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wjrii.bsky.social

@wjrii.bsky.social
60 followers 272 following 90 posts
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
Dipping my toes back into the "Forty percent" scene to see if "Alphastagger" works better for me than true ortholinear did. DIY #mechanicalkeyboard using Signature Plastics DCS keycaps from a grab bag, tactile switches, and an RP2040 MCU. Structural elements laser cut or 3D printed.
DIY Forty percent keyboard with mix n match keycaps from a "grab bag" purchase
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Reposted by @wjrii.bsky.social
Dave Snider @davesnider.com · 07/05/2026
Wrote a blog post about creating for mechanical keyboard enthusiasts, Dungeons and Dragons players and Bluegrass communities. It also has a video of my keyboard setup if you're curious. www.davesnider.com/posts/workin...
davesnider.com
Creating for a niche
The joys of a small, passionate audience
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 05/05/2026
What's wrong with it can be forgiven or hand-waved, and what's right with it makes it, for me, the best SW since the OT. I was so confused by angry fan reviews after seeing it. TFA was very watchable in its way, but JJ made a mess of the galaxy and the legacy characters, and Rian tried to fix it.
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 04/05/2026
The Last Jedi was great. Just the palate cleanser needed to tell an interesting Ep9 with Ben as a conflicted but doomed antagonist and Rey as his foil. It embraced the prequels in a way JJ would never. Every lesson Yoda tried to teach Luke when they first met, Luke finally understands and enacts.
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 04/05/2026
Design inspiration from the old IBM/Lenovo membrane boards. They were pretty slick looking and were (IIRC) their last generation of full-travel pack-in boards, although they were otherwise unremarkable. Made by Silitek.
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 04/05/2026
Made a DIY no-stabs #mechanicalkeyboard from PCB 3 of 5 in my order from 2 years ago, & used some interesting "half-height" clicky switches. Pi Pico running ZMK, & (mostly) VSA keycaps sold on ebay as DSA, even though they are not. Bonus points for spotting the 2 keycaps I accidentally flipped!
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 28/04/2026
Drop was selling ten buck aluminum cases in their close-out sale. I grabbed one and made it into a hand-wired #mechanicalkeyboard running ZMK.
Green and white TKL keyboardrear USB port (hot glue, bay-beeee!)hand-wired keyboard matrix
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 10/02/2026
Got a Primer61 PCB from Yushakobo in Tokyo! I designed a case, printed it in fun shiny filament, & ported it to use ZMK on a Nice!Nano clone. It's a Kishsaver homage that conveniently hides all my design sins. I'll leave it paired with my Mac Mini that runs all my local servers. #mechanicalkeyboard
A 60% keyboard in a 3D printed case and using Mac-themed XDA keycaps that are clones of the "Extended 2048" design. The case is reminiscent of the "Kishsaver" compact Model F buckling spring keyboard from IBM.Bottom of the keyboard uses self-adhesive cork feet, similar to the original Model F.case was printed vertically, leaving a few remnants of the process on the back surface.  The USB port can be sued for charging or wired connection.The plate with Epomaker Budgerigar tactile switches is free-floating, held in place by EVA and cork "gaskets."  The right side of the Kishsaver case holds the rest of the Yushakobo PCB, while the left side is used for routing the unnecessarily large cables and ports designed for external use.  The Primer61 uses a standard Pro Meicro for wired connections, or Yushakobo's BLE-enabled board with the same footprint.  I used the cheap and readily available Nice!Nano clones and ported the firmware from QMK to ZMK.  Due to quirks of the PCB's keyboard matrix, I don't expect battery use to be very efficient, but wireless performance is otherwise quite good.
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 12/01/2026
Is Topre still a #mechanicalkeyboard? Souvenir Realforce 45g TKL from Leaderskey in Seoul, plus an accounting write-off reclamation project on the cut-cord Rollermouse from eBay.
A tenkeyless Realforce keyboard with gray and blue keycaps included Korean sub-legends, along with a Contour Rollermouse Red with its cord re-soldered.
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 19/12/2025
Don't quote me on this, but I *think* that board can use the "Cherry Utility" to remap keys in the on-board memory, for instance if you use Volume controls more than other media controls.
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 14/12/2025
They're MOSTLY still so custom that build quality takes a back seat but there's a few. QK Alice Duo doesn't go full column stagger, but it's a split made by a current darling of the broader keeb scene & then there's aluminum CNC cases for certain known ergo layouts at Ergomech Store and Boardsource
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 14/12/2025
An actual fancy #mechanicalkeyboard this time. I won a GDK Lab DK1-TKL and immediately put Box Navy switches on it. I ran with Unicorn Barf SA from a grab bag for a bit, but settled on KAM Superuser. This is a very pleasant metal rectangle.
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 04/11/2025
My DSS Honeywell keycaps needed a home, so I made them one that was inspired by the original terminal keyboards that inspired them to begin with. The 3D-print is not quite perfect, but I like the overall effect very much, & the black switches on my custom PCB feel nice. QMK/VIAL firmware on RP2040.
