My first mech was an IBM model M when I was student.
Then many years of working with shitty rubber domes.
I finally decided to go back to the mech world with a full size Cherry board with MX blacks on it, damn was too stiff for me.
Quickly baught after that a Filco with MX Browns, then a Realforce Topre board, both fullsize. They are are 9 and 8 years old respectively.
Still uses the Filco at home, now uses a home made keyboard with Zelios v2 62g at work.
3 Likes
I think my first would have been some kind of IBM model my father had, back when I was learning to boot Windows in MS-DOS mode to play video games. Went through maybe a few cheap rubber domes in-between that and the late 90s/early-aughts Apple boards I used at work from which we now harvest Alps.
First I bought myself was a Das with Cherry Blues, which my partner still uses. Then I shifted to Cherry Clears on a Ducky, quickly to Zealios and Zilents on my (admittedly not particularly great) slightly-more-enthusiast boards, then to lighter versions of those. Now I’m rolling with Zandas and a 62g spring and waiting for the right boards to come along to take all that to another level (and start getting a feel for plates and mounting and all that).
2 Likes
I feel like personally mine has gotten heavier as I’ve expanded into the field. I loved the tactility of MX browns, and found myself favoring linears more, but absolutely despised how light MX reds were, apart from when I was gaming. I’m currently running Kailh Box Blacks (definitely fixed my linear weight issue) and I’ve got some concoction of Outemu Skies and NK Creams still in the lab that sounds absolutely dreamy.
2 Likes
Our paths have been quite similar I see 
1 Like
If we’re counting childhood keyboards, I’m pretty sure I’ve used some older mechanical keyboards, of the alps and ibm model m variants, but I have little recollection of those days. All I can really tell you is that we had older Apple II computers at school and 286/386/486 computers at home. My first desktop was a hand me down 486.
2 Likes
My first keyboard was an old Royal manual typewriter with an extra wide carriage (you could easily fit an 8 1/2 x 11 inch sideways into it). I’m pretty sure it was intended to be used in an office setting; it was neither compact, portable, nor light.
I’m not saying I loved it, I’m just saying that’s what I got used to, and it served me fine for writing term papers and letters home in College. Anyone else remember using reusable templates under 20 lb cotton stock? Carbon paper? Yeah. No more than two corrected typos per page and Wite-Out was a modern marvel.
About the only good thing about an old typewriter is that you needed to be able to compose with a purpose, cutting and pasting involved scissors and Scotch tape, and after three rewrites, your shit was tight.
This “ok, boomer” moment is brought to you by Geritol. Carry on.
7 Likes
My first keyboard was an AEK II. It still feels good.
3 Likes
I made a U shape on my preference. I started with cherry greens on the big bezel Ducky mini. Quickly migrated to Gat reds and gradually moved back up. Now, I buy 72g springs if I’m going to spring swap.
Going to be stock MX blacks on my next build.
1 Like
Definitely my opinion, but I’d stray away from this. I feel like MX Blacks are a nice stepping stone, but they don’t feel slick enough for linears unless you change the housing or lube 'em up.
Yeah, they’re not as smooth as the unlubed Gats, Gats in Zeal housings, or even creams I have and definitely not as smooth as my 3204 lubed Gat blacks, but I’ve been using the retooled blacks without any lube on most of my newer builds just swapped to 72g springs.
Smoothness really hasn’t bothered me at all on them as I still sort through the ones I have to find the smoothest. The MX blacks just sit at the intersection of good price, low wobble, smooth enough, and best sounding for me that I really haven’t had a strong urge to deviate from them. That and I absolutely, positively HATE lubing switches. Initial time investment and periodic relubing to keep consistent feel across the board drives me bonkers.
Definitely. If I don’t count my first mechanical keyboard which I pulled out an electronics dumpster (Cherry G80-2100 with Cherry MX Blacks) and hence wasn’t choosen freely, I went from lightweight (Cherry MX Brown and Red, Niz Plum with 35g or so) to medium-heavy (Cherry MX Clear, Cherry MX Black, Zealios 65g, Kailh Box Jade, Durock T1 67g).
