maybe it's too much haha there might be no need to do cherry-picking anymore these days.

right, it's not easy to make stuff that are liked by most. this can only happen once in a while. it's the same cycle for every brand in the market.

edit: back in the days, we had limited choices in terms of key switches. we could only find ways to make what we had better for ourselves, by ourselves. users were thrilled when gateron, kailh, outemu, greetech, and zeal showed up. then, jwk/durock, tecsee, bsun, ttc, sp-star, huano, haimu, etc. appeared one by one, followed by a lot more vendors, big and small. i have lost count after that haha

This post has been edited by horns: Jun 11 2025, 04:49 PM

i did too cherry pick some of the older hmx stuff but Yogurts has been generally great. Some old hmx has issues with overlube, lube pooling, noisy leafs, unstable due to smaller bottom housing..etc

yeah i arrived at this hobby late and remember being overwhelmed by all the switch choices. Now it's so much easier since resources are widely available, they are much cheaper to try, they now practically frankenswitch for you..

i guess it's typical for vendors to get hit from all directions before they can come up with something nice.

it's good that the price of key switches has gone down. this means more users can have fun. all you need is just one good modular board.

This post has been edited by horns: Jun 13 2025, 12:00 AM

luckily i bought tx's long stems for stabilizers. my backspace key got stuck when i tested hmx yogurt with standard stems. this doesn't happen to enter, spacebar and shift keys. everything is fine after the replacement.

i just realized that hmx yogurt is a 5-pin linear that has total key travel of 3.4mm; actuation at 2mm; pc top housing; pom stem; p5 bottom housing (p5 is likely a type of nylon); spring is linear-rated kos spring, 18mm to 22mm depending on bottom-out weights. even if i use it with a plastic, fully-foamed kbd67 lite, it's still loud. level of loudness is like wuque studio's ws jade, just sounded different.

i also updated my kbd67 lite qmk codes to match the latest changes. maybe later i will get a metal case for it haha

--

monsgeek m1 has improved, but slightly lighter. (around 1.75kg now; previous versions are like 1.875kg) v5 has ball-catch locking, like tkd cycle7. it's easier to do full teardown when installing key switches.

by the way, it's a better practice to install key switches by supporting switch sockets with fingers. this can reduce risks of detaching switch sockets from pcb, if too much force is used. (normally you do not need to use much force when you install key switches)

but some of the options now got so many switches hard to keep up and figure whats what

https://aulagear.com/products/aula-f108-pro...=41802068033632

here got this model mkb, and different color theme (colors and the keycap styles). Then they all have different switch tied to that theme. so if the switch u like is on a color scheme u dont like then tough

LEOBOG Reaper Mechanical Switch

LEOBOG Greywood V3 Switch

LEOBOG Nimbus V3 Switch

LEOBOG Reaper Mechanical Switch


when i look at this im like wtf.... i only ask the question, is it linear? tactile? clicky or non clicky? actuation force? what stems? does the mkb have stabilizers?

Last time it used to be simpler with the cherry mechanical switches. it was black, red, blue, brown. Thats all u had to know and you knew which color had what characteristics etc. Now it's just chaos and confusion

these days i think a mkb necessarily needs to be a cherry mx. as long as it's good enough. and i would say most people want it to be a stem where their keycaps can easily be used in other similar stem mkbs, if they are modding it or replacing worned out keycaps.

anyway always check the reviews prior to purchase. they will usually cover everything including switches to see if its suitable for you or not.


This post has been edited by Moogle Stiltzkin: Jun 15 2025, 03:59 AM

it's just a similar concept like old days, e.g., a filco majestouch 2 with cherry mx red/pink/black/brown/blue. back then, cherry mx started the standards (by using stem color as identifier), and every clone followed to avoid confusions.

however, it's hard to tell which is which today, because there are no more defined standards to cover all variants, i.e., users' syok-sendiri becomes manufacturers' syok sendiri. on the other hand, the good news about modular boards is that you can replace key switches yourself rightaway. just get an extra set of key switches that you want and do the replacement. (it's much more convenient than before, i.e., compared to the era of soldered prebuilts) if you buy a board/key switch based on themes, it's another story. to me, themes are just another good-to-have created by vendors to sell stuff. it's not helpful in typing sound/feel.

