KUL ES-87 or Leopold FC750R? Which has the better quality?

[derzemel]

I am really struggling to make a decision between these 2 keyboards.

Do any of you have experience with both of them? What would you choose?

The shipped KUL from Amazon US to Romania costs about 166 USD, the Leopold FC750R is 172$ on ebay with free shiping (from widebasket's store), so the price difference is small enough. Also, the PBT keycaps on the Leopold are not a decision factor for me, nor are the extra colorful cases for the KUL

I am solely interested in the build quality.

Thank you!

[isaske]

Leopold imo. Havent tried KUL yet, waiting for my 2 FC750Rs, but considering the build quality of the FC700R, leopold. I have 2 FC700Rs, MX black and MX red. Excellent boards. Imo Filco and fc700R are 1st place contenders amongst newer MX boards.

[Sencha]

I'd go for the Leopold. Those 1.5mm caps....but also sound dampening sheet. All the Leo boards I've had have been amazing

[hwood34]

You definitely won't be dissapointed with either, both have really great build quality. It really mostly just comes down to which one looks best to you, I really like the look of the KUL personally

[intelli78]

You definitely won't be dissapointed with either, both have really great build quality. It really mostly just comes down to which one looks best to you, I really like the look of the KUL personally

This, except there is one big difference: The Leopold comes with those thick PBT caps, while the caps on the KUL are junk.

[saturnotaku]

This, except there is one big difference: The Leopold comes with those thick PBT caps, while the caps on the KUL are junk.

The OP has said the keycaps are not a factor in his purchase decision.

Also, the PBT keycaps on the Leopold are not a decision factor for me, nor are the extra colorful cases for the KUL

I have the ES-87 with MX reds, and the build quality is top-notch. It's probably about equal to the Leopold. One advantage of the KUL, IMO, is the ability to change the layout via DIP switches, rather than relying on software.

[derzemel]

You definitely won't be dissapointed with either, both have really great build quality. It really mostly just comes down to which one looks best to you, I really like the look of the KUL personally

This, except there is one big difference: The Leopold comes with those thick PBT caps, while the caps on the KUL are junk.

I just entered the GMK Hyperfuse GB, so any other factory made keycaps may seem junk from now on 

[intelli78]

Nice, but the Leopold caps are probably the best factory caps ever. They are really nice. At a <$10 difference between the two boards, I'd have to recommend the Leopold just for the caps. At the very least you can sell them for about $40 and recoup some of your cost. The quality of the 2 boards is probably a deadlock.

[animated]

I like how the Kul has dipswitches.  I think theres threads around here that says there's a chance the KUL might ping, and this is where the Leopold sound dampening comes in   - Both are pretty good, KUL has MX clears also, if thats what you're going for.

[metalliqaz]

I like how the Kul has dipswitches.  I think theres threads around here that says there's a chance the KUL might ping, and this is where the Leopold sound dampening comes in   - Both are pretty good, KUL has MX clears also, if thats what you're going for.

The flexibility of the dip switch configuration (swap Esc/grav, caps/ctrl, backspace/backslash) is a good thing, if you need it.  I like a standard layout so they are useless for me.

[Prankk]

I have both. They are both very solid and it's hard to give an edge in terms of build quality.

My first ES-87 had a faulty dip switch but i haven't seen anyone with the same issue so make of that what you will. It was probably an isolated incident. Also, there is some ping on my ES-87.

If I had to I would give the Leopold a slight edge. Having said that I think your best bet is to make your decision based on aesthetics and functionality rather than build quality.