What did you order or think about ordering?

Today I ordered a set of MCR caps and a set of Dorp’s new-ish plate-mount stabs.

My new frontier: frankenstabbing.

I’m kidding… mostly. Depending on the build, I’m pretty sure some TX stems are going to end up in other stabs.

2 Likes

Anyone else order a Ladybird?

1 Like

Started filling out the form, couldn’t decide on a color, had to do some chores, form closed when I remembered. Welp, there’s always hope for extras. Leaves me more money to spend on some Norbauer gear soon.

1 Like

A prototype case for the FC660C. Probably will be a while before it surfaces again though.

1 Like

Exciting!

So Brutal 60 I ordered at start of this thread arrived Wednesday and I’ve been using it since. It’s a nice case with sound and feel that’s nice and predictable. Highly recommended if you’re looking for the classic top-mount feel.

What I didn’t like was the assembly which was not fast enough to encourage frequent modding. Burger mount and poly-fil are trouble makers. Deeply recessed screws with my habit of messing up screwheads didn’t help. Spacebar was also pretty loud but Sorbothane killed it fairly effectively, perhaps too much.

Going to try removing the burger-mount rubber-rings and replacing poly-fil with tire weights and thin foam cover over the weekend. Also planning to get an AN-C v2 PCB to make use of the unused plate that came with the case. Thinking of reusing Gat. Ink v2 from Polaris for this bc they sounded nicely thocky on Brutal 60 in videos.

Only thing missing is 50g 22mm springs which is still in route bc lighter spring will have a noticeable effect on the acoustics with heavier bottom out. By the time I attended NorCal meetup, I’ve already gotten used to lighter feel so almost every keyboard I tried there felt bizarrely heavy or sluggish, making me wonder how anyone could enjoy typing on such keyboards.

UPDATE: Checked and there just wasn’t enough room for the tire-weights. I could’ve forced it but tire-weights pushing against PCB killed the sound. In the end, I just packed more poly-fil to even out the sound. Left burger-mount as is for another day. At least this sounds way better than sound of gasket-mounted Polaris.

4 Likes

Wasn’t today but I ordered Gateron North Pole switches a few days ago bc I found Oil Kings (which I completely forgot to post about on this thread) to be really nice in-use. It wasn’t at first but the switch proved itself in-use.

Oil King sound was nowhere near my favorites, Cherry Black and NK Cream, but it was distinct and surprisingly pleasant in thocky way. Lower pitched and a bit of bamboo-like echo to it made the sound like raindrops landing on water.

North Pole is supposed to be even lower in pitch so wanted to explore the switch spectrum where I don’t have to be apologetic when I need to type while in a Slack huddle.

3 Likes

You’ll have to let us know what you think when you get them.

Did you use the oil kings stock, or did you modify them? I seem to remember the spring feeling a tad heavy for me.

2 Likes

Yup. Tad heavy for me as well so used 60g TX long springs. I’ve gave up taking switch spring weight into consideration when looking at a switch for purchase. More a matter of luck now.

4 Likes

So I received North Pole switches today and am currently lubing them. Lubing North Pole is going noticeably slower than usual, perhaps because I lubed Oil Kings just last week.

I did test a few I lubed in boards I use regularly and decided not to fill one of the boards with it because it feels and sounds too similar to Oil King. I want each of my board has a distinct feel and sound which means I’ll be giving up one of them get a near duplicate, a bad exchange. Also, it latches sticks out too much which made me wary of risking a hot-swap board by pressing too hard while inserting the switch.

I can say this though. Get either North Pole or Oil King but not both. And North Pole, like Oil King, will need a board with some room under it to bring out the sound. It’s a subtle sound that won’t fully come out in a board with case foam.

UPDATE: Don’t know why but North Pole lubed w/205g0 feels sluggish while Oil King modded exactly same doesn’t. Going to try lighter lube to see if that helps. Of the two, I recommend Oil King over North Pole due to these unexpected issues.

UPDATE2: I did end up filling a board with North Pole switches. And I did find a key difference in sound between North Pole and Oil King which is that North Pole switches around edges of tray-mount board (number row and modifiers) sound flimsy where Oil King do not. Center keys (alphas) sound the same. They’re going back in the bag for sure.

1 Like

So I did end up rebuilding my F2 with the oil kings on an FR4 half plate. And I didn’t love it. I think your observation is spot on when you say you need a little space inside of the case to facilitate Oil Kings sound. Also 65g is just too stiff for me.

So now I’m back to my 62g hyperglides on aluminum. I guess why mess with perfection?

1 Like

True. But then this is why even the most budget-minded of us end up with several boards…

1 Like

@donpark Feels like a good time to explore the wonderful world of Tribosys 3203/3204 on linears.

Just finished testing lighter lubes. From low to high in sluggishness:

North Pole (3203) < Oil King (205g0) << North Pole (3204) < North Pole (205g0)

So, if I want to get closest to Oil King lubed w/205g0 in sluggishness, 3203 is it. It’s higher pitched and rattlely though. It may offer a distinct sound in use. Won’t know til I try.

UPDATE: I lubed with 3203 and result was surprisingly decent. That said, I think North Pole’s mix of materials is a failed ‘experiment’. Oil King is clearly the better option.

2 Likes

Got the last Maja v2 in white and brass plate (PC was OOS). Thinking keycaps, I think I’m gonna use the Space Cadet II on it (or Frankenstein Serika).

This is how I plan to build it, give or take. I don’t have a whole Serika set for it, but it seems I can combine the Serika alphas, which I didn’t use on the U80 with some leftover mods from that set and get the rest of the keys I need from my Astronaught set, which has macro expansion among other stuff, which (all together) cost me as much as a single core Serika set.


Credit

6 Likes

Just ordered KTT Strawberries (my first KTT!) after reading:

and hearing sound tests. It sounds similar to other recent switches like Oil King and North Pole which I found myself enjoying lately. While Oil King hit the spot perfectly, North Pole needed to be mixed with Gateron KS-3 X1 Pro to sculpt the sound to my more liking.

As to vendor, I was able to find 5-pin version at Thock King in-stock and at normal price.

4 Likes

They are so stable and smooth. Another really nice thing about them is the 20mm spring. Pleasantly cushy on the way down without feeling heavy and snappy on the way back up. They were a bit too clacky stock, but with a nice thin coat of 205g0 they sound and feel more sophisticated. I guess I’ll find out how long the lube lasts.

1 Like

Likely due to its long-pole-ish stem. I actually like the sound a bit more defined which that stem should help with. With North Pole, I used Gateron KS-3 X1 Pro’s milky top housing made of PC/Nylon mix to give it more shape. Leftover frankenswitch was a tad too clacky but decent nonetheless.

I have found KTT Rose to also be extremely stable and smooth. They are an amazing budget option.

2 Likes

Not today but several days ago I ordered ‘gray’ Space Cadet set from 21kb. Satisfying sound and feel of thick well-made PBT keycaps have changed my perception such that worn GMK keysets now feel literally creepy which is why I’m getting this instead of GMK Space Cadet.

Only issue was 21kb informed me that ‘gray’ in their 3rd rev keysets slightly purple and offered $5 discount if I don’t cancel which I"ve accepted.

1 Like