These cheap(ish) SA doubleahots on Drop

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15

That’s a pretty good idea
I thought I would have to cut the stem of then glue a new one

16

a keycap stem might snap off in the keycap… maybe take something like this metal lego axel and see if you can file it down to the mx mount size…

https://www.ebay.com/c/1955066835

17

@omni96 its a bit extensive but for a buddy one time we burrowed out the stem fitting on the bottom of the cap then filled with hot plastic and pushed the stem (from the switch) in there and fit it back onto the switch so it lined up. it will basically make the switch only useable with that cap but once it was on the board it looked like nothing had ever happened. Again annoying to do, but my OCD hurts seeing that and i would be upset.

18

Hey. You could use modeling clay for that, right? It would be plastic and then harden if you leave it a day or two? Could pull it off that way later on and remake it for another switch if needed

19

I’ll wait for a proper response
(for now I got a response about them being busy)

Otherwise I’ll use epoxy to glue on a stem from a switch I don’t use

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20

This is how I added center stems on my 6u spacebars. Should be similar in your case just that I’m thinking is going to be a PITA to cut the bad stem.

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21

I would use a dremel to ground it down

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22

That should work great :slight_smile: good luck with the mod ! P.S: take it easy and gradually, the plastic may melt and make some hard to remove traces or deform the keycap, so don’t go on the stem all the way down in one round.

23

I wonder if you could use a thin metal wire sufficiently heated to cut right through the stem(s) cleanly.

24

Great idea!
I might give it a try

25

Oh man I was really thinking about buying this set, I am a little glad I did not, too many issues for me. Would rather stick to Signature Plastics for SA, they have a few QC issues, but nothing to that extent.

26

So now drop are offering me a 20$ partial refund
TBH I’m afraid I’d mess up the key and be left with nothing

27

Did you try the hot water method ?

28

They don’t like to really fix problems. They pull this partial refund trash all the time.

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29

I might
A bit afraid it’ll deform more than just the stem

30

Yepp, which is against their terms of service

31

Didn’t work

32

Dremel and plastic welder, might be your best option.

How I would do it.

  1. Cut out the stem from one of the switches, that you don’t use. Try to keep the key surface intact, so there is a hole only on one side of the stem. Note: you could also leave some of the keycap surface as a flange, to increase the bonding surface area.

  2. Use a carbide bit, to grind the twisted stem out of the N key.

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  3. Use a hobby knife, to score the top of the donor stem and the inside of the keycap.

  4. Place the donor stem on the desired key switch.

  5. Clean with Isopropyl Alcohol

  6. Mix up a pea sized amount of plastic welder (Permetex, is my go to brand. I’ve used it on PlayStation 3 controllers and Sony Headphones, which I think are made of ABS, among other things.)

  7. Apply a small amount to the mating surface donor stem (Don’t want to over do it , because you could risk it leaking out and getting in the key switch, then the position the key cap on the donor stem. Note: The key cap will probably sit a little higher then normal.

  8. Remove the keycap, and shave the stem down, with the carbide bit or buy twisting it on a pice of sand paper, until the keycap sits at the same height as the other keycaps. Note: If the hole in the stem doesn’t go deep enough, you may need to surgically remove some of the material. A small diamond bit, drill bit, or carbide bit’s would probably do the trick.

Hope that helps.

So after rereading this, your going to spend a lot more then $20 to fix that one keycap, if you don’t already have the tools / bits… :frowning:

If I was in your boat, didn’t like to tinker, and or didn’t already having the tools, I’d probably just take a unused key from that row, and use it in place of the N…

1 Like
33

What’s the texture like? SP are that nice shiny plastic, and while I like Maxkey quality I find the plastic a big textured and dull-ish. I’m looking for some colors that aren’t available from SP right now and I want to give Domikey a shot. Are the keys smooth and bright, or more rough/dull like Maxkey?

34

Domikey’s SA were a very thin / soft mat finish, like the SP SA keycaps, IIRC.