[GB] Custom CNC Aluminum Cases for Cooler Master TKL boards (SHIPPED)

[clickstops]

Now those are some photos! Thanks so much, you've done a killer job with this whole thing.

[eksuen]

I picked up my case today. As far as I know, this is the first one out in the wild! These cases turned out AMAZINGLY well, and whoever got the green one is going to love it because holy **** it looks lovely. I will definitely be getting a green one come R2.

Just a note on the screw-in feet. The threading was a little loose on mine, but wrapping the screw with Scotch tape and then screwing it in fixed it.

My pics do not come close to doing the case justice and TA is difficult to capture without natural lighting, but for what it's worth:

[pixelpusher]

Holy smokes that looks great!  Can't wait for some sweet space white goodness at my doorstep!  Thanks for the photos, eksuen!

[kokokoy]

Wow!!! That looks really great eksuen. Need to psych myself that the grey one is what I've always wanted.

[norbauer]

Thanks for the kind words, eksuen. It was fun, as always, to get to chat in person and talk some nerd.

Just a note on the screw-in feet. The threading was a little loose on mine, but wrapping the screw with Scotch tape and then screwing it in fixed it.

I noticed that too. This is because we have very little thickness to work with on the bottom of the case due to my efforts to keep the overall profile of the case reasonably light and thin. Because the riser stems incorporate the relief groove that is necessary to machine a thread properly onto a rod, there isn't very much length left for thread engagement, which can make the fit a bit loose and cause some play of the riser in its hole. I recommend your solution of a bit of tape, or a little spritz of Loctite, to anyone who wants a tighter fit. For whatever it's worth, I noticed that this is less of an issue on the anodized cases due to the added thickness of the anodizing process (the powder coated cases were meticulously masked to keep tight fits between mating mechanical surfaces, with powder coat only added to the exterior faces, meaning that on those cases the aluminum riser feet stems are not coated beyond the bare machined metal.)

[Slash Emperor]

Silly question, but do these cases work with the other screw-in feet that you see for keyboard kits and other cases?

I think I forgot to order riser feet for my case and I'm kicking myself.

[norbauer]

Silly question, but do these cases work with the other screw-in feet that you see for keyboard kits and other cases?

I think I forgot to order riser feet for my case and I'm kicking myself.

That's a good question. eksuen pointed out to me last night that those feet commonly don't have a stem on them like mine but rather have a threaded hole into which a screw inserts from the interior of the case. So it would really depend on the size of the screw that the hole accepts. If you have feet where that screw is less than 4.4mm in diameter, they might very well work, but I haven't tested this and didn't explicitly design around that problem, as I couldn't get good specs on any "standard" feet during the IC thread. If folks can give me details on how these other feet work, I'd be happy to make a modification for next time around to accept them with a greater degree of certainty.

Also, if you missed out on ordering riser feet, you can always do so in round 2. I plan to offer those separately from the cases since several people have now made that request

[LechnerDE]

Great pics eksuen!

Can't wait to receive my own white case and experiment with different keycap sets 

[Slash Emperor]

Silly question, but do these cases work with the other screw-in feet that you see for keyboard kits and other cases?

I think I forgot to order riser feet for my case and I'm kicking myself.

That's a good question. eksuen pointed out to me last night that those feet commonly don't have a stem on them like mine but rather have a threaded hole into which a screw inserts from the interior of the case. So it would really depend on the size of the screw that the hole accepts. If you have feet where that screw is less than 4.4mm in diameter, they might very well work, but I haven't tested this and didn't explicitly design around that problem, as I couldn't get good specs on any "standard" feet during the IC thread. If folks can give me details on how these other feet work, I'd be happy to make a modification for next time around to accept them with a greater degree of certainty.

Also, if you missed out on ordering riser feet, you can always do so in round 2. I plan to offer those separately from the cases since several people have now made that request

Thanks, I'll keep the riser feet option in R2 in mind. I'll be interested in seeing others report on trying other feet with this case. I don't know if it's just me, but the riser feet seem taller than the average aluminum feet, might be because they're not as widely flared out as other feet.

