Author Topic: Simple Questions, Simple Answers (FAQ in the OP)  (Read 3724041 times)

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Offline enchong

  • Posts: 9
Re: Simple Questions, Simple Answers (FAQ in the OP)
« Reply #16950 on: Tue, 30 April 2024, 16:04:20 »
Not really sure tbh, probably the BKE tactile because I want it to be more tactile than the stock hhkb. I used to have a realforce ang I love how that feels. But I also like the hhkb layout.


Enchong | HHKB Pro2 Blank, DES Silencing Ring #3, DES Domes Carrot 49g | HHKB Pro2 Stamped, DES Silencing Ring #2

Offline _rubik

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Re: Simple Questions, Simple Answers (FAQ in the OP)
« Reply #16951 on: Tue, 30 April 2024, 18:01:28 »
Not really sure tbh, probably the BKE tactile because I want it to be more tactile than the stock hhkb. I used to have a realforce ang I love how that feels. But I also like the hhkb layout.

I personally put the 56g bke tactile domes on my 87u (iirc). They feel ever so slightly heavier than the original 55g domes mostly because of the increased tactility. If I had to do it over again, I would have gone to the next lowest weight -- somewhere in the mid to high 40gs. It's all subjective, but the added tactility adds just enough resistance to the top of the force curve to make my brain think I'm typing on a heavier switch. Hope that helps
ai03 Meridian ¤ Mech 27 ¤ E8.5 ¤ Brutal60 ¤ SSK White Label ¤ HHKB Pro JP ¤ vAEK68 Alps Blues ¤ RF87u

Offline erretter

  • Posts: 21
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Re: Simple Questions, Simple Answers (FAQ in the OP)
« Reply #16952 on: Thu, 02 May 2024, 10:26:51 »
I F'd up the top housing of a soldered in switch (complicated to explain; please just take that info, as it is). The switch is still functioning, but wonky.

Q: Can I swap out the top housing of a switch from the top-side without desoldering it?
« Last Edit: Thu, 02 May 2024, 10:28:55 by erretter »

Offline _rubik

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Re: Simple Questions, Simple Answers (FAQ in the OP)
« Reply #16953 on: Thu, 02 May 2024, 12:24:28 »
I F'd up the top housing of a soldered in switch (complicated to explain; please just take that info, as it is). The switch is still functioning, but wonky.

Q: Can I swap out the top housing of a switch from the top-side without desoldering it?

Some plates have notches cut out on either side of the switch to allow the top housing clips bend outward. I haven't seen those in quite a few years though. If the plate is contacting the switch on all four sides, you're going to have to desolder. That said, it's a pretty simple operation and a great excuse to learn to solder. You got this!  :thumb:
ai03 Meridian ¤ Mech 27 ¤ E8.5 ¤ Brutal60 ¤ SSK White Label ¤ HHKB Pro JP ¤ vAEK68 Alps Blues ¤ RF87u

Offline erretter

  • Posts: 21
  • Location: Germany
    • My Merch Shop
Re: Simple Questions, Simple Answers (FAQ in the OP)
« Reply #16954 on: Thu, 02 May 2024, 17:05:09 »
I F'd up the top housing of a soldered in switch (complicated to explain; please just take that info, as it is). The switch is still functioning, but wonky.

Q: Can I swap out the top housing of a switch from the top-side without desoldering it?

Some plates have notches cut out on either side of the switch to allow the top housing clips bend outward. I haven't seen those in quite a few years though. If the plate is contacting the switch on all four sides, you're going to have to desolder. That said, it's a pretty simple operation and a great excuse to learn to solder. You got this!  :thumb:

Thank you! Didn't know about the plate specifics. But I have to say, I soldered the switches in by myself, with led free solder and desoldering this is a 50/50 chance damaging the PCB because it's almost impossible to get all the solder out.

Offline _rubik

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Re: Simple Questions, Simple Answers (FAQ in the OP)
« Reply #16955 on: Mon, 06 May 2024, 12:39:38 »
I F'd up the top housing of a soldered in switch (complicated to explain; please just take that info, as it is). The switch is still functioning, but wonky.

Q: Can I swap out the top housing of a switch from the top-side without desoldering it?

Some plates have notches cut out on either side of the switch to allow the top housing clips bend outward. I haven't seen those in quite a few years though. If the plate is contacting the switch on all four sides, you're going to have to desolder. That said, it's a pretty simple operation and a great excuse to learn to solder. You got this!  :thumb:

Thank you! Didn't know about the plate specifics. But I have to say, I soldered the switches in by myself, with led free solder and desoldering this is a 50/50 chance damaging the PCB because it's almost impossible to get all the solder out.