everytime i look at a new switch, i will look for its technical specifications first. if there is none, i just skip. for a beginner, i will suggest getting a mx style key switch with its technical specifications, and use it as a reference for comparison purposes. (do this for each actuation type)

a technical specification will show you the following about a stock key switch:
1. pin number - 3-pin (plate-mount), 5-pin (pcb-mount); if your pcb has 2 side holes per switch, then you can use 5-pin key switches; (you can cut 2 plastic pins off to make it 3-pin, but 5-pin will provide additional structural support for a modular board, so i don't like doing this)
2. stem (also called plunger) - material, standard/extended/long pole, etc., special features;
3. top housing - material, special features;
4. bottom housing - material, special features;
5. actuation type - linear/tactile/clicky;
6. initial force - this is the force to start key travel;
7. actuation force - this is the force to register a key stroke;
8. bottom-out force - this is the force to get to the bottom of a key switch;
9. pre-travel - this is the distance from resting point to actuation point; normally it's 2mm;
10. total travel - this is the distance from resting point to bottom-out point; conventionally it's 4mm; however these days, there are shorter total travels, e.g., 3.4mm
11. spring - material, spring type (linear-rated, progressive, muti-stage, short, long, etc.);
12. lubrication - factory pre-lubed or not; normally, there are minimal lubration applied to key areas (all key switches are supposed to be pre-lubed), but these days, the amount of lube has increased to promote user-preferred smoothness;
13. special features, e.g., the presence of diffuser plastic for better lighting effects.

usually, a more complete technical specification also provides force-travel diagram. different spring types will have their unique patterns in the diagram.



normally, the parts in bold should be good enough for you to choose a stock switch that you're ok to use it as-is. compared to old days (linear-rated springs only), the new variants are spring weight/type, and total travel (mainly due to long/extended stem poles, or shallower stem well in bottom housing). these are common now, e.g., one key switch with multiple spring weights. in general, you should know your spring range, for different spring types. outside of the spring range (of a particular spring type), you will have issues, e.g., unable to register key strokes randomly, because the initial force is heavier than your usual; your finger joints are now painful after typing for a while; if it's too light, you will have something likkkkkkkkkeeee thisssssssss, and backspace suddenly becomes your good friend, etc. (you can experiment by replacing different spring types in your reference key switches first, to get approximate ideas)

yes, as always, do research first before purchase.

edit: well, there are more but i don't wanna go too far. the above should cover almost everything for key switch purchase for now hehe

This post has been edited by horns: Jun 18 2025, 11:02 AM

Thanks. Will take a look.

exactly. but thats why now i just only look at the main characteristics like i mentioned when buy. otherwise is too confusing

also what may be disappointing is, if you like the mkb color scheme, but their paired switches is not to your liking..... your only option is to by a full set of switch and replace yourself, adding to the cost well i guess there is the option at least, but not everyone is too keen on that.

This post has been edited by Moogle Stiltzkin: Jun 16 2025, 06:18 AM

Guys, I am looking for a custom Keyboard to replace my Corsair K70 Rapidfire, any recommendation for a custom Keyboard that has Corsair like iCue software RGB layer format with pull out switches with a volume knob that cost around RM200-RM500 for full Custom Keyboard?

you can just buy small amounts to test on your board first. Nowdays plenty of local vendor selling newer switches by any amount you want. i kept a small collection of individual switches bcos of this, and while they all looks same-ish each manufacturer designs have diff characters, signature to them. i even have boards with different switches cos i usually just buy just enough for a 60% board (while fitting a tkl for exmaple).

yeah i suspect for certain products, sellers are tied to agreements to sell them as-is. actually this issue will be resolved if a barebone option is offered.

this case shows the importance of technical specifications.

visual wise, besides additional diffuser for lighting in v1.2, there is not much difference between vertex v1 and v1.2. in reality, they are different in many ways.

technical specs for v1:
- actuation type - linear;
- pin number - 5-pin;
- stem - pom, standard pole with spherical tip;
- top housing - pa66;
- bottom housing - pa66;
- initial force - 35gf;
- actuation force - 50gf, +- 10gf;
- bottom-out force - 62gf, +- 10gf;
- pre-travel - 2mm;
- total travel - 4mm;
- spring - 15mm stainless steel linear-rated;
- lubrication - unlubed, prelubed.

