Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast
Results 1 to 10 of 18

Thread: Want custom Cherry MX keycaps ...

  1. #1
    Anodized. Again. Konrad's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
    Location
    Canada
    Posts
    1,060

    Default Want custom Cherry MX keycaps ...

    Yeah, I know one can buy custom keycaps from all sorts of vendors. Even from users at places like geekhack and deskthority.

    I'm looking for caps which are basically made from transparent plastic, then coloured all along the top/side surfaces so that they look like a solid darkish keycap with a fully transparent letter on top. For superior backlighting, of course. The only keycaps of this kind I've ever seen were on a SteelSeries Merc Stealth gaming keyboard (kind of a piece of junk, really, and not Cherry MX or mechanical at all, but it dominates your desk, is built like a panzer, and has truly outstanding backlight intensity).

    Does anyone at TBCS know where such keycaps can be ordered? Or have the plastic-molding technology to produce at least one full keyboard set of them (that is, while maintaining a professional/industrial quality)?

    I suppose I could actually mod keycaps, though it seems like a lot of effort for a substandard result.
    My mind says Technic, but my body says Duplo.

  2. #2
    Moderator TLHarrell's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2012
    Location
    Morgan Hill, CA
    Posts
    1,143

    Default Re: Want custom Cherry MX keycaps ...

    I'm also looking to get some clear keycaps so I can laser engrave my own sets. I've been looking and not much out there from the usual keycap makers.
    I have a hammer! I can put things together! I can knock things apart! I can alter my environment at will and make an incredible din all the while! -Calvin

  3. #3
    100% Recycled Pixels. Twigsoffury's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
    Location
    Oklahoma city
    Posts
    2,017

    Default Re: Want custom Cherry MX keycaps ...

    Quote Originally Posted by TLHarrell View Post
    I'm also looking to get some clear keycaps so I can laser engrave my own sets. I've been looking and not much out there from the usual keycap makers.

    Can't Honestly say this helps for anything, But the old First generation Logitech G11 keys are exactly like how you described (molded in transparent plastic, then painted except for the key)

  4. #4
    Anodized. Again. Konrad's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
    Location
    Canada
    Posts
    1,060

    Default Re: Want custom Cherry MX keycaps ...

    Quote Originally Posted by Twigsoffury View Post
    Can't Honestly say this helps for anything, But the old First generation Logitech G11 keys are exactly like how you described (molded in transparent plastic, then painted except for the key)
    That was helpful, actually. The G11 uses nonmechanical polydome switches, so the keycaps likely wouldn't be interchangeable with Cherry MX. But the much newer Logitech G710+ Mechanical Gaming Keyboard comes stock with Cherry MX Browns and the keycaps appear (on the photos I've seen) to be what I'm looking for. Alas, a small number of users and reviewers report that the keycap colour fill isn't evenly applied, I've seen photos showing the backlight leaking through top/side keycap edges and corners. This suggests to me that whatever ink/dye/paint stuff they use, it'll wear off after enough time and use.

    Also, I can't tell from online photos where the G710+ backlight LEDs are placed. It almost looks like there's an LED underneath each key, and perhaps (in defiance of the usual Cherry MX colour branding) the keystems themselves are made of a transparent plastic which allows light from under the keyboard to show through the unpainted fonts on the keycaps. Anyone with a G710+ willing to pull a keycap off and reveal more?

    TLH - you have laser engraving tools? Lucky dawg.

    Btw, building my own uberkeyboard (again). Multimedia parts from a dead craigslist G510, keyswitches from my old Das, the "gamepad" components from my old Stealth Merc (which I maligned in above post), some USB 3.0 controllers, much custom metalwork, and a Parallax Propellor controller. Yup, a keyboard with 8 cores, haha. Best I can manage in my code and circuit spec (so far) is only 10KRO ... not full NKRO or 26KRO or whatever ... but, hey, shouldn't be too much problem since I only have 10 fingers. (Incidentally, not using generic USB HID drivers, nor their inherent 6KRO limits, at least not after my keyboard enumerates itself after OS boot.)

    Mildly off my own topic ... does anyone know how the Logitech Gaming Software gets that nifty little indicator onscreen when adjusting the volume roller? I wonder how I can hack that component outta their drivers and emulate their USB packets to duplicate the effect ... ideas?
    My mind says Technic, but my body says Duplo.

  5. #5
    100% Recycled Pixels. Twigsoffury's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
    Location
    Oklahoma city
    Posts
    2,017

    Default Re: Want custom Cherry MX keycaps ...

    I know on my G11 its a series of LED strips ring'd around the rubber layer under the board, But that's not a mechanical board either, though i suspect its a similar concept across all logitech keyboards as the two other G series boards i've dissasembled have been lighted in the same exact fashion.

  6. #6
    Moderator TLHarrell's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2012
    Location
    Morgan Hill, CA
    Posts
    1,143

    Default Re: Want custom Cherry MX keycaps ...

    I dismantled my old G11. I can confirm that the keycaps will not fit the Cherry MX switches. The backlighting on them is an edge lit piece of clear plastic (possibly acrylic) with a pattern of screen printed white dots on it.

    My new keyboard (Gigabyte Aivia Osmium - white backlit with Cherry browns) has individual white 3mm LEDs in every key.

    And yep, I've had a laser for several years now, and a small CNC machine now as well. Look up White Light Laser on Facebook if you want to see more of the wild and crazy stuff I've been up to. I really should update here more often though.
    I have a hammer! I can put things together! I can knock things apart! I can alter my environment at will and make an incredible din all the while! -Calvin

  7. #7
    100% Recycled Pixels. Twigsoffury's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
    Location
    Oklahoma city
    Posts
    2,017

    Default Re: Want custom Cherry MX keycaps ...

    Hey a thought,

    I know a few members have 3d printers, are any of them capable of printing out the keys you want in the way you need it?

    Might even be able to get TH to laser them down to an exact precision with an unusual font for the lettering?

    Just brain storming though =)

  8. #8
    Moderator TLHarrell's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2012
    Location
    Morgan Hill, CA
    Posts
    1,143

    Default Re: Want custom Cherry MX keycaps ...

    I don't have a 3D printer yet, but the one I've got my eye on (the new UV curing resin type by Full Spectrum Engineering) would do keycaps really well, and they can be made in clear resin. It'll be a while though. I'm not a big fan of FDM type 3D printers though. The finish quality is garbage. They're fine for prototyping and making brackets for things... but they're far too fiddly for my tastes.

    The best way by far would be to invest in a two piece mold cut from aluminum on a CNC (I have one, but haven't done aluminum yet) and cast the parts in resin. Heck, you could paint the inside of the mold with tinted resin first, then cast the parts doubleshot style. It'd be far faster turnaround time than 3D printing them and the surface finish would be flawless. It bears some thought. Might be worth doing myself if I can get ahead of some of these other projects.
    I have a hammer! I can put things together! I can knock things apart! I can alter my environment at will and make an incredible din all the while! -Calvin

  9. #9
    Anodized. Again. Konrad's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
    Location
    Canada
    Posts
    1,060

    Default Re: Want custom Cherry MX keycaps ...

    Hmm, 3D printing, hmm. I do have access to such stuff at work.

    I've never really been confident that 3D-printed objects are as "solid" as proper one-piece casts. I suppose hard plastic is hard plastic, though, some of those thermo resin blends are nigh indestructible, or at least they're almost as difficult to machine as some metal alloys.

    I'm not sure if our (or indeed, any) 3D printers can do transparent plastics, or if such a product would even look decent. I'll look into it.

    Oh ... kinda thinking I'd like a "nonstandard" font on my keycaps. So I guess I gotta make my own, somehow.
    My mind says Technic, but my body says Duplo.

  10. #10
    Moderator TLHarrell's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2012
    Location
    Morgan Hill, CA
    Posts
    1,143

    Default Re: Want custom Cherry MX keycaps ...

    A two piece mold opens up some unique opportunities to do the caps in clear and colored resins. The UV curing resin type (whether laser or DLP projection) can operate with clear resins. Once you have a proper blank keycap, a laser can take care of the rest easily.
    I have a hammer! I can put things together! I can knock things apart! I can alter my environment at will and make an incredible din all the while! -Calvin

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •