Lubing new Realforce 87u 55g. I am scared to do it.

[illitirit]

Hello friends.  I recently got a RF 87u 55g uniform.  I absolutely love the feel of it.

I also got some elitekeyboards mechlube 2 recently for the spacebar since it has a little bit of a wierd noise. 

I dont know if Lube will actually fix the problem but I am hopeful someone here will tell me that it will.


I have never lubed a keyboard before and was wondering what the difference in feel and sound will be after lubing?

I love the topre thock, and if lube will dampen that noise at all I will be really sad.

I also dont want any tactility of the topre switches to go away, if I lube will the nice springiness of the 55gs be lessened?

I also dont know how to lube.  I tried searching for a topre lube guide but I couldnt really find anything that was in depth.  If i do choose to lube, do i have to completely dissasemble my keyboard?


All i want the lube to do is smooth out some keys and maybe take out some unwanted noise.  However, I still want it to retain that topre thock and tactility. 

Is the lube a good idea or should I just drawer the idea?

[CaplockJack]

According to EK site you just put a little on stabilizers.

[spiceBar]

Hello friends.  I recently got a RF 87u 55g uniform.  I absolutely love the feel of it.

I also got some elitekeyboards mechlube 2 recently for the spacebar since it has a little bit of a wierd noise. 

I dont know if Lube will actually fix the problem but I am hopeful someone here will tell me that it will.


I have never lubed a keyboard before and was wondering what the difference in feel and sound will be after lubing?

I love the topre thock, and if lube will dampen that noise at all I will be really sad.

I also dont want any tactility of the topre switches to go away, if I lube will the nice springiness of the 55gs be lessened?

I also dont know how to lube.  I tried searching for a topre lube guide but I couldnt really find anything that was in depth.  If i do choose to lube, do i have to completely dissasemble my keyboard?


All i want the lube to do is smooth out some keys and maybe take out some unwanted noise.  However, I still want it to retain that topre thock and tactility. 

Is the lube a good idea or should I just drawer the idea?

DO NOT USE THIS LUBE ON A TOPRE KEYBOARD.

I guess you have the red lube from EK.

First of all, in order to fix the noise in the space bar, you would have to completely disassemble the keyboard. You cannot lube the stabilized keys on a Topre without disassembling it completely. You don't sound like you want to do that. It involves removing something like 20-30 small screws and being very careful all the time. Depending on your skills, it can take anywhere between one hour and 4 hours. Or forever if you don't do it right.

Second, even if you disassembled the keyboard to lube the stabilizers (metal wires), you would have to use the BLUE lube, which is thicker. The red one is less thick, and is not recommended for this. It will drip to the bottom of the keyboard, and make your stabilized keys "sticky".

DO NOT USE THE LUBE ON THE OTHER KEYS. If you do, you will ruin your keyboard. The other keys don't need any lube, anyway. If you really want to lube them, which is not going to make any difference probably, you would have to use thin silicone oil, not grease. The oil must not contain any solvent at all, because it could attack the plastic.

[strict]

DO NOT USE THIS LUBE ON A TOPRE KEYBOARD.

I guess you have the red lube from EK.

First of all, in order to fix the noise in the space bar, you would have to completely disassemble the keyboard. You cannot lube the stabilized keys on a Topre without disassembling it completely. You don't sound like you want to do that. It involves removing something like 20-30 small screws and being very careful all the time. Depending on your skills, it can take anywhere between one hour and 4 hours. Or forever if you don't do it right.

Second, even if you disassembled the keyboard to lube the stabilizers (metal wires), you would have to use the BLUE lube, which is thicker. The red one is less thick, and is not recommended for this. It will drip to the bottom of the keyboard, and make your stabilized keys "sticky".

DO NOT USE THE LUBE ON THE OTHER KEYS. If you do, you will ruin your keyboard. The other keys don't need any lube, anyway. If you really want to lube them, which is not going to make any difference probably, you would have to use thin silicone oil, not grease. The oil must not contain any solvent at all, because it could attack the plastic.

Listen to this man, lots of good info here. You need a nice, thick lube to quiet down Topre stabilizers.

The only thing I have to add is that if you do plan to lube the plungers (not the stabilizers) stick with the GH lube kits by mkawa. I used his "Very Thick" blend on my 55g 87UB and love the results. When comparing it side by side with my un-lubed 87UW you can definitely tell it helps, admittedly though its not a huge difference since stock Topre board are already wonderfully smooth.

[illitirit]

Hello friends.  I recently got a RF 87u 55g uniform.  I absolutely love the feel of it.

I also got some elitekeyboards mechlube 2 recently for the spacebar since it has a little bit of a wierd noise. 

I dont know if Lube will actually fix the problem but I am hopeful someone here will tell me that it will.


I have never lubed a keyboard before and was wondering what the difference in feel and sound will be after lubing?

I love the topre thock, and if lube will dampen that noise at all I will be really sad.

I also dont want any tactility of the topre switches to go away, if I lube will the nice springiness of the 55gs be lessened?

I also dont know how to lube.  I tried searching for a topre lube guide but I couldnt really find anything that was in depth.  If i do choose to lube, do i have to completely dissasemble my keyboard?


All i want the lube to do is smooth out some keys and maybe take out some unwanted noise.  However, I still want it to retain that topre thock and tactility. 

Is the lube a good idea or should I just drawer the idea?

DO NOT USE THIS LUBE ON A TOPRE KEYBOARD.

I guess you have the red lube from EK.

First of all, in order to fix the noise in the space bar, you would have to completely disassemble the keyboard. You cannot lube the stabilized keys on a Topre without disassembling it completely. You don't sound like you want to do that. It involves removing something like 20-30 small screws and being very careful all the time. Depending on your skills, it can take anywhere between one hour and 4 hours. Or forever if you don't do it right.

Second, even if you disassembled the keyboard to lube the stabilizers (metal wires), you would have to use the BLUE lube, which is thicker. The red one is less thick, and is not recommended for this. It will drip to the bottom of the keyboard, and make your stabilized keys "sticky".

DO NOT USE THE LUBE ON THE OTHER KEYS. If you do, you will ruin your keyboard. The other keys don't need any lube, anyway. If you really want to lube them, which is not going to make any difference probably, you would have to use thin silicone oil, not grease. The oil must not contain any solvent at all, because it could attack the plastic.

Many thanks for letting me know.  I am glad that I didnt try to do anything to the board yet.  I wonder if EK will let me exchange the red lube for the blue lube which I for some reason doubt they will. 

Just for my knowledge what would the red lube be good for?  I have some cherry mx green boards with costar stabs, would this type of lube be beneficial to that? 

In my case after examining my spacebar more, it seems that its acting normal.  The one thing that is bothering me is this little little noise right when I let go of the key from actuation.  But it kind of seems normal, like the switch is "clicking".  There is a spring underneath the space bar but I doubt thats whats making the noise.  Basically, my spacebar just doesnt feel as smooth as all the other keys.  All keys on my 87u feel perfectly smooth.   I have no idea if its the problem of stabilizers or the switch.  Its not bad by any means but its just one of those things that I really dont want to live with on a 250$ board.       

Another thing i have come to realize is that if lets say i press down my A key and hold it there for a second or two, then release the key slowly it makes a kind of sticky sound, kind of like when clean rubber is layed on another clean surface.  Which to my knowledge is exactly what is going on inside a topre switch with its cup rubber probably hitting the PCB?         

This is my first topre board so I dont know if these small nuances are just part of the topre experience but the one thing is i wish my spacebar right now would feel more like my backspace or enter key.  I absolutely love how the bkspace and enter key sound / feel.

[strict]

Many thanks for letting me know.  I am glad that I didnt try to do anything to the board yet.  I wonder if EK will let me exchange the red lube for the blue lube which I for some reason doubt they will. 

Just for my knowledge what would the red lube be good for?  I have some cherry mx green boards with costar stabs, would this type of lube be beneficial to that? 

In my case after examining my spacebar more, it seems that its acting normal.  The one thing that is bothering me is this little little noise right when I let go of the key from actuation.  But it kind of seems normal, like the switch is "clicking".  There is a spring underneath the space bar but I doubt thats whats making the noise.  Basically, my spacebar just doesnt feel as smooth as all the other keys.  All keys on my 87u feel perfectly smooth.   I have no idea if its the problem of stabilizers or the switch.  Its not bad by any means but its just one of those things that I really dont want to live with on a 250$ board.       