[poolside]

I picked up my case today. As far as I know, this is the first one out in the wild! These cases turned out AMAZINGLY well, and whoever got the green one is going to love it because holy **** it looks lovely. I will definitely be getting a green one come R2.

Just a note on the screw-in feet. The threading was a little loose on mine, but wrapping the screw with Scotch tape and then screwing it in fixed it.

My pics do not come close to doing the case justice and TA is difficult to capture without natural lighting, but for what it's worth:

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Nice pictures. We need more!

And the NT finally gets the case it deserves, looking like a beautiful aluminum custom. If only it had a winkeyless bottom row option.

[eksuen]

Great pics eksuen!

Can't wait to receive my own white case and experiment with different keycap sets 

Nice pictures. We need more!

And the NT finally gets the case it deserves, looking like a beautiful aluminum custom. If only it had a winkeyless bottom row option.

I'll try to take some more today or tomorrow. My inspiration for getting a white case came after I put Carbon SA on my white KUL. I liked the way  the cream/enamel/off-white of the Carbon set paired with a white case. I'll put GMK Carbon on the Novatouch and do a side by side comparison.

[afrokobe]

I got mine from oco yesterday, still haven't had time to transport the novatouch into it.  It feels amazing and I love it!  I am so glad I didn't wait for r2

[cynviloq]

Here's a pic with some temperature adjustment done to better reflect what the OCo grey looks like in person under white light. The weight on this case is amazing.

Special guest: RAMA WAVE

[nurbs]

Here's a pic with some temperature adjustment done to better reflect what the OCo grey looks like in person under white light. The weight on this case is amazing.

Special guest: RAMA WAVE

Show Image

How different is the gray from the warm gray in the GB? Is the OCO still pretty warm? I expected a much darker cooler gray.

[cynviloq]

Here's a pic with some temperature adjustment done to better reflect what the OCo grey looks like in person under white light. The weight on this case is amazing.

Special guest: RAMA WAVE

Show Image

How different is the gray from the warm gray in the GB? Is the OCO still pretty warm? I expected a much darker cooler gray.

I don't have a warm grey for comparison in front of me. I can only comment that in a dimmer setting it looks closer to gunmetal, while in a normal setting with yellower (bedroom) light, it does seem to take on the brown-ish hue that the warm grey looks to have in this picture off Norbauer's shop:



In general, I would say it looks like a dark silver / light gunmetal, but not dark grey (which I would put on the scale of black versus metallic grey). Sorry if that's confusing, it's hard to describe within such a small range of colors...

[Xiro7]

I received mine today from Originative. It looks great. I didn't receive any bump-on feet for the case, so be warned you will need to buy some as the alu case will scratch your desk if it slides.

My only complaint is that on the CM Novatouch board, there are two screws that hold the PCB in place in the case. There was no way to screw the PCB into the aluminum case and as a result, the PCB very slightly moves in the case. Maybe I missed something installing these, but I would hope that doesn't damage the PCB board.

[cynviloq]

I received mine today from Originative. It looks great. I didn't receive any bump-on feet for the case, so be warned you will need to buy some as the alu case will scratch your desk if it slides.

My only complaint is that on the CM Novatouch board, there are two screws that hold the PCB in place in the case. There was no way to screw the PCB into the aluminum case and as a result, the PCB very slightly moves in the case. Maybe I missed something installing these, but I would hope that doesn't damage the PCB board.

Yes, I had to add my own bumpons as well.

My PCB holds tight, though I do have an issue where the screws holding the micro-USB plastic case do not transfer over given the short length. I had to use different screws to lock it down, but otherwise the "surgery" went perfectly.

[hpfalcon]

Received mine from originative today. The oco gray doesnt really seem too much darker than the warm gray (at least from pictures), but its definitely a cooler shade of gray.





It looks great, but unfortunately mine had a couple of issues:

The bottom piece is uneven. When its lying flat, there's wobble when I touch a corner. This does not go away after attaching feet. Incredibly annoying, but maybe some rubber feet will help even it out. Not sure if I have other options here.

