IBM Model F 122 "restored" and bolt-modded
- Wazrach
- Location: Tyne and Wear, United Kingdom
- Main mouse: Razer Viper 8KHz/ Viper Mini
- Favorite switch: Buckling springs
- DT Pro Member: -
Just thought I'd share a few pictures of this fantastic board. The barrel frame was sanded and primed, but I didn't bother painting it as I think the greyish-white actually looks nice. I cleaned the case and keycaps thoroughly and changed the two-piece alphas to some Wheelwriter keycaps with nifty sublegends. I also had a custom metallic gold badge made by TCE Ltd. (http://www.tce.uk.com/)
I knew straight away when I got it a month ago that the foam was screwed. I enjoyed typing on it for the weekend before I committed to the job. I made four different mats until I could finally reassemble the keyboard. I used this 2mm neoprene: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BLACK-NEOPRE ... 2749.l2649
I drilled through 6 clear of the clear PCB areas shown in Fohat's guide: https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=48786.0 I then added M3 screws and nuts, tightening them right down initially. After 48 hours, I loosened all of them, especially the ones near the three latching tabs in the middle of the assembly. You don't want the screws to be too tight, as this deadens the key feel and sound from my experience. You want to pull the plates back into their natural curvature, or just tight enough so the barrels do not wobble.
Typing test: https://youtu.be/Yd3vwp_thcI
I knew straight away when I got it a month ago that the foam was screwed. I enjoyed typing on it for the weekend before I committed to the job. I made four different mats until I could finally reassemble the keyboard. I used this 2mm neoprene: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BLACK-NEOPRE ... 2749.l2649
I drilled through 6 clear of the clear PCB areas shown in Fohat's guide: https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=48786.0 I then added M3 screws and nuts, tightening them right down initially. After 48 hours, I loosened all of them, especially the ones near the three latching tabs in the middle of the assembly. You don't want the screws to be too tight, as this deadens the key feel and sound from my experience. You want to pull the plates back into their natural curvature, or just tight enough so the barrels do not wobble.
Typing test: https://youtu.be/Yd3vwp_thcI
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Last edited by Wazrach on 05 Jun 2019, 17:58, edited 1 time in total.
- //gainsborough
- ALPSの日常
- Location: United States
- Main keyboard: some kind of alps keyboard
- Favorite switch: clk: SKCM blue, lin: SKCL cream, tac: SKCM cream
- DT Pro Member: 0188
Probably the nicest F122 I've ever seen. Very nice work, dude!
- Wazrach
- Location: Tyne and Wear, United Kingdom
- Main mouse: Razer Viper 8KHz/ Viper Mini
- Favorite switch: Buckling springs
- DT Pro Member: -
Dooooon't. There are people who have actually bothered to paint their keyboards. xP//gainsborough wrote: ↑05 Jun 2019, 17:37Probably the nicest F122 I've ever seen. Very nice work, dude!
- Wazrach
- Location: Tyne and Wear, United Kingdom
- Main mouse: Razer Viper 8KHz/ Viper Mini
- Favorite switch: Buckling springs
- DT Pro Member: -
Thanks anyway. Also, I think yours sounds fantastic. I've listened to your typing demo one-too-many times, I must admit...//gainsborough wrote: ↑05 Jun 2019, 17:37Probably the nicest F122 I've ever seen. Very nice work, dude!
Do you still have yours? Did you need to change the foam?
- //gainsborough
- ALPSの日常
- Location: United States
- Main keyboard: some kind of alps keyboard
- Favorite switch: clk: SKCM blue, lin: SKCL cream, tac: SKCM cream
- DT Pro Member: 0188
I have actually purged myself of all model Fs =( Sold them off to fund other alps projects or buy other alps boards. Admittedly, I do really miss them (the f122 in particular) but when I had them I always found myself wanting to use an alps keyboard after a few days of using cap. BS. I've been slowly going down the Topre rabbit hole also...
When I first entered the hobby I thought to myself "any serious keyboard enthusiast should have a type of buckling spring keyboard," and now look at me.... Hahaha.
When I first entered the hobby I thought to myself "any serious keyboard enthusiast should have a type of buckling spring keyboard," and now look at me.... Hahaha.
Also, this is probably the reason I like yours so much. Not over the top! Just a very elegantly remade badge and some sick caps!
