Sharp PA1000H - typewriter turned keyboard

kelvinhall05 · 01 Oct 2020, 14:28

Hi guys. Been a while since I updated this thread, but I have an opportunity to try again, so I might as well post more stuff here.

DT user ntv242 has asked me to proxy him another Sharp but he only wants the switches and keycaps. His typewriter was in slightly better shape than mine was, but anyway...he gets switches and keycaps, I get the rest of the typewriter, which means I get another chance at the case! I now have proper tools (most importantly for this project, a belt sander and bandsaw) and I know how I should do it, so hopefully I can get it this time. I may also try to get the original display working instead of my aftermarket one, as I kept running into issue after issue with it that I believe is due to the controller it uses but can't really confirm.

I'm a bit busy with school so updates will likely be slow, but I'll probably do the rough cuts and some sanding this weekend, and also look into having the original display working. Hopefully it'll turn out better this time lol

ntv242ver2 · 01 Oct 2020, 20:56

Hi, me dead. Here is new me. Thanks for the shoutout

kelvinhall05 · 01 Oct 2020, 21:21

Couldn't wait til weekend. Got the first cuts done. Now working on sanding and aligning stuff.

: IMG_20201001_145246.jpg (2.82 MiB) Viewed 950 times

kelvinhall05 · 16 Oct 2020, 14:27

Been a while since I've updated this thread, mostly because I've been busy with school and all the free time I have, I get rained out so I can't work on it (I work on my back patio lol). Anyway, I finished cutting, sanding, and glueing the pieces together sometime in the last two weeks, and it looks pretty decent. Far from perfect, but much better than last time.

Spoiler:

The next step is to modify the inside of the bottom case and get the keyboard module in. I've pulled everything out of the old Sharp so I just have to put it into this new one. I would love to be able to use the original display but sadly I don't think that's gonna happen; I have doubts about it communicating and having the same pinout as a modern HD44780U display. I might have to buy a new display either way as it seems the "HD44780U compatible" display isn't actually compatible and won't display any characters. I will experiment more before dropping $40 on a new LCD and $15 on an Adafruit backpack, but...ouch.