Forget what you know about Jailhouse Blues.
For those unaware,
Jailhouse Blues are Blues (or Greens) which have been "shackled" or locked in the down position to create a short throw, non or less clicky Blue (or Green) switch. This is done by placing a wire, chunk of plastic or o-ring into the gap between the stem and clicker wedging it in the down position, this cuts travel half and reduces noise by often half or more. It's the most customizable, fickle and most time consuming switch mod you could do, and then The Van Keyboards company started making pre-made wedges called
Jspacers. When I first saw JSpacers I figured they were the best/only way to do Jailhouse Blues (JBs) and when I went to build a new keyboard, they were a part of that plan. It didn't go as planned in more ways than one.
Note: I paid for everything discussed here and have no connection to any of the companies mentioned.
Jspacers took a fraction of the time to install compared to other methods and they were also FAR more consistent in how they worked. I did have one switch act funny out of 84, it seemed fine at first but as I used the keyboard it got worse and worse, when I finally broke down and pulled it apart I found a switch top that showed some weird discoloration inside. I'm not sure if it was a Gateron or JSpacer defect, but it was one switch out of 84 compared to the 7 or 8 that were problematic when I did it by hand on my Almost-A-Filco (AAF) 87 key TKL, so I can't really blame the Jspacers or Gateron here. Those who have done JBs by hand will attest, it's actually impressive only one had a problem, these parts are tiny and tolerances are small, so they are not an easy switch to make.
So what's the problem? They don't feel quite the same as my hand wired ones, they probably have more in common with the o-ring methods and this actually surprised me. I never thought about it but it makes sense, the wire is not a perfect fit, as a result they have a tiny bit of slack compared to the more solid(?) feel of Jspacers, and that slack/travel is inconsistent until the wire gets pushed into it's precise shape from use. On keys you rarely use, they may never acquire that same feel, for example the Pause key on the AAF is not the same as the letter keys even after all this time. As small as it is, I kind of like that teeny bit of travel which I suspect is about 0.2 or 0.3mm. Small, but it's there.
That teeny bit of slack also leads to a bit of noise, while very quiet compared to a Blue or Green, there is still a bit of click that occurs, they fall somewhere between a Brown and Blue (a bit louder than Ergo Clears). The Jspacers on the other hand were as quiet as a rubber dome keyboard, at least in my setup (aluminum case, o-rings and thick PBT caps, pretty similar to the AAF). I had planned on getting Zealencios if they were as loud or louder than my wired ones, but they were completely unnecessary in the end, which was nice considering their cost, done right (or wrong?), I could have spent more on the switches than the custom keyboard.
It's funny, JSpacer equipped JBs are actually what I was trying to create with JBs, instead I got something else which I like just as much. I'd like to think the AAF is probably a better typing keyboard while the JSpaced 75% is probably a better gamer, but I think it's mostly in my head. The difference between them in terms of switch activation is minuscule, they are both equally tactile and travel almost the same, the biggest difference is noise and bottom out feel, but it still plays with my head.
So where does this leave us…
Well, I don't think these are a good replacement for the original wired method, but you would be silly to do the O-ring method now, you might even be silly for doing the wired method. In fact that was a debate even before Jspacers existed. Even if you are a broke student, save the money and get the Jspacers, it’s just far easier of you are considering the O-ring method.
But what about the wired method?
In a world where people switch springs over a few grams difference I guess it makes sense some might want the wired version. I want to say just use the Jspacers, had you asked me before trying both, that would have been my response, it was my reason for buying them and I still say it's the best option. I never thought about them possibly feeling different and it leaves me conflicted because what I thought I had done isn’t and now that we have them, I’m not so sure how I feel about it since they were not what I expected. Nice, great in fact, but not what I expected while the alternative is a hassle.
This still leaves us with two options and options are nice even if you now have to deal with what that choice entails, or maybe not. Or maybe not, the Kailh Speed Switch with the click bar (often called Thick Gold or Bronze) feels just like the wired JBs, it’s a little noisier, but otherwise feels almost exactly the same. So really, we now have both JB methods in an easier form, or did I just add a 3rd option?
So will I tear apart the AAF and install JSpacers? No, I LOVE the feel of it and there is still nothing exactly like it. So what about converting the 75% to hand wired like the AAF? It's temping, but as much as I love the hand wired, I also love the JSpacer feel, ease of install and of course the silence, they're both great in their own way, as is that Kailh switch, which had it been quieter, I would have gone with over the other options, I quite liked it.