- Wazrach
- Location: Tyne and Wear, United Kingdom
- Main mouse: Razer Viper 8KHz/ Viper Mini
- Favorite switch: Buckling springs
- DT Pro Member: -
I'm the opposite! I can't use anything else for too long without wanting to go back to a Model F!//gainsborough wrote: ↑05 Jun 2019, 19:06I have actually purged myself of all model Fs =( Sold them off to fund other alps projects or buy other alps boards. Admittedly, I do really miss them (the f122 in particular) but when I had them I always found myself wanting to use an alps keyboard after a few days of using cap. BS. I've been slowly going down the Topre rabbit hole also...
When I first entered the hobby I thought to myself "any serious keyboard enthusiast should have a type of buckling spring keyboard," and now look at me.... Hahaha.
Also, this is probably the reason I like yours so much. Not over the top! Just a very elegantly remade badge and some sick caps!
Thank you for your kind words though. :3
- depletedvespene
- Location: Chile
- Main keyboard: IBM Model F122
- Main mouse: Logitech G700s
- Favorite switch: buckling spring
- DT Pro Member: 0224
- Contact:
Damn. My F122 doesn't look nearly as nice. I'm gonna give it a much needed cleaning before I rotate it back into the daily driver position. I think I'll compensate by putting a red Atari logo in the Esc position.
Also, I said it elsewhere and I'll say it here too:
Dat badge... (I'd take the quotes out of «"Battleship"», though - YMWSV)
Also, I said it elsewhere and I'll say it here too:
Dat badge... (I'd take the quotes out of «"Battleship"», though - YMWSV)
- Wazrach
- Location: Tyne and Wear, United Kingdom
- Main mouse: Razer Viper 8KHz/ Viper Mini
- Favorite switch: Buckling springs
- DT Pro Member: -
Hehe.. thanks again! I had a quick look at that link you sent me. Really digging the red sublegends. How rare are they? Never seen them on an M before.depletedvespene wrote: ↑05 Jun 2019, 21:30Damn. My F122 doesn't look nearly as nice. I'm gonna give it a much needed cleaning before I rotate it back into the daily driver position. I think I'll compensate by putting a red Atari logo in the Esc position.
Also, I said it elsewhere and I'll say it here too:
Dat badge... (I'd take the quotes out of «"Battleship"», though - YMWSV)
- depletedvespene
- Location: Chile
- Main keyboard: IBM Model F122
- Main mouse: Logitech G700s
- Favorite switch: buckling spring
- DT Pro Member: 0224
- Contact:
Those are the APL keycaps.
- Redmaus
- Gotta start somewhere
- Location: Near Dallas, Texas
- Main keyboard: Unsaver | 3276 | Kingsaver
- Main mouse: Kensington Slimblade
- Favorite switch: Capacitative Buckling Spring
- DT Pro Member: -
- Contact:
Those are some fine ass keycaps.
- Myoth
- Location: Strasbourg
- Main keyboard: IDB60
- Main mouse: EC1-A
- Favorite switch: Cap BS
- DT Pro Member: -
- Wazrach
- Location: Tyne and Wear, United Kingdom
- Main mouse: Razer Viper 8KHz/ Viper Mini
- Favorite switch: Buckling springs
- DT Pro Member: -
is there a problem? it seems like there is. care to tell me what is bothering you?
- depletedvespene
- Location: Chile
- Main keyboard: IBM Model F122
- Main mouse: Logitech G700s
- Favorite switch: buckling spring
- DT Pro Member: 0224
- Contact:
- Wazrach
- Location: Tyne and Wear, United Kingdom
- Main mouse: Razer Viper 8KHz/ Viper Mini
- Favorite switch: Buckling springs
- DT Pro Member: -
- Redmaus
- Gotta start somewhere
- Location: Near Dallas, Texas
- Main keyboard: Unsaver | 3276 | Kingsaver
- Main mouse: Kensington Slimblade
- Favorite switch: Capacitative Buckling Spring
- DT Pro Member: -
- Contact:
He indeed has: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/IBM-Model-F- ... ctupt=true
- Myoth
- Location: Strasbourg
- Main keyboard: IDB60
- Main mouse: EC1-A
- Favorite switch: Cap BS
- DT Pro Member: -
absolutely no problem sir, glad you're passing it on a lucky someone who'll cope it at a decent price for the work put into it !