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 26/09/2025
In a departure from my usual mechanical keyboard projects, I designed & printed a simple slide-on HUNTRIX topper for those generic concert light sticks for my daughter. I liked the ones on Etsy that screwed into the base of one of these, but I couldn’t find STLs, so… #3Dprinting #kpopdemonhunters
An inexpensive concert light stick with a custom topper inspired by KPop Demon HuntersAlternate view showing the open cage-like structure of a light stick with 3D printed topper.
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 18/09/2025
In the hashtag, yes, lol. It is a rather mechanically board. 😂 The keycaps really are for cocaine and meth, though. The analyzer could process toxicology screens on blood samples.
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 18/09/2025
This #mechanicalleyboard has a Meth button. A METH BUTTON! Also an internal PS/2 converter running VIAL and over half a pound of steel wheel weights stuck in the bottom because I thought a glorious board with a METH button (and a cocaine button, btw) deserved to feel a little more premium.
A mechanical keyboard from 2010 made by TG3 for a Siemens chemical analyzer.  Cherry MX Black switches (except for the stabilized keys, which have Grey) and Dye-Sub DCS keycaps.Exposed PCB showing a "Soarer's Converter" style DIY adapter. Aluminum bottom plate with 9.25oz (262g) for slightly increased stability and undeserved premium feeling.
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 13/09/2025
May I interest you in our Lord and Savior Box NAVY?
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 11/09/2025
WILL I use my #mechanicalkeyboard and this Linux-converted ARM Chrometab with FocusWriter to write more? Unclear. COULD I? Yes.
Lenovo 10E education ChromeOS tablet running Focuswriter distraction-free word processor on fully installed Debian Linux, along with a DIY mechanical keyboard.
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 11/09/2025
Interesting that the PCB is a full 60%, but only for a 7u spacebar. I found split-space hotswaps hiding on my Epomaker Tide65 PCB, so I did what one does and laser cut a new plate. I paid for two extra keys, and by God I'm gonna get them! Less of an option here, admittedly. 🤣
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 09/09/2025
Nothing makes you want to clean your #mechanicalkeyboard like talking a picture of it in bright sunlight, LOL. Fixed a bad solder joint and 3D-printed a “sidewall” case for this laser-cut Masonite board I made.
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 28/08/2025
Made a couple of prototype #mechanicalkeyboard keycap nesting trays, one on the laser and one on the 3D printer. I definitely want to get my @signatureplastics.bsky.social caps out of the ziploc, I can't shake the feeling that I'm overthinking this. Anybody got a scalable & CHEAP DIY-ish solution?
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 07/08/2025
5. What colors do you like? and 6. Do you want to do anything off the beaten path with your keycaps, e.g. retro (e.g. Severance style), completely flat, etc.?
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 07/08/2025
...true 100% are common at the low end, less at the high. 2. Price range? 3. Do you want switches to make their own clicky noise and if not do you want there to be a little point in pressing where it gives instead of being fully linear? 4. Do you want pressing to be firm, light, or "normal"?...
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 07/08/2025
I bet the keeb nerds on BSky can help. You really only need to know a few things for your 1st, which may well be your last if you just like it and don't fall down the rabbit hole. 1. More layout details, pls. 80%/TKL are common, as are 96%/1800 (almost every key's there but some are squished)...
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 06/08/2025
Got a great deal on an aluminum #mechanicalkeyboard but it had issues. I laser cut a new plate so I could use the split-space hotswap sockets hiding on the PCB, changed the springs in the switches to be heavier, replaced the battery with extra weight, changed the keycaps, & flashed "real" QMK/VIAL.
Modified Epomaker Tide65 keyboardLaser engraver cutting 1/16" (1.6mm) birch plywoodDIY laser cut keyboard plate with switchesaluminum keyboard case with battery replaced by steel automotive wheel-balancing weights
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 24/07/2025
I do have a garage in Texas in summer. Also an old Ender clone. Hmm… Jeez, all this talk is going to seriously affect the number of clean blank keycaps I have, LOL. It may be a while before I can do proper experiments, but this is a lot to think about, in a good way. I
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 24/07/2025
Up close it’s not hard to tell, but it looks nice at normal viewing distances. The limitations are that I can’t seem to get very intense color, and while I think it’s a form of dye sub, it’s penetrating much less deeply. That also means variability in any of several factors affects quality.
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 24/07/2025
Thanks! This method has some major limitations but doesn’t need a stencil or a huge laser. The short version is to completely coat the top of PBT keycaps in ink, then use a 5w diode laser at 2% power and 45mm/minute to raster the image on. I wipe off the excess with acetone nail polish. remover.
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 23/07/2025
Focus boards are infamous for the clips and for some very quirky value engineering overall. This one looks great! I have a 5001 that I re-wired (RIP calculator, though I have the module if anyone needed it) and a DIY board made from the caps and switches of a 7000P. How much did the wax-boil help?
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 22/07/2025
Drop CTRL v2 Barebones, but NOT the High-Profile one. That look is not as popular in the hobbyist space these days, but lucky for you. There are other boards in the gaming space that might be hotswap and meet your needs, but w/ the additional challenge of what to do with the old switches and caps.
