Model M pings, but Unicomp Customizer doesn't?

[Special K]

I have a Model M that I bought used on ebay a few years ago.  It always pings on every keystroke.  I have a coworker who recently bought a Unicomp Customizer and it never pings.  Do all Model M's ping by design and if so, did Unicomp just fix that issue when they designed the Customizer?

[Jotokun]

The only changes Unicomp made to the Model M were cost cutting measures and the addition of Window keys. The increased ping is most likely due to the condition of the rivets, with time the Unicomp will probably be just as pingy as the Model M.

[Snowdog993]

I have a Model M that I bought used on ebay a few years ago.  It always pings on every keystroke.  I have a coworker who recently bought a Unicomp Customizer and it never pings.  Do all Model M's ping by design and if so, did Unicomp just fix that issue when they designed the Customizer?

They may have bought the Quiet Touch R/D model?  That would eliminate the ping entirely.

[chyros]

The increased ping is most likely due to the condition of the rivets

Don't think so. All three of my Model Ms are fully held together (one is bolt-modded, the other two have every single rivet intact) and they all ping.

[SpaceGhost]

I have a Unicomp Classic 101 from about 4 years ago that has very crisp clicks but absolutely no pinging. I also have a Mac-version keyboard from them that pings quite a bit. Over a year ago, I asked Zack at Unicomp why some of their buckling-spring keyboards ping and others from them do not. Zack said they have no idea why some ping and some do not, and have no way to control it.

Some vintage IBM-made M's ping a lot, some ping very little, most are somewhere in-between. Lexmark M's seem to be pingy in general IME. There doesn't seem to be a distinct pattern, and I find that rivet condition and bolt modding (or not) have little predictable effect on pinging; although applying extra tightening torque on a bolt mod does seem to reduce pinging -- but often resulting in softened clicks as well. IME if a Model M pings before a bolt mod, it will do so afterwards as well, provided that the clickiness is preserved in the bolt mod by not over-tightening.

Pinging, or lack of it, in a buckling-spring keyboard may be the result of a complex interplay between how firmly-clamped the layers of the switch assembly are, the exact alloy and stiffness of the springs, thickness and alloy of the steel plate, the exact plastic composition used in the barrel frame (or individual barrel housings in a Model F), the type of blanket -- original IBM black or Unicomp white latex, and other subtle factors such as the phase of the Moon, planetary alignment, and Zodiac sign of the user...

[Snowdog993]

I have been thinking that if you really really really wanted to dampen the noise of a model M keyboard, you have to prevent the steel backplate from vibrating.  If you were to place some sort of sound-deadening material underneath the inside assembly, it may dampen the sound quite substantially.
It's a thought.  It's not something I would do personally, but it might work.

[Snarfangel]

I have been thinking that if you really really really wanted to dampen the noise of a model M keyboard, you have to prevent the steel backplate from vibrating.  If you were to place some sort of sound-deadening material underneath the inside assembly, it may dampen the sound quite substantially.
It's a thought.  It's not something I would do personally, but it might work.

But how will I annoy my coworkers that way?

[fohat.digs]

If you were to place some sort of sound-deadening material underneath the inside assembly, it may dampen the sound quite substantially.

I have tried several variations of this. It attenuates the sound by a small amount, but nothing substantial.

[Melvang]

If you were to place some sort of sound-deadening material underneath the inside assembly, it may dampen the sound quite substantially.

I have tried several variations of this. It attenuates the sound by a small amount, but nothing substantial.

I would agree here.  I don't think the ping comes from the back plate.  I think it comes from the springs.

[chyros]

If you were to place some sort of sound-deadening material underneath the inside assembly, it may dampen the sound quite substantially.

I have tried several variations of this. It attenuates the sound by a small amount, but nothing substantial.

I would agree here.  I don't think the ping comes from the back plate.  I think it comes from the springs.

For sure it comes from the springs, it's the only moving metal part in the switches.

[fohat.digs]

For sure it comes from the springs, it's the only moving metal part in the switches.

"Comes from" is just the beginning.

Sound propagates outward in waves and has resonances and overtones relative to everything around it.

But I do agree that the floss-mod concept is the most effective in knocking out the biggest component of it.

Personally, I feel that it does it "in a good way" on the Model F and "in a bad way" on the Model M.

[Special K]

For sure it comes from the springs, it's the only moving metal part in the switches.

"Comes from" is just the beginning.

Sound propagates outward in waves and has resonances and overtones relative to everything around it.

But I do agree that the floss-mod concept is the most effective in knocking out the biggest component of it.

Personally, I feel that it does it "in a good way" on the Model F and "in a bad way" on the Model M.

It turns out my original question was flawed.  The reason my coworker's Customizer doesn't ping is because it has the floss mod.  I tried a key without it and it does ping just like the Model M.  The floss seems to reduce the tactility a bit, but that might be a tradeoff you have to live with if you want to use a BS keyboard in a shared workspace.

[Altis]

You can also use a light sowing thread (very thin). It semi-attenuates the ping but leaves most of the key feel, while dental floss seems to attenuate it more but noticeably affects the feel.

[Skechup]

I would think it would be something to do with the springs itself. If it really concerns you, as others said in the post; you should do a thread mod to dampen the ping.

[fohat.digs]

IBM, who should know, sold a variant with the "grease mod" wherein a gob of thick grease was squirted into the springs. I have never used one, since they are quite rare, but people seemed to like them.

I bought a Model M on ebay for a dirt cheap price because the previous owner ruined it with a botched home grease job. I threw the springs in the garbage, cleaned it well, and rebuilt it.