Author Topic: does anyone know how to get colour printed keycaps for Model M?  (Read 2968 times)

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Offline berserkfan

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Model M keyboards, as we all know, are awesomely lasting and a pleasure to type on.

Unfortunately they are not attractive.

I am wondering how some people managed to get their model Ms decked out. See
http://www.hooleon.com/products/ibm-model-m-keyboard-keycaps They look as though they have cool things for a Buckling spring keyboard.

Does anyone know how to get printed color keycaps for Model Ms? Customized legends and fonts not required - just standard US layout, standard fonts and legends on coloured keycaps.
Most of the modding can be done on your own once you break through the psychological barriers.

Offline 0100010

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Re: does anyone know how to get colour printed keycaps for Model M?
« Reply #1 on: Mon, 08 April 2013, 10:08:13 »
Unicomp can print them for you, subject to availability.

http://pckeyboard.com/page/Buttons/PRK
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Offline Tarzan

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Re: does anyone know how to get colour printed keycaps for Model M?
« Reply #2 on: Mon, 08 April 2013, 10:12:27 »
Model M keyboards, as we all know, are awesomely lasting and a pleasure to type on.

Unfortunately they are not attractive.

I am wondering how some people managed to get their model Ms decked out. See
http://www.hooleon.com/products/ibm-model-m-keyboard-keycaps They look as though they have cool things for a Buckling spring keyboard.

Does anyone know how to get printed color keycaps for Model Ms? Customized legends and fonts not required - just standard US layout, standard fonts and legends on coloured keycaps.

Unicomp will sell you any color cap you like.  They also do custom caps, your choice of color, font, etc. 

The nice thing about Model M's is the two-part key-cap, you can mix and match to your heart's content.  The pics below are for my Unicomp Model M, I swapped out the main 37-key set for beige caps from a vintage Model M 122-key, along with the number keys for the number pad.

18098-0
18100-1

Offline berserkfan

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Re: does anyone know how to get colour printed keycaps for Model M?
« Reply #3 on: Tue, 09 April 2013, 08:35:24 »
Thanks friend, I checked it out in the past already.

Problem is they don't print entire sets which would be cheaper. That means each colour keycap you specify is $1.50 (0.80 + 0.70 for colour). To replace about 80 single unit wide keys is already $120 which I can use to buy two model Ms! And they only custom print for single unit wide keys, so I'm still stuck with ancient, ugly, drab return, shift, space etc. keys. The nasty gray colour really reminds me of the 1980s and of huge, clunky old computers and (bizarrely) the Soviet Union and its apartment blocks. :-[ :-[ :-[ :-[ :( :( :( :(

Unicomp can print them for you, subject to availability.

http://pckeyboard.com/page/Buttons/PRK
Most of the modding can be done on your own once you break through the psychological barriers.

Offline fohat.digs

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Re: does anyone know how to get colour printed keycaps for Model M?
« Reply #4 on: Tue, 09 April 2013, 21:51:51 »
If you have time to spend rather than money, check out this procedure:

http://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=35444.msg742090#msg742090
"However, even though I was born in the Mesozoic, I do know what anyone who wants to reach out to young people should say: Billionaires took your money. They took your chance to buy a home. They took your chance at a good education. They stole your opportunities. Billionaires took the things you want in life. If you really want those things, you have to take them back.
That's the message. That's the whole message. Say that every day, not just to reach America's frustrated young white men, but people of every age, race, and gender.
Late-stage capitalism is a wealth-concentration engine, focused on vacuuming up every dollar and putting it in as few hands as possible. Republicans are helping that vacuum suck.
How does a tiny fraction of the population get away with this? They do it by dividing the other 99% of Americans against themselves."
- Marc Sumner 2025-05-30