Apple Extended Keyboard - Custom Keycaps

[Snipeye]

First things first, I'm quite new to all of this, so if it seems like these questions are stupid, that's why.

I recently converted an old Apple extended keyboard - mk 1 - to USB, installed a USB hub, it's very nice. In the process, I spray painted the case black, which turned out.... Fine. Not super pleased with it, but it definitely could be much worse. Now, I also spray painted the keys all silver. I like his it looks - I put a clear coat over the keys, but that didn't make them glossy, and didn't really do much; the paint - after less than a month - is peeling off a couple of the more heavily-used keys (wasd in particular). To remedy this, I'm looking at a few different options - first, repaint and put more clear coat on after, or second, buy custom keycaps. With regards to the second option, I would like to either buy something metal - and therefore silvery - or glossy black to match the case. I have no idea if manufacturers can/do make keycaps compatible with my keyboard, or how expensive that would be. Thoughts? Info? Help? Thanks! Ps, I typed this on my iPod. Pardon typos.

[koralatov]

The caps, except the spacebar, are PBT, so you can dye them.  Obviously, you can only dye them darker than they are currently, and if you dye them too dark, you could end up with ‘blank’ keycaps.  Direct replacements would be hard to find, since the stems vary in height depending on row:




(Apologies for the grubbiness of the keys; I took this photo a while ago, and hadn’t bothered to clean the caps first.)

If you want some key caps to do a practice run on, I have about two keyboard-sets worth I could let you have for a couple of quid plus postage.

I’m also really interested in your USB conversion.  How did you do that?  Did you follow a guide somewhere?  I’m still using mine via an iMate, but I’d love to be able to mod it to use USB ‘natively’.

[discord]

I'd like to dye my AEK keycaps. Are there any guides you would recommend for the approach? Will AEKII caps fit the AEK? I'd like to see that USB mod also....

[ishumprod]

First things first, I'm quite new to all of this, so if it seems like these questions are stupid, that's why.

I recently converted an old Apple extended keyboard - mk 1 - to USB, installed a USB hub, it's very nice. In the process, I spray painted the case black, which turned out.... Fine. Not super pleased with it, but it definitely could be much worse. Now, I also spray painted the keys all silver. I like his it looks - I put a clear coat over the keys, but that didn't make them glossy, and didn't really do much; the paint - after less than a month - is peeling off a couple of the more heavily-used keys (wasd in particular). To remedy this, I'm looking at a few different options - first, repaint and put more clear coat on after, or second, buy custom keycaps. With regards to the second option, I would like to either buy something metal - and therefore silvery - or glossy black to match the case. I have no idea if manufacturers can/do make keycaps compatible with my keyboard, or how expensive that would be. Thoughts? Info? Help? Thanks! Ps, I typed this on my iPod. Pardon typos.

i have a big question for you :

it was an ADB keyboard, so how did you transformed it to USB ?

i looked up on internet for a long time and gave up, cause i couldn't find anything..

so if you could give me tips or a tutorial on how to do it i'd be very pleased =)

[koralatov]

I'd like to dye my AEK keycaps. Are there any guides you would recommend for the approach? Will AEKII caps fit the AEK? I'd like to see that USB mod also....

AEK caps are compatible with the AEKII and vice-versa.  The caps are the same on both models *except* for the power switch.  The AEK uses a standard style keycap whereas the AEKII uses a flatter, ‘chiclet’-style keycap.  They’re still compatible with each other, but just differ in profile.

As for dyeing them, it’s not something I’ve done personally, but the keycaps are PBT so any guide on how to dye PBT keycaps should be fine.  The spacebar is ABS, though, so do not attempt to dye it or the heat will cause it to warp.

[ralphw]

Earlier, someone asked about ADB to USB converters - here is a post about that topic.

http://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=14290.msg1118206#msg1118206

[fohat.digs]

I have dyed AEK keycaps with RIT dye and gotten generally good results.

However, it seems that the dye formula may have changed ~3 years ago, and the new formula is not any good.

[nubbinator]

I have dyed AEK keycaps with RIT dye and gotten generally good results.

However, it seems that the dye formula may have changed ~3 years ago, and the new formula is not any good.

I recommend iDye Poly now.

[Findecanor]

The Space bar is ABS. ABS can also be dyed, but you must be more careful with the temperature or it will warp.

[lkong]

I recently got two alps apple R1 printed through shapeways.
Lets see how that goes.