I have a harebrained scheme to modify some of Topre’s PBT caps (the Enter and Esc) to work on my AEK. I *think* I’ve worked out a way to transplant the stems, but I’m not sure about the characteristics of PBT as a material.
Are there any dangers I need to watch out for when cutting and sanding the caps? Carcinogenic dust? Staining of clothes and skin? Madness?
How does PBT respond to sanding?
Any idea of the best glue to use to adhere the new stems to the caps?
Pitfalls of Working with PBT Keycaps?
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Charlie_Brown_MX
- Location: United Kingdom
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kbdfr
- The Tiproman
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I don't know and don't even care which plastics my keycaps are made of and use plain Pattex "Sekundenkleber".koralatov wrote:[…] Any idea of the best glue to use to adhere the new stems to the caps?
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damorgue
- Location: Sweden
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It is a thermoplastic, which means that it isn't destroyed when heated beyond the glass transition point or the melting point. It just melts, unlike thermoset plastics which will decay and won't be the same after.
I know that PBT can be sandblasted, I have done that myself, so it should respond similar to sanding. Both are abrasive methods which rely on small pieces sharp grains. The texture achieved will vary ofc. To be frank, if you use a good glue which penetrates the surface a bit, the glue should not have to rely on the mating surfaces. Adhesives work in different ways, and I don't think that the ones which try to adhere and hook on to the surface texture of either surface will work that great in this case. I think you will have better luck with ones designed to fuse the plastics together. I would as someone who has read up more on polymers and can tell you exactly what you want. Perhaps it is unnecessary though, since the forces on the joint will be very small.
I know that PBT can be sandblasted, I have done that myself, so it should respond similar to sanding. Both are abrasive methods which rely on small pieces sharp grains. The texture achieved will vary ofc. To be frank, if you use a good glue which penetrates the surface a bit, the glue should not have to rely on the mating surfaces. Adhesives work in different ways, and I don't think that the ones which try to adhere and hook on to the surface texture of either surface will work that great in this case. I think you will have better luck with ones designed to fuse the plastics together. I would as someone who has read up more on polymers and can tell you exactly what you want. Perhaps it is unnecessary though, since the forces on the joint will be very small.
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Findecanor
- Location: Stockholm, Sweden
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I have filed and sanded PBT. It works really well. Always use a dust mask no matter what.
Are not the AEK key caps PBT from the beginning, except for just the space bar? I think that the AEKII caps are. The profiles of the keys on the AEKII are also quite special, different from those on the Topre.
Are not the AEK key caps PBT from the beginning, except for just the space bar? I think that the AEKII caps are. The profiles of the keys on the AEKII are also quite special, different from those on the Topre.