Northgate Omnikey 101 SKCM White Alps

[Hypersphere]

@fohat: I now have two Northgate Omnikey 101 keyboards plus the extra case top that you sent to me. I've painted two of the three case tops, so now I have one black, one burgundy red, and one unpainted.

[Hypersphere]

UPDATE: On one of the Northgates, I have opened all the switches and sonicated the upper housings, sliders, springs, and click leaves. While reassembling into the keyboard, I lubed the slider rails and the the click-leaf side of the sliders. This treatment has eliminated or greatly reduced any tendency for binding when pressing the larger keys in the extreme upper right-hand corner of the keycap. The switches now feel extremely smooth with just the right amount of tactile and auditory feedback. However, I still notice occasional minor chattering on the D key; I intend to try using contact cleaner to see if this will solve the problem.

Today I finished some relatively minor modifications of a Leading Edge DC-3014 with SKCM blue Alps that included painting the case burgundy red, installing an internal USB converter and panel-mount micro-USB connector, and changing the keycaps (dye-sub PBT alphas from a Granite SGI; other keys black ABS from Tai-Hao and Matias). In addition, the spacebar switch now has a slider and tactile leaf from a Matias Quiet switch, and I've put thin urethane foam pads on the plate where the stabilizer inserts on the spacebar make contact with the plate.

Overall, I now have a slight preference for the Northgate Omnikey 101 with white Alps over the LE DC-3014 with blue Alps. This is in keeping with a comment from Chyros that a good Alps board can outperform a bad blue Alps board. Indeed, I would say that there is an overlap in performance between white Alps and blue Alps keyboards. White Alps have apparently undergone some significant changes over time, and early-generation white Alps in excellent condition can rival and even surpass the sound and feel of blue Alps, depending upon the condition of the blue Alps.

To me, the Omni 101 with white Alps feels more solid and consistent across the board than the DC-3014 with blue Alps, but this assessment is influenced not only by the switches but also by differences in keycaps and overall construction.

[XMIT]

Thanks for this! Remind me, which lubricant did you use?

I put the blue Alps switches from the DC-2014 I had, into a KBparadise V80. I need to sonicate those switches too, as well as maybe tweaking the click leaves and/or contacts to make sure that click happens just before actuation and not just after.

The Omnikey 101 is indeed a really well built board. I'm hoping to find some time to do similar modifications to mine. Maybe after the Hall effect group buy is started.

[Chyros]

Btw, there should be a relevant video to this out in a few weeks .

[Hypersphere]

@XMIT: If you have some spare blue Alps switches, I recommend comparing their sound and feel with or without sonication. It is rumored that Alps treated their blue switches with some sort of magic dry lubricant, and if any of this still remains on your switches, it would be removed by sonicating them. Thus, it is possible that thoroughly cleaning a blue switch could have a detrimental effect.

The lube that I used on my white Alps switches is SuperLube 51010 oil.

@Chyros: We are all looking forward to your forthcoming video(s), but please do not rush on our account. Take all the time you need. And (ahem) please finish your dissertation!

[XMIT]

I'd be really surprised if "magic dry lubricant" is substantially different from a dry PTFE spray such as Super Lube 11016.

I'm familiar with Super Lube 51010, I used it to make my RC930 a little smoother. All the 51xxx series are the same formulation, 51010 comes with a precision applicator. http://www.super-lube.com/synthetic-oil ... zp-56.html

[andrewjoy]

There is something in them better PTFE lubes and in the ALPS lube that keeps them ..... lubed ? I use cheap PTFE spray on my mouse and mouse pad ( WD40 brand but tis not WD40 its PTFE) and it works wonders but wears out in a few weeks and needs a new coating.

So its not just PTFE there is something in it to maintain its slippyness.

[Hypersphere]

I've started a new thread on hot-swap issues I am having with Northgate Omnikey 101 keyboards. If you haven't seen this thread, please take a look and let me know of any suggestions you might have:

workshop-f7/hot-swap-keyboard-issues-t14759.html

Thanks!

[Hypersphere]

Orihalcon made some internal USB Soarer's converters for me for the Northgate Omnikey 101, and I installed one of them today. It works beautifully.

The converter has a header than connects to the pins on the keyboard's PCB:

Orihalcon-NG-Omni101-converter-header.jpg (23.72 KiB) Viewed 2736 times

There is plenty of room in the Northgate case beneath the PCB for the converter and a DataPro micro-USB panel-mount connector with cable.

DataPro_uUSB.jpg (19.83 KiB) Viewed 2736 times

http://www.datapro.net/products/usb-mic ... e-m-f.html

The cable plugs into the converter and provides strain relief for the micro-USB connector on the converter.

The panel-mount connector aligns perfectly with the holes that are already drilled in the case for the original mini-DIN6 connector, so it is not necessary to drill new holes. The dimensions on the drawing below are in mm, and the connector is rotated 90 degrees for installation.

micro-USB-Connector.JPG (13.11 KiB) Viewed 2736 times

I use a micro-USB cable with a right-angle connector to connect the keyboard to a USB hub and KM switch. I've programmed the Orihalcon/Soarer Converter to give me some HHKB touches, such as swapping Backslash and Backspace, mapping Right Ctrl as Fn, and setting up a cursor diamond despite the redundant arrow keys. Moreover, the USB converter should take care of the hot-swap issues. Thus far, everything is working as expected. This was my easiest converter and panel-mount connector installation yet -- the Northgate chassis is a joy to work with.

omni101black1.jpg (259.43 KiB) Viewed 2736 times

The cleaned and lubed white Alps switches are smooth with just the right amount of crisp tactility and clickiness for me, and the Northgate build imparts a feeling of reassuring solidity. I really like this keyboard!