That would fix it but by having the wider border it sort of loses the point of having the 60% to move your mouse hand in a bit as it's nearer 80%/TKL size. Thankfully my shoulders are wide enough I don't need to give a shit about that ever for it to be ergonomic for me.
x 3 x 2 x 1
Agreed. There is an argument to be made for the modern HE linears that can do analog sensing, ie lightly resting your finger on a key has one effect, and fully pressing it has another. Like ”preview on a partial click, actually perform on a full click” for some softwares or games. But for typing, give me the loudest most clickiest keyboard you can find (hello Model F Reproduction project) because clicky=tactile (keyboards actually sold as ”tactile” are really just linears with some sandpaper in the switch).
That sounds like the switch is fucked in some way and might be repairable, but it would require soldering to change the switch. I'm sure you have more important things to deal with than engage in DIY keyboard repair.
Sounds like an epic project. If you actually spend a lot of time on a keyboard you get a feel for your specific keyboard and doing things like replacing the keycaps with ones more to your preference will make you enjoy it more. Personally I don't give a shit about the noise. In fact, I prefer crunchy keyboards that make a lot of noise, although I could do without artificial added noises.
It's sort of weird. When I first switched to the Advantage, it was because "normal" keyboards were starting to cause me carpal tunnel/tendonitis and other bad shit and it was becoming outright painful. Not only did normal keyboards cause me pain, they were actually also causing me obvious mechanical damage to my hands and wrists and the tendons between my wrists and elbows.
I was kind of in the same boat, I was looking for something with that nice tactile bump you had to overcome when you pressed a key. I ended up with Kailh Box Navy switches and I absolutely adore them but they can be a bit much. They do make ones that are less intense like the Box Jade, Those are 50g switches and a lot closer to what you wanted.
Mechanical keyboards are kind of overhyped imho. Don't get me wrong, i'm using one right now and it feels good, but i was using a membrane one and it was EXCELENT. Mechanical keyboards have it's advantages, but the main issue with them is that the fucking keys just stop working sometimes, and with one keyboard i had an entire column of keys stop working for no reason and i had to buy another one. With another mechanical keyboard the thing had some one faulty key out of the box, i had to press it hard as fuck at an angle for the input to register.
You don't actually need to build a keyboard, and if you want the best experience you probably shouldn't. There are plenty of prebuilt keyboards with easily swappable switches and key caps. For example this one, which I think is pretty cool, it has a nice layout and a built-in calculator. By default it comes with linear switches with foam and gaskets prefitted, so it will be very silent, but have next to no tactility. But if you're pulling the key caps anyway, you might as well pull the switches also, it won't add much time, and install something like Kailh Deep Sea Silent Pro Whale Tactile switches. The name is a mouthful, but basically it's a silenced, slightly heavy box switch, which seems like exactly what you're looking for (ceramic switches are heavy, so with a heavy key cap the result will be somewhere in the middle).
I've been using a keyboard with MX Browns for five years now. I've lubed the switches and put silicone dampening rings under the keycaps.
I just checked when exactly I got my WASD V2, it was just over 9 years. I got it with Cherry MX Black switches and in all this time I have never had any issues with a switch malfunctioning. I also have an old Razer Black Widow (I think first gen?) with blue switches that I took to the office after getting the WASD at home. I've used that for coding at the office but I've had switches fail on me (they'd sometimes activate twice when pressed) and I ended up replacing them a few times.
For how much? Because, i mean, you can get very high quality keyboards that won't give you as many issues as some shit from AliExpress, but at same time i'm thinking "shit, i'm not gonna spend $150 on a keyboard, i can find one that does the job for $10 at Walmart".
It was exactly $150... Although shipping was an extra +$75. The europoor tax. True enough, that's a lot to spend on a keyboard, but after all this time I think it was worth it.
Wash your hands before you sit down to one and clean them periodically.
