Simply96, a personal keyboard project

Makerspace Making keyboards
22

I don’t have GMK keyset at hand but I have one nice old and iconic SA set from SP that I’ll install very soon :wink:
I’ll post images once it’s done.

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Yeah that’s fine for me, i have the TKL layout memorized :slight_smile:

Some of the nice looking keycaps don’t have sub legends so you’d only see the number pad legends. For example MDA Big Bang.

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I found a few months ago this beautiful SA 1965 set designed by @thesiscamper and Ratratran, made by Signature Plastics.
Here is the keyboard with these keycaps.

IMG_20190512_173454
IMG_20190512_173454.jpg3280×2460 2.36 MB
IMG_20190512_173532
IMG_20190512_173532.jpg4640×3480 3.1 MB

I have a few tweaks to do on the stabilizers (Costars are a bitch) and it should be fine :wink:

6 Likes
25

This board is so cool, i love it !

26

Hello all,

I’m giving a little update on the project as a post-mortem to describe what went well and what went bad.

The good:

  • The keyboard is on my work desk and is working nicely.
  • The 3 status leds are lit with the right amount of intensity, I was afraid that 10mA per led would be over the top but it is not.
  • The typing feel of the lubed Zelios V2 62g is just amazing, light as MX browns with more tactility.
  • The typing sound is great, bassy with no pings to be heard.
  • The TX layout fits my needs perfectly:
    • I’m gradually getting used to the QWERTY layout.
    • Numpad easy accessed by maintaining CapsLock or can be toggled on/off with NumLock.
  • The weight is about 2.2Kg with the 2mm stainless bottom plate, just enough so that the keyboard will not move on the desk.

The Bad:

  • Costar Stabilizers are a bitch to tune to make them work without having keys sluggish or stucked at the bottom. Once the tuning pain is done they are great with no rattle but I’ll consider Cherry stabs on my next project.
  • Some errors in PCB design that I may fix in future revisions:
    • Misplaced mounting hole.
    • One reversed diode that forced me to unsolder/resolder it backwards.
    • Reset switch on 3 legs only instead of 4. still works but akward and I would consider having only to short 2 pin holes next time. The reset switch do not have much use with QMK.
    • LShift Cherry switch north facing with Costar stab south facing, I had to grind the top housing of one of my Zelios in order not to have the stabilizer wire colliding with it.
  • Silver anonization is meh, I would consider having raw sandblasted aluminium next time and waxing it to protect it from oxidation.

In the end I enjoy typing on it a lot, and I want to build another one for my home desk :smiley:
Most importantly I took a lot of pleasure desiging it and building it, learned a lot in the process.
I want to design another one :stuck_out_tongue:

2 Likes
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This entire thread has been a real treat - thanks for sharing the whole process with us, and congrats on a great end result!

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Thank you @jshufelt!

I follow all your great build logs religiously, please continue writing these very instructive build stories :slight_smile:

1 Like
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Yes, this has been one of the most insightful threads on making your own keyboard from scratch!

1 Like
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Thank you for the kind words :slight_smile: