PART 1 ~ PART 2
OK, so I decided it was time to jump down into the rabbit hole, and build my own keyboard. l chose AliExpress to get all of the parts. All told, with shipping, the total cost was about $100. The first set of shipments have arrived. These included the switches (Gateron reds), a switch puller and opener, the USB-C cable, lubrication, stabilizers and o-rings. I already had the keycap puller and brush.
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| Start of the kit. I still need the keyboard housing and key caps. |
The tweezers and smaller silver key puller came with the keys. I opted for the 100 count cup of keys to ensure I had some extras in case any were bad. Here's a closeup of the key switch:
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| Gateron red switch |
The white base has a clear area that will allow light from the board-mounted LEDs to shine through the clear plastic top. This makes the switches cheaper (since they don't need the added LEDs), and helps to ensure whatever software on the keyboard's processor is well integrated with the lights (as they come as a set). It's also surprisingly quiet. I do still need to test and lubricate each switch.