The holes for the screws for usb mount is too big. The original screws are way too small, and so I tried to use one of the black screws that held the pcb to the original plastic frame. That one fits a bit better, but still loose so it won't tighten all the way. Maybe i'll try to get some other screws for this, but not sure which size to get.


Besides that, my pcb holds tight too, and doesn't move within the case

[cynviloq]

Bottom piece is uneven. When its lying flat, there's wobble when I touch a corner. This does not go away after attaching feet. Incredibly annoying, but maybe some rubber feet will help even it out. Not sure if I have other options here.

Do you still have the pouch of o-rings the NT came with originally? If you loop those onto the screw for the feet, it'll give you a little bit of room to play with at the end to try to balance it out. Also acts as a spacer to prevent the risers from scratching the case.

[hpfalcon]

Bottom piece is uneven. When its lying flat, there's wobble when I touch a corner. This does not go away after attaching feet. Incredibly annoying, but maybe some rubber feet will help even it out. Not sure if I have other options here.

Do you still have the pouch of o-rings the NT came with originally? If you loop those onto the screw for the feet, it'll give you a little bit of room to play with at the end to try to balance it out. Also acts as a spacer to prevent the risers from scratching the case.

yep, much better with the o-rings. No wobble since I can adjust either side, and they aren't loose either. Good idea 

[norbauer]

Hey guys, on some of the early cases that Originative sent out, they forgot some important inclusions that will, I think, solve the issues mentioned. FWIW, I have discussed with Sheraton that in future I would prefer to have the cases come to me for quality check rather than go out to people directly via them so that I can ensure that cases bearing my name, as it were, measure up to a standard I'm willing to represent as being complete and in good condition.

At any rate, you may contact Originative to see if they're willing to supply the missing parts, but they can also be purchased separately, and inexpensively, from the following sources.

The riser feet cases need four of these rubber bumpers:
3M SJ-5306 (mouser)

For use without risers, you need four of these smaller rubber bumpers:
3M SJ-5382 (mouser)

There are also two screws needed to screw the USB bracket into the case. (The ones that come with the original CoolerMaster plastic case will not fit!)

And, importantly, there are two flange screws that cinch the top of plate into place against the the top of bottom half of the case.

All of the cases that I'm currently shipping out from the group buy include the correct hardware.

[punksinatra]

Anyone have a sound test for the one's that have received their case specially if you have the new masterkeys pro S.

I want to know if the hallow sound goes away. I have a pok3r backlit on a tex aluminum case with mx browns and I like the sound of that no hallow pingy sound, just pure semi thock clack... I wonder if this case can provide that for the rapid-i and masterkeys

[nurbs]

Anyone sound test for the one's that have received their case specially if you have the new masterkeys pro S.

I want to know if the hallow sound goes away. I have a pok3r backlit on a text aluminum case with mx browns and I like the sound of that no hallow pingy sound, just purse semi thock clack... I wonder if this case can provide that for the rapid-i and masterkeys

That is easy to fix. I have three aluminum cases (one of them being this one) and use drawer or toolbox liner (it is like thin foam, can be found on Amazon) on the inner lining of the case and it does wonders to eliminating the high pitched ping. If you are still getting pings after that, it is something with the plate or stabilizers (like Costar) or the upstroke of the switch and has nothing to do with the aluminum case.

I have Norbauer's case (my favorite out of all the aluminum cases I own) with a silenced NT and it sounds great.

[pixelpusher]

Anyone sound test for the one's that have received their case specially if you have the new masterkeys pro S.

I want to know if the hallow sound goes away. I have a pok3r backlit on a text aluminum case with mx browns and I like the sound of that no hallow pingy sound, just purse semi thock clack... I wonder if this case can provide that for the rapid-i and masterkeys

That is easy to fix. I have three aluminum cases (one of them being this one) and use drawer or toolbox liner (it is like thin foam, can be found on Amazon) on the inner lining of the case and it does wonders to eliminating the high pitched ping. If you are still getting pings after that, it is something with the plate or stabilizers (like Costar) or the upstroke of the switch and has nothing to do with the aluminum case.

I have Norbauer's case (my favorite out of all the aluminum cases I own) with a silenced NT and it sounds great.

