Springs!! Mx Ergo Clear Mod

[fart_toast]

Hey Everyone, first of all Happy New Year!

I have some clears on order from 7bit and plan to perform the ergo clear mod on my ISO poker 2.

I was thinking about the springs....

Typically Mx Red, Blue, or Brown springs are used for the mod...this is good as the poker 2 has stock Mx Brown switches. However, I was reading that sometimes the ergo clear mod can have issues with the switch returning upward after a keystroke with these weaker springs!

(Also, I though there was a difference between Brown and Blue springs 45-55g ... so surely that'd make a difference! In this case why is there generic advice to use either Brown, Blue, or Red springs!)

So, i'm in the UK and heard about custom Korean springs. I can't find the gold ones anywhere but saw that Originative stock some springs that have good reputation.

People seem to use the 62g springs BUT on their site here:

http://www.originativeco.com/collection ... ts/springs

it seems that the 62g springs are arguably the same/extremely similar to normal MX Light springs (blue/brown switch i presume)

I want something lighter than the stock clear springs ...obviously..or there's no need for the mod. Would 65g springs be a good choice....they would be lighter than the stock springs but give me a bit more weight than stock mx brown springs and also may give me some headroom to not worry so much about switches not returning upward after the mod.


Finally, should I sticker while i'm at it....it's only a few bucks to add them to the order!

Why does the colour of the stickers matter....surely you will never see them inside the switch?!

Please advise!

Fart_toast

[xbb]

Happy New Year!

I have modded only one keyboard (mx blue spring + used sliders) but I can tell you that I had that problem with the switch not returning upward.
However after a while it was ok and after 2+ years of usage is still ok.

Stickers? I never used them. Are they really that useful?

[fart_toast]

Yeh, I don't really know what the benefits of stickering are!

Well if the brown springs that are currently stock on my poker are 44g and you used 55g blue springs and got the switch returning problem....i'm probably more likely to encounter the issue myself! Worrying! :p

[bazh]

the only reason I put stickers in switches is that it makes the switch looks cooler :v

[Broadmonkey]

The years old discussion about whether blue, brown and red springs are identical. Personally I believe they are exactly the same, and thus wouldn't worry about which one i'd use for such a mod.

But 62g springs from Originative is not the same as blue/brown/red springs, they are a tad heavier in feel which is why they are better suited for this mod. 65g is again noticeable heavier, not by much, but they are.

Stickers is to prevent the top of the switch housing to move around and should therefore give a more stable switch, but I don't know about that, I wouldn't bother, use the time to lube the switches instead, it'll make a much bigger impact!

[IvanIvanovich]

Yes blue/brown/red springs are the same. The differences in the force diagrams come from the differences in the stem designs. Obviously a linear stem have less resistance on actuation than tactile, which in turn has less than click type.
Personally I would give them a spin stock first. If you do decide they are just too heavy then I would go for the brown springs since you already have them. If you find those too light, have reset problem then go for black spring or one of custom weight.

[fart_toast]

Yeh I actually really like browns now. I didn't so much at the time of ordering the swtiches. Since i've put the money up already, I may aswell try something out. Not so interested in Greens so Whites or Clears were the obvious choice.

If I am to try the clears with the stock heavy springs then i'm going to have to desolder them again after already removing the stock browns to put ergo clears in! So much work...just hope the PCB will stand up to the multiple soldering sessions!

As I like browns now, I feel that a slightly more tactile feel would be perfect and a slightly stronger spring would be doable...but fear that the stock clear spring will be too much!

The more I delve into finding the perfect keyboard setup....the more I am getting scared that the topre HHKB endgame keyboard tales may be true! ahhhhhhhhh!

I'm probably going to stick with the clears in some form (stock or ergo) on the poker 2 with some nice PBT and o-rings. Fingers crossed. This will be my daily work keyboard, so I will spend a lot of time on it.

/*********************************************************************************************************************************/
Also, if I choose not to replace the LED's in after re-soldering....do I have to put jumper wires in place or can the two LED solder points be left un-connected and the keyboard remain functional?
/*********************************************************************************************************************************/

[fart_toast]

Also, yeh I will probably lube them to try and prevent the "non-return" issue as best a possible. Is it dumb to use some ptfe based lube say for bicycles?

If I do go for some 65g springs from Originative then it'd make sense to bung some lube in the order....thick lube or thin lube though? That is the question?

[IvanIvanovich]

Don't put the plate back on until you know for certain. You can try out multiple configuration by just opening the top and switching around internals. Then you won't have to desolder/solder multiple times. It's not like the plate is actually required for any reason. Poker 2 still use PCB mount switch unless I am mistaken.

[fart_toast]

poker 2 is plate mounted (IIRC it is the original poker which was PCB mounted only?) ...but I think the poker 2 PCB also has the switch support holes in it....so you can use PCB mounted switches...but they'd also be plate mounted.

[hallettj]

The more I delve into finding the perfect keyboard setup....the more I am getting scared that the topre HHKB endgame keyboard tales may be true! ahhhhhhhhh!

I saw that you posted pictures of a HHKB on Reddit. Have your fears come to pass?

I'm expecting an ErgoDox with Clear switches from Massdrop, and I thought it might be a good time to try an Ergo Clear mod. If you ended up doing the mod yourself, I would be interested to hear about the results.