So I bought my first buckling spring keyboard.

[Larken]

My 2 Unicomps arrived in the mail today and after 2 hours with it, I must say I'm a little underwhelmed, but it's probably my fault.

I've been typing on cherry mx browns and reds for about 3 years now, and I am quite accustomed to not bottoming out even on my reds. So far I'm finding it tougher to type on buckling springs - the actuation force is higher (which I don't really mind since I bought the keyboard knowing what I was getting into, but I have to admit it's giving my fingers some fatigue). I don't have a problem with the clicky-ness either; its a refreshing change to me.

My main gripe is this - while I can feel the tactility on a cherry brown quite well, I simply don't really feel that on a buckling spring - I'm listening more to the auditory click rather than feeling for the click on buckling springs, or rather, I'm finding that I'm actually bottoming out all the way for the BS keyboards. Does this get better as I type more with the mechanism?

Love to hear any experiences of others who have switched from Cherry to buckling springs.

[TheQsanity]

You bought 2 before you even tried it? I dont have BS but I do have mx blues, which I switched from browns. I love browns but the board I use more now are the blues. I thought I would never like the bkues but it takes time to get used to. I probably wouldn't mind going up to greens clears or even greys. I am also in the market for BS and other switches. Even though I type faster on my browns, I don't know why I am still using blues. Lol. I think clicky switches just take some time to get used to. I got rid of my first blues b/c I never got used to it or gave enough time too. I get less errors or typos on my blues than my browns.

[Larken]

Well, I wanted one to use and the other one as a back up. I did at one point considering opening up the second board to see if any interesting modfications could be done to the keyboard, and if it happened to spoil during my 'experiments', I wouldn't be out of a BS board totally.

I've since given it a few hours to burn in for my fingers, and starting to get used to it. I definitely go faster on my browns too, although right now I tend to make more mistakes on the unicomp than my browns - I still can't get used to the actuation force required as I tend to hit my buttons with just enough force for browns to actuate without bottoming out. Still, it's a pretty interesting experience and I don't regret my purchase. The main keys I find actually a little too stiff are mainly the spacebar and backspace. The letters and numbers are for the most part ok as long as I strike them hard enough and don't bother about not bottoming out.

[TheQsanity]

I thinck change is good. The reason for carpaltunnel and other similar disabilities is caused by repeditive motions. If you keep it fresh and changing up the layout and what not it should be better than staying with the same board over and over.  I think you wil get used to your board sooner or later. It could also be the keys, the spacing or they layout or the angle of the board that you also have to get used to. I find it, for me a reasonable factor.

[urbanus]

My 2 Unicomps arrived in the mail today and after 2 hours with it, I must say I'm a little underwhelmed, but it's probably my fault.

Yes, you need to give them a chance.   Two hours?  Use them for two weeks and see what you think.

[Peter]

My 2 Unicomps arrived in the mail today and after 2 hours with it, I must say I'm a little underwhelmed, but it's probably my fault.

I've been typing on cherry mx browns and reds for about 3 years now, and I am quite accustomed to not bottoming out even on my reds. So far I'm finding it tougher to type on buckling springs - the actuation force is higher (which I don't really mind since I bought the keyboard knowing what I was getting into, but I have to admit it's giving my fingers some fatigue). I don't have a problem with the clicky-ness either; its a refreshing change to me.

My main gripe is this - while I can feel the tactility on a cherry brown quite well, I simply don't really feel that on a buckling spring - I'm listening more to the auditory click rather than feeling for the click on buckling springs, or rather, I'm finding that I'm actually bottoming out all the way for the BS keyboards. Does this get better as I type more with the mechanism?

Love to hear any experiences of others who have switched from Cherry to buckling springs.

Have you ever tried typing on a mechanical typewriter ?
Not only are you required to 'bottom out', you need to do it with even force so all the letters look the same !
Now imagine that you need to type the document in triplicate or more ..!
(People who received piano-training at some time will probably also get what I mean )

Model M was made for trained typists .. Back when typing was a marketable skill !!

[Hyde]

I use brown and red too and I don't have any problem with "bottom out".  I find it's kind of what makes typing on mechanical keyboard fun.  Though bottoming out on red is a bit more harsh than brown since brown has a bit more resistance so you don't bottom out as hard.

That being said I'll be purchasing my first buckling spring next year so I'll let you know by then 

[Warduke]

My main gripe is this - while I can feel the tactility on a cherry brown quite well, I simply don't really feel that on a buckling spring - I'm listening more to the auditory click rather than feeling for the click on buckling springs, or rather, I'm finding that I'm actually bottoming out all the way for the BS keyboards. Does this get better as I type more with the mechanism?

From the Mechanical Keyboard Guide, about BS switches: "this is the only mechanical switch where the tactile and audible feedback correspond to the exact moment the switch actuates."

[fohat.digs]

The actual patent describes it as something like "catastrophic buckling" of the spring.

Here, the spring is not just something that creates pressure for the stem and up and down movement into position, it is the actual buckling of the spring that makes the activation happen.

I rarely bottom out my keys, except, that I tend to hit certain buttons particularly hard, most noticeably Return, Spacebar, period (when it is a full stop), Delete, and probably the arrow keys. There is sure to be a psychological reason for that, not a physical one.

When you get used to the keys, you will find that they are very easy and comfortable, bottoming out or not. And also, in my opinion, there is very little sound associated with bottoming out buckling spring switches.

[ch_123]

You definitely need some time to switch between different switches and develop the muscle memory required to use them comfortably. If I use one of my IBMs after typing on my HHKB for a long time, they feel painfully stiff. If I type on my HHKB after using IBMs for a while, I just pound on the keys and it feels just as uncomfortable. Soon enough your fingers will get used to pressing the keys with just the right force.

