That thing looks freaky. really he wants a freaky keyboard instead of the sweet one that he just got?
So, the Ducky was awesome, however I needed something else, something radical, something extraordinaire. And bling bling backlit wasn't it, nor was it Topre switches, maybe buckling, but those are hard to get and not as customisable. I was lost. Then when I tried my friend's MS Natural, I fell in love with the comfort, my wrist was almost in heaven, but my fingers cried, they cried of extreme pain and anguish. I then went onto the utopia of alternate computer input devices, geekhack. There I found the Kinesis, however one peek at the price and I was quickly walking back. I then discovered the Ergodox, an almost completely customisable keyboard with: - 100% customisation of every single key (76 keys in all) at hardware level. - No backlit - Upto 20 layers of layouts (Meaning each key can be programmed to perform upto 20 different strokes), albeit 3 was enough. In every day usage on a 104-key keyboard we almost use 2 complete layers. - Separate "keyboards" for each hands - Separate thumb clusters for ergonomics - Matrix layout - Customisable keyboard case - Switches of your choice - Easy switch top removal - Integrated wrist rest I was sold, but the price point was not attractive at all. However the good thing was this keyboard was not sold as a ready to use device but as a kit which had to be self assembled. And then it struck me, I was in India and specifically Delhi, with markets like Pahar Ganj, Bhagirat Palace, Chawri, Lajpat Rai Market, Chandni Chowk. Markets which rank among the largest in the world for all sorts of hardware "goodies". Add to that, I had a close relative that developed electronics. And let's not forget the world's cheapest mechanical keyboard with original Cherry MX Blues (My favourite mechanical switches), which I had already harvested for the switches. Everything was right there infront of my eyes. An Ergodox ready to be built. And then began the journey to buy, order from India and abroad and source whatever possible from wherever possible. The first wave just completed and the wait for the second wave (Final wave before the assembly) has began. First off, got some new tools. A Black and Decker drill, some extra bits, one ratcheting screwdriver and sockets set, and a precision toolkit. I already have the soldering stuff, thus not required. Got a couple of USB cables, which will be harvested for their connectors and then then reassembled and sleeved. Some nice metal audio (TRS) connectors(No these are not for the keyboard, but for audio gear ) and some TRRS connectors for the keyboard (This is how the two halves are connected). The TRRS are backup, just in case my metal connectors aren't shipped in time. Plenty of M3 screws of variable length with nuts and washers. Steel keycap puller to pull out the keycaps in style. This thing ins sweet. You can see the blank red anodized aluminum keycap. 37 laser etched silver color nickel plated zinc keycaps + 1 blank red anodized aluminum keycap. These are very naise and each one came packed in its own little ziplock bag. Bumper feet for the keyboard case. Switches harvested from TVS-e Gold Bharat Extra remaining bits from the acrylic laser cutting, which I have no idea what to do with. And finally, the keyboard case with its cover. The case with cover on top Covers on top, case below Case only (I haven't completely bolted it yet, will do so once everything goes in) Covers only Switch mounting plate Layers for case Layers for cover Nut-bolt stick out at the bottom, thus bumper feet are needed. Bolt sticks out the top Hence cover has countersinks, so cover fits just right All nuts are countersunk from the underside of the cover, so they don't scratch the keycaps Bolts on the topmost layer of the cover are also countersunk The topmost layer of the cover is like a handle Inner layers of the cover Finally, mounted one switch and keycap ontop of it I'll be honest, at the moment this thing looks so sweet, I don't even want to use if once it is complete, out of fear of scratching and getting finger/palm prints on it. Next wave will include: - Larger bumper feet for tenting - Cable sleeving + heatshrink - Metal TRRS connector - PCB for keyboard - Electrical components - Some more cables - Teensy 2.0 USB controller
Got a new soldering station, cable sleeving and heatshrink, and some more stuff for the keyboard. Pictures tomorrow morning.
Got some cable sleeving and heat shrink. One bad thing about the heat shrink was it has printing on it, however it can e cleaned off easily. Sleeving isn't as good as MDPC but costs a fraction of that and free shipping: Some soldering stuff I got as well: TRSS connectors. These will b used to join the two parts of the keyboard for each hand: Teensy 2.0 USB Atmega32 controller. This will be the controller for the keyboard: Got the resistors, diodes, capacitors, LED: Got a soldering station. It is a clone of the Hakko 936, which is a classic soldering station, this was for a fraction of the original It looks used, because I used it for creating sleeved cables today. The sleeved cables, used for combining the two parts: Things left to arrive: - PCB - Female USB mini connector - Female TRRS connectors - I/O extender (Used for communication between the two halves - Larger laptop feet
From top of my head, if I missed a part you are interested in particular, ask away. India: [table]Acrylic Case + Cover | Paharganj \Drill | Chawri Bazar \Screwdriver Set | Chawri Bazar \Precision Tool Set | Lajpat Rai Market \Cables | lajpat Rai Market \Metal TRS Connectors | Lajpat Rai market \Plastic TRRS Connectors | Lajpat Rai Market \Nuts/Bolts/Washers | Chawri Bazar \Switches from TVS | Nehru Place \Small rubber laptop feet | Ebay.in \Pliers | Chawri Bazar \Soldering wire | Lajpat Rai Market \Soldering paste | Lajpat Rai Market \Desoldering Wick | Lajpat Rai Market \Resistors | Lajpat Rai Market \Diodes | Lajpat Rai Market \Capacitors | Lajpat Rai Market \LED | Lajpat Rai Market \Soldering station | Lajpat Rai Market \Soldering Wire (63/37) | Lajpat Rai Market \Desoldering Iron | Lajpat Rai Market \Multimeter | Lajpat Rai Market \Iso Propyl Alcohol | Chandni Chowk \Brass Brush | Lajpat Rai Market \Angled Tweezers | Lajpat Rai Market \Magnifying Glass | Lajpat Rai Marke \Small File | Lajpat Rai Market[/table] Outside India: [table]Steel Keycap Puller | USA via GeekHack \Metal Keys (Red aluminum and zinc) | USA via GeekHack \Cable Sleeving | DealExtreme \Heat Shrink | DealExtreme \Metal TRRS connectors | Hong Kong via .com \Teensy 2.0 | USA via Fab-to-labs \PCB | USA via MassDrop \Female USB mini connector | UK via Kits 'n' Spare \Female TRRS connectors | UK via Kits 'n' Spare \I/O extender | UK via Kits 'n' Spare \Larger laptop feet | DealExtreme \Brass Wool | Hong Kong via Ebay.com \Soldering Iron Tips | Hong Kong via Ebay.com \Large Laptop Feet | DealExtreme \Cooling Balls | DealExtreme[/table]
Mad Mad work. This deserves an article of it's own. MOZ whenever you ready, we can showcase this on our FB page as a separate album as well.
Thanks. I am expecting to receive everything but the PCB by month's end. PCB should reach before mid August. The project should come to completion right around Raid101's first anniversary.
When you getting the stickers? I'll slide a couple on once I get the first pictures out. I have asked our expert photographer to do some product photography. Probably the only ErgoDox in India
By the looks of that thing, you bet it's the first in India. And in our neighbouring countries as well