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 22/07/2025
Made some "Redneck Dye Sub" #mechanicalkeyboard keycap legends with Cricut markers and a diode laser. A little annoyed that some of them didn't come out great, but enough of them did that I'm pleased overall, including the #yallmeansall one.
Completed jig holding 27 keycaps with DIY legendsjig holding PBT keycaps before cleaning with acetone5W Diode laser running at 2% and 45mm/min to sublimate Cricut "infusible ink" into PBT keycaps
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 14/06/2025
I probably need a new plate frame, but the vinyl went on perfectly. #ihavefriendseverywhere, even in Texas. #starwars #andor
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 10/06/2025
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 10/06/2025
There are a million things I would change about this DIY Alps wooden keyboard, but overall it came out nice, and I learned a lot, including how to get VIAL running on a bespoke board.
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 09/06/2025
The oil is drying on the walnut and pecan #mechanicalkeyboard case I (mostly) built this weekend for my bespoke Alps PCB. The strip of pecan was DEFINITELY on purpose and not to fix an oopsie. I swear!
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 29/05/2025
Latest in progress #mechanicalkeyboard project: Alps white, Focus keycaps, M0110a-ish layout, 3D printed plate, deeply flawed PCB that I am MAKING work because I paid stupid tariffs, and QMK on RP2040. Still to do: hardwood case.
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 16/05/2025
Next #mechanicalkeyboard is in progress. Trying to add to my skills, so this one will have a PCB with piggybacked RP2040 microcontroller, run QMK, have a wooden case, and reuse caps and Alps switches from a beat-up old Focus. After ordering the PCBs, I should have called it the Tariff 9000 :-)
A Keyboard Layout Editor screenshot showing a custom layout including PCB options.
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 12/05/2025
XDA is a different profile or “shape” of caps, analogous to MT3. Drop still sells at least one set IIRC. Their heights don’t vary based on row, and they’re decorated by dye sublimation, so unauthorized “cloning” of expensive sets like 2048 is very cheap.
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 12/05/2025
Command prompt one is just that I think; seems to be a novelty to be used as you need. Other is a stylized version of the "X in an arrow" ISO symbol for Delete. Turned on its side, though, it's a rune that's not hard to find on darker corners of the internet, so careful with XDA clones of that one.
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 12/05/2025
1st one lives on the Pause/Break key on the diagrams at Drop. I guess I can about imagine the concept turned into a minimalist version of the idea. Given that the other two have a scrolling mouse on Scroll lock and a picture of an iMac, screen and all, for Print Screen, I can about roll with that.
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 08/05/2025
How cool. That cap puller looks pretty beefy too!
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 05/05/2025
SPORTING the Tattooine keycaps, LOL. I never broke the habits from my first phone with a Swype keyboard, and sometimes it bites me. 😂
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 05/05/2025
It’s still #maythefourth in Denver and LA. Here’s my Yushakobo Primer79 with DIY case and plate, spring SA Tattooine keycaps. #mechanicalkeyboard
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 01/05/2025
The recommendations: Keychron, Keychron, Keychron sub-brand, Keychron, Keychron, and Keychron. We all like Keychron. I'm less sure that they're literally the only brand worth recommending. 🤔
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 29/04/2025
I coated the PBT keycap with dye sub marker, so basically the same as you did. I used a 5W (optical) blue diode laser engraver and did 2 passes at very low power and very low speed, cleaning with acetone. The results were ok (to me) but not extremely vibrant, and the sublimation is rather shallow.
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 28/04/2025
I had reasonably good luck with dye-sub crafting markers. a Diode laser, and then acetone. Many of them are a bit on the lighter side, though, as it's a very fine line between clean dye sub & overheated mess. Keycap legends are always a tricky project, and your "grey on white" C64 caps look great!
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 25/04/2025
This one probably shows the inner workings best. It’s primitive, but it’s held up surprisingly well. I do think the advantages of mounting the Pico properly would outweigh the “daughterboard on steroids” concept here, and it can all just generally be refined (like…a LOT) but I’ve been super pleased.
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 25/04/2025
This #mechanicalkeyboard is one of a couple I keep coming back to. 3D-printed case, Masonite plate, PCB that handles the key matrix only (hand wired to the RP 2040 running KMK), Kailh Box Navy for moar clicky, Akko SAL keycaps, custom “no stabilizers” layout. The pink stripe makes it fast!
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 17/04/2025
So that basic TYPE is a very common combo cap/slider that actuates a pretty standard membrane of domes. Many keyboards are still a very similar shape. You just can't be sure it's IDENTICAL, especially the top keycap part. They aren't generally sold as aftermarket parts. Sadly it's probably a loss.
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wjrii.bsky.social @wjrii.bsky.social · 15/04/2025
Believe it or not, but “file dividers on a slab of MDF chalkboard on top of the dog crate” it is actually a noticeable improvement in storage and display for (most of) my #mechanicalkeyboard collection. 😂
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