[Larken]

I've been using my Unicomps pretty intensively for the past 2 days, and I do type alot, more than 5 hours a day when I'm feeling lazy. I've more or less gotten used to typing with this particularly mechanism, although like ch_123 said, certain keys just feel painfully stiff, as I still switch over to my other keyboards when I do gaming. I really do find it easier to strike the keys hard instead of feeling for that tactile bump to indicate that I should stop, and yea, bottoming out on the button doesn't cause much noise as compared to my cherry boards. One thing that it's causing havoc with at the moment is that when i go back to a brown, I find myself striking way too hard and making too mistakes, lol.

Many thanks to everyone who weighed in on this. I don't regret getting the board, as it has been an itch I wanted to scratch for a while. I do realise that it might not be the best switch for me however, although it is definitely fun to be pounding on those keys from time to time.

[dorkvader]

My 2 Unicomps arrived in the mail today and after 2 hours with it, I must say I'm a little underwhelmed, but it's probably my fault.

I've been typing on cherry mx browns and reds for about 3 years now, and I am quite accustomed to not bottoming out even on my reds. So far I'm finding it tougher to type on buckling springs - the actuation force is higher (which I don't really mind since I bought the keyboard knowing what I was getting into, but I have to admit it's giving my fingers some fatigue). I don't have a problem with the clicky-ness either; its a refreshing change to me.

My main gripe is this - while I can feel the tactility on a cherry brown quite well, I simply don't really feel that on a buckling spring - I'm listening more to the auditory click rather than feeling for the click on buckling springs, or rather, I'm finding that I'm actually bottoming out all the way for the BS keyboards. Does this get better as I type more with the mechanism?

Love to hear any experiences of others who have switched from Cherry to buckling springs.

Have you ever tried typing on a mechanical typewriter ?
Not only are you required to 'bottom out', you need to do it with even force so all the letters look the same !
Now imagine that you need to type the document in triplicate or more ..!
(People who received piano-training at some time will probably also get what I mean )

Model M was made for trained typists .. Back when typing was a marketable skill !!

All my mechanical typewriters don't require me to bottom out. Still, I think I see what you mean. Sometimes, after switching from Buckling spring to Cherry Red's, I'll bottom out a little, but I can adjust pretty easily. I'm also getting better at the QWERTY/Dvorak adjustment. Now that I'm finally using capacitive BS, I suspect the switch will be pretty easy, as It sure feels like the capacitive switches are lighter. I can also type much faster on them, it's awesome.

[schizrade]

You can send them to me for proper disposal.

[Panoptic]

When I was using my Unicomp Customizer 104 (don't use it at work anymore because I'm in a cubicle now and my cubemates would kill me) I found that I loved it at work, but took it home and tried at my desk there and didn't like it as much.  Seems the difference was where my elbows were in relation to the desk surface - at work my elbows were pretty much flush with the desk, and at home my elbows sit below.  Just a random interjection...

[Thinkpad Fan]

Part of the design of the IBM Buckling Spring Keyboard is the Auditory Feedback - this is a psycho-acoustic device!  Way ahead of it's time.   You don't have to bottom IBM BS keys - your ear "hears the spring fire" and your subconcious automatically goes to the next key.  Properly acclimated touch typists are reportedly 15-20% faster on an IBM/Unicomp board, and you avoid carple tunnel and fatigue by not needing to bottom keys.  Rubber domes are the opposite, and the work of the Devil.  TPF

[noisyturtle]

Psh, bunch of typing elitists in here. I bottom out and I'm proud, smash on those keys like they owe me money. Loud as I can, lets wake the whole neighborhood! 

[lazerpointer]

People who are like me and have big ol' hands (six foot 5 and can palm a basketball quickly) I highly recommend buckling springs! Only downside is the sound! I wear over-ear headphones though, so it's all good. I can use my Apple Aluminum just setting on top of the Unicomp's keys when I need discretion

[Larken]

Didn't think anyone would comment on this thread again

People who like me and have big ol' hands (six foot 5 and can palm a basketball quickly) I highly recommend buckling springs! Only downside is the sound! I wear over-ear headphones though, so it's all good. I can use my Apple Aluminum just setting on top of the Unicomp's keys when I need discretion

Floss mod it?

Psh, bunch of typing elitists in here. I bottom out and I'm proud, smash on those keys like they owe me money. Loud as I can, lets wake the whole neighborhood! 

The noise disturbs my thought processes sometimes even (but only when I'm really tired and already unable to concentrate). But i did find out that bottoming out on a BS board didn't make much of a difference in terms of sound - the mainly source of noise is the tactile click anyway. You'd need to slam on the keys really hard to make a much more noticeable din.

Part of the design of the IBM Buckling Spring Keyboard is the Auditory Feedback - this is a psycho-acoustic device!  Way ahead of it's time.   You don't have to bottom IBM BS keys - your ear "hears the spring fire" and your subconcious automatically goes to the next key.  Properly acclimated touch typists are reportedly 15-20% faster on an IBM/Unicomp board, and you avoid carple tunnel and fatigue by not needing to bottom keys.  Rubber domes are the opposite, and the work of the Devil.  TPF

I can tell you love your BS I am still faster on my Cherry Browns though. Rubber domes, meh.

[Daniel Beardsmore]

Yeah, membrane BS switches are a bit underwhelming, a bit too linear for my tastes. If you want something really tactile, go for vintage blue Alps ;-)

Various people have noted that capacitive buckling spring—the original buckling spring design—was highly tactile. The membrane version was a cost-cutting measure as capacitive sensing is expensive. It also has far less ping; capacitive BS has an incredible amount of ping. Unicomp keyboards seem to have less ping again than Model M, though I have no idea why.