Unicomp...

[adhoc]

So, I've been thinking about trying out buckling spring lately...are Unicomp's good or should I look for a used model M instead? Is there a difference between them in terms of feel etc.? Does anybody know what materials they use for their caps?


EDIT: Or should I be rather looking at something like this?
http://www.clickykeyboards.com/index.cf ... /id/578602

[snoopy]

I would try to get a good used Model M from ebay...

[Muirium]

I'd agree with that. Unicomps are expensive to get in Europe. The one retailer I know in the EU is The Keyboard Company here in Britain. They start at £95 (including tax, excluding shipping).

http://www.keyboardco.com/keyboard/ultr ... ge-usb.asp

There's a Model M with Greek legends (!) on ebay just now for half that price buy it now (obviously make a lower offer) with, I expect, similar shipping to you.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/400636371190? ... 1423.l2649

All my buckling spring keyboards are IBM made, used, and fantastic for the pure typing experience. I'd definitely check one out. And the oldies typically have nicer caps than Unicomp. Their dyesub ain't what it used to be.

[adhoc]

Yeh after taxes and shipping these things can be quite expensive, but clickykeyboards has them refurbished like new, so that's a plus...

apart from Unicomp's not looking as good, are there any other drawbacks in comparison to IBM M?

[Compgeke]

I've heard the older USB ones had not-too-great controllers. Probably fixed now, however the person I know that found the issues has disappeared off the face of the earth.

[scottc]

I'm going to go ahead and recommend a pre-owned Model M too. I got mine second-hand on eBay relatively cheaply and it was perfect until family members ruined it with a stack of hard drives and I've been meaning to bolt-mod it ever since. Since I've now got an SSK and Model F, I'll probably fix it and sell it on, but it served me proudly while it was alive.

[M'er Forever]

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[scottc]

I'm going to go ahead and recommend a pre-owned Model M too. I got mine second-hand on eBay relatively cheaply and it was perfect until family members ruined it with a stack of hard drives and I've been meaning to bolt-mod it ever since. Since I've now got an SSK and Model F, I'll probably fix it and sell it on, but it served me proudly while it was alive.

Sorry to hear about the untimely demise of your Model M. Was it damaged by having the stack of hard drives sitting on its keys? If so, how long a period of time was it under that stack? I'm trying to validate my opinion that having keys pressed down continually for a long time can in fact damage a Model M -- notably by the springs acquiring a permanent, compressed "set". Or was the damage of a different nature?

There was previously a slight fracture in the barrel frame but the keyboard felt and worked fine. The extra weight on that area just aggravated that fracture, leading to a few unrecognised keys. It wasn't anything to do with the springs in this instance. I'm not sure how long it was like that for as I only discovered it after being home for several months. Thankfully, I've since come across both an M SSK and Model F so it's not so bad.

[Muirium]

That's the danger with Model Ms (IBM or Unicomp). Sooner or later, you're going to wind up hunting for an SSK! In my case it only took months…

[scottc]

That's the danger with Model Ms (IBM or Unicomp). Sooner or later, you're going to wind up hunting for an SSK! In my case it only took months…

Same here! I got the M in around March of last year, then was away working and without it for the summer and came back to it broken, then had an F by October and SSK by November!

[M'er Forever]

[Account and posts deleted on request]

[adhoc]

Man, now I'm really hyped. This looks something like for me ... http://www.ebay.com/itm/IBM-Model-M-cli ... 43c4508919

I'm not really all that big on scrached and mediocre condition parts, this one looks immaculate! Buuuuut then here's the ultimate question: beam springs or buckling springs? inb4 both...

Jesus, I thought I'll stop looking at other keyboards once I get my HHKB.

[Muirium]

Yeah, like there's ever a "last" keyboard!

Beam springs are a whole other story to buckling spring. The one I've ever tried feels refined, kind of like a Topre in comparison. I really like them. Hard to come by, though. Harder than SSKs, so I've found.

Although they're related, buckling spring and beam spring are profoundly different. And even if I had a beam spring, I know I'd use both. Not least because of how freaking huge beam spring keyboards are!

[scottc]

So the weight was on the keys, right? If so, that can certainly cause problems for a previously-fractured barrel frame. If enough keys were compressed all the way so that their stems were seated fully on their pivot plates, that would tend to lift the barrel frame up from the steel backplate (I think) and induce additional stresses on that barrel frame.

Glad to hear you have some very nice replacements! SSK's are IMO the real gems of the Model M lineup.

Yep, it was indeed. I'm quite proud of my SSK, it's an original IBM one from September '87. All thanks to good Mr. Wheybags who kindly got a load of them from Taobao and was kind enough to give me first pick.

Man, now I'm really hyped. This looks something like for me ... http://www.ebay.com/itm/IBM-Model-M-cli ... 43c4508919

I'm not really all that big on scrached and mediocre condition parts, this one looks immaculate! Buuuuut then here's the ultimate question: beam springs or buckling springs? inb4 both...

