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geekhack Community => Keyboards => Topic started by: jone5ey on Tue, 07 August 2018, 14:19:30

Title: Lube Orange Alps?
Post by: jone5ey on Tue, 07 August 2018, 14:19:30
Hello, everyone! I'm new to GH but not to the love of keyboards. That fascination has landed me in the position of restoring an Apple Extended Keyboard (m0115) with orange alps. The board I'm intending to restore is in somewhat rough condition, and being well aware of the susceptibility of alps switches to foreign contaminants (read: dust and assorted crap), I want to clean the switches in an ultrasonic cleaner. Thanks to Chyros' Alps Trilogy (Part 3) (great watch- highly recommended), I now know orange alps are made of a different plastic than some later generation SKCM switches and come with factory lube. My question is this: having read so much conflicting advice out there on lubing Alps, should I lube the orange alps after cleaning to replace the factory lube with something dry like molybdenum disulfide? Should I use something else, or refrain from lubing them entirely? Any thoughts or potential pitfalls to avoid regarding lubing Alps would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!
Title: Re: Lube Orange Alps?
Post by: chyros on Tue, 07 August 2018, 15:35:27
I'd avoid lubing if at all possible.
Title: Re: Lube Orange Alps?
Post by: jone5ey on Tue, 07 August 2018, 16:01:09
Alrighty, good enough for me! Thanks for the quick reply. I'll test clean one first and if it feels alright reassembled I'll leave them well enough alone post-cleaning. Certainly don't want to ruin them as they were hard to find in the first place...

P.S. love your videos!  :thumb:
Title: Re: Lube Orange Alps?
Post by: mike52787 on Tue, 07 August 2018, 18:43:02
The only thing alps need lube on is the springs to remove the ping. The factory lube on first generation alps is top tier.
Title: Re: Lube Orange Alps?
Post by: jone5ey on Wed, 08 August 2018, 16:35:58
Top tier as in of very high quality? I suppose I could lube the springs with something high grade if cleaning increases the ping... Nothing stock to compare it to, really,  other than the switches themselves before the cleaning (which from all accounts could be terrible and gravelly)...
Title: Re: Lube Orange Alps?
Post by: f32h80fsd08h34r5 on Wed, 15 August 2018, 12:32:32
Quote from: mike52787 on Tue, 07 August 2018, 18:43:02
The only thing alps need lube on is the springs to remove the ping. The factory lube on first generation alps is top tier.

Is it weird that I really like the ping?
Title: Re: Lube Orange Alps?
Post by: Auslander on Wed, 15 August 2018, 17:01:55
Tribosys 3203 will make it feel amazing.