Mechanical Keyboards

Is there an option in QK Config to latch a key? I have one of the original tri-mode QK75s and I love it, but it only works with QK Config as far as I know. I've been playing some games where you just have to hold forward (W) for a long time and it is hurting my wrist, so I would love to have it where Fn+W just holds the key until I press W again, ideally with or without Fn. I can't find anything in the software for that, though.

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Hi everyone. Every keycap comes with a complimentary sticker. Order 12 keycaps to unlock a special limited edition keycap as our gift to you. Plus, orders of 6 keycaps or more qualify for free shipping. Stand Boy & Spotlight Dock with integrated lighting are available exclusively during this group buy.

This group buy closes on November 4th, 2025—though we may close earlier than expected. Remember: we never restock or reopen sales for any design once it’s gone. Don’t miss out.

Has anyone made a half-decent Tux keycap to replace the ubiquitous Windows key with? I found this 3d-printable one but I can't say I'm crazy about its looks... I mean, look at this:

(To be clear, this is not my keyboard.)

Maybe the way to go is a generic penguin-themed keycap?

So, I don't really have a specific question, more so just looking for any general commentary on or critique of this particular keyboard.

Basically, my old kb broke, been thinking about getting a new one, and this just is the closest to perfect for what I want, that I can find.

Firstly, ability to split, got decent tenting too, at least thats my impression.

Good for ergonomics while sitting, but also I could just run it to / from a nearby couch or bed and be maximum lazy... also I'm kind of crippled and mostly bedridden with support pillows when I'm not doing PT.

But its 2.4/BT/Wired, so... basically pretty versatile within a given location, probably not optimal for frequent transport, but again, I'm currently crippled, so... thats not much of a concern for me at the moment.

I like the color scheme, I like the layout, macro keys, I like the backlighting but not obnoxious level of GAMER RGB.

But... I dunno, I feel like this is somehow too good to be true, there must be something I am overlooking... does anyone see anything amiss about this board, maybe its way too expensive compared to something similar, maybe Royal Kludge has some particular reliability problem I've not heard of?

I guess, beyond that, maybe... what do people think of split keyboards generally?

There do not seem to be too many pre-built, split mechanical boards, at least not around roughly $100.

Just got this puppy second-hand for a reasonable price. A Keychron V5 Max... I would've liked another brand, but these were just the only ones with VIA I could find second-hand nearby.

The plan is to slowly customize it with second-hand switches and keycaps, 'cuz I can't really justify buying new stuff... Financially and environmentally!

Also part of the plan is opening it up to add some foam and do a tape mod... Curious what that'll do. I already stuck some painter's tape on the inside of the space bar, backspace, backward slash and enter keys, which makes a big difference already!

...But man, it's hard to resist the temptation to order something new anyway. Also, does anyone have any tips for making the key with the Windows logo into a little Tux? I found this, but I don't think that would ever look actually pretty...

I think i'm about ready to get this custom board printed, but i thought i'd ask if anyone here is willing to have a look and see if i've made any big mistakes with it. The KiCad files are here on CryptPad, made with version 7 of KiCad.

I know there's no microcontroller. I'm planning to hand wire in a Raspberry Pi Pico that'll sit in the case so i don't have to make room for it on the PCB. That's what the connections at the top of the board and right of the middle pad are for. They're wired into the matrix already. The seven mounting holes around the edges are just screw holes, and the one on the left hand between some keys is for the stem of a trackpoint that'll also be hand wired under the PCB. The switches here are Choc V1, not MX.

Thanks for this and for all the help i've had with this project so far. I couldn't have done it without this community.

I first started on the "Overton130" design several years ago. At first, like most homebrew small-run designs of the time, it did a sandwich cse. I eventually added inserts to close the gaps on the case, but it still didn't feel commercial-grade.

JLCPCB, aside from making the PCBs, has a huge resin printer on offer and I tried a case inspired by the Focus FK-9000 (not shown), but I still wanted something that said "bought" rather than "built" so I spent a fair bit of time in FreeCAD riffing on the nicest industrial design on the 1980s.

Key specs: Box Pale Blues, NovelKeys stabs, G90 Galvanized Steel plate, 3mm thick aluninium sheet bottom. The PCB (4th revision) uses a CH32V305 MCU breakout (it theoretically supports a Teensy++ but that hasn't been tested) and custom firmware. Main caps are AFSA Chocolateur knockoff, top row is MA with home laser charring, and the left block is home-lasered XDA, in the weird dark-orange colour YMDK sells.

I'm making a custom keyboard with a Raspberry Pi Pico as the MCU, and i don't understand what all the different pins are for and how they should be wired up to my key matrix and trackpoint.

My current understanding is that GPIO are normal pins that can be wired to the rows and columns, but what of VBUS, VSYS, 3V3, and all the others that aren't just GPIO or GND? And how should the ground pins be used here?

The schematic currently doesn't include the trackpoint because i'm planning to hand wire it and the MCU to the PCB, so i can put them under the PCB in the case and i don't have to try to fit them onto the board. Is there a better way to connect these that won't require adding a bunch of space to the board to fit the MCU?

When I first brought it year ago as it the first Mechanical keyboard I own, I only just notice it's a US Layout when I tried to use it which I assume because I got it on Amazon UK, it would be in UK Layout. ~~Note to myself, do few minutes of research before buying it online again.~~

I saw on 8BitDo's subreddit of someone contracting customer service if they sell UK-layout keycaps which they said no. I did tried look one identical to it but it both different colour and also in US-Layout.

Before tells me "Just use US Layout", I tried it and still feels unnatural to me. I really don't want my keyboard picking up some dust but if there's isn't any keycap that both looks identical and in UK, I'm considering maybe getting Keychron Keyboard at some point.

Just found this design and I think it's totally awesome. The new super-small switch PG1316M is used to fit 3 rows into such a constrained space.

Wonder if you could even get away with 4 rows of this, especially to somewhat compensate for the lack of thumb keys? I'd personally be interested to try 4 rows even for a more conventional tabletop keyboard.

EDIT: I have accidentally erased the main URL when I tried to upload a picture. Apologies. (Didn't know Lemmy works this way). Here's the main URL for this thing: https://www.reddit.com/r/ErgoMobileComputers/comments/1npnj85/btyp_a_mini_pg1316m_switch_keyboard_for_use_on_a/

I was counting my boards a few weeks ago and realized I had enough to post one every week for the next year. I'm three weeks into this project, and recently discovered an app called Keebuilder. I've been using it to catalog and share my builds as I take images every week. Over the years I've built so many I've forgotten what I built them with, so am using Keebuilder to index that info as I look up my receipts. Soon enough I'll finally have a database of all of my builds, thanks to Keebuilder.

While most people don't spend a lot of time thinking about the keys they tap all day, mechanical keyboard enthusiasts certainly do. As interest in DIY keyboards expands, there are plenty of things to obsess over, such as keycap sets, layout, knobs, and switches. But you have to get deep into the hobby before you realize there's something more important than all that: the stabilizers.

Even if you have the fanciest switches and a monolithic aluminum case, bad stabilizers can make a keyboard feel and sound like garbage. Luckily, there's a growing ecosystem of weirdly fancy stabilizers that can upgrade your typing experience, packing an impressive amount of innovation into a few tiny bits of plastic and metal.

ending:

Still, a good-quality set of stabilizers, properly installed and lubricated, is probably the best upgrade you can make to a mechanical keyboard in spite of tariffs. The duty paid on a $20–30 item won't break the bank, and it really will make your keyboard better.

I do really think the smaller keyboards are cool, and i like that they wouldn't run into my mouse as much. But all my life I've had a numpad. I tried a keyboard without a numpad and lasted about 5 minutes before raging. How did you guys get used to it? Maybe I just need to get better at "top row numbering".

Hi everyone [mini GB]

https://www.jellykey.com/artisan-keycaps/lunar-delicacies

This is a mini group buy open for only 48 hours. Shipping starts after 30 business days. We’ll try to ship earlier to customers in Asia so they can get their orders before the Mid-Autumn Festival.

Each keycap includes one 1u mooncake tray (holds one “mooncake”) like in the preview photos. We also have 2u, 3u, 4u, and 6u sizes. All sizes are $15 each. The keycap trays ship for free when purchased together with keycaps.

got his used low-profile keyboard with cherry mx red switches. apart from one broken key, everything works but - the thing reeks of ciggs. I've washed the keycaps and the case, but as you can see, the switches are caked with the gunk. any advice on what to do, clean (how?) or abandon, as replacing the keys is out of the question. thanks!

• just so you can type it again?

So I finally got these switches intalled in my Rainy75 that I posted about the other day (YushaKobo), and I haven't seena lot posted online about these yet, so I thought I'd add my 10p.

I chose them because I'm on team tactile, not linear, so I needed some tac's to go in the Rainy which only ships with linears. I tried all of the tactiles in the giant switch testers at YushaKobo and this was the one I liked the feel of the best. I'd never heard of them before, but feels best is what feels best, so it wasn't a hard decision.

I think it was the lightest of the tactiles in their testers, but I wouldn't call it light. More of a medium weight IMHO. I'm coming from 65g Zealios R1 and the actuation force is very similar to that. The bottom-out force is a bit lighter, as the Zealios have a cushiony spring that ramps up the resistance, whereas these kinda just collapse after the bump, in a really satisfying way.

The bump I would describe as a medium. Defo more than the "scratchy red" of the old MX Brown. Pretty similar again to the Zealios, but with less pre-travel. It actually kinda reminds me of the HHKB/Topre a little. The bump is right at the top, then smooth, then it collapses to bottom-out. I guess the bump is longer than with topre tho.