It's amazing how much of a difference quality solder makes. I usually go with a 63/37 flux core solder which has the advantage of being eutectic -- a single, lower melting point that avoid that "gooey, semi-fluid" solder state you find on some cheaper solders.

For desoldering, I'd recommend getting a good solder pump with a soft tip (hard plastic tips on solder pumps never seal well around the component, IMO). I went through so many cheap suckers before finding the "Engineer Solder Sucker" on Amazon. I always add an extra dab of leaded solder before sucking just to make sure everything's good and melted. It's also more mass for the sucker to grab onto, in my experience.
ai03 Meridian ¤ Mech 27 ¤ E8.5 ¤ Brutal60 ¤ SSK White Label ¤ HHKB Pro JP ¤ vAEK68 Alps Blues ¤ RF87u

Offline erretter

  • Posts: 21
  • Location: Germany
    • My Merch Shop
Re: Simple Questions, Simple Answers (FAQ in the OP)
« Reply #16956 on: Mon, 06 May 2024, 12:50:47 »
I F'd up the top housing of a soldered in switch (complicated to explain; please just take that info, as it is). The switch is still functioning, but wonky.

Q: Can I swap out the top housing of a switch from the top-side without desoldering it?

Some plates have notches cut out on either side of the switch to allow the top housing clips bend outward. I haven't seen those in quite a few years though. If the plate is contacting the switch on all four sides, you're going to have to desolder. That said, it's a pretty simple operation and a great excuse to learn to solder. You got this!  :thumb:

Thank you! Didn't know about the plate specifics. But I have to say, I soldered the switches in by myself, with led free solder and desoldering this is a 50/50 chance damaging the PCB because it's almost impossible to get all the solder out.

It's amazing how much of a difference quality solder makes. I usually go with a 63/37 flux core solder which has the advantage of being eutectic -- a single, lower melting point that avoid that "gooey, semi-fluid" solder state you find on some cheaper solders.

For desoldering, I'd recommend getting a good solder pump with a soft tip (hard plastic tips on solder pumps never seal well around the component, IMO). I went through so many cheap suckers before finding the "Engineer Solder Sucker" on Amazon. I always add an extra dab of leaded solder before sucking just to make sure everything's good and melted. It's also more mass for the sucker to grab onto, in my experience.

TY! I found that pump. Might give it a try or.... I use this wobbly switch to build the next board :-X

Offline jeffs

  • Posts: 1
  • Location: Near San Francisco
Re: Simple Questions, Simple Answers (FAQ in the OP)
« Reply #16957 on: Thu, 27 June 2024, 13:10:21 »
What are good search terms for relatively recent information and opinions on ortholinear layouts keyboards, especially reduced size options?

The following did not seem to be very fruitful:
  • ortholinear
  • Planck
  • OLKB
  • 4x12

Edit: Other resources are also welcome.
« Last Edit: Thu, 27 June 2024, 16:57:33 by jeffs »

Offline 5443

  • Posts: 13
Re: Simple Questions, Simple Answers (FAQ in the OP)
« Reply #16958 on: Sun, 07 July 2024, 07:15:55 »
where can I buy keyboard O rings in Toronto, Canada?

something thin and soft, like 40A thin, for cherry MX brown switches

shipping from the US is outrageous! I was shocked at the prices, so there must be something cheaper locally, or at least shipped from Canada? (or perhaps shipped from China?)


Offline fohat.digs

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Re: Simple Questions, Simple Answers (FAQ in the OP)
« Reply #16959 on: Sun, 07 July 2024, 07:29:39 »

shipping from the US is outrageous!

shipped from China?


Outbound international shipping from the US is notoriously expensive. It was always high, but in the last decade or 2 it has skyrocketed, even to our nearest friends.

Shipping from China is nearly free. If you can wait 3+ weeks you can get merchandise at a fraction of the price.
"Donald Trump is the most dangerous candidate for president in my lifetime.
His disdain for the sanctity of our Constitution, the sanctity of democracy, the sanctity of the rule of law, and the sanctity of the peaceful transfer of power should disqualify him from the office of president ever again. He doesn't understand the meaning of this country, its history, or what it means to be deeply American."
- Bruce Springsteen 2024-10-04

Offline 5443

  • Posts: 13
Re: Simple Questions, Simple Answers (FAQ in the OP)
« Reply #16960 on: Sun, 07 July 2024, 07:39:23 »

shipping from the US is outrageous!

shipped from China?


