Open invite to help save beauties from junkyard.

[Mrinterface]

no dumpster diving for me. dentist appointment... it's a pity. I was excited to meet a few true keyboard-heads.

I do this every half year. You might be able to join in the next one?

[Ascaii]

So i checked again, and prices for a flight to Eindhoven to join are just too prohibitive. Perhaps I will join another time. I am looking forward to the treasures you will save!

[Mrinterface]

Next time, I'll make a poll for a date.

Might even have it co-incide with the annual DT gathering in Best

[Ascaii]

That is a great idea.

[Mrinterface]

Can someone who is joining me make a nice Mini Tutorial ( on an A4 size paper ) containing instructions on how to spot a mech keyboard? We can then leave several copies at a site like we are visiting and the people who work there can be actively involved by not throwing away the good ones and keeping them separate so the sorting would have been done by the owner.
If you are not joining this time, it would still be nice to create something like this ( a mech keyboard spotting manual ) so the next time you will join you could benefit from it.


I called them today and the time was set to 11:00 ( they close at 13:00 ) , he said he had 3 M^3 of keyboards waiting to be sorted. He also mentioned the fact that it would be nice to have a 'mech keyboard spotting guide' so the guys working there could be doing the sorting already.

[Kurk]

I'll be there! Will we just meet in front of the recycling yard at 11.00 ?

[Mrinterface]

I'll be there! Will we just meet in front of the recycling yard at 11.00 ?

Yes.

I need to do other stuff ( collecting homecomputers ) in that area after the event.

Can you make a dutch version of the mech keyboards spotting guide?

[Kurk]

Can you make a dutch version of the mech keyboards spotting guide?

I'm afraid that's too short of notice. At work now, an appointment this evening and tomorrow morning already is the day (it's a 2 h drive for me).

[Ascaii]

I can contribute to a spotting guide, but only in english or german...but the idea is nice. I will try to make one in my spare time. Im glad to have a cowriter/contributer help out.

[Mrinterface]

I can contribute to a spotting guide, but only in english or german...but the idea is nice. I will try to make one in my spare time. Im glad to have a cowriter/contributer help out.

I'll translate in dutch and plastify the results....
Can you manage before tomorrow 9 o'clock?

[Ascaii]

I doubt it, ive got some serious business going on that i'm having to deal with right now,sorry.
Perhaps I can do it tonight, but no guarantees.

As for the guide, i am hoping to make it an A5 page, double sided and laminated. A hole in the corner with a lanyard and a filco style key puller attached to the card complete it. One page is general information on telltale signs...sounds, brands, to look for. Second side is a switch identification matrix, probably just an excel with common switches like ALPS, CHERRY, Buckling spring, beam spring, capacitive buckling spring. Did I give you my phone number? Perhaps we can phone tonight and coproduce this thing in an hour.

[webwit]

I would have liked to be your spotting guide, if only it wasn't at the other side of the country (it would mean 5 hours driving). Hope you guys have a lot of fun and find great treasure.

[Kurk]

Don't make the spotting guide overly complex. It's meant for people who usually crack open IT stuff with a hammer. They probably won't have time to meticulously examine each and every keyboard.
I would say make it more like:
-Do the keys make clicky sounds -> keep it.
-Otherwise pull a cap:
Cherry MX -> keep it.
Alps-like -> keep it.
Double shot caps -> keep it.

Once in a while a professional sorting team drops by to extract the beauties from the crude mass.

[Ascaii]

yeah that is what i am planning to do kurrk. just a couple pictures of caps and stems on the back, and a little bit of info on the front. Most important is to attach a key puller because they would most likely use a hammer unless they have this specialized tool.

[webwit]

You're doing it wrong, educating your supplier. Tell them it is all a bunch of crap and you offer 5 cent per kilo.

[Ascaii]

To be honest I would prefer paying more for a board that would have elsewise landed in a landfill or been crushed for recycling.

