the same molds as any SA set. The WASD sets are printed, not lasered (full color vs. monochrome). GMK is cheaper per key when compared to SP SA sets. SP just allows for lower MOQ and thus the sets can be split into kits, which will then result as a 'cheaper' TKL set. If you compare GMK prices to a SP SA kits with the same compatibility, the GMK set will be cheaper.I am a bit new at this, but I desperately want/need a set of vintage-looking Cherry-compatible keycaps like what Signature Plastics offers. I used these kind of keys back in the 80s, so it's a return to my childhood (my father used to have Compugraphic typesetting computers that had similar keycaps and I used to play with them as a child).SP are the only ones with molds fit to do doubleshot sphericals other than the cheap Filco ones. If you really want you can watch the classifieds or massdrop/pmk, but either of those is going to take waiting, and if you're going to do that you may as well wait and find a colorway you like. In terms of cost, SP really isn't that bad. When they do have QC issues they're quick to fix them and in my experience their sets are perfectly fine. Compared to GMK sets SP is cheap, and they're made of the same material. If you went back a few years you'd see that GMK wouldn't even do group buys for a while. If you choose to take the WASD route you're going to get paper thin cylindricals with lasered legends. If that's what you want, go for it, but as far as sphericals go SP provides the best service.
However, I find the whole process a bit daunting. Signature Plastics/Pimpmykeyboard NEVER has a full set available. Are you supposed to just wait for a group buy on Massdrop? Any suggestions on this for a novice?
I know they have some custom options available. But there have been numerous complaints online about their quality control, and the prices are pretty absurdly high.
It’s frustrating that it’s really hard to get a hold of these keysets, which are also really expensive. I mean, it’s plastic after all. Yes, I know, PBT, doubleshot, small batches, etc.. But it’s still just plastic, probably $3 worth for the $100 you spend.
It makes me think of Lego toys. Why can’t we have keycaps like those? They have really tight tolerances for consumer-grade plastic in many colors, and boxes of hundreds of colored pieces sell for $20-50 and up. I realize that Lego is a huge operation — but wait, so is SP (they have large corporate clients). SP just seems like a rip-off. What a business model! Sell really limited batches of plastic for really high prices - toys for adults.
Any recommendations on ways to actually GET one of their sets? Or should I just go and get a custom keys instead (WASD Keyboards for example)? Any opinions?
Thanks!
I understand the Filcos are injection molded, I wasn't implying the caps themselves were cheaply made as they are comparatively to a full SA set. the WASD thing is my mistake. As for GMK, bringing a per key pricing into play is kind of irrelevant considering the quantity of compatibility options most include - a number of people don't have use for all the iso keys and non-standard keys. The thing that caught me was the comparison of SP to Lego, which I think is a pretty big exaggeration. I understand keysets being expensive might put people off but there's more to it than just milking cash. Certainly, profit is the end goal, but you're paying for the service just as much as you're paying for the product at the end of the line. You can buy all the raw plastic in the world and not come out with a good set of caps if you don't have the tools to make them.The 'cheap' Filco sets are made by SP from the same molds as any SA set. The WASD sets are printed, not lasered (full color vs. monochrome). GMK is cheaper per key when compared to SP SA sets. SP just allows for lower MOQ and thus the sets can be split into kits, which will then result as a 'cheaper' TKL set. If you compare GMK prices to a SP SA kits with the same compatibility, the GMK set will be cheaper.I am a bit new at this, but I desperately want/need a set of vintage-looking Cherry-compatible keycaps like what Signature Plastics offers. I used these kind of keys back in the 80s, so it's a return to my childhood (my father used to have Compugraphic typesetting computers that had similar keycaps and I used to play with them as a child).SP are the only ones with molds fit to do doubleshot sphericals other than the cheap Filco ones. If you really want you can watch the classifieds or massdrop/pmk, but either of those is going to take waiting, and if you're going to do that you may as well wait and find a colorway you like. In terms of cost, SP really isn't that bad. When they do have QC issues they're quick to fix them and in my experience their sets are perfectly fine. Compared to GMK sets SP is cheap, and they're made of the same material. If you went back a few years you'd see that GMK wouldn't even do group buys for a while. If you choose to take the WASD route you're going to get paper thin cylindricals with lasered legends. If that's what you want, go for it, but as far as sphericals go SP provides the best service.