The sound, OMFG the sound! It's a LOT deeper than the stock HMX Violets on the Rainy. It sounds soooo much better. I might have a hard time persuading myself to rip out the case foam and add a tape mod to the pcb chasing even deeper sounds, because this already sounds amazing. This was one of the things that put me off getting a full alu board for a long time, so many recordings, and that one I tried at a meetup once upon a time, where they just go tink tink tink and people call that thocky for some reason? With the stock violets this was not thocky at all. Now it is, and I like it!

There's NO wobble. My old Zealio R1's are extremely wobbly so I wanted something that fixed that, but probably everything these days is fine. The stock violet switches also have basically no wobble, but the BigLucky's do indeed have slightly less.

So there it is. Basically a rave review, but I don't really have a lot of modern switches to compare to.

TLDR:

I think the build in clock in my keyboard runs too fast. Can I fix it?

Long:

My first hand-me-down mechanical keyboard died on me few weeks before I started my programming course. Therefore I needed a new one. I am the kind of gal which bought a mechanical keyboard because it makes clicky sounds and it looks cute and obviously my code will be better if I code with a cutesy board (I will not take any criticism here, this is a fact). I am not yet at the level at which I would hand pick each key cap without letters therefore I opted for a pre build. I was a little limited in my choice cause I liked a German keyboard layout.

I am very happy with my RK S98. I set my clock twice already and I it runs constantly faster and will diver overtime from the real time. I didn’t find anyone having the same issue online. Is there a way to fix it? Am I the only one?

I am doing what I can to find this information out myself, whether through experimenting or looking online, but one thing I am struggling to figure out is if my keyboard has hot swappable switches or not. I tried giving the switches a tug with a flat head screwdriver, but I am scared to break it and I don't have a switch puller. They seemed to be coming up on one side, but when I would start working on the other side it would pop back down on the initial side. Also, the switches have a brown "actuation point" with a white "base" and say Outemu on them.

I understand this is a cheap GameStop keyboard, but I got it in pretty nice condition from a thrift store for about $10US. I just needed something to make uni work more comfortable.

Thank you so much for any help! I can send photos if that helps.

It's amazing being able to see and try out so many crazy and interesting keyboards in one place. Stuff that even bigger places like Bic Camera don't have, and that you could never imagine e seeing in a shop back in the UK. I picked up a Rainy75 and a set of WS BigLucky Tactiles to go with it. I'm looking forward to getting home to try it all out for real and get familiar with the setup. I'm also kinda weirded out to not hate the linear switches that the Rainy comes with. Shop guy Olodeh (hope I got your name right bro!) was super helpful, and overall a really positive experience. My favourite thing was the switch testers that show you on screen what each switch is, and some details about it. Some minor disappointments: no Boba U4T in stock today - i was looking forward to trying those; and no Wooting keebs for my gamer son to try out, although they did have another HE board that was above our price range, so at least we got a feel for that one.

I have been hearing about this keyboard recently. And man do I look stupid how I underestimated the low-profile mech keebs.

My first experience with low-profile universe was Keychron K3 back in 2020 or smth. And honestly, I was quite underwhelmed by that thing. It was not a bad keyboard. But the sound and the feel was no where near as good.

The sound is creamy and the feel is on the light side, which I didn't expect I prefer. But the number is the cruel evidence. With my Crush 80 Pro, I was getting 85 at-best. And with Flow Lite, I'm getting over 100 consistently what the hell?! i'm so confused.

This is only one day in and I'm already feeling like this is the true end game keyboard for me.

Btw i got the pink one. And it looks awesome!!

Hi fediverse.

I am searching for an ISO TKL barebones kit, and so far have come up short. I have found the following: nuphy gem80 (which is out of production and they confirm that a new batch is not in plans). Evo80, which seems to be a bit pricier and out of stock. Luminkey80, seems to not support nkey rollover, so I might be better off using my Model M keyboard.

Am I correct that no keyboard with modern comforts like proper layer dampening, hotswap, gasket mount exist in ISO and in TKL?

EDIT: I already own keychron and ducky, but I would like to have a keyboard where it ticks all the boxes. Like the ones I made as examples in the beginning (gem80, evo80, luminkey80)

Thank you in advance.

EDIT 2: I chose a Neo80 from monacokeys. Thank you for the dialogue, guys!

It's a split keyboard in 4 parts and 101 keys, though i could move the number pad and control pad to outside of the thumb keys if making a 4-piece keyboard is too hard or complicated.

Left thumb gets space, control, and super. Right gets space, hyper (just a 3rd layer), and alt. The keys next to T and N are repeat keys. Above Fn is escape and sleep. Above power is compose.

The control pad has cut, copy, paste, open, select all, save, undo, and redo.

I think that's every key i'll need, especially with a compose key and so much extra space available on the hyper layer.

Is there anything i've forgotten to consider? Anything i should know about split keyboards, or custom shapes in general?

More specific question, are 0.5u switches and caps available anywhere for all my small keys? I could replace most of them with full size keys fairly easily, but the 101st key on the number pad would make the layout asymmetrical.