Like with the stem, the *nixdorks appear to use the same tooling for the bottom housing, just with a bit more saturation in the color - whether that’s a fine adjustment or just production variance, I have no idea.
For an up-to-date list of official places you can get these, check out gazzew.com.
What have you observed - or would you like to know about Boba LTs?
I’m looking forward to all of your findings. I always enjoy reading your switch descriptions and comparisons. I haven’t tried these yet but have been on my list to switches to try.
I’m not exactly sure where they actuate, but I can tell you that they are shorter travel due to the long pole the stems bottom-out on.
Edit: assuming they are about the same as the U4T in terms of travel, they’re probably close to 3.2mm. It’s harder to speculate about actuation because Bobagums and U4s actuate at very different points, around 1.25mm and 1.7mm respectively. It’s probably safe to assume these are in that range, though.
Ha, the most accurate answer might be “yes” - I’m actually not sure about the actuation, but generally speaking it is the interaction between leaf and stem that determines it. When compared with something “standard”, say, a Gateron Yellow, some switches may accomplish early actuation by having a differently shaped leaf, stem, or both.
In this case I’ll have to do some testing to actually answer this, but I’ve got some time on my hands and the means to do it, so I’ll get back with an update in just a bit.
Here’s what I did; I placed some different Bobas in a row, and levered a flat object against the case to more or less press them all uniformly - first as a group like that, and then in pairs to narrow things down:
From left to right: Gat Golden Cap Yellow, Release LT, Prototype LT (using Bobagum housing), Bobagum, Boba U4, Boba U4T Black
Granted I don’t have a means to measure the exact actuation point (yet), but I think I have a good idea of where the new LTs connect. Here’s what I found:
VS the LT-in-Bobagum prototype, the new LT reliably actuates sooner.
VS the Bobagum, the new LT actuates at around the same place; probably between 1.2 and 1.3mm.
New LT stem in Bobagum housing actuates before Prototype LT stem in Bobagum housing; this means the stem factors-in to the “speediness” of the switch as well as its travel in this case.
New LT stem in its own housing actuates before New LT stem in Bobagum housing; this means the housing also factors-in to the actuation height.
Both of those being the case, that means that in the case of Boba LTs vs, say, an Outemu Red or something, both the stem and the leaf are “faster” than a given baseline, and both contribute to the final “speed” of the Boba LT.
Hey, do the nixdork and the production versions feel significantly different?
I know it’s supposed to be tighter tolerences on the nixdork but does that affect sound and push feel?
They do feel pretty similar; initially the*nixdorks were going to have a different spring, but as far as I can tell it’s the same, down to the factory donut-dipping.
The top was supposed to be more tight, but for whatever reason it’s actually less tight than a typical Gazzew top - I’m guessing this was not the intention but there it is.
With *nixdork LTs vs regular LTs, you’re trading some stability for some smoothness.
There’s a little more friction sound and feel to the standard ones, but they have unusually low wobble. The *nixdorks have a more standard amount of wobble (definitely not bad), but thanks to that more loose grip on the stem, it moves with less friction.
This is just compared with each-other; I’d say standard LTs have less friction feel than any Nylon switch, for example - it’s just more than the *nixdork, which itself I’d consider extra-smooth.
I am very happy with Cherry blacks but Boba LT peaked my interest bc it seems to sound lower-pitched than Cherry blacks when lubed. BUT, I hate compromising key travel so I’m going to experiment trimming the long poll.
Because almost all US stores were out of stock (at end of January) but I found some at LiliGecko.
The short travel may not be solely a function of the pole. The stem is also lower in its resting position, compared to switches like Inks, MX Blacks, and Tangies. Just something to consider as you experiment with lengthening the travel.
I’ve heard you can get more easily get consistent results by drilling-out the bottom tube, the downside being occasional drips depending on what kind and how much lube might be in there.
I haven’t tried U4T either but based on sound test video, I’d describe the sound as tapping on plastic soapbox wrapped in a towel which, at low-pitch, should sound fairly pleasant.
For an up-to-date list of official places you can get these, check out gazzew.com. 