I can confirm lining works.  I used some sticky back thin foam on a $15 ebay plastic case and it make it sound as solid as my pok3r

[nurbs]

Received mine from originative today. The oco gray doesnt really seem too much darker than the warm gray (at least from pictures), but its definitely a cooler shade of gray.

(Attachment Link)

(Attachment Link)

It looks great, but unfortunately mine had a couple of issues:

The bottom piece is uneven. When its lying flat, there's wobble when I touch a corner. This does not go away after attaching feet. Incredibly annoying, but maybe some rubber feet will help even it out. Not sure if I have other options here.

The holes for the screws for usb mount is too big. The original screws are way too small, and so I tried to use one of the black screws that held the pcb to the original plastic frame. That one fits a bit better, but still loose so it won't tighten all the way. Maybe i'll try to get some other screws for this, but not sure which size to get.


Besides that, my pcb holds tight too, and doesn't move within the case

Had the exact same issues with the OCo order. They said screws are being sent but will have to purchase my own rubber feet.

[punksinatra]

Anyone sound test for the one's that have received their case specially if you have the new masterkeys pro S.

I want to know if the hallow sound goes away. I have a pok3r backlit on a text aluminum case with mx browns and I like the sound of that no hallow pingy sound, just purse semi thock clack... I wonder if this case can provide that for the rapid-i and masterkeys

That is easy to fix. I have three aluminum cases (one of them being this one) and use drawer or toolbox liner (it is like thin foam, can be found on Amazon) on the inner lining of the case and it does wonders to eliminating the high pitched ping. If you are still getting pings after that, it is something with the plate or stabilizers (like Costar) or the upstroke of the switch and has nothing to do with the aluminum case.

I have Norbauer's case (my favorite out of all the aluminum cases I own) with a silenced NT and it sounds great.

I can confirm lining works.  I used some sticky back thin foam on a $15 ebay plastic case and it make it sound as solid as my pok3r

for the pings yeah I think its about the stabs.. I made a quick video below about the sound difference both using SA profile keycaps for ASDF keys.. I like how my pok3r sounds more solid and the sound is not hollow. I would like to know if I go for round 2 for this case will the sound come close to that of my poker? both boards using cherry mx browns or is it because of the plate that the poker is using?

[suparnemo]

I also have the same issue with my originative order.

Another question, is the screws to take apart the bottom and top of the case a hex bolt? Do I need a hex key to open the case?

[nurbs]

I also have the same issue with my originative order.

Another question, is the screws to take apart the bottom and top of the case a hex bolt? Do I need a hex key to open the case?

Yup, haha. I have hex keys but not the correct size. Had to buy an extra set.

[suparnemo]

[/quote]

Had the exact same issues with the OCo order. They said screws are being sent but will have to purchase my own rubber feet.
[/quote]

The rubber feet are like $15 shipped per pair that you want. You have to order 96/144 since they come in pads. So it's like 25-30 bucks for us if we want both.

[nurbs]

Had the exact same issues with the OCo order. They said screws are being sent but will have to purchase my own rubber feet.
[/quote]

The rubber feet are like $15 shipped per pair that you want. You have to order 96/144 since they come in pads. So it's like 25-30 bucks for us if we want both.
[/quote]

Should we start a GB?  )

[suparnemo]

Honest a GB would be cool but this is originatives mistake and they did fix it.

[suparnemo]

Sorry I meant they should fix it.

[norbauer]

I also have the same issue with my originative order.

Another question, is the screws to take apart the bottom and top of the case a hex bolt? Do I need a hex key to open the case?

Yes, the screws take a 2mm (USB bracket) and 2.5mm (case itself) hex L wrench. Those are included with the group-buy cases as a convenience but I would posit that it's reasonable for O&Co not to have included them since they're so readily available and most keyboard enthusiasts already have them.

