3 ms·

KeyV2: A Parametric Mechanical Keycap Library

58 points by privong 7y ago

weinzierl 7y ago
Very cool. Is it realistic to make a whole keyboard with this? What would be the price point for a complete 60%, let's say?
- dahx4Eev 7y ago
  That depends on the material and the type of printing. The lowest cost would probably be FDM PLA. MFJ nylon or SLA resin will result in a more usable surface. A resin cast version seems to be the best quality at the DIY level.
  - weinzierl 7y ago
    For the lowest cost alternative what is a reasonable estimate? Are we talking about USD 1 per key or maybe USD 5 or more? I guess I could find out if I tried to place an order at one of the mentioned services but it wasn't obvious to me how to do that without first signing up, actually customizing a set of keycaps and starting the order process.
    - jupp0r 7y ago
      Resin is in the order of magnitude of $30 per kg, so I'd assume the materials cost would be < $10 if you already have a printer.
donpark 7y ago
Very cool although I don't think this will be more usable than normal ortholinear keyboards. Key problem is that we don't precisely know where our hands are relative to the keyboard so sculpting keycap surfaces to be close to finger tip will create more confusion than help.
- cjbprime 7y ago
  I think the point of the sample image is to display many possible sculpts, not to say that this image is a good keyboard to use. i.e. pick your favorite sculpt and use it on an entire keyboard or an entire row. Maybe I'm wrong though!
boomskats 7y ago
This is cool. Those who find it interesting might also enjoy Matt Adereth’s Dactyl [0] project. Similar idea, it’s a parameterised geometry 3d printable ergodox/kinesis style ortho board on steroids. I imagine the two would play quite nicely together. [0] https://github.com/adereth/dactyl-keyboard https://github.com/adereth/dactyl-keyboard
rowanG077 7y ago
Sucks that it's openscad that doesn't support real CAD files like step. It only can output mesh data. If you haven't seen it yet I find cadquery[1] superior in every way. [1] https://github.com/CadQuery/cadquery https://github.com/CadQuery/cadquery

58 points by privong 7y ago

Very cool. Is it realistic to make a whole keyboard with this? What would be the price point for a complete 60%, let's say?

dahx4Eev 7y ago
That depends on the material and the type of printing. The lowest cost would probably be FDM PLA. MFJ nylon or SLA resin will result in a more usable surface. A resin cast version seems to be the best quality at the DIY level.
- weinzierl 7y ago
  For the lowest cost alternative what is a reasonable estimate? Are we talking about USD 1 per key or maybe USD 5 or more? I guess I could find out if I tried to place an order at one of the mentioned services but it wasn't obvious to me how to do that without first signing up, actually customizing a set of keycaps and starting the order process.
  - jupp0r 7y ago
    Resin is in the order of magnitude of $30 per kg, so I'd assume the materials cost would be < $10 if you already have a printer.

donpark 7y ago

Very cool although I don't think this will be more usable than normal ortholinear keyboards. Key problem is that we don't precisely know where our hands are relative to the keyboard so sculpting keycap surfaces to be close to finger tip will create more confusion than help.

cjbprime 7y ago
I think the point of the sample image is to display many possible sculpts, not to say that this image is a good keyboard to use. i.e. pick your favorite sculpt and use it on an entire keyboard or an entire row. Maybe I'm wrong though!

boomskats 7y ago

This is cool. Those who find it interesting might also enjoy Matt Adereth’s Dactyl [0] project. Similar idea, it’s a parameterised geometry 3d printable ergodox/kinesis style ortho board on steroids. I imagine the two would play quite nicely together. [0] https://github.com/adereth/dactyl-keyboard https://github.com/adereth/dactyl-keyboard

rowanG077 7y ago

Sucks that it's openscad that doesn't support real CAD files like step. It only can output mesh data. If you haven't seen it yet I find cadquery[1] superior in every way. [1] https://github.com/CadQuery/cadquery https://github.com/CadQuery/cadquery