However, I find the whole process a bit daunting. Signature Plastics/Pimpmykeyboard NEVER has a full set available. Are you supposed to just wait for a group buy on Massdrop? Any suggestions on this for a novice?
I know they have some custom options available. But there have been numerous complaints online about their quality control, and the prices are pretty absurdly high.
It’s frustrating that it’s really hard to get a hold of these keysets, which are also really expensive. I mean, it’s plastic after all. Yes, I know, PBT, doubleshot, small batches, etc.. But it’s still just plastic, probably $3 worth for the $100 you spend.
It makes me think of Lego toys. Why can’t we have keycaps like those? They have really tight tolerances for consumer-grade plastic in many colors, and boxes of hundreds of colored pieces sell for $20-50 and up. I realize that Lego is a huge operation — but wait, so is SP (they have large corporate clients). SP just seems like a rip-off. What a business model! Sell really limited batches of plastic for really high prices - toys for adults.
Any recommendations on ways to actually GET one of their sets? Or should I just go and get a custom keys instead (WASD Keyboards for example)? Any opinions?
Thanks!
I understand the Filcos are injection molded, I wasn't implying the caps themselves were cheaply made as they are comparatively to a full SA set.They are a full SA set. Made by signature plastics.
SA doubleshots are booked through for the next 12-18 months so I'm sure you'll see plenty coming along.
Pimpmykeyboard has some, Massdrop runs others, and some like Originative run them as well. If you keep an eye out you'll see them as they come. The custom DSA Dyesubs are fine if you like DSA, personally I don't really care for it but that's up to you to decide. Just keep in mind, SA is very tall, DSA is very short. I got a WASD first but if you compare the density of an SP doubleshot set or even topre stock caps they're very thin and hollow sounding to type on. They do provide pretty great control over letting people custom print, though.QuoteSA doubleshots are booked through for the next 12-18 months so I'm sure you'll see plenty coming along.
Do you recommend just watching the pimpmykeyboard site for these?
How about ordering the custom sets? http://pimpmykeyboard.com/dsa-sublimated-keycap-sets/
It seems like people have good experience with these, but I am wondering how they compare with the other sets that seem to go so quickly. (I prefer the white type they offer with the SA doubleshot sets.)
I do have a custom WASD set that I ordered with my keyboard from WASD. It's fine, but it's interesting to hear them described as "paper thin" (I didn't know there was that much of a difference.)
Thank you for all your help!
Take a quick look at zFrontier. They have some retro Honeywell esque maxkeys sa keycaps. 75$+shipping
Sent from my Redmi Pro using Tapatalk
I've joined the ashen gb.Take a quick look at zFrontier. They have some retro Honeywell esque maxkeys sa keycaps. 75$+shipping
Sent from my Redmi Pro using Tapatalk
Have you purchased any of the Maxkey sets? I'm wondering how they are quality wise...
7bit has a Group Buy.
Might take a while. :))
Has anyone ordered from 7bit before?
You have two choices:
1. Wait and watch for a group buy (either on MassDrop or through the numerous smaller, independent GB agents who advertise in the IC forum here).
2. Buy a used set from someone selling theirs.
Both strategies require lots and lots of patience, and constant vigilance.
These sets are hard to come by because they represent a niche of a niche, and so each set gets made only once (usually) and in relatively small quantities (500 sets is miniscule compared to the millions that get pumped out for typical consumer keyboards).
I've joined the ashen gb.Take a quick look at zFrontier. They have some retro Honeywell esque maxkeys sa keycaps. 75$+shipping
Sent from my Redmi Pro using Tapatalk
Have you purchased any of the Maxkey sets? I'm wondering how they are quality wise...
From what I've seen, it's totally acceptable for me.
And zFrontier is a legit company. It's like Chinese originative.
Sent from my Redmi Pro using Tapatalk
SP kits are trash. Save your money and get GMK or dye-sub's.
Wow, 7bit's list is pretty insane. I'm just trying to understand it all...
SP kits are trash. Save your money and get GMK or dye-sub's.
7bit is having some funding problems for Round 7. Be sure to do your research first.
No.
