These Linjar switches appear to be similar to the Gateron switches with the black housing, but the plastic used here is blue instead of black. The tops are also blue to match the bottoms.
In terms of smoothness, they seem to be similar to the Gateron linears with black housings, perhaps a bit smoother. They are definitely smoother than the Gateron switches that have mily housings, as well as the Gateron black bottom / milky top switches. To my fingers, they feel just barely less smooth than Gateron ink switches, which in turn are less smooth than Tealios. At this price point though, I think the smoothness is pretty great.
The wobble seems to be low on these. The stem has about the usual amount of play within the switch top opening, but the switch tops fit very tightly onto the bottom housing, so there is no perceptible play or wobble of the switch top. If I try to make the switch top move, I can’t, it’s that tight. This should mean they won’t need the extra step of applying switch films to reduce wobble.
The plastic of the lower housing feels like the typical glass-filled nylon that black Cherry and Gateron housings are made of. The tops feel like they are a bit softer, so they might just be nylon without the glass fibers.
The stems appear identical to Gateron yellow stems. Nothing unusual here.
The spring is a standard-length spring rated for 65g bottom-out force. It appears to be the same length as a Sprit 65g spring. This is interesting if you are a fan of Gateron Yellow switches, because those have a longer spring, which increases the preload and makes the force curve flatter. These don’t have that spring, so make no mistake: These are not blue Gateron yellows; the bottom out force is about the same, but the actuation force will be lower than that of Gateron yellows.
The spring is gold plated and seems of good quality. I can’t detect any crunching or scraping noise coming from the spring. However, it does ping very loudly. You really MUST lube the springs of these switches, otherwise the switch ping can be quite extreme. Here is a demonstration:
As for the sound of the switch, I think it is similar to Cherry MX black switches, except slightly lower pitched and a bit quieter.
The leaf in these switches feels like it’s lightly-sprung, and doesn’t make as much noise as some of the tactile leaves Gateron uses such as in Aliaz or v2 Zealios.
I tried lubricating these switches (housing, top, spring, and stem) with Christo Lube MCG 129, a thick PTFE fluorine grease. The result was outstanding: Feels perfectly smooth, sounds cleaner and quieter, ping goes away if you coat the spring with grease or oil.
Overall, I would say these are quite a good value in a switch and a very safe bet. Considering that the next smoother linear I can think of is Gateron Inks which cost about twice as much, I think you can’t really go wrong with these switches. My only caveat would be to say please make sure that you lube your springs if you don’t want to hear pinging / ringing sounds!
Additionally, here is a comparison of Gateron Inks vs. Linjars (Ink left, Linjar right)