deskthority

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=pl ... b5x6jDybWA


does anyone know what type of sandpaper/polish wax to use, if i want to either sand my shinning/used double shot keys to 1) a matte surface, or 2) a shinning surface (without the scratches etc)?

I use 800 grid in that video.
If you want a shiny surface, you will need to do wet sanding with grid of 2000 and above.

Sanding off the shine and resell, claim near new is F' up... No offence

that is nice background music, one would have thought you were polishing jewelery or making a fine watch.



my tools are ready, I hope I can show you the keys when they are ready. it may take some days though.

however I don't intend to sanding off the shine, I intend to make the shine uniform across the whole key, I will make a piano finish out of it.

no offence taken.

one thing I like to use for "wet" sanding is a single drop of green dish washing soap.

as lubricant?

yes. drop of green on the cap and sand. You can get a mirror finish on metal that way^^.

i used 600 wet sand paper
i worked out fine. Maybe should i do a pic before/after

I used the method Ascaii taught me.
1000 grit and then finish with 1200 grit. Makes the keycaps feel like FILCO ones.

kaiserreich wrote:I used the method Ascaii taught me.
1000 grit and then finish with 1200 grit. Makes the keycaps feel like FILCO ones.

I HAVE A FOLLOWER!

Glad it works as well for you as it did for me.

Aren't they too shiny and too smooth ?

I love the rough texture as the fingers do stick less when you sweat (like in summer when it is quite hot).

One of the thing on my list to do when I have time (no idea when) is to try a lot of different grains from ~500 to 2000 and compare the results. 1000/1200 will give you a gentle texture on the cap without it looking rough. I will admit it was a case of "Let me see what I have in my toolbox" when I decided to sand my Caps and I just happened to have 1000 and 1200 ^_^.
I copied the simple green trick from the CPU Lappers over at OCN and I think it does make difference to dry sanding or using water, When I tried dry sanding the texture was a bit "patchy", while simple green gave me a uniform surface.

Like I said, there is still a lot of experimenting to be done in this field and I encourage anyone to try out different grains and find the grain you enjoy the most. There is no single perfect answer, just personal preference.

True, 1000-2000 will still leave some texture...
I have 4000, 8000 and 12000 grit papers I used to mirror-polish metal, maximum shininess! >:D~

Squarebox - everybody wants to know the music in the Youtube video!

This song will definitely be the official one in the mechanical world of keyboards.

this video reminds me of him. it has got a nice polishing rhythm too.

actually the shinning ones grip fingers better than the original matte surface. i feel it applies to both the biege and black ones. the original matte feels a bit slippery.

coarser one like those found on wyse feels the best.

acsii and others: any pictures of the polished caps?

Gilgam wrote:Aren't they too shiny and too smooth ?

I love the rough texture as the fingers do stick less when you sweat (like in summer when it is quite hot).

Dont anyone here watch Transformers?


It's by Steve Jablonsky - The Fight Will Be Your Own
Sadly, many notice the works of Han Zimmer but not works of Steve Jablonsky.

P.S I still hate Rosie Huntington Whiteley lips despite she's a Victoria's Secret model.

Pretty dramatic music for sandpapering keys.

Haha. I agree with that guy.

RiGS wrote:

Pretty dramatic music for sandpapering keys.

Haha. I agree with that guy.

Two keycap lost their life...

squarebox wrote:

RiGS wrote:

Pretty dramatic music for sandpapering keys.

Haha. I agree with that guy.

Two keycap lost their life...

We have to resurrect the life of the keycaps.

heliar wrote:actually the shinning ones grip fingers better than the original matte surface. i feel it applies to both the biege and black ones. the original matte feels a bit slippery.

coarser one like those found on wyse feels the best.

acsii and others: any pictures of the polished caps?

Gilgam wrote:Aren't they too shiny and too smooth ?

I love the rough texture as the fingers do stick less when you sweat (like in summer when it is quite hot).

I love when people butcher my name :'(


Like I said im planning to do some before/after shots using different grains of sandpaper at some point and posting pics and a wiki page on the topic. Too busy right now.

[Account and posts deleted on request]

After the sanding you could plasti dip'em or spray paint with krylon fusion color of your choice.

Is grinding down you keycaps with sandpaper really a good idea if you want to make them shiny or have a different texture? Or is it just if you are interested in restoring them?