Outbound international shipping from the US is notoriously expensive. It was always high, but in the last decade or 2 it has skyrocketed, even to our nearest friends.

Shipping from China is nearly free. If you can wait 3+ weeks you can get merchandise at a fraction of the price.


i am fine with waiting when it comes to shipping from China. do you have any sites that i can go to so i can buy some 40A o rings?


Offline fohat.digs

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Re: Simple Questions, Simple Answers (FAQ in the OP)
« Reply #16962 on: Sun, 07 July 2024, 09:03:19 »
I am not really a Cherry guy. It has been at least a decade since I bought O-rings for my son's Filco, but those look pretty fat ....

But those are a start and it would not be a big loss if you don't like them. Thickness seems more important to me than hardness, but what do I know?
"Donald Trump is the most dangerous candidate for president in my lifetime.
His disdain for the sanctity of our Constitution, the sanctity of democracy, the sanctity of the rule of law, and the sanctity of the peaceful transfer of power should disqualify him from the office of president ever again. He doesn't understand the meaning of this country, its history, or what it means to be deeply American."
- Bruce Springsteen 2024-10-04

Offline 5443

  • Posts: 13
Re: Simple Questions, Simple Answers (FAQ in the OP)
« Reply #16963 on: Sun, 07 July 2024, 10:05:51 »
An unrelated question, but this forum does seem pretty slow? then where do all the mechanical keyboard people hang out now? I remember back in the old days, when elitekeyboards.com was around (like 10 years ago?), that geekhack was the place to find all things about mech keyboards
« Last Edit: Sun, 07 July 2024, 10:13:28 by 5443 »

Offline 5443

  • Posts: 13
Re: Simple Questions, Simple Answers (FAQ in the OP)
« Reply #16964 on: Mon, 08 July 2024, 07:31:40 »
ok, so i just ordered 130 1.5mm thick rings, no idea on the hardness (or softness) but i will see how they are when they get here.

I paid $2.56 cad for the set, much better than the rip off prices that the US sites are selling for



« Last Edit: Mon, 08 July 2024, 08:41:22 by 5443 »

Offline 5443

  • Posts: 13
Re: Simple Questions, Simple Answers (FAQ in the OP)
« Reply #16965 on: Wed, 17 July 2024, 17:18:01 »
Well I got the O rings today, 9 days shipping, pretty fast from across the ocean I must say, and you can't beat $2.56, sellers on this side of the planet were charging 6 x that amount of the same thing, I couldn't go through with that.

I tried them out on my Filco, I added them to the Home/End island cluster of 6 keys, from my initial tests those keys were like 20 % quieter and had like 20 % less key travel. I don't know if it is worth it, maybe I should try it on the letter keys before jumping to conclusions. What are you guy's opinions when it comes to O rings on Cherry switches?



And why the hell is this forum so dead? Back in the day it used to be the place to go for all things mechanical keyboards. Nowadays I have to go to Mechanical Keyboard reddit if I don't want to talk to a brick wall here.
« Last Edit: Wed, 17 July 2024, 17:42:34 by 5443 »

Offline Rhienfo

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Re: Simple Questions, Simple Answers (FAQ in the OP)
« Reply #16966 on: Thu, 18 July 2024, 00:32:30 »
Well I got the O rings today, 9 days shipping, pretty fast from across the ocean I must say, and you can't beat $2.56, sellers on this side of the planet were charging 6 x that amount of the same thing, I couldn't go through with that.

I tried them out on my Filco, I added them to the Home/End island cluster of 6 keys, from my initial tests those keys were like 20 % quieter and had like 20 % less key travel. I don't know if it is worth it, maybe I should try it on the letter keys before jumping to conclusions. What are you guy's opinions when it comes to O rings on Cherry switches?

Show Image


And why the hell is this forum so dead? Back in the day it used to be the place to go for all things mechanical keyboards. Nowadays I have to go to Mechanical Keyboard reddit if I don't want to talk to a brick wall here.

Sorry missed your earlier comment. When it comes to o rings, it's mainly just a preference thing, I personally don't like it though. I just really like full travel when it comes to my switches. But it's pretty easy to add and remove so it's not a big commitment.

Also the hobby has become way less centralized, a lot of the community is now on the many MANY discords, would like to see more people here but discord is definitely a lot more of a convenient place when it comes to the hobby, so it's understandable why people don't move over to this old forum.
keyboard collection - fjell
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cherry blacks - unlubed - filmed and springswapped with tx 55g mediums - alu Plate | pretty happy with this, the blacks were cherry picked so they weren't that scratchy to begin with, but currently breaking them in, may lube them with a dry lube like ro59 or ptfe powder.
| hhkb bt
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lubed with tribosys 3203 | like topre a lot, prefer it lubed but did make less tactile but that might have been a skill issue. probably will get more tactile over time as the domes age.
| m0115
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bad orange alps lol | definitely needs a restoration. planning on wax boiling them and maybe a replacement pcb because the board has only 2 key rollover apparently.
| praxis
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gateron yellows - lubed with 205g0 - 62g tx mediums - pc plate | probably my favourite keyboard already, feels super nice and sounds pretty good, it's got a great layout as well. probably gonna build this with mx browns, I feel like it would suit the board more.
| camo filco
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stock with silent reds | Pretty cool looking board, the silent reds are actually good, they are smooth and I don't mind the mushiness (it's not even that mushy as well). the layout is pretty weird, but is useable. will probably mod this in the future. maybe a pcb and plate swap, change the keycaps to something dolch like, and also spring swap the springs in the silent reds.
| ibm model f at
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stock, needs a cleaning and probably replacement foam. Do plan to change layout so it has split bs and rs, as well as ansi enter.
| baebae tkl
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Built with new nixies on pc half plate. Love this board already, probably the best looking board I own, those brass accents are so mint. Really like it as is, but I do want to try an alu build (probably with nixies as well) just to experiment with that.

collection in pixel art
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Offline Traijan

  • Posts: 4
  • Location: somebody's basement and it aint mine
Re: Simple Questions, Simple Answers (FAQ in the OP)
« Reply #16967 on: Sat, 07 September 2024, 13:12:09 »
If a stabilizer (like the two on my space bar) don't have a wire, are they still considered and named a stabilizer?  I have a ReDragon keyboard and the left shift, space bar, backspace and enter keys all have 3 +
 one + in the center that is the switch and one on each side that don't have a wire connecting them like I've seen in videos.  I'm wondering the pros and cons of not having the wire connecting the 2 outside +'s together.

Thanks

Offline rxq12

  • Posts: 1
Re: Simple Questions, Simple Answers (FAQ in the OP)
« Reply #16968 on: Mon, 16 September 2024, 05:34:05 »
Hi, I have a question about GM60 Poker, I accidentally put a macro on the keyboard, now when you press 1 button, the entire row is pressed, I flashed VIA, nothing helped... The reset of the keyboard also did not lead to anything, the macro remained, please tell me, maybe there is a combination for a complete reset of the bm60? There is no macro in VIA itself.

Offline TheloniousDrunk

  • Posts: 53
Re: Simple Questions, Simple Answers (FAQ in the OP)
« Reply #16969 on: Wed, 16 October 2024, 16:21:09 »
I've been waiting for literal years for a rerun of Aerboards' Aegis keyboard, the southpaw 1800 Compact is without a doubt my favorite layout of all time.

Sadly it doesn't seem like that'll ever be run again so I'm forced to try and find an 1800 compact. I know Hineybush did a run of these years ago and when I looked now I see there's a keychron 1800 compact, but I don't like any of the colors available.

Where can I find an 1800 Compact keyboard kit, ideally with a black or dark colored anodized aluminum case and it'd be nice-to-have but not critical at all for it to have a rotary encoder

Offline Melvang

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Re: Simple Questions, Simple Answers (FAQ in the OP)
« Reply #16970 on: Thu, 17 October 2024, 08:37:55 »
Couple quick questions regarding QMK on Xwhatsit controller for an original Kishy. 

I have an original Kishsaver with a 2014 Rev2 Xwhatsit controller that I purchased years ago.  Would this be the correct setup to use QMK for it?  Will it flash over the top of the original firmware or will I have other steps to do to convert from using the original IBM_Capsense_Utility?

Also, can anyone confirm if the solenoid and drivers listed at ModelFKeyboards[.]com will work with that controller and physically fit in the original Kishsaver case without modifications?

I did send a PM to Pandrew over at DT but have not received a reply?  Any other sources I could post these questions?
« Last Edit: Thu, 17 October 2024, 08:40:11 by Melvang »
OG Kishsaver, Razer Orbweaver clears and reds with blue LEDs, and Razer Naga Epic.   "Great minds crawl in the same sewer"  Uncle Rich