Advice on Transitioning from IBM Model M to 60%

[Hypersphere]

I have been successfully and happily using IBM Model M keyboards for years in a mixed OS environment. I have 3 workstations, each with 3 computers, each running a different OS (Mac, Linux, and Windows). Each of the 3 workstations employs a single IBM Model M connected to the computers with a hardware KM switch and software (Synergy).

Because of a recent shoulder injury, I find I need to have the mouse closer to the centerline, so I stated acquiring TKL boards, starting with a Filco Majestouch-2 TKL Ninja with Blue Cherry Switches.

After a long acquaintance with buckling springs, the Filco feels much too light, but it is growing on me. The transition from full size to TKL was easy, but now I am asking, "Why stop there", and I have become intrigued by the 60% boards.

I am tempted by the HHKB (Pro 2), but I am unsure of the somewhat counterintuitive layout and the Topre switches. The Leopold FC660C and FC660M look easy to master, but they are not true 60% boards. At first, the layout and non-standard key sizes of the Filco Minila eliminated it from consideration, but after a second look, it makes sense to me. I like the Tex Beetle even better; however, I am unsure about the small right-shift key. I use arrow keys quite a lot and would like to see these remain as dedicated keys, but others such as Ins/Del could very well be in the Fn layer.

My notebook is a Macbook Air, and while I do not like typing on a notebook, I like the layout of the keyboard. I like the idea of using half-height keys for the arrow cluster and Escape key. Matias has come close to this design, but it is not there yet.

It seems that there are a number of interesting 60% boards that are still undergoing design changes, and so it might be good to hold off a few months before making a purchase. However, I would appreciate suggestions on good quality 60% boards, either to buy now or to watch for later purchase.

Thanks.

[rowdy]

SSK?

Or MX greens, I think, will most closely replicate BS, although it is not, and never wil be, quite the same.

[kenmai9]

Ducky Mini is still working on its design, it should be the best when it comes out, IMO.
Although I do love my Poker II. Its pretty amazing in terms of quality.

[CPTBadAss]

Try and snag a GH60. You can mod the layout to fit your needs which might be good for your injury.

[vatin]

Why stop there? Go for the best the get the ergodox http://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=44728.0 . just a few days left. Your shoulder will thank you a million times!!!!

[rowdy]

Why stop there? Go for the best the get the ergodox http://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=44728.0 . just a few days left. Your shoulder will thank you a million times!!!!

tp4?  Is that you??

[insilica]

Why stop there? Go for the best the get the ergodox http://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=44728.0 . just a few days left. Your shoulder will thank you a million times!!!!

tp4?  Is that you??

ROFL.

GH60, if you are happy with 60%. Something tells me you may find the ergo fox more to your liking given the injury.

[Techno Trousers]

Have you considered a 75% board like the Noppo Choc Mini or Keycool 84? More of the keys are in familiar places with those, and fewer editing keys are buried under a function layer. Personally, as a very proficient touch-typist, I hate switching between keyboard layouts and not being able to just reach for backslash, home, end, etc. It makes it much worse if my work and home keyboards are different. Ugh.

Good call by rowdy on MX greens if you want to find Cherry switches more like buckling springs. I'm on the Ultimate Switch Tester tour this time around, so as a buckling spring lover I also want to see what clears and whites are like, but greens are pretty darn good.

Finally, Unicomp keeps half-promising that they are working on their own buckling spring TKL/SSK board, but that could be a couple of years away still.

Good luck in your hunt!

[Hypersphere]

Thanks for all the great suggestions! During the past month, i have continued my research into keyboards, and I have taken the plunge on quite a few. This has cost me plenty, but if I can bear to part with the least favorite of them, I might be selling some of the boards. Here is the roundup, with some brief impressions:

1. Found a NIB IBM SSK! Being accustomed to a full-size Model M, the SSK has the familiar buckling spring switches and dye-sub PBT keycaps in a two-tone ivory and beige color scheme that I prefer. My speed and accuracy are better on this board than any other I have tried. Both the full-size Model M and the SSK give me a feeling of confidence when I type, and the build quality of these boards is second to none. The SSK has become my new daily driver, but having scaled down from full-size to TKL, my appetite has been whetted for smaller TKLs and sub-TKLs, all the way down to 60% boards.

2. Filco MJ2 TKL Ninja with Cherry blue switches. Exchanged the keycaps with the Classic Beige with Blue doubleshot set from Originative. I like the build quality, appearance, and smaller size of this TKL, but I don't like the feel of ABS keycaps.

