c/custom-keyboard-builds

Shoutout to the guy who told me to try a hair dryer on my sticky stabilizers

I was about to throw out a whole set of Cherry stabs after they got gummy from too much lube, but warming them up for 30 seconds with a hair dryer on low let me wipe the excess right off. What's your go-to fix for a lube mistake?

Switched from a stock plate to a custom cut brass one and the sound is night and day

My 65% build used a basic steel plate for about 8 months and it always felt a bit hollow and pingy. I got a hand-cut brass plate from a local shop in Austin last month and the board now has a deep, solid thock with zero metallic ring. Is brass just the best material for plates or am I missing something better?

Warning: don't skimp on stabilizer lube

Just spent 4 hours trying to fix a rattly spacebar on my new build because I thought the included factory lube would be enough. Had to completely disassemble the board twice to re-lube the stabilizer wires properly. Anyone have a go-to lube brand they swear by for this?

My $80 hot swap socket kit was a total waste of money

I bought a Mill-Max 0305 socket kit thinking it would let me test switches easily, but the install was a huge pain and I ruined two PCBs trying to get them straight. On the other hand, a friend swears by them and says they're perfect for his frequent switch changes. Has anyone else had a good or bad experience with these things?

A friend told me my stabilizers sounded like a bag of marbles, so I spent a weekend on the holee mod.

I'm convinced most people are over-lubing their stabilizers

I keep seeing builds with mushy spacebars because there's so much dielectric grease in the housings. A tiny dot on the wire ends and a thin coat on the plastic is all you need, anything more kills the feel. How do you guys measure your lube to avoid this?

Found out the original IBM Model M buckling spring force is way higher than I thought

I was reading an old spec sheet from the IBM archives and it said the actuation force is 70 grams. That's almost double what most modern tactile switches use. I always thought my vintage board felt heavy but seeing that number explained it. Has anyone else measured the force on their old Model M or similar buckling spring boards?

Why does nobody talk about the real cost of a 'budget' custom build?

Three years ago, I built my first board with a cheap kit from a group buy, thinking I'd save cash. The case was thin, the PCB had a weird layout, and the stabilizers were awful. Last month, I finally added it all up: after buying new stabs, better switches, and a decent keycap set to fix it, I spent more than if I'd just bought a nicer kit to start. But my friend says the tinkering and fixing is the whole point, even if it costs more. What's your take? Is a budget build a smart start or a money trap?

My barber asked me why I needed 12 different keyboards and I had no good answer.

My cousin swore by using a hairdryer to heat shrink tubing and I thought he was nuts

He told me to just hold it about six inches away and move it slowly, said it worked better than a heat gun for small jobs. Tried it last week on a coiled cable for my 60% build and it actually gave me a smoother finish with no scorch marks. What's the weirdest tool you've used for a keyboard project that actually worked?

A guy at the meetup in Austin said something about keycaps that stuck with me

He was showing off his build, and when I asked about the keycaps, he just said, 'I don't buy sets anymore, I just hunt for the one perfect key for each spot.' He had a board full of mismatched caps, each one he really liked. It happened last month, and I've been thinking about it ever since. Has anyone else tried building a board like that, one key at a time?

Stopped by the library in Bellingham and saw a vintage IBM Model M on the front desk

The librarian said it's been there since 1992 and they just keep fixing the keycaps. Anyone know a good source for replacement buckling springs?

Wrapping my own USB-C cable for my first build saved me $40 and taught me a ton.

I was frustrated by the high cost of custom coiled cables, so I bought a DIY kit from Zap Cables and, after watching a few tutorials, found that using a cheap heat gun from Harbor Freight and taking my time with the paracord sleeve made the process way easier than I expected. Anyone have tips for getting a really tight coil without kinking the wire?

PSA: My new $180 keyboard PCB just fried itself the first time I plugged it in.

Happened two nights ago. Was doing a hotswap build with some silent switches. Heard a pop, smelled that awful burnt electronics smell. Board is totally dead. Tried a different cable, different port, nothing. Feels like I just lit that money on fire. Anyone know a good place to get a board fixed, or is it just a paperweight now?

Shoutout to the guy who told me to lube my stabilizers

My board sounded like a bag of marbles for about two months, but after sitting down with a brush and some 205g0 last night, it's dead silent and feels way more solid. What other small tweaks have made a huge difference in your builds?

My first build had a wobbly spacebar that drove me nuts for a month

I built my first 65% keyboard last spring and just used the stabilizers that came with the kit. The spacebar rattled so much I almost gave up on the hobby. After watching a video from Taeha Types, I learned about clipping, lubing, and holee modding the stabs. I spent an hour on just the spacebar stabilizer last weekend and now it's completely silent. Has anyone else found a specific mod that saved a build for them?

Just learned that a single 60% keyboard PCB can have over 1,000 solder points from a factory tour video on YouTube. That's INSANE detail for something we just type on.

TIL my cheap hot swap sockets can't handle more than 3 switch changes before they give up

Bought a $40 'universal' plate file for my first build and it was a total waste.

I needed to file down some stabilizer cutouts on a polycarbonate plate, and the cheap file just gummed up and skipped across the surface. Ended up ruining the plate and had to order a new one, which set me back another $25. What's a good tool for clean hand filing on plastic plates that won't break the bank?

I used to think lubing every single switch spring was pointless

Someone on here told me I was wasting time and that the ping difference was minimal, so I skipped it on my last build. The board sounds way more consistent now, and I saved like two hours. Anyone else find some 'essential' steps aren't worth it?

DAE remember that one meetup in Austin where someone showed you a better way to lube switches?

I was struggling with my Gateron Yellows at the Austin meetup last month when a builder told me to use a small paintbrush for the stem sides, which cut my lubing time down by like 30% and gave a way more even coat.

I keep seeing people say you need to lube every single switch spring

I watched a build stream from a maker in Portland who said bag lubing springs is fine for most builds, but some folks in the comments insisted you have to hand lube each one. The difference in sound is tiny unless you're going for a super specific sound profile. Has anyone actually done a side by side test with the same switch type?

Spent $45 on a 'keyboard vacuum' and it just blew dust everywhere

Couldn't decide on a plate material for my new 60% case

I was building a board in a new aluminum case and had to pick between a brass plate for a heavier sound or a polycarbonate one for more flex. I went with the brass and it sounds great, but it feels a bit stiff to type on. Anyone have a good middle ground material they like?

Question about stabilizer tuning for my first 75% build

I tried the holee mod with cheap band-aids on my Durock V2s, but the keys still felt sticky after a week. Switched to using the XHT-BDZ grease my friend gave me, and the spacebar is now dead silent and smooth. Is this grease just that much better, or did I mess up the band-aid cut the first time?