But that move towards medium-heavy switches came rather quickly. When I first tried a bunch of keyboards of friends of mine, Cherry MX Clears seemed to be too heavy, but that impression went away quite quickly after having used Cherry MX Browns for a while. Main reason to switch to Clears was though the more pronounced bump.
I currently also try some Kailh Box Navies, but I’m not really convinced of them yet. So >70g still seems to heavy for me.
But at least nowadays Cherry MX Reds and Niz Plum 35g are far too light for me (and HHKB 2 Pro’s Topre switches more or less, too) — wouldn’t buy them again. (And I also wouldn’t buy Cherry MX Browns anymore, too, but mostly because of the rather unpronounced bump.)
1 Like
i primarily use 60-70 gram switches but i bought a board with 45g springs recently and after a minute to get used to them i gotta say… theyre really nice i really wanna try zeal v2s with a 45 gram spring even though it will lose some tactility i feel like it would be nice
1 Like
Been going lighter for sure. I started out putting 62g in everything, then 60g, then 55g, and most recently 45g. I don’t think I can see myself going much lower than that, but I always try to have a very comfortable, effortless, ergonomic typing experience. I find I am fastest and most comfortable with soft plates/no plates, light springs, and light to no tactility.
3 Likes
I generally type and game on BKE heavies with extra 20g (mods) or 10g (alphas) springs. I love 45g silent linears as well and don’t bottom them out. So I swap easily between the two, but I have definitely been gravitating away from switch feels I used to love.
As far as tactility goes, I can’t go back to browns, halos or stock domes. It’s either gotta be completely tactile or not at all.
1 Like
65g TX springs are my jam. I have not found a spring weighting that I’ve preferred more.
3 Likes
I started with linears (MX red) unlubed on a TKL Corsair. I moved on to a full-sized Filco with MX blues, then a model M to get dat CLICK. I then tried tactiles and appreciated them enough to use Zilents exclusively for a while. Made my way to Topre, was fairly underwhelmed, and now I’m using silent alpacas in a Planck.
I think lubed linears sound the best, tactiles with lubed everything (including legs) feel the best, old school clickies (buckling spring, alps etc) are the most fun, but silent linears seem the most practical day to day.
Edit: All that and I didn’t even address the main topic lol. Weighting has stayed similar… Medium is best. I think the alpacas I’m using now are nearly perfect, perhaps slightly too light.
2 Likes
I’ve bounced around between many different switches and continually find myself happiest with switches that bottom out around 60 g.
Rough chronology of switches I’ve used in my main board:
(~60 g) [tactile] Cherry MX Brown
(~70 g) [linear] Gateron Silent Black
(~70 g) [tactile] Kailh Pro Purple
(~60 g) [linear] Kailh Speed Silver
(~70 g) [linear] Kailh Pro Burgundy
(~50 g) [linear] Gateron Red
(~60 g) [linear] Kailh Speed Silver again
(~60 g) [linear] Durock Alpacas
70 g switches became very exhausting to me. I actually didn’t entirely mind the lightness of Gateron Reds. The main reason I switched back to Kailh Speed Silvers actually was I like the 1.1 mm actuation. But I’m wanting to branch out. So my next board is gonna have Alpacas.
2 Likes
As I like progressive genres of music I wasn’t really surprised that I prefer the progressive springs.
But that kinda throws the whole weightings around.
1 Like
I also had old Apple II computers at school (an all green screen round of Oregon Trail or Math Blaster anyone?) and the first computer in my home was my brother’s 386 (with a trash rubber dome keeb).
As far as my chronological switch weighting goes, linears are probably the best to examine:
Cherry MX Blacks (fine for gaming, too heavy for work),
Gateron Yellow (also fine for gaming, too light and error prone for work),
Gateron Black / BOX Black (great middle ground),
TX 70g (now we’re talking),
TX 67g / 65g (I don’t’ like any lighter, but are more comfortable to my previous 70g favs)
2 Likes
Definitely played my fair share of Oregon Trail and Math Blaster. Remember Number Munchers?
2 Likes