- Wazrach
- Location: Tyne and Wear, United Kingdom
- Main mouse: Razer Viper 8KHz/ Viper Mini
- Favorite switch: Buckling springs
- DT Pro Member: -
- Myoth
- Location: Strasbourg
- Main keyboard: IDB60
- Main mouse: EC1-A
- Favorite switch: Cap BS
- DT Pro Member: -
why stop at 10 !? we have a feature like that, use it extensively
- Redmaus
- Gotta start somewhere
- Location: Near Dallas, Texas
- Main keyboard: Unsaver | 3276 | Kingsaver
- Main mouse: Kensington Slimblade
- Favorite switch: Capacitative Buckling Spring
- DT Pro Member: -
- Contact:
- PlacaFromHell
- Location: Argentina
- Main keyboard: IBM 3101
- Main mouse: Optical piece of shit
- Favorite switch: Beamspring
- DT Pro Member: -
I had a Wheelwriter with pretty much the same keycaps. Maybe this thing was adapted to be used with some kind hybrid between a typewriter and a computer.
- Wazrach
- Location: Tyne and Wear, United Kingdom
- Main mouse: Razer Viper 8KHz/ Viper Mini
- Favorite switch: Buckling springs
- DT Pro Member: -
I put them on myself, harvested from a dead Wheelwriter modulePlacaFromHell wrote: ↑14 Jun 2019, 02:55I had a Wheelwriter with pretty much the same keycaps. Maybe this thing was adapted to be used with some kind hybrid between a typewriter and a computer.
- depletedvespene
- Location: Chile
- Main keyboard: IBM Model F122
- Main mouse: Logitech G700s
- Favorite switch: buckling spring
- DT Pro Member: 0224
- Contact:
Both the alpha keys with green sublegends (easy to come by) and the keys with blue sublegeds (never seen 'em before!)?Wazrach wrote: ↑14 Jun 2019, 15:59I put them on myself, harvested from a dead Wheelwriter modulePlacaFromHell wrote: ↑14 Jun 2019, 02:55I had a Wheelwriter with pretty much the same keycaps. Maybe this thing was adapted to be used with some kind hybrid between a typewriter and a computer.
-
- Location: Boston Metro
- Main keyboard: 122-key Model F
- Main mouse: Kensington Expert Mouse K64325
- Favorite switch: IBM Beam Spring or Capacitive Buckling Spring
- DT Pro Member: -
Why does one bolt-mod an F? Bolt-mod on an M is to replace failed heat staking, F has no heat stakes and operates on a different principle. What does it do?
- Wazrach
- Location: Tyne and Wear, United Kingdom
- Main mouse: Razer Viper 8KHz/ Viper Mini
- Favorite switch: Buckling springs
- DT Pro Member: -
Because these fucking things never feel good after reassembling with new foam. Ever. I had no choice.Red_October wrote: ↑14 Jun 2019, 17:20Why does one bolt-mod an F? Bolt-mod on an M is to replace failed heat staking, F has no heat stakes and operates on a different principle. What does it do?
- SneakyRobb
- THINK
- Location: Canada
- Main keyboard: KB-5161A, F122, Dc2014, Typeheaven, Beamspring FXT
- Main mouse: MX518 Legendary
- DT Pro Member: 0242
This is true. The F122 feels noticeably loose in the middle when you reassemble it with new foam with no screws. The FXT and FAT feel a lot crisper with new foam as they have much fewer rows and height to the whole module.Wazrach wrote: ↑14 Jun 2019, 21:24Because these fucking things never feel good after reassembling with new foam. Ever. I had no choice.Red_October wrote: ↑14 Jun 2019, 17:20Why does one bolt-mod an F? Bolt-mod on an M is to replace failed heat staking, F has no heat stakes and operates on a different principle. What does it do?
- Wazrach
- Location: Tyne and Wear, United Kingdom
- Main mouse: Razer Viper 8KHz/ Viper Mini
- Favorite switch: Buckling springs
- DT Pro Member: -
Even the XT, none of my foam replacements worked. The closest one was this relatively firm art foam (not the Michael's stuff everyone's banging on about), but the center row was noticeably mushier. It just never works, it's depressing.SneakyRobb wrote: ↑14 Jun 2019, 21:27This is true. The F122 feels noticeably loose in the middle when you reassemble it with new foam with no screws. The FXT and FAT feel a lot crisper with new foam as they have much fewer rows and height to the whole module.Wazrach wrote: ↑14 Jun 2019, 21:24Because these fucking things never feel good after reassembling with new foam. Ever. I had no choice.Red_October wrote: ↑14 Jun 2019, 17:20Why does one bolt-mod an F? Bolt-mod on an M is to replace failed heat staking, F has no heat stakes and operates on a different principle. What does it do?
in fact, the XT I tried to service recently failed miserably. i drilled holes through it to do a bolt mod as an experiment, with the hopes of removing them later once the plates have aligned. it is inconsistent and rubbish. I'll have to try again with the same 2mm neoprene I used in my F122.