Yeah thanx cinch!

Received it, thanks a lot...

Well, I had already tried some Cherry MXes and some ALPS but I'm a long time Model M user, so no big surprise for me besides the Topre.

The two only switches that are spiking my curiosity are: the Topre (and I'm waiting to get my first HHKB Pro 2 in ten days or so) and the Model F.

The Topre mounted on that plexi thinggy is just sweet, well done : )

took the cherry mx's apart to see the springs. now i'll try some combinations.
the clear switch is on the right side.
the brown and black springs have a different metal color, could be copper?
for those curious, the inside of the switch is all the same. only the stem and spring are different.



the longer the spring, the less force is required to press down.

Arrived today. I am very happy. I liked the Monterey, Futaba and KPT the most. I loved that clicky tactile feel.
I also enjoyed the MX blue, M7 and Acer switches.
Thanks misterinterface for creating this sample bags.

pull out

This is such a fantastic initiative! Could I please have three full bags? (I want to leave some switches unharmed and experiment with springs etc in the others.)

Next week I can start invoicing again. Currently away from home...

Mrinterface wrote:

damorgue wrote:Got mine too- I second the earlier suggestion of having a chart with names.

My Model F buckling spring doesn't seem to work though. The spring and everything got here okay. Is the Model F cap supposed to be able to rotate within the cylinder, because it seems to be too small and it won't buckle the spring.

I wish I had gotten the mounted ones. The pre-cut acrylic glass looks very professional

The orientation of the cap is important. It won't work if you insert it in the wrong orientation. I'm currently unable to help since I am in another country .... When I get back I'll solve everybodies questions/problems...

I am currently away too now, but I couldn't get it to buckle. If you insert the cap into the cylinder, is the cap supposed to be so small that it can rotate freely within the cylinder?

If that is normal, then what orientation should the keycap with the hammer as reference? When the cap is oriented normally, should the hammer point downwards, at 6 o'clock?

Forgot to specify this:
Shipping: Outside Europe (Thailand), and it has to have tracking, please.
Of the three bags, I would like two with Model M and one with Model F.
Can't wait!

Mrinterface wrote:Next week I can start invoicing again. Currently away from home...

Fantastic.

My baggie finally arrived this week. I think customs were screwing around with it, coz the tape was broken. Tracking is useless btw - it just said 'unknown' the whole time, which doesn't really add a lot of useful info!

As anticipated, very interesting. My initial thoughts are that assessing the switches on relative merit is not quite straightforward. The first thing I did was grab them all and just squeeze them between thumb and forefinger. I was wearing headphones at the time. Later on, i arranged them on the carpet with no headphones and the overall impression was significantly different. Then i proceeded to put them on a plank of wood in order to mimic a more realistic usage scenario and the impression was different again. I note also the speed of operation has a pronounced effect - a switch that feels well operated slowly and carefully can be quite poor when operated in a quick manner resembling actual typing.

In general, and this is probably nothing new to experienced users, i would say these criteria contribute to the relative switch quality experience, in no particular order:

* smoothness of operation
* time transient and force of the tactile point (if it has one)
* sound of the tactile point
* available travel distance
* position of of the tactile point in relation to travel distance
* springiness

I'm not sure exactly what i mean by that last point. All switches are obviously springy, but some seem to have a more pleasant springiness than others - maybe it's something to do with linearity or otherwise?

I was a little suprised by the effect of wearing headphones and thus blocking the sound. The sound really has quite a substantial effect. This reminds me of a Heston episode where he was investigating the influence of sound on crunch perception. I think he had some sort of rig where the subject wore headphones and was fed a processed signal as they ate samples.

Icarium wrote:Hm...okay so disassembly instructions for some of the rarer keys would be nice. I'm especially talking about the acer ones. I can't see how they are actually hooked up but I don't want to break them when trying to take them apart either.

Second, has anybody figured out a way to mount the F switch?

And the last thing I noticed was that them M switch feels weird and that the lever only moves very little and that it's a curved housing mounted to a flat surface. Are you sure it feels correct?

As far as I know the disassembly of the Acer switches is not possible. If you manage to do so, please post

The Model M switch clickleaf moves only a little bit when pressed. In future next iterations of the Model M sample switch I will try to add a little more room between the mounting plate and the barrel to accommodate for this, since this room is also available in the Model M keyboard. For now this is the best I could do to approximate the feeling of the Model M.

cinch wrote:

Mrinterface wrote:Dampeners :
Firm
Soft
50 A
40 A

are those the ones from WASD and elitekeyboards?