Try not to judge Originative too harshly for the mentioned hiccups, by the way. Sherryton injured his ankle last week and wasn't able personally to oversee packing of the initial orders, which is probably why the screw issue wasn't caught before the first orders went out. I told him some time ago which parts needed to be sourced for the bumpers, and my understanding was that he tried to order the rubber bumpers but they had some kind of problem with their Mouser account and he figured it would be better to ship the cases rather than wait until that could be sorted out and the bumpers obtained. We also discovered that all the plate hold-down screws came to me rather in his batch sent to LA (a factory error), so I sent him some replacements, and those only arrived to him on Tuesday. Orders that shipped before that would not have included these, again something he probably would have caught were he not convalescing. Anyway, perhaps these issues would be best be discussed in an Originative forum or elsewhere, but I just thought I'd say a few words in favor of Originative. Their large order helped offset the costs of giving shipping discounts to international buyers to help offset the very high burden of DHL shipping costs to those group buy participants (I only charged $45 on shipping for international buyers but I've ended up paying an average of $10-25 more for that per case.)

It's totally reasonable for you guys to ask that the missing screws be sent to you and to be slightly irked about not getting rubber bumpers, but just wanted to offer a defense of Originative before folks were tempted piled on. :)

[nurbs]

Sorry I meant they should fix it.

Was being facetious 

You can go to any hardware store or even Target or Walmart and find some rubber feet easy. Not terribly expensive.

[hpfalcon]

I'm just glad that the different sized screw hole was on purpose and thus easily addressed.

Ordered a sheet of SJ5306 off amazon and should be arriving tomorrow 

[norbauer]

I'm just glad that the different sized screw hole was on purpose and thus easily addressed.

Ordered a sheet of SJ5306 off amazon and should be arriving tomorrow 

Oh, yes. Totally. And you were certainly not the first to be confused. I should have included printed instructions maybe but just haven't yet had the time to compose something like that. The replacement screws are much nicer and more robust than the lousy little dark colored ones that come with the CM case, fwiw.

Incidentally, I still have a mountain of cases through which to process but I've made good progress so far. Based on that rate, I expect everything to be shipped out by Monday or Tuesday at latest.

[SKD]

I cry that I could not afford this when the GB was open

[afrokobe]

This has quite been the rollercoaster ride of emotions for me. Excited to discover the gb, sad to see it closed, happy to see maybe there would be extras, mixed feelings about having to buy a bundle at oco, amazed to get the case, disappointed to discover I am missing a bunch of stuff needed....

[punksinatra]

Are there really extras?

[afrokobe]

well I asked him a while back and he said to sign up for mailing list for any extras or r2 in the future.... not sure if there actually are any

[punksinatra]

I tried to read the whole thread again from the beginning. Not sure if I missed it but didn't see any indication of extras. I think the mailing list would be for R2 but who knows when it will start. Too bad I didn't have the money and the keyboard when the buy started but now I have a keyboard that will fit this case but the case isn't available anymore lol

[afrokobe]

so.. what's going to happen with this whole oco thing, I sent them a message, but they haven't responded to me.  I don't want to go and buy my own screws... especially for the amount I spent.   

[evangs]

when do regular orders start going out. I only ask cause I'm moving at the end of the month.

[FSund]

when do regular orders start going out. I only ask cause I'm moving at the end of the month.

I got my shipping number yesterday, and the package was picked up by DHL today. Order #1002.

[evangs]

when do regular orders start going out. I only ask cause I'm moving at the end of the month.

I got my shipping number yesterday, and the package was picked up by DHL today. Order #1002.

sweet! good to know

[cynviloq]

so.. what's going to happen with this whole oco thing, I sent them a message, but they haven't responded to me.  I don't want to go and buy my own screws... especially for the amount I spent.

Did you email the contact on the website? (Try:contact@originativeco.com)

They are not including bumpons or the allen wrenches, but they are shipping the screws (2 m3 and 2m4) -- just give them a shout and they'll ship it out to you.

Anyone with questions on their Originative order (most likely only the early ones that were shipped out) should probably e-mail them directly rather than handle anything on this thread given this is for the GB.

[sherryton]

Hey guys, thanks for taking part of our buy.

I'm still at home recovering, but Wendy has received all of the screws from Ryan. She'll send out the missing screws on Monday. Please hold tight as we weren't warned that the cases came with extra screws. Norbauer had sent a package directly to us from Shenzhen, and we thought we had received all the components.

