[GB] the Heavy-9: aftermarket housing for the Leopold FC980C and FC980M

Just got the set in and did a preliminary tryout on my Royal Wrinkle Heavy-6, perfect combo!

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Okay you can’t just say those things here and not post a photo.

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Ah yes, here you go sorry!

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This seems like the appropriate place to ask - I just received a new FC980C, and the Enter and Backspace keycaps are noticeably rotated counterclockwise.

Is that a common issue with Topre keycaps due to their stem design? And is it something I might be able to get replaced if I contact Leopold?

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Yes, it’s a common issue. Don’t worry too much about it. Enjoy your topre. :+1:

Note this post with a picture of those crooked keys (on an FC660C), and some further discussion on the topic!

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@norbauer: Could you provide us the dimensions of the Heavy-9 itself? And a stranger question - the dimensions of the box it will be packaged in? Given that I’m planning to rotate between a few boards (to enjoy each of them in turn, and keep things fresh), I’m making sure I have a good spot to stash the ones on deck, as well as appropriate storage for the lovely packaging :slight_smile:

I’m also interested in further modding the FC980c … I saw a geekhack thread where replacement plates were made for Realforce TKL … I had an internal lust for custom cut (POM/PC) plate for FC980c and FC660c, to replace the stock steel one …

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Happy to.

H9 dimensions are: 206mm x 161mm x 32mm (at tallest point).
Typing angle: 3 degrees.

Box roughly 452mm x 222mm x 52mm. Add a little bit to each of those since, those are the interior dimensions. Unlike previous housing boxes of mine, I’m working on making this one capable of holding the housing with and without a keyboard (and keycaps) installed.

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Thanks both for sharing the dimensions, as well as the interesting tidbit about the possibility for the box to double as storage! You may have preemptively solved my problem. At this point - I am unsurprised, but indeed grateful :slight_smile:

I realize now that the board’s dimensions were already on the product website - mea culpa for forgetting about the metric system and searching “inch”.

Quick note - the length you just posted above appears to be exactly half of the actual width!

Oh right. I corrected that error on the GB page but forgot to update it in my notes. Thanks!

I received my FC980M today, not Topre sadly but still, the quality of that board for the price point is not bad at all.

Still trying to source a FC980C. I reached out to mechanicalkeyboards.com to see if they will restock in the future. Amazon had one for sale but price was $309.99, didn’t want to pay the extra $50 but may have to :frowning: .

If anyone is interested in purchasing another FC980C let me know and I will post updates as I get them. I would like to purchase 2 (30g & 45g topre). My reasoning behind purchasing both is that it will be my first foray into the topre world and would like to see what suits me best.

@norbauer I wonder if you are planning to release polycarb Heavy-9 in near future? Thick (top and bottom) frosted polycarb Heavy-9 would look superb! :wink:

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@Ethos: I’m sure there are many people here who would be interested in any information you get from MK regarding further FC980Cs!

Also, a preemptive welcome to the Topre world :slight_smile: Assuming you have the capital, I think it makes sense to do that kind of side-by-side comparison, since you should be able to sell whichever one you like least.

On the topic of domes: as you are probably aware, you can swap domes yourself. You should be able to find stock 45g or 55g domes on mechmarket, as well as aftermarket BKE Redux domes, or the forthcoming Deskeys domes that I believe will be released somewhat soon (check their Discord for more info/updates)!

Not in the near future, but perhaps the further future as a limited special-edition kind of thing. Right now I’m just swamped with normal Heavy-9 production and getting ready to launch the Heavy Grail (and also, personally, moving from SF to LA), so I likely won’t have the bandwidth to take on new production runs other than those for a while. My normal machine shop doesn’t do machining and frosting of polycarb, so that would make it an entirely different project.

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Oh god, I loathe moving. Can’t even imagine moving in either SF or LA to boot. Good luck, sir.

Nice! Welcome to sunny Southern California! I’m in San Diego.

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This dumb coronaviris. My family vacations in San Diego every year. Man, I miss it. Hurts.

Check this: https://ebay.to/35svbO1
They seem to have few fc980c available in store. Good luck! :smile:

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moving down to LA ? Orange County. Noooooo.