I've joined the ashen gb.Take a quick look at zFrontier. They have some retro Honeywell esque maxkeys sa keycaps. 75$+shipping
Sent from my Redmi Pro using Tapatalk
Have you purchased any of the Maxkey sets? I'm wondering how they are quality wise...
From what I've seen, it's totally acceptable for me.
And zFrontier is a legit company. It's like Chinese originative.
Sent from my Redmi Pro using Tapatalk
I joined the GB last night as well. We'll see how it goes, but for the price I think I will be satisfied based upon the pics I saw of their cyan run.
You have two choices:U have A rational view :thumb:
1. Wait and watch for a group buy (either on MassDrop or through the numerous smaller, independent GB agents who advertise in the IC forum here).
2. Buy a used set from someone selling theirs.
Both strategies require lots and lots of patience, and constant vigilance.
These sets are hard to come by because they represent a niche of a niche, and so each set gets made only once (usually) and in relatively small quantities (500 sets is miniscule compared to the millions that get pumped out for typical consumer keyboards).
Signatures Plastics is definitely worth it if...
1. You got the cash
2. You can wait
If not, you can try joining any of the currently running MaxKey group buys that are essentially SA profile made in China. I believe Originative, Zfrontier, and Keyclack are running GBs at this moment!
That would be a great thread to post up here. I'm searching for it too, can't seem to find it.
Signature Plastics is derived from Comptec, a French company that made keycaps. They were going to shutdown the American operation and the employees bought it to continue running. About one year ago (actually exactly 51 weeks ago) the French operation was shut down: http://www.ladepeche.fr/article/2016/03/17/2305799-polemique-sur-la-fermeture-de-la-societe-comptec.html (article in French)
Given that some of the old, well-known defects from SP legends are also present here, I wouldn't be surprised if these Chinese keycaps are being made using the original molds from the French company. In that case, those would be original SA keycaps, in the same way that GMK keycaps are original Cherry.
Why wouldn't most manufacturers have similar defects? Doesn't prove the molds are the same.
Sounds like false news.
And since SP was the only one making SA keycaps this is either a perfectly executed copy job or those are the same old Comtec molds.
The Comptec molds theory sounds more plausible IMHO.
jChan posted a comparison on /r/mk of Maxkeys and Hack by Geeks set.
the kerning is exactly the same apart from the old BACK SPACE vs BACKSPACE
identical modifiers and everything.
And since SP was the only one making SA keycaps this is either a perfectly executed copy job or those are the same old Comtec molds.
The Comptec molds theory sounds more plausible IMHO.
maxkeys also has SHIF T vs SP's SHIFTDidn't note the caps lock issue.
and CAPS LOC K vs CAPS LOCK
little bits that just need to get ironed out
you think it doesn't bother you but the crappy tab legend on my OLD Olivetti set makes me sad when i look at it
SP are the only ones with molds fit to do doubleshot sphericals other than the cheap Filco ones.
QuoteSP are the only ones with molds fit to do doubleshot sphericals other than the cheap Filco ones.
I have been waiting for over a year now (I don't check every day, should I?) to find a nice SA set with transparent doubleshot for backlit keys.
How long should I wait before I just give up?
I'm about to be building a monster rig once my father's probate clears, and I was hoping that some SA caps that look good and are backlight compatible would be available soon.
Late edit: Well, to be exact, I am looking for a tasteful PBT set with functional (special keys vs alphanumeric vs function)) two-tone or even tri-color with the doubleshot being translucent lettering with MX stems. I guess that's a more proper way of saying what I want.
Signature/Pimp has some sets that look nice, but they never seem to have the translucent doubleshot lettering.
SP have basically said they will never do a full set of PBT doubleshot keycaps, much less in SA profile, due to the tooling changes required for the different shrink rate of PBT vs ABS.
If you want a double shot PBT set with translucent legends for backlighting, your best bet would be something like these (OEM profile from Vortex): https://mechanicalkeyboards.com/shop/index.php?l=product_detail&p=1003
There are a few sets on Amazon, as well, but I'm not sure about the quality.
I was wondering why it is so rare to see such caps with translucent lettering. I know Corsair now has their DCS profile PBT aftermarket cap sets that have translucent doubleshots. I wonder if they know something that the others don't, or are just taking the risk that people won't care in the long term if they shrink?