IBM - Lexmark - Unicomp "M" boards - Slowly closing in on the truth about "feel".

[Thinkpad Fan]

And the truth is, "it depends".  As a big time IBM Fan (Thinkpad Laptops and the awesome Model M)  it has perplexed me about why one "identical" board is better feeling than another.  They all sort of feel the same - but not quite.  Well, to test a theory, I decided to buy a second example of my current leading favorite Model M - the M13 white keyboard as built by Lexmark (Maxi-Switch in Black is a favorite, very close but not quite as good a feel as my original M13 White from IBM/Lexmark.)

So I bought another M13 White, built just three months later, also by Lexmark in 1994.  And it felt - the same but different.  
With the older board holding a slight edge for typing enjoyment.  Why?  Same company, assembly line and parts - so why?

Usage and "break-in period".  How much and how hard was it used before you got it?  The three month newer board felt brand new.  Almost too new.  More bounce to the keys, took a little more pressure to trip the hammers, etc.  Subtle but real diffiernces.  And they almost have to be about the difference in usage/keystroke volume, as I doubt if Lexmark changed much in a 90 day period.  

Do IBM/Lexmark/Unicomp boards have a "break-in period"?  They start out great - and get better with time!  In fact, the Unicomp seems to come closest to ideal out ot the box, with slightly  better key action.  

Anybody else notice a "break-in period" with your Model M??   ThinkPad Fan

[Lolcakes]

Hi!

The concept of the "feel" of a keyboard amazes me as well. I dont own a model M kb so I cant contribute on that front, but I have two Thinkpads - my old lovely T41p from 2001 and my newer T61 from 2009 (both with scissor switches ofc)

For some unknown to me reason the T41p feels a LOT nicer and i cant explain why. The kb layouts are the same, the actuation force is the same, the key travel is the same, the key caps are of the same size, they feel equally tactile and with the key caps removed, the switches appear to look very similar (not identical though)

So yeah.. weird stuff, I wish the T41p kb was copatible with my t61 ^^

PS - as a thinkpad fan u probably know that in 2005 ibm sold lots of stuff to lenovo, and nothing has been as good since then. I guess that explains it

[Pylon]

Might have something to do with the plastic rivets that holds the backplate. Search around the forums; there are a lot of discussions on this.

[KillerBee]

I said it when I joined...

I said it again when I bought one of the oldest model M (June 1985)....

and

I will say it AGAIN NOW!

Older is BETTER!!

[Thinkpad Fan]

Well, I have the 1300131, almost as old, as my current "main use" board at home, with the M13s with me here at work.  And being "over 50" I must agree that Older Id Better!"  But there is a subtle differance between our model Ms (and Thinkpads!) that I just really want to understand.  At the moment, I am really leaning toward the theory that "broken in" springs may give a slightly more used Model M of any vintage an edge over a new in box unit.  With the two White M13s that are the subject of my original post, one is obviously more used, though in excellent shape.  The other looks "factory fresh" and little used, and it feels "crisper", stiffer - but only just barely.  But in typing on both of them back and forth, I always ended up liking the older twin better than the younger.  And the Unicomp I got last month (2001 production M) is simply awesome feeling - perhaps better than any of the earlier boards by IBM or Lexmark!  Wish it had the pointer stick on it!

But the good news (for me at least) is that I would take any one of my by now half a dozen M Series boards over anything else I have typed on.  Typing on a Model M is fun, almost inspiring, it seems.  Then go type on a rubber dome and you feel like gagging......  TPF

[Soarer]

TPF - have you tried a Model F?

Fixed it for you.

No, you broke it! There may be good rubber domes, but none will feel anything like a buckling spring :-)

[theferenc]

Mmmm...Model F. The sound on those is just amazingly awesome. I'm still on the fence about the feel vs. the M, but it wins overall, just based on the sound.

[sordna]

I have 2 SSK's and one of them has a black front plate (not sure what you call the top plastic surface that holds all the keycaps in place) and the other has a white one. It's the surface you can see looking through the gaps between the keycaps. Is there any pointer explaining any differences in M's with black vs white front plates?

[theferenc]

That's the barrel plate. I've seen white, black, and brown. Brown seems to be the rarest. Ripster doesn't believe this, but I still think the browns are a different plastic, as they have a much lower melting point than the white and black plates. Unfortunately, I no longer have one to verify that hypothesis. jpc found the same thing once, if I remember correctly.

[sordna]

Ok, thanks for the info. My 1993 SSK has drainage holes and a black barrel plate. My 1991 SSK has no drainage holes, and a white barrel plate which looks prettier IMO. Both are IBM (no lexmark on the back label) 1391472, however the 1991-white plate one sounds more plasticky and muffled/tight than the 1993-black-plate one (which sounds airy/metallic/pingy in a beautiful way), I wonder why.

[KillerBee]

And if you can't handle the truth report me.

You know I would not do that, but in all fun, I love you too Rippy

[wcass]

if you want testing, i own a brown barrel plate 1391401 (1/13/93, PLT: F2) and have a black barrel plate 1391401 (1/22/93, PLT: F2) to compare it to. i got them from the original owner (a large multinational i was working for at the time) and am pretty sure they were purchased at the same time. The brown is nowhere near as brittle as the black and "feels" softer. the brown has stabilizers on the numeric + and enter - (the black uses the pin/spacer instead) and does not have the drainage channels that the black has.

big differences for one week - i was thinking of doing an article a while back but other stuff seemed more important.

KillerBee, it's good to find another BS fan is south florida.

[theferenc]

One made in 1993 that still had metal stabilizers? Hmmm...this is getting more interesting. It's generally accepted they stopped using those on the '1401 some time in 1989. I'm starting to wonder if it was a specific plant that made the brown plate ones.