啟65 - Qi65
Introduction:
Hi guys, this is rkeebs_, I have been taking pictures of my keebs and posting them on Instagram for a while. After a few months of photography, I started to struggle,
I kept thinking about what keyboards I like and what is the standard of my aesthetic and sound profile. Sometimes some keyboards look great but they come with a 1.2mm PCB and not perfect mounting styles and bad keyboard details.
And sometimes keyboards sound fantastic but they are not my type. Therefore, I decided to design one, through months of learning Fusion 360 and optimizing details, now I am glad and honored to introduce 啟65-(Qi65).
I named this 啟 because it means “start” in Chinese and I want to take this step as a start of my keyboard design journey.
Taking some of my favourites as inspirations like Glare65, Neson810E, I came up with this idea using similar keyboard structure and added Poron Gasket mount as my
final decision because after trying many different boards, poron gasket always gives me the cleanest sound profile.
Working along with Dashan from Unikeys, we have been brainstorming how the angles should be, how the edges should look and other aesthetics.
Finally, I am confident to showcase this board.
Design:The main point I want to go with is to create straight angles and straight edges. I personally have seen too many boards with rounded corners and curves,
I am not saying I don't like them, but when it comes to creating something I like the most, I would go with straight lines and angles.
On the back, there is an engraving of the Chinese character '啟' fitting in a diamond shape to give a sharper feel to the board.
The inspirations comes from the traditional Chinese seal where ancient Chinese people used seals for authenticity.
By splitting the bottom into 2 halves, it can better showcase the copper/brass midpiece as well as the engraving in the middle.
Timeline:
2/14/2024 - Prototypes have been ordered.
Features and Spec:
65% Layout
Front Height: 17.75mm
Weight: About 2.7kg(brass) 2.8kg(copper)
Dimension: 313mm x 111mm x 17.75mm(front) 33.3mm(back)
Typing Angle: 8.2 Deg
Mounting Style: Poron Gasket x 5 (top 3 bottom 2)
PCB: 1.6mm FR4
Plate: Aluminum(Default), PC, CF, FR4 (Pending Options)
Manufacturer: Hongtu
Kit:
Top Case (Alu 6063)
Bottom Case Top (Alu 6063)
Bottom Case Low (Alu 6063)
Midpiece (Copper / Brass)
PCB (1.6mm FR4) QMK/VIA Compatible
JST Daughterboard w/ cable
Plate (Default Alu, Options: PP FR4 CF POM)
Poron Gaskets x 5 (Spare will be available)
Silicone Feet x 4 (Spare will be available)
Disclaimers: These are just renders, prototypes have been ordered in all 6 colors. For now, these colors are just references. Because of the manufacturer, you can compare the colors with Haven65 or Dune65.
Thank you so much for checking out!!! If you are interested, please fill out the IC form!
