Here you go:
Did you do the work? Nice!
I'm not too familiar with mechanical keyboards... which model is pictured here? I really like this one.
I have no idea which board this is, I just used it to illustrate the chaos theory keycap set. So the keycaps are separate. That specific type of board is called a 60%, you'll find lots of options if you google "60% keyboard". I could recommend the Ducky One 2 SF.
I did some searching and I think it might be a "KBDFans KBD67". Not sure if that's considered good or not.Yeah, I did it all myself. My memory is not that great these days but I don't remember it being particularly difficult. The bottom opened with an odd sized socket driver which I didn't seem to have on hand. I took all the labels and logos off carefully with a blowdryer and craft blade. I just disassembled everything, let all the plastic soak in some detergent and gave it (lots) of scrubbing with a coarse brush. There were times it was sitting in a humid garage for a few years so there was a lot of caked on stuff. The membranes and PCB were gently cleaned with some DI water and alcohol and everything was reassembled after the mod. I did the mod by hand with a thin tap as I did not have any sort of drill press and didn't want to risk breaking things since the bracket that needed to be modded was already quite brittle.
That one is great too, I almost considered doing a build in that one myself. Very similar to the two I mentioned above.Thanks... this is a hole I'll probably regret diving into
I loved the little red button. Now most laptops with that worked in a crappy manner. Thinkpads worked great with that little red button. Didn't use the trackpad or a mouse with those little red buttons for the mouse. They were just right in their actuation.Yeah, I did it all myself. My memory is not that great these days but I don't remember it being particularly difficult. The bottom opened with an odd sized socket driver which I didn't seem to have on hand. I took all the labels and logos off carefully with a blowdryer and craft blade. I just disassembled everything, let all the plastic soak in some detergent and gave it (lots) of scrubbing with a coarse brush. There were times it was sitting in a humid garage for a few years so there was a lot of caked on stuff. The membranes and PCB were gently cleaned with some DI water and alcohol and everything was reassembled after the mod. I did the mod by hand with a thin tap as I did not have any sort of drill press and didn't want to risk breaking things since the bracket that needed to be modded was already quite brittle.
I have been using thinkpads for a long time and they are definitely the best you can use in terms of laptop keyboards. Lenovo recently released a wireless desktop version that would make laptop users feel quite at home. At only $99 it's probably a way better option than any of the Apple branded keyboards if someone likes lower travel, flat keyboards.
There are also interesting "spiritual successors" from an Taiwanese company called tex:
As I am away overseas from home I have not used my Model M for a while, so I've been considering buying the newer Mini M from unicomp as I miss the "pings":
There is also a guy making "brand new" custom model F keyboards which are even more robust than the Model M in terms of the chassis (metal) but the form factor is not for everyone: https://www.modelfkeyboards.com/
Or alternatively I might get the Keychron Q1 QMK or GMMK Pro, both of these have knobs which I like, although I've never been a massive fan of cherry-style switches. I am waiting to see if they release a wireless version of these, then I might pick it up as a "travel" keyboard. I never much understood the point of super small keyboards like 60% and 65% etc, 75% as virtually the same footprint and weight but you get a full row of function keys and more navigation keys, so much more functionality for a small loss in dimension. I think the sweet spot for a chopped down keyboard is definitely 75% like the keychron and gmmk models I mentioned previously, anything smaller just becomes annoying and at much larger you might as well just be using a full keyboard.
One interesting story about this keyboard, it saved me from great harm (or worse) as a child. My neighbour had a poorly-trained pitbull that was supposed to be a guard dog, who thought I was attacking their owner when we were horsing around and playing some rough tag as children. The dog latched around my calf from behind and started shaking around violently. Fortuitously, the old 486 and this keyboard that was replaced with a shiny new Dell P3 system was sitting in the garage and was within reach. This nearly 6 pound keyboard and all its ABS/PVC glory was put to swift use. You can still see the gouches in the chassis which I tried my best to smooth out: right edge of IBM logo, top margin above F3, right of the minus key on keypad, and left of F9. There are some more on the back. They don't look that bad but it is definitely less conspicuous in person.
I do appreciate the thinkpad laptop keyboards. But I have owned two of the Thinkpad freestanding, desktop keyboards -- wired versions first with the old keyboard layout (up to T520 era) and the new one (T530 and later). I was disappointed with construction and with high-impact keystrokes that discouraged long typing sessions. I once again hoped for better with the newer, wireless version, but waited until I had a chance to try it before buying it, and was again disappointed. Their only virtue was access to trackpoint for fans of the pointing stick (I am one), but they feel cheesy, bounce your fingers back toward you as you type, and pretty quickly start to fall apart.Yeah, I did it all myself. My memory is not that great these days but I don't remember it being particularly difficult. The bottom opened with an odd sized socket driver which I didn't seem to have on hand. I took all the labels and logos off carefully with a blowdryer and craft blade. I just disassembled everything, let all the plastic soak in some detergent and gave it (lots) of scrubbing with a coarse brush. There were times it was sitting in a humid garage for a few years so there was a lot of caked on stuff. The membranes and PCB were gently cleaned with some DI water and alcohol and everything was reassembled after the mod. I did the mod by hand with a thin tap as I did not have any sort of drill press and didn't want to risk breaking things since the bracket that needed to be modded was already quite brittle.
I have been using thinkpads for a long time and they are definitely the best you can use in terms of laptop keyboards. Lenovo recently released a wireless desktop version that would make laptop users feel quite at home. At only $99 it's probably a way better option than any of the Apple branded keyboards if someone likes lower travel, flat keyboards.
There are also interesting "spiritual successors" from an Taiwanese company called tex:
As I am away overseas from home I have not used my Model M for a while, so I've been considering buying the newer Mini M from unicomp as I miss the "pings":
There is also a guy making "brand new" custom model F keyboards which are even more robust than the Model M in terms of the chassis (metal) but the form factor is not for everyone: https://www.modelfkeyboards.com/
Or alternatively I might get the Keychron Q1 QMK or GMMK Pro, both of these have knobs which I like, although I've never been a massive fan of cherry-style switches. I am waiting to see if they release a wireless version of these, then I might pick it up as a "travel" keyboard. I never much understood the point of super small keyboards like 60% and 65% etc, 75% as virtually the same footprint and weight but you get a full row of function keys and more navigation keys, so much more functionality for a small loss in dimension. I think the sweet spot for a chopped down keyboard is definitely 75% like the keychron and gmmk models I mentioned previously, anything smaller just becomes annoying and at much larger you might as well just be using a full keyboard.
