Lubing or not lubing switches? Pro or contra?
Posted: 10 Mar 2016, 22:21
I do have my second thoughts on this topic. I think that it is very hard to use or find the perfect viscosity and that this condition stays then the same over time. Then comes gravity to fruition! I imagine a Cherry MX switch (or other MX switch) which is a swimming pool, and over time all the lube is in the bottom of the switch.
The next thought which I am also always thinking of is dirt, dust and other small parts of the air and your hands. All these have then an ideal breeding ground!
Why are vendors like Cherry, Topre and others do not use lube, or when, then very subtle or we are sometimes not even sure if they are lubed, greased or not? Or do I miss information of lubed or greased switches? I only know that Cherry MX Clears from the SkiData keyboard are lubed or use a kind of grease, Cherry MX Whites (I have this experience with those) and was it Topre too? I am talking about the switches, and not stabilizers.
And finally why is lube preferred to grease when used in switches? I only read that grease 'gets sticky'. Isn't grease better because it stays at its place?
Recently I used Krytox 104 to lube my HHKB, and I opened it up again, and I saw that the lube or oil was not only where it should be - it could be of course that I used too much, which is the reason I think, but I tried to use a minimum. It is actually very hard to make a consistent minimum amount! That would be probably the last critical point of view from my side.
The next thought which I am also always thinking of is dirt, dust and other small parts of the air and your hands. All these have then an ideal breeding ground!
Why are vendors like Cherry, Topre and others do not use lube, or when, then very subtle or we are sometimes not even sure if they are lubed, greased or not? Or do I miss information of lubed or greased switches? I only know that Cherry MX Clears from the SkiData keyboard are lubed or use a kind of grease, Cherry MX Whites (I have this experience with those) and was it Topre too? I am talking about the switches, and not stabilizers.
And finally why is lube preferred to grease when used in switches? I only read that grease 'gets sticky'. Isn't grease better because it stays at its place?
Recently I used Krytox 104 to lube my HHKB, and I opened it up again, and I saw that the lube or oil was not only where it should be - it could be of course that I used too much, which is the reason I think, but I tried to use a minimum. It is actually very hard to make a consistent minimum amount! That would be probably the last critical point of view from my side.