Quick Rundown on Unicomp color keys?

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Redmaus
Gotta start somewhere

01 Jan 2018, 00:15

Hi, I was thinking of grabbing some of these for my Unsaver: http://www.pckeyboard.com/page/product/CKSET

Does anyone have any experience with these keycaps? I want some red keys but am unsure if the Unicomp ones will go well with high quality one piece XT caps. So I have a couple of questions if anyone would like to answer them.

1. Are these keys two or one piece?
2. Is the printing on these up to par or similar to most Unicomp offerings, which would be faded and distorted?

Thanks. :D

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Aer Fixus

01 Jan 2018, 03:00

From an order I placed a while back for some red single unit keys (before the ANSI color keysets were an option), they were two piece. The multiwide keycaps are most definitely single piece.

For printing, it is clear (not ultra sharp, but as sharp as most of my Model M boards. In some cases, it is much more sharp than my any of my M or F boards). The "issue" I could see someone having with it is that it is not aligned like most Model M lettering. The "Esc" lettering is printed just below the center line when an original IBM "Esc" key is printed dead center or slightly above the center line.

Also, depending on how Ellipse (I assume you are purchasing these "high quality one piece XT caps" from him) decides to make the keys, Model F keys are ever so slightly different from Model M keycaps. It becomes quite apparent [to me] when you pop a set of Model M nub keys onto a Model F board, but I don't imagine most people are that picky. Unicomp sells the Model M style as makes perfect sense.

Also, original Model F and some Model M have a much bolder font than later units. Unicomp sells the thinner font versions that Lexmark used near the end of production, so if Ellipse makes his using a bold font or you use original caps, Unicomp's keys will stand out no matter what.

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Thereminz

01 Jan 2018, 04:04

i bought some green tab keys

mine are two piece

i got them blank cause i heard the font wasn't great...

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Redmaus
Gotta start somewhere

01 Jan 2018, 04:30

Hmm, so looks like I shouldn't rely on Unicomp printing, and just get some red blank keys. Thanks guys :)

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fohat
Elder Messenger

01 Jan 2018, 15:32

I have bought at least 2 of the RGB sets and they were well printed.

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Chyros

01 Jan 2018, 23:45

Fwiw, they did a great job pn the Mopar caps I ordered from the recently.

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OldIsNew

02 Jan 2018, 02:18

fohat wrote: I have bought at least 2 of the RGB sets and they were well printed.
I've also bought the RGB set, as well as a fair number of various colored one and two piece caps, from Unicomp and the printing has been good on all of mine. Very good customer service in my experience as well.

User avatar
Redmaus
Gotta start somewhere

02 Jan 2018, 02:43

Chyros wrote: Fwiw, they did a great job pn the Mopar caps I ordered from the recently.
Mopar? :|

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Elrick

02 Jan 2018, 03:19

Redmaus wrote:
Chyros wrote: Fwiw, they did a great job pn the Mopar caps I ordered from the recently.
Mopar? :|
440ci is the bomb but wait, this is the key-board community who's only fixation is for Model-Ms and Fs :lol: .

Such a shame, I thought maybe this forum has finally gone into relevance - like high performance engines from the past.

Now that is ALWAYS worth collecting ;) .

codemonkeymike

02 Jan 2018, 03:24

Redmaus wrote:
Chyros wrote: Fwiw, they did a great job pn the Mopar caps I ordered from the recently.
Mopar? :|
IBM machines (and keyboards) made for Mopar diagnostic machines, something like a car engine electronic diagnostics. They had some blue keycaps on the function row with custom legends specific to the machine.

User avatar
FXT
XT

02 Jan 2018, 03:45

I ordered a blue printed ANSI color set and the printing wasn't bad but the color was inconsistent among a few of the keys. Not super noticeable, but noticeable enough that I gave them away with my SSK when I sold it.

User avatar
Chyros

02 Jan 2018, 07:25

Redmaus wrote:
Chyros wrote: Fwiw, they did a great job pn the Mopar caps I ordered from the recently.
Mopar? :|
Yeah, the indy SSK with blue keys. I showed a 1388032 I decked out with Unicomp reproductions a month or so ago:

Image

User avatar
wobbled

02 Jan 2018, 17:50

You should buy a replacement LED overlay for that board.

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Chyros

02 Jan 2018, 19:03

wobbled wrote: You should buy a replacement LED overlay for that board.
NO FUCKING WAY am I going to hard-mod one of the first Model Ms ever made xD .

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clickykeyboards

02 Jan 2018, 19:25

Chyros wrote:
wobbled wrote: You should buy a replacement LED overlay for that board.
NO FUCKING WAY am I going to hard-mod one of the first Model Ms ever made xD .
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