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The originals use rather exotic hall effect switches. There are decent (if expensive) replica keycaps around, but they're not in the same profile etc.
by frostburg 8y ago
The originals use rather exotic hall effect switches. There are decent (if expensive) replica keycaps around, but they're not in the same profile etc.
- rbanffy 8y agoThe switches, which is what drives most of the "feel" of the keyboard, must have been standard parts (the older ones were, AFAIK, Honeywell) and I would be surprised there aren't any manufacturers of similar parts making them now. We can try at least to characterize the action (force x displacement curve, contact point, audible feedback) of the switches to find something similar. As for the keycaps, 3D printing will only get better. We may need to wait a couple years, but we'll have them.
- cbm-vic-20 8y agoThe keyboard fanatics over at https://reddit.com/r/mechanicalkeyboards https://reddit.com/r/mechanicalkeyboards can probably hook you up. The "space cadet" keyboard is revered there.
- leoc 8y agoThis is more Deskthority https://deskthority.net/ https://deskthority.net/ country I'd think. Thomas Ran has YouTube videos on the Space Cadet keyboard https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDozftThFMw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDozftThFMw and several other Hall-effect specimens.
- rbanffy 8y agoThomas's videos are awesome. Anyone who touches a keyboard regularly should watch.
- frostburg 8y agoThere are a few modern hall effect keyboards, but I don't know if the feel is similar to the old Honeywells. For the keycaps, there is probably enough interest (given the amount of replica sets) to just cast a run of something extremely close to the originals with the usual mold injection techniques.
- scottlocklin 8y agoMan they really don't make them like they used to. I thought my cherry keyboards were 'leet.