Hello everyone from keebtalk, i decided to get into the world of keyboard building after i saw some awesome builds posted on the r/MechanicalKeyboards so i spent the week reading about Keycaps, KeySwitchs, Soldering, lubrification viscosity and etc.
Right now i’m in love with this new discovery and im eager to build a keyboard myself, so i went right up and made my first purchase :
A simple switch tester including some of the most basic switchs, as i mentioned above i live in Brazil , where’s not easy to accquire parts due to shipping costs and High Taxes , but i wont let that stop me.
I’ve been reading a lot about this new hobbie and im looking for some help for fullfiling my desire of building a keyboard. So i got some questions:
How should i start ?
Wich parts should i aquire?
There’s some store that i should check for ?
Is there a starter builder kit ?
Right now for my project i’ve decided only to test some keyswicths first, (probably im going for that cherry blue MX)
I dont fell like souldering anything and rather build things that i can assembly.
I think that you guys might get that a lot, so thanks for the patience.
Now is a great time to get into this community as there are so many options and easier ways to get into your first build.
KBDFans is a good place to start as a one-stop shop for everything you might need for a first board. Be on the lookout for hotswap PCBs as that will allow you to build without any soldering.
Getting a switch tester first was an excellent idea as it will allow you to see what you like before really investing.
See you around and feel free to ask any questions!
Welcome to the site @Negative! @cijanzen’s advice is very good, but in your situation I would suggest getting an affordable hotswap board like a barebones glorious GMMK, enough genuine Cherry plate mount stabilizers to cover the board size you choose (Fullsized will need one 6.25u & seven 2u stabs, TKL & 60% will need one 6.25u & four 2u stabs), & a batch of the switches you find to feel the best. That should give you a very solid starter board that can have the switches changed very easily without having to spend an arm & a leg. Then if you end up really jumping in to the hobby after that you will still have a decent testbed for trying out new switches! I think this would be the best route since your preferences will most likely rapidly change in your first year in this hobby. Anyways I hope to see you around here more often & feel free to PM me if you need any advice!
Great to hear we have another Brazilian interested in Mechanical Keyboards. You may not know this, but we have a rather large community already and we’d love to have you join us.
, but i wont let that stop me.