Ooh, lovely keyboard I always wanted one. Keyacaps are perfect on it.
There’s actually a dawn coloured one on eBay currently. It is missing some of the little buttons though ![]()
Ooh, lovely keyboard I always wanted one. Keyacaps are perfect on it.
There’s actually a dawn coloured one on eBay currently. It is missing some of the little buttons though ![]()
The little buttons are actually just decorative pins you can change out and not actual pressable buttons.
Oh yeah, I know, it’s just something that would bug me a tiny bit. Just enough to not buy it which to be honest is probably for the best money wise.
Though you never know…
It looks good ASF. I’ll see myself out…
But fr I always think that when I pull out my AFSA caps. I think they knew what they were doing.
I 3D printed a promicro holder for the TG3 keyboard that I have been using. The controller used to be held in with zip ties. I printed it in flexible PLA so that it could bend around the case and stay in place.
No problem - I just have to figure out how to send it to you - I tried a DM but .stl files are not approved attachments
No worries, and no rush. Mine currently has the Pro Micro buried somewhere towards the middle and is semi-permanently wired, so it’s not like it’s urgent. I could DM my email or, I know there’s a few folks on the Keyboard Institute Discord who have these TG3/Siemens boards, so if you’re the type to post to Printables or MakerWorld, I’m sure a few people would be interested.
Out of curiosity, are you still using the original caps? I actually like the PBT DCS, but that darned spacebar makes me very happy I do, because it seriously limits one’s options.
Yeah - I am still using the original keycaps and switches - I just swapped the springs to lighter ones and filled the bottom of the case with silicone
Ahh, yeah, I think I remember that conversation now. Still a neat little board, but quirky as hell.
Working on building another HMKB75 board today. But I’m posting to show a small defect I’ve found on a few of the new Swagkeys Knight V4 stabilizers.
I noticed one side of the housing was not properly seated into the PCB. That usually means the top part that hooks under isn’t fully inserted. But that wasn’t the case here. Upon further inspection, I found a bump of extra material that was interfering.
You can see a small bump by the screw insert. It’s very small and may not make a difference but I did find it on two of the ten housings in this batch. Just an FYI if you’re using them
I had already declared these were my favorite and go-to choice for stabilizers. Hope this is isolated
Well I’m learning a lot of interesting things today. I also just found out the Milkyway Hash Line keycaps collide before fully bottoming out with Cherry MX housings (glarsses/purples) on the 3rd row (home row). I’m going to have to find different keycaps, use shorter travel switches, or add shims.
All done.
HMKB75 with BSUN Green Arrow linears. Sounds phenomenal. Green arrows need a spring swap IMO but I’m running them stock. Slightly lighter than I am used to.
I’ve already ordered another set of these switches bc I like them that much. Med-deep clack, stable, smooth, and clean sounding.
Paired with MW Hash Line caps for the industrial look
Also, I’m down to the end of the spool on my solder. Checked on my Amazon history for curiosity. That’s spool number 7 down since the beginning of this journey. Luckily #8 is here and ready to use ![]()
I picked up some Grape Smoothies and am really impressed. Gateron has redesigned their dampeners, and I’m a big fan. Some crusty pics, getting used to a new phone:
Instead of the double-shot way copying Cherry, they now use a shaped band. It performs much better. Smooth, tight, and a proper resting position! Probably the most noise-free stock silent tactile in my collection! I have it in a tester comparing directly to Boba U4s, Silent Bluish Whites, Outemu Lemons, Gateron Silent Browns, and Daydreamers - there might be individual aspects about some I prefer, but overall I think I have a new favorite!
wait… is that band somehow attached, or can you pull it off? I remember durock using this band design and it was a nightmare b/c with friction it would start to rotate inside the housing and it would eventually bind the switch.
It looks shaped, like not just a uniform band - I haven’t tried to remove the dampener yet but it looks like it’s being held in its orientation. I think it does some stabilizing in the rail, too.
Update; confirmed my suspicions with a bunch of photos of the Grape Smoothies:
There’s plenty of lubrication around all the parts, and they’re shaped such that the band rests reliably in-place while being easy to remove and replace.
Edit: looking closely at the photos, I think the band is even not-quite perfectly in-place to begin with, but because of how it’s shaped / designed it doesn’t really matter or have any negative performance impact. After reassembly I made sure to fully seat the band and while it looks nice and tidy I don’t think it made a noticeable difference, which I think speaks to the elegance of the design.
With the dampening material covering not just impact but friction surfaces, the switch has a lovely consistency to its feel.
How is this issue still happening in this modern day?! ![]()
I was really surprised, but when I think about it, there are so many switches on the market today that don’t have traditional stems like cherry. It makes sense that this may fall through the cracks if you’re used to the overload of new switches from places like gateron, hmx, bsun, and haimu that are now tending to use shorter travel stems with longer poles. So maybe they did not think to test these keycaps on more traditional switches. Also, I’m very sensitive to feel and sound of my keyboards, so I notice any small aberration. Keycap/switch collision has always been a niche issue because a lot of people truly can’t tell it’s happening.
I ended up using BSUN Green arrow switches, which don’t have an issue with these keycaps. It was honestly worth it to accommodate these interesting keycaps. I’ve read more about them. The bottom dark beige color is PBT. The outer layer is a semi-transparent ABS. The result is the sound of PBT with the feel of ABS. There are absolutely unique in sound and feel from anything I’ve tried before, and I really like them. For this set, the UV markings are printed inbetween layers. I’m still not sure if they are printed on the underside of the ABS or the top of the PBT. I would think it’s the latter.
The texture is very smooth but not dry. Also, unlike other smooth ABS or even acrylic keycaps, the moisture on your fingertips doesn’t cause and drag friction or “sticktion” between your fingers and the plastic. (SA keycaps even sometimes do this, unfortunately)
I like them so much I went searching for more colorways with this process. I would like to own a set that has more contrast/readability. Unless you’re in the right lighting or looking from just the right angle, you cannot read the legends on these caps. Not an issue for most of my use cases, but when I go to fill in forms with numbers I still need to look down sometimes to ensure accuracy.
It looks like the Jade Dragon and Unmanned Playground sets both use this same process (without the UV printed embellishments) I may pick up those sets, but I’m not positive I have a spot for them in my wallet at this time. Lots of things piquing my interest lately.
I’ve found this trend quite odd. I definitely understand and acknowledge that preferences vary widely in the hobby, but one of the things I always hear mentioned as a drawback of low profile switches is reduced travel.
Not trying to make any real point here as I love choc v1s as well as Cherry linears. Just thinking out loud.