3. Ducky Chinese Edition TKL with red LEDs and Cherry brown switches. Build quality of this board is relatively poor -- the  case is not straight and so the board wobbles. The extensible feet are not rubberized, and so the board slips on the desk. I like the red LEDs in the low light of my office, but the appearance of the board is not that great when the LEDs are off.

4. CM RF Stealth TKL with Cherry green switches. This board is on backorder. The board gets generally good reviews, and I am eager to try out the green switches.

5. Leopold FC660C (Topre 45 g switches). This board is on backorder. It gets very positive reviews, and I am eager to try out the Topre switches.

6. Leopold FC660M with Cherry blue switches. I am typing on this at the moment. This board has an elegant layout. It is essentially a 60%, but with added arrow keys as well as insert and delete keys. The main typing area is mostly standard, but the right-shift is the same size as the left-shift, and it has a single Win key on the left. The spacebar also has non-standard spacing of the stems. The Fn layer is sparse and highly intutive. Build quality is excellent with a very solid feel. The keycaps are PBT, but too dark for good visibility, so I replaced them with a mix of gray and white dye-sub PBT Cyrillics from Originative. I also did an O-ring mod with 40A-L (red) rings; now the board is quiet enough for use during conference calls. Although there are some things I would change about this keyboard, it is currently my second favorite next to the IBM Model M.

Although I have already invested a small fortune in keyboards, and I have found two that I really like thus far, I remain intrigued by the challenge of reproducing full-size function in a 60% layout. At the moment, I am looking at the Filco Minila, KBT Poker II, KBC Pure Pro, and Tex Beetle. At first, the Minila looked too bizarre, but after studying the layout, I have come to appreciate its logic. I have heard that the Pure Pro might suffer from some quality issues. The Poker II would be the easiest to customize owing to its standard layout, and the Beetle appears to have excellent build quality and a handsome brushed aluminum top. I cannot seem to make a choice among these 60% contenders, and I would welcome further thoughts and suggestions.



 

[esoomenona]

The HHKB layout was more than intuitive to me. It was very easy to grasp and run with, and quickly became more preferable to me than your regular normal layout.

[Hypersphere]

The HHKB layout was more than intuitive to me. It was very easy to grasp and run with, and quickly became more preferable to me than your regular normal layout.

Yes, many people have embraced the HHKB Pro 2 and its variants, and I must say it has an elegant layout. However, I am so accustomed to the standard layout, I am reluctant to try the seemingly alien and rather expensive HHKB. Moreover, I have 3 workstations: two at work and one at home. Any keyboard I adopt has to be set up on all 3 workstations to avoid changing layouts each time I move to a different workstation. I would need 3 keyboards, because I do not want to have to carry the board with me and plug it in each time I want to use one of the other workstations.

Nevertheless, so many people love the HHKB so much i think I am going to have to give it a try in order to find out firsthand if I like it or not. I wish there were loaner or a retail outlet somewhere close so that I could test a HHKB before buying one. As a start, I could sell some excess boards and take the plunge on the HHKB.

Any news on when we can expect the HHKB Pro 3? When this appears, I anticipate a flood of reviews, many of them extolling the virtues of the original and decrying attempts to improve upon perfection!

 

[vivalarevolución]

Good to see this is still going forward...if nothing else because it was SmallFry's project....

Have you considered just using you left hand for the mouse?  You can keep using your full size boards that.   The transition only took me a couple days.

[Hypersphere]

Interesting suggestion. I like your "out of the box" thinking that bypasses the keyboard question altogether! However, I have tried using the mouse with my left hand, and it seems that my neural circuitry is too ingrained to change easily. In addition, now that I have been infected by the keyboard mania virus, I cannot stop my quest for the perfect board. At this point, I am reasonably satisfied with the IBM SSK and Leopold FC660M, but I feel compelled to continue my search to see if there might be an as-yet-untested board that I might like even better.

Now that I think more about it, even if I could adjust to using the mouse with my left hand, with a full-sized board, my right hand would still be displaced too far to the right.

[czarek]

I moved from Model M to HHKB Pro some time ago and while I wasn't impressed by Topre at first, they have grown on me and now I like them almost as much as I always liked Buckling Springs. And obviously the layout. IMO it's the best one you can get in 60% board.

[tricheboars]

when i read your post the first thing i thought of was SSK.

if you want something different i say get a realforce 87u/leopold topre. it isnt 60% like the HHKB, but it is topre and they are plate mounted. i think plate mounted topre feels much better than pcb mount (hhkb).

HHKB is way too expensive to be PCB mounted. but to each their own. i have seen many people say they prefer pcb mount over plate.