[GB] Krado66 - A "Destaggered" 65% Ortholinear Keyboard *Extras Available*

[Narf]

Hello!

I am pleased to announce the start of the Group Buy for my Krado66 project.


Krado66

A "destaggered" ortholinear keyboard that uses standard 65% layout keys



The goal of my project was to create an ortholinear keyboard that uses standard modifiers found in common keycap base kits. I went with a 65%-ish design because I like arrows and it seems to have common compatibility. There were some other cool projects with a similar "destaggering" concept, but they were each a little different from what I was looking for in terms of layout, compatibility and aesthetics, so I made my own.

For those that are wondering, "Krado" means "grid" in Esperanto. The board has 66 keys in its default layout.



GB Info
Pre-orders open July 24 (Sun) - August 21 (Sun)*

  + FCFS 50 Acrylic cases
  + FCFS 50 Skeleton cases

PRE-ORDER
IC
Discord
UPDATE 1
UPDATE 2
UPDATE 3
UPDATE 4

*The GB will close early if numbers are met. While I would love to make it unlimited, this is my first time running a GB and I want to be able to fund the manufacturing out of pocket in the event that payment processors withhold funds. Overall I would like to keep the total number of orders around or below 100.
Shipping ETA is Late Q4 2022
US Domestic shipping $16
Worldwide shipping $50


$ Prices $
$55 Hotswap PCB
$135 Acrylic case kit (sandwich mount) – PCB not included
$40 FR4 skeleton case kit – PCB not included
$35 Acrylic diffuser kit for FR4 skeleton case
$40 Extra top pieces



PCB  -  $55
- QMK, VIAL compatible (*VIA can also be used to with sideload)
- USB-C (center mount)
- ESD over-current protection
- Kailh hotswap sockets
- Encoder support (5 locations, 3 channels)
- RGB underglow
- Multiple alternate configurations supported:
   - Stepped Caps Lock
   - Split Space (1.25u – 2.25u – 2.75u and 2.75u – 1.25u – 2.25u)
   - 65% Standard bottom right mods (1u x 3) or blocker (1.25u x 2)
   - Vertically aligned right modifiers (with two splitable 2u backspace locations)
   - 1.75u Right Shift or 2.75u ANSI Shift (2.75u makes standard arrows impossible)

More

[/img]

More

[/img]

More

[/img]

More

[/img]

[Finite]

glwgb

[alvrnicu]

Oo, looks pretty cool. Will keep an eye on this one 

[kbex]

very neat!

[ReverbSlush]

hope this happens again someday.. maybe with a hipro case.  I had this thread watched but I somehow missed the GB.  Nice job on the layout

[Narf]

Update 9/23

• All hardware has been ordered and is on its way. About half has arrived already, and the other half (mostly screws) should get to me within the next few weeks.
• PCBs and skeleton cases have been ordered and are in production. ETA is mid-October.
• I am currently discussing with the acrylics manufacturer regarding some materials and thicknesses on a few of the parts for the case. I expect to get final quotes and an ETA (late) next week.
• Other updates: Since I originally wrote the firmware, VIA has undergone some changes that remove the requirement to have pull requests approved for keyboard to be added to the list of VIA recognized keyboards. It looks like it encoder support has also been improved, so I will try to update the firmware with this new version of VIA.

I am still anticipating a shipping date of Q4 - hopefully November.

[Narf]

Update 10/25

• All hardware (screws, standoffs, feet, etc.) has arrived.
• PCBs and skeleton cases are shipping and should arrive by end of October.
• Acrylic case sample run has been ordered and will hopefully be ready for pickup soon.
• VIA firmware is fully functional with encoder remapping support. (PCBs will ship with Vial firmware preflashed.)

I am hoping for a late November ship date, but I think it will mostly depend on the acrylic manufacturer's turn around time. A few extras (acrylic and FR4 skeleton) will be available after GB orders ship.

[Narf]

Update 11/5

Orders containing only PCBs or Skeleton Case Kits have been shipped. Any order that contains acrylic pieces (Full case, diffuser, extra top pieces, etc.) will probably not ship until December.

Acrylic samples were reviewed and production run should begin next week. The lead time is quoted at 3 weeks, but my guess is that pieces won't be ready until the last week of November/first week of December. I still anticipate shipping by the end of the year.

[Narf]

Update 12/12

Hello everyone. I have good news for some, and bad news for others.
The good news is that I have just about wrapped up the QC check and I should be able to ship out some orders in a week or so. The bad news is that A LOT of pieces need to be remade.
Orders that require pieces to be remade:

• All Black acrylic case kit orders
• All Matte Clear case kit orders

Case bottoms with matte finishes had the matte surface on the wrong side. About half of the smallest piece for the stacked risers (feet) were cut upside down. I should have just enough good riser pieces to make complete kits for glossy clear acrylic cases. Diffuser kit orders should not be affected unless you also ordered another affected kit. 
I don’t yet know how long these remakes will take. The manufacturer says that one of their machines has been down for a week, so they might not be able to do anything until it is repaired. I would guess in the first few weeks of the new year, but we might get lucky and get the remakes by the end of the year.

I appreciate everyone’s patience, and I apologize for the delay.