Jesus, I thought I'll stop looking at other keyboards once I get my HHKB.

That one definitely looks good, though you're definitely paying for the good condition and repair job. Still, a pre-bolt-modded Model M might be a good investment because it means that all the hard work that a few missing rivets can cause has already been done for you. I'm not sure if I'd pay double the price of a new Unicomp for a pre-owned and repaired M, but I've heard whisperings that the Unicomps feel slightly different (though I'm not sure if this is true) and that their keys aren't quite as nice (which I'm not sure about the truth of either). Regardless, in my case it's slightly different as I have a few sets of IBM keycaps that I could transplant if I needed to.

[Muirium]

Unicomp's recent dyesub legends are definitely not as good as IBM's, or Topre's. I haven't got a Unicomp keyboard, but I have traded some of their caps. The text is fuzzy. They work fine enough, though.

[adhoc]

Well I believe tinnie still has a few SSKs left...but from what I've seen they're in pretty rough condition...finding a nice beam spring keyboard on the other hand is a completely different animal...sigh.

I wonder what will the switch bag do to my wallet, hopefully I will not find alps and other cherry switches (like clears and stuff) interesting.

[Muirium]

Tinnie's got a ton of SSKs left! He's gotten sick of individually shipping them, apparently, and wants someone to buy the lot instead. Mine is one of his earlier hauls. It came with a mixture of single and two-piece caps (the colours match perfectly though), one or two of which had nicked corners; which I swapped for good spares. I clean everything I get, inside and out, like I'm Howard Hughes; and this SSK was in pretty fine shape dirt-wise too. Not immaculate, but not the least bit hard to make that way.

[M'er Forever]

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[scottc]

The SSK that I got from Taobao was in (surprisingly!) excellent condition. 100% one-piece caps too, from the looks of it. Maybe you should jump straight to SSK, I recommend it wholeheartedly! The SSK is so much more comfortable on my desk than a full-size keyboard. I love its size, enough so that I use it over my slightly superior Model F.

[Muirium]

Same here. My XT has better feel, but my SSK is the ergo king.

[adhoc]

Man, now I'm really hyped. This looks something like for me ... http://www.ebay.com/itm/IBM-Model-M-cli ... 43c4508919

I'm not really all that big on scrached and mediocre condition parts, this one looks immaculate! Buuuuut then here's the ultimate question: beam springs or buckling springs? inb4 both...

Jesus, I thought I'll stop looking at other keyboards once I get my HHKB.

The Model M's are almost entirely buckling-spring, although the 71G4644 is a rubber dome version that IBM developed for those who didn't want the loud clicking of a B/S M.

The 1391401 in the eBay listing is indeed a beauty. One of many I'll be listing over the next few years, although the early offerings (my 3rd with this one) are being sold at pretty much a break-even price with the extensive cleaning and bolt modding essentially done for free. Feel free to check my previous 2 seller FB's to see what the first 2 buyers thought of the M's they received from me. In the future I'll need to raise the price for a package like this one, probably to around $269.00 -- although I have no idea if they'll sell at that price. I may wind up taking a huge loss to move them, but I sure hope not. I've got bills to pay, too -- who doesn't?

Oh no mate, I never discussed the price, I have no problem whatsoever paying extra for an immaculate keyboard, especially since you can't really buy a new one. Unicomps' don't look even nearly as good as the model M in my opinion. I just have to think about it a bit, another HHKB for work or maybe buckling/beam spring direction and then there's the SSK ah...the choices. Can't buy everything, though. I'll see.

[M'er Forever]

[Account and posts deleted on request]

[adhoc]

Sounds tempting, would you be so kind to send me a PM with a price you have in mind (for the SSK)? NIB = new in box, right?

Good luck, of course!

[M'er Forever]

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[Muirium]

Give the Topre more time. You'd be surprised how so many of its biggest fans didn't like the first impression either.

(Meanwhile I'd been drooling over them vicarious for ages before I laid hands on a Realforce. It lived up to its reputation for me. Nice clack, wonderfully high activation point, and a sublime force curve. If only I could make my own…)

[adhoc]

Yeh at first I did not like my HHKB at all...now, after a month, I'm loving it. Haven't even thought of taking my mx blue out of the closet.

[M'er Forever]

[Account and posts deleted on request]

[M'er Forever]

[Account and posts deleted on request]

[Muirium]

Topres are quite well known for their "thock". It's that melodious clopping sound you'll hear when you type. Related to, but distinct from, the sound of classic linear switches or modern MX blacks or reds with good caps.

And that's capacitative rubber dome, to you!

[adhoc]

Well Topre "thocks" when the key comes back up, not the other way around as you'd be used to with cherry switches.