Yes!

damorgue wrote:I am currently away too now, but I couldn't get it to buckle. If you insert the cap into the cylinder, is the cap supposed to be so small that it can rotate freely within the cylinder?

If that is normal, then what orientation should the keycap with the hammer as reference? When the cap is oriented normally, should the hammer point downwards, at 6 o'clock?

Do you still have the problem to make the model F click? Do other people who received the model F spring/clickleaf have the same problem?

I'll add

* stability

to my list. It seems like pretty much all the keys wobble around a fair bit in their casings. There's a lot of factors that go into determining switch quality!

Anyways, out of this selection, i reckon i actually like the futaba. it seems to be the only one with a crisp tactile point that you can actually feel. All the other tactiles seem to have more or less of a bump, although they might make a crisp-sounding click.

shame they're not made anymore and, according to the wiki, they weren't that popular?

Mrinterface wrote:Do you still have the problem to make the model F click? Do other people who received the model F spring/clickleaf have the same problem?

The one i got clicks fine. The hammer doesn't look to move much but that may be normal for all i know.

Returning from vacation, got my hands on the bag in my mailbox! I was too busy to play with all the switches. I've tried the Topre switch, it felt very smooth, didn't fell that mechanical to me.

The Model M buckling spring felt quite nice, but I wondered the same as possum. When I activated the switch, I did hear a clicking sound, but the hammer didn't seem to move, just a tiny bit. Is it intended to move only that much? I thought it should slap the bottom plate (transparent plate in this case).

Sean_Long wrote:The Model M buckling spring felt quite nice, but I wondered the same as possum. When I activated the switch, I did hear a clicking sound, but the hammer didn't seem to move, just a tiny bit. Is it intended to move only that much? I thought it should slap the bottom plate (transparent plate in this case).

Yes, in a real model M/F case, the clickleaf has a little more room and 'clicks' a lot more.
I'm thinking of inserting two pieces of thin sturdy material( plastic? ) on either side of the click leaf to have a more genuine model M experience.

I think mine just arrived today. The Post seems to know me all too well that they delivered the bag to my mom's house because they've been unable to locate my ever-confusing address. Gonna check it out after work.

Gonna start on another batch soon. Expected shipping date : end of August.

So if you are interested in a full bag, please mail me your name and full address, payment preference ( IBAN or PAYPAL ) and shipping method ( tracking or untracked ). I will then forward you the payment details.

Note that I only offer Full bags a.t.m.

I'm also working on tweaking the model M sampler so the click leaf has more room to click. This extra addon will be shipped to every participant who ordered from me ( when it's ready )

So get them while you can!

The bag's with me now. And thanks, Mrinterface, for including two of them wonderful mounting plates in the loot. I'll be leaving the F and Topre disassembled, in the meantime. So much to learn about the all the switches.

I'd like to order a full bag, I'm in the Netherlands.

I'd like to go for the 'Brievenbus doos' Uninsured:
Mail in a box that fits the mailbox within main Europe : 3,40 euros + .50 Euros for the box = 3,90 euros.

Thank you so much for this great initiative!

I'm interested in a full bag too. Shipped to France using 'Brievenbus doos' Uninsured.

I'm in. This is great idea. Most appreciated, Mr Interface

Aah - sorry Mr. Interface - I'd put Paypal as the payment method in the mail but I see IBAN is the preferred method. IBAN works for me to so happy to pay by IBAN.

Possum - very interesting point about how sound affects the perception of the switch. We need to do a double-blind test here!

Aah, Heston. Who'd have thought his influence could stretch to keyboard design

Seconded on the stability front. Am a complete rookie here, but I did notice the wobble/play that's present in MX Browns on the used Compaq board I've got. Maybe there's a trade off between play and the potential for a sticking switch - especially if dust, moisture, pastry flakes etc enter the equation.

Quick Update :

Been rather busy with my daytime job....

Wanted to assemble to Topres and Model Ms today, only to find out I ran out of Senkschraube Kreuzschlitz M1,4x8 to assemble them. They have been ordered, but it means a few more days delay before I can build & ship.

Thanks for the update Mrinterface - looking forward to receiving the fruits of your labours

pull out

ISHYGDDT wrote:How goes it Mrinterface?

Good! Still waiting for the parts...