IBM SSK club!

[snoopy]

Welcome to the club dubs!

[Muirium]

The second I bought on craigslist...drove an hour there and back to meet up with this stranger and buy his SSK...was a weird experience. Nice guy but a little off. anyways he gave me a super good deal but the board is very dirty. seems to be in good condition. It did come with black caps...and I don't think they came from an M13..but I know jack about IBM so i really can't say.

Black caps on an SSK: interesting!

[Dubsgalore]

Black caps on an SSK: interesting!

upon closer inspection and after one day of use, I can say that they are from a black M13

Welcome to the club dubs!

thanks, I'm loving it so far

[E TwentyNine]

Those white on blacks came from an M13. You can see the notch on the H key in the picture.

(Ninja edit while I was posting I see... )

[phosphorglow]

I suppose I never actually "joined the club" - the only photo I posted here a while back was a bunch of parts. So here's my personal traveling SSK. (One-piece keys are totally awesome for sliding it into your laptop bag without worrying about caps popping off.)






(...I'm practicing my Photoshop background replacing skills. I'm getting tired of seeing my clean boring workbench in my photos. )

[Compgeke]

My advice is pick up a couple 250W+ lights and a couple assorted pieces of heavy fabric, such as black, blue, white, etc. Being able to do manual mode is a bit useful - not sure how well the (white) Galaxy S4 does at that. Having fairly even lighting also helps when replacing the background.

[phosphorglow]

My advice is pick up a couple 250W+ lights and a couple assorted pieces of heavy fabric, such as black, blue, white, etc. Being able to do manual mode is a bit useful - not sure how well the (white) Galaxy S4 does at that. Having fairly even lighting also helps when replacing the background.

Thanks for the tips!
And thanks for reminding me that EXIF stores all sorts of fun stuff.
My DSLR is finicky as crap and way obsolete (Canon 300D!) so the S4 is a very convenient alternative.

The S4 does have manual control over the ISO, exposure compensation, and manual focus to a degree.

[Compgeke]

300D? I own the same camera - the 550D I've been using isn't mine. I do agree that it's not all that useful for most things thanks to the slowness and not-that-great noise - unless you're in the snow in the daylight in which case it works great. Mine loves cold weather for some reason.

[Muirium]

My 350D can lord it over someone at last, at laaaast! How I have been waiting for this day!

Anyway, the trick is to pick an ISO that works – mine spends almost all its time in 400 – and to learn how to really use light. More modern cameras let you pull off fancier tricks in bad conditions, but these old guys are perfectly powerful if you can guess beforehand what will work and what needs recomposition…

[wheybags]

I suppose I never actually "joined the club" - the only photo I posted here a while back was a bunch of parts. So here's my personal traveling SSK. (One-piece keys are totally awesome for sliding it into your laptop bag without worrying about caps popping off.)

Spoiler:

Spoiler:

(...I'm practicing my Photoshop background replacing skills. I'm getting tired of seeing my clean boring workbench in my photos. )

What happened above the pause key?
Also, do you have red felt over your barrel plate?

[Muirium]

That'd be quite cool, naturally! But I think it's just artefacts from chroma key.

[Madhias]

Maybe - if the gods are in a good mood - i will join this exclusive club!

[Daniel Beardsmore]

300D? I own the same camera - the 550D I've been using isn't mine. I do agree that it's not all that useful for most things thanks to the slowness and not-that-great noise - unless you're in the snow in the daylight in which case it works great. Mine loves cold weather for some reason.

It must surely at least be able to outdo my nine-year-old Pentax Optio S5z many times over!

[kako]

If anyone has a ticket to join this club for sale, I would love to take it off your hands. PM me, don't be shy.

NVM, found it.

[Dubsgalore]

still in love with my SSK and using it everyday..

[Hypersphere]

Dubsgalore, I like the depiction of your SSK in a neo film noir look. It would be even better without the harsh white light from the screen.

[xyzzy]

Here's the SSK I received today, a '91 vintage ANSI 1391472.

Great companion to my other SSK (an ISO layout UNI04C6), despite being more than 10