technical specs for v1.2:
- actuation type - linear;
- pin number - 5-pin;
- stem - pom, standard pole with flat tip;
- top housing - pa66;
- bottom housing - pa66;
- initial force - 35gf;
- actuation force - 45gf, +- 10gf;
- bottom-out force - 52gf, +- 10gf;
- pre-travel - 2mm;
- total travel - 3.7mm;
- spring - 18mm stainless steel linear-rated long spring; (official vendor said it's 18mm; but many put 15mm, which is wrong, because looking at the forces, it should be using long spring)
- lubrication - prelubed;
- special features - diffuser plastic for lighting;
- manufacturer: jwk

notice that the deviation of forces is +- 10gf. that means there is inconsistency in stock springs. if you want, you can replace them with tx springs (+- 1gf)

this is a brief note for tx springs. (tx is short for tx keyboard)

i like tx springs because of their rich options, https://txkeyboard.com/64/?idx=200 their pricing is more affordable than sprit, and they control the deviation of each spring in a pack to have deviation of +- 1gf. (honestly, not many can achieve this) all tx springs are stainless steel (sus 304).

although they are all linear-rated, as of this writing, their series have grown, from previous s and m to the following:
s - short, 14mm;
m - middle, 15mm; (15mm is a standard spring height in cherry mx era, e.g., stock spring in cherry mx red)
l - long, 16mm;
xl - extra long, 18mm;
uxl - ultra extra long, 22mm

with the wide spring weight range for each series (45g, 50g, 55g, 57g, 60g, 62g, 65g, 67g, 70g, 75g, 80g, 85g, 90g), almost everyone is covered.

from the link above, you can find the initial, actuation, bottom-out forces for each series, and observe the differences between series in the form of graphs. you might also understand that for those key switch options with different spring weights, why vendors typically use 22mm for lighter weights, but 18mm for heavier ones.

bought some of these plate-mount stabilizers to test. (link to pcb-mount version) these are manufactured by designer studio. they have a unique design in stems that secures wire tips, so that they don't make noise, even if the tips are uneven.

for plate-mount stabilizers, i normally just use fl-cmmk's, because i never experience anything bad with it yet. (lubing is the only mod that i apply) plate-mount is good if you would like to do stabilizer maintenance in soldered boards quickly. all you have to do is to desolder one key switch to take out related stabs. (compared to pcb-mount, especially plated builds, it's much more convenient)

however, like well-tuned pcb-mount, i still never have a chance to do maintenance yet

edit: .. and it's actually not bad. i'm just using this unlubed variant as-is. apparently the stem design works well to get rid of ticking sound.

This post has been edited by horns: Jul 2 2025, 11:10 PM

over the years, i bought and keep various lubricants for this hobby, in pure oil/grease forms. visually, only few still look the same in terms of color, i.e., krytox gpl series and similar. (krytox is just a brand name. there are manufacturers that produce similar lubes)

this is mainly due to its inert characteristic that is immuned to chemical reactions. since it also covers various viscousities in the series, krytox gpl is the better lube choice. recent scouting at tb showed that it's very easy to obtain genuine krytox gpl now. it's much easier compared to previous timepoints when only few tb sellers started to package and sell them in much smaller containers, e.g., 10g, 50g, etc.

as for the rest, they have gone through chemical reactions due to storage environments. some have turned brownish. i can still use them for other purposes. (e.g., lubing house-whole parts)

note that for krytox gpl 105, do not be surprised that when you order 50g, you only get 25ml. this is because the density of krytox gpl 105 is about 2g/ml.

Most petroleum based grease will turn brownish when oxidise and becoming darker as it oxidise longer. Once expose to air when use its only possible to delay rapid oxidation by stuffing into airtight bag with anti oxidiser agents (like in preserved food packets). So far I been doing that to preserve my CPU thermal pastes and afaik it works.

And to prolong further can store inside freezer (not fridge as it can create water vapour inside the sealed bag air unless its also vacuumed out).

right.

by the way, petroleum-based lubes usually are not suitable candidates, because they might eventually cause plastic degradations over time. if you applied the lubes on switches and stabilizers, especially those hard-to-find, rare stuff, you are introducing potential risks to them in the long run. it's not worth it imo.

also, if possible, use food-grade lubes only. (for health safety reasons) however, everyone's bottom lines are different. it's really up to the user to decide.

Food grade is basically carbon based, in a way similar to petroleum based. Will faster degrade. More hardier grease would be silicone based. But this will also suffer dry out eventually.

technically, you should read more here. i previously used the same sheet to source for similar products (pure oil/grease) with the same base oil. they were cheaper back then. however, recent price checks made me think we should just stick to krytox gpl

edit: basically krytox gpl is pfpe base oils thickened by ptfe (to become grease)

This post has been edited by horns: Jul 10 2025, 09:56 PM

is there krytox alternative for lubing?
i have dielectric grease with random no brand one and work perfectly fine (i forgot where i bought it)