[megaforce]

Hey guys, thanks for taking part of our buy.

I'm still at home recovering, but Wendy has received all of the screws from Ryan. She'll send out the missing screws on Monday. Please hold tight as we weren't warned that the cases came with extra screws. Norbauer had sent a package directly to us from Shenzhen, and we thought we had received all the components.

Here's to a fast recovery!

@norbauer, Could I get the bom of hardware for the case please? Thanks!

[norbauer]

Hey guys, thanks for taking part of our buy.

I'm still at home recovering, but Wendy has received all of the screws from Ryan. She'll send out the missing screws on Monday. Please hold tight as we weren't warned that the cases came with extra screws. Norbauer had sent a package directly to us from Shenzhen, and we thought we had received all the components.

Here's to a fast recovery!

@norbauer, Could I get the bom of hardware for the case please? Thanks!

Sure. It is below. Incidentally, I talked to Sheraton today some more today and realized I was wrong to have said that they "forgot" the parts above. He told me that the product listing didn't mention including rubber bumpers, which I didn't realize because I never saw the product page. I didn't mean to ascribe error to them where none occurred, or to cast any aspersions otherwise.

At any rate, each of the GB cases includes the following:

If shipping with riser feet:
4x 3M SJ-5306 bumpers (mouser)

If shipping without riser feet:
4 x 3M SJ-5382 bumpers (mouser)

2 x USB bracket screws

2 x flange screws for securing the plate

1 x 2mm L wrench

1 x 2.5mm L wrench

8 x socket-head screws (these were included with all the Originative cases)

1 x thank-you note from me for domestic shipments. (For international, I didn't want to create any problems for people at customs, so I left those out)

[norbauer]

I'm happy to report that almost everybody's box is packed and/or ready to go out! Many of you have gotten shipping confirmations and others will follow shortly. I'm just printing the last few labels this tonight and tomorrow. A few cases are missing some of the accessory screws, which I have coming early this week. So, while all the UPS numbers should be issued by the end of the weekend, most domestic shipments won't "go live" with tracking until mid-week when I have a single bit UPS pickup scheduled. International shipments should all be live with tracking on Monday evening.

I've now looked at all the cases fairly closely, and I can offer some observations on the factory and quality:

• Overall, I'm pretty happy with the job the factory did, especially given the good price at this quantity. There were some aberrations here and there, which I'll definitely see that the factory prevents on any second round. If your order was subject to such a problem, you would have gotten an email from me already with details and a proposed solution.
• When dealing with custom anodizing colors (i.e., not black), it's very hard to precisely match the color of two parts when they have a different mass, as the two parts of this case do. As a result, for lighter-colored anodized cases, there can be a slight shade difference between the top and bottom halves of the case. The factory warned me about this beforehand, and I don't find that in most instances you can even tell unless you look for it. For better or worse, I don't think there is much of a way around this unless we wanted to pay a lot more, which essentially means paying the factory to keeping re-anodizing the parts until they all come up with exact matches. This drives up costs to a surprising degree, so I figured the quite good (rather than perfect) result that we've gotten was adequate given the cost trade-off, but of course I'm open to feedback on that matter.
• Some of the cases had minor residue on them from the anodizing process, which can look like a lighter-colored "stain" of the surface. I have closely inspected the cases I'm sending out and whenever I've found such a mark, I've been able to completely remove it with a bit of Bon Ami powder (about $1 at your local grocery store), water, and gentle few passes with a paper towel. I heard from someone who got a case from Originative that they encountered one of these stains, and I gave him the above advice for removal. None of these should be permanent marks. Feel free to email me if you're in the same situation and need help.
• There may be tiny cosmetic flaws here or there that I missed when packing things up. Some people really care about the tiniest variations and others don't even notice. If you're case arrives and you're unhappy with something, don't panic; just let me know and we'll get it figured out.

In general, I think we did quite well. A lesson I've learned for next time is to "over order" by a few cases and then just sell whatever ones arrive with flaws as discounted "factory seconds" or whatever. That way I will hopefully get to have one fewer ulcers worrying about disappointing people. I really want everyone to be happy to have participated in this and to feel that I did well by them through this process.