Another thing i have come to realize is that if lets say i press down my A key and hold it there for a second or two, then release the key slowly it makes a kind of sticky sound, kind of like when clean rubber is layed on another clean surface.  Which to my knowledge is exactly what is going on inside a topre switch with its cup rubber probably hitting the PCB?         

This is my first topre board so I dont know if these small nuances are just part of the topre experience but the one thing is i wish my spacebar right now would feel more like my backspace or enter key.  I absolutely love how the bkspace and enter key sound / feel.

I'm pretty sure the EK Red lube is designed to be used inside of cherry switches on the stems and springs.

I've had the same clicking noise you're talking about on the spacebar of both my Topre boards and throwing a blob of lubricant on the stab wires fixed it. I used mkawa's "Very Thick" on all my stabs (including spacebar) and so far it has worked extremely well at stopping wire rattles and clicking.

As far as the sticky sound, it will get better the more you use it. My understanding was that the source of that noise is the capacitive spring under the rubber cup sticking to the rubber. I had some keys that made that noise that no longer do and it seems to correlate to amount of use.

[Sencha]

you could try removing the space bar and just see if the spring needs reseating.

[illitirit]

Many thanks for letting me know.  I am glad that I didnt try to do anything to the board yet.  I wonder if EK will let me exchange the red lube for the blue lube which I for some reason doubt they will. 

Just for my knowledge what would the red lube be good for?  I have some cherry mx green boards with costar stabs, would this type of lube be beneficial to that? 

In my case after examining my spacebar more, it seems that its acting normal.  The one thing that is bothering me is this little little noise right when I let go of the key from actuation.  But it kind of seems normal, like the switch is "clicking".  There is a spring underneath the space bar but I doubt thats whats making the noise.  Basically, my spacebar just doesnt feel as smooth as all the other keys.  All keys on my 87u feel perfectly smooth.   I have no idea if its the problem of stabilizers or the switch.  Its not bad by any means but its just one of those things that I really dont want to live with on a 250$ board.       

Another thing i have come to realize is that if lets say i press down my A key and hold it there for a second or two, then release the key slowly it makes a kind of sticky sound, kind of like when clean rubber is layed on another clean surface.  Which to my knowledge is exactly what is going on inside a topre switch with its cup rubber probably hitting the PCB?         

This is my first topre board so I dont know if these small nuances are just part of the topre experience but the one thing is i wish my spacebar right now would feel more like my backspace or enter key.  I absolutely love how the bkspace and enter key sound / feel.

I'm pretty sure the EK Red lube is designed to be used inside of cherry switches on the stems and springs.

I've had the same clicking noise you're talking about on the spacebar of both my Topre boards and throwing a blob of lubricant on the stab wires fixed it. I used mkawa's "Very Thick" on all my stabs (including spacebar) and so far it has worked extremely well at stopping wire rattles and clicking.

As far as the sticky sound, it will get better the more you use it. My understanding was that the source of that noise is the capacitive spring under the rubber cup sticking to the rubber. I had some keys that made that noise that no longer do and it seems to correlate to amount of use.

Do you think it is worth it for me to buy the blue thick lube from EK?  Im in the process of returning the red one right now but I doubt it will be worth it considering return shipping from amazon is going to cost me as much as the damn lube itself.  i keep hearing the use of krytox and whatnot.  Is it really that much better? And I tried searching for the lube you used "mkawak"  I cant find it.  Do you have a link where to get it?

[strict]

I've never used the EK lube so I can't comment on how well it works. Other people seem to like it though so it can't be too bad I think. For stabilizers I don't think it's as critical to get the "best" possible product, I use the Krytox blends because I have them on hand and it seems to work really well. If you're lubing Topre plungers or Cherry stems I would definitely say its worthwhile to get the absolute best product possible but stabilizers don't require that same level of commitment IMO.

You can pick up mkawas lube kits from these places, I think there's more out there but these are a start (some are out of stock though)

http://zealpc.net/collections/accessories/products/geekhackers-v2-lube-kit
http://mechanicalkeyboards.com/shop/index.php?l=product_list&c=61
http://techkeys.us/products/krytox-switch-lurbricant
http://www.geekhackers.org/products/krytox-one-keyboard-lubricant-packs

[chiefgrillz]

i know this an old topic but i have the same questions

is this krytox mix suitable for the realforce stabilizers?

http://techkeys.us/collections/accessories/products/krytox-switch-lurbricant

just checking because it says it's for switches..