[7bit]

Don't make the spotting guide overly complex. It's meant for people who usually crack open IT stuff with a hammer. They probably won't have time to meticulously examine each and every keyboard.
...
Once in a while a professional sorting team drops by to extract the beauties from the crude mass.

Right, they shouyld be old to keep keyboards which say:
Cherry, Alps, Topre etc.

No problem for us (ie the professional sorting team) to throw some rubberdomes away afterwards.

They should surely keep everything which looks like from the 1980s or is heavy (metal backplate etc.).

Don't make them pull key caps!


Don't tell them what the real value of these are!

[rodtang]

There are tons and tons of Cherry dome 'boards though...

[Mrinterface]

The power of the spotting guide can be that other 'suppliers' know how to distinguish rubbish from non-rubbish so they won't throw it away and keep it aside. Without the guide they ALL would be thrown away.

I have a special arrangement with the business we are going to visit , you see, he keeps ALL keyboards aside for me to sift through and only after I've sifted through it he will crush them all to oblivion.

As a general guide line I offer 1 euro per keyboard ( like stated in the thread ) and I think that's still a steal!

[Mrinterface]

Did I give you my phone number? Perhaps we can phone tonight and coproduce this thing in an hour.

IRC?

Second item from the top left

I'll be there around 23:00

[Mrinterface]

Update :

When I arrived by car, Kurrk was already there and we quickly noticed we were the only two Deskthorians to save some beauties....

I learned two things when browsing through the piles of keyboards :
1. Use gloves against dirt and sharp edges.
2. Use work clothes because you get really dirty.

2013-02-23 11.08.00.jpg (2.79 MiB) Viewed 4003 times

As you can see, Kurrk did have gloves on...

All in all it was quiet a nice haul -> I'll take some pictures when I find the time. Kurrk brought back around 15 beauties and I got about double that amount. There were even some switches I've never seen before(!)

My Results :

2013-02-23 16.24.52.jpg (1.92 MiB) Viewed 3999 times

On a slightly different note : I also payed a visit to a lady who sold all her father's homecomputers, this will be used in my computerlab in the Library of Eindhoven in The Netherlands.

2013-02-23 16.25.08.jpg (1.99 MiB) Viewed 3999 times

Yes, that's an archimedes....

[Findecanor]

Congratulations on the haul! Do post more pictures of the keyboards and of the unusual switches! There are some board in that pile that I don't recognize.

[Mrinterface]

Congratulations on the haul! Do post more pictures of the keyboards and of the unusual switches! There are some board in that pile that I don't recognize.

Yes, we spotted a really really weird one. Never seen it before.... Will post pics soon....

[Kurk]

It was good fun sifting through three large piles of boards. Countless rubber domes and also loads of Dell AT101Ws there but most of them looked as if a forklift had driven over them - which probably is what happened. I came home with three model Ms (one of them complete!) and a few other goodies. Here's my loot:

[grasshopper]

Wow. That's quite a haul. I'm very jealous.

Are you guys interested in selling any of the Model Ms? I don't really care about the condition (within reason) as I'm only after an old one to practise bolt-modding on.

[Mrinterface]

Wow. That's quite a haul. I'm very jealous.

Are you guys interested in selling any of the Model Ms? I don't really care about the condition (within reason) as I'm only after an old one to practise bolt-modding on.

I got a carcass you can have for free....

Only problem is the shipping....

[rodtang]

Nice hauls!

Here's my loot:

You should totally donate the shift of that front 'board!

[grasshopper]

Wow. That's quite a haul. I'm very jealous.

Are you guys interested in selling any of the Model Ms? I don't really care about the condition (within reason) as I'm only after an old one to practise bolt-modding on.

I got a carcass you can have for free....

Only problem is the shipping....

Thanks for that. Free is always good .....

Based on past experience, shipping a keyboard from mainland Europe to the UK should cost about 15€, which is not too bad.

[CeeSA]

nice work guys. This is also a good thing in a economic aspect.

[Icarium]

Hm...how did you find that place? I should check if there is something like it near me.