I’m still trying to get a hold of the engineers for an update and have been for a few days. This is pretty typical of them unfortunately. I’ll keep pushing.
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Hi @norbauer, I like the cases that you have designed! Just wondering will there be a day you will be designing boards that comes with PCB for MX switches? 
The Heavy-9 works with the FC980M (MX switch) board. You can still pick one up on his website, too
The norbaforce also fit some MX boards
I don’t own an HHKB, but this project makes me want one
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Anyone else getting more and more excited as we get closer and closer to an eventual GB? 
There has been a smattering of recent comments here, but I wanted to seed the discussion with a few talking points.
Are there any finishes you’re particularly excited about? K2 seems like it will be offered as it is represented in the initial post, and also present in a picture showing it alongside Aperture and VHS. Seems Veracity Steel is in, as well as Sunset Blvd! I love the way my Matte Retro Norbaforce feels, and I’m excited about another offering that has that same “touch”.
For those either without an HHKB yet, or who have both a Pro2 and Pro3 - which one are you thinking of getting the case for? As @norbauer mentions, the stock Pro3 sounds higher pitched due to having thinner slider housings - however since the Heavy Grail plate has the thickness of Pro2 housings, it might “fix” a Pro3 to make it sound deeper. Does this mean a Pro3 (with its full programmability, and PBT spacebar) slammed into a Heavy Grail is indeed the best of both worlds?!
Any keycap considerations? Stock caps are high quality dyesub PBT of course. There is also the allure of a HiPro HHKB—as showcased in the Sunset Blvd picture above (which I believe has a mix of HEKB01 and 104UG-HiPro caps).
So many permutations/combinations! I’m enjoying thinking through the options, myself 
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I’m probably going to throw my Pro2 inside my Heavy grail since that’s been more recently lubed, had silencing rings installed (Deskeys #3) , and Hipro keycaps .
I have a HHKB Hybrid Type S which I already think is a pretty great board as it is. Honestly I think there are definite improvements in the new generation of HHKBs compared to the older generation. The improvement for my Type S wouldn’t be as big as my Pro2. Also the Pro2 would be way more hype for the Heavy Grail considering it has HiPro Keycaps
My HHKB Pro 2
https://imgur.com/C9eWRNC
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I feel the same, excited and shaking 
I’m currently preparing myself (financially) for the Veracity Steel version. I know already it will stay with me for my entire life. I’ll probably use two stock keycap sets – mixed together, white ones with legends + white blanks, however – will test the black version as well 
This construction will be based on the Hybrid Type-S, that I love already.
The nice thing about the Heavy Grail is that you know you’re supporting a fantastic guy (someone with a real passion), and this – accelerates emotions even more.
At least for me
I honestly can’t wait!
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What improvements have you found between pro 2’s and the newer generation of hhkb’s? I only recently got a pro 2, and honestly can’t foresee going back to mx switches. Topre is amazing, and I’m extremely excited for this group buy.
For those who participated in previous norbauer projects, are there any notes or opinions on the finishes? Any favorites? Right now, I’d say I’m partial to the black since the photos of it make the finish look amazing, a really pristine matte (maybe a hint of satin?). But I could be convinced to try something less conservative. The white, veracity steel, and sunset blvd look nice.
Finally, it seems like it’s not in the cards for the foreseeable future, but polycarb would be amazing. I’d love to hear how an hhkb with a pc case sounds! Probably would even be a top choice. Even though I’m all in for the “heavy” grail, personally I don’t mind somewhat lighter cases- easier to move around the desk!
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I picked up a pro 2 for this. The ability to fully reprogram the layout offered by the 3rd party controllers was the deciding factor for that.
As for finish, I am currently leaning towards the aperture grey as it looks really good with the stock black caps that I have. It’s very hard to feel completely decided though as all of the finishes seen on this and also previous Norbauer projects are all so good. I have been really feeling the K2 recently.
Question for those who’ve tried them: Do the the kbd fans topre/mx sliders alter the feel significantly? I’m not looking for a stock feel, already put bke lights and deskeys #3 rings on, I’m just wondering if they add overall negative flavor to the board. I’ve pretty much given up trying to hunt down novatouch sliders.
I had the KBDfans sliders before chancing upon Novatouch sliders on r/MM. They were significantly inferior to stock in my opinion. I might be a drama llama, but I could not stop fussing with the keys with how wobbly they were-- the number row especially was horrid. The stems are very slightly turned as well, making them less than ideal.
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Ah that’s very good to know. One of the things that I have found really amazing about the way the hhkb feels is how sturdy, for lack of a better word, the key press is.
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Less stabilizer rattle, a PBT spacebar, rubber feet on the bottom to prevent sliding around . A slightly improved build quality (Hard to describe, it just feels a bit more solid). USB-C port. IMO Smoother out of the box as well.
Personally I think for the Heavy Grail, I’d want to go for the veracity steel finish if available. Polycarb in the future would be pretty unqiue as well!
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Do the HiPro Keycaps only fit the Pro2 for some reason?
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No, they should fit on any standard topre stem, the difficulty these days is finding them hehe
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I was going to go the Hi-Pro route, but I have a US layout Hi Pro and couldn’t find a JP layout to fill the gaps. So, I left the Hi Pro on the Norbaforce, and used Sony News keys instead.
I’m sitting at two Norbauer cases, and this will likely be my third. Norbatouch is probably my favorite sounding and feel, but I’ve always preferred HHKB layout, so definitely getting stoked for this one. Hoping it’ll close the gap on the Norbatouch and let me use my favorite board.
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I just spoke with the mold engineer, and other than the fact that it’ll be another 1.5 weeks or so before I get the modified plate sample, it was all good news. They did some pretty radical re-engineering of the mold, including adding several vents and expanding the gate, which should address all the minor issues I pointed out in my sample feedback. It’s all going much slower than I’d like, but that’s how it usually goes and at least now we have a clear path to the last thing I need before being ready to run the GB. Here’s to hoping it happens as planned.
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On the topic of Hi-Pro, maybe there’ll be a chance for a missing keys kit for the HHKB? Don’t really want to have to harvest a 1.75u right shift from a perfectly good JP Hipro board
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What is everyone planning regarding lubing their heavy grail? I have been led to believe that the HHKB does come lubed from the factory, however I assume that the grail plate will not be. I’ve seen a lot of conflicting opinions on how best to lube the HHKB and to this point my method has been “not at all” but it seems like that will have to change.
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Only the stabilizers come lubed by Topre, not the sliders themselves. On an HHKB, including Heavy Grail, I quite like switches lightly lubed with Krytox. I’ll post a video before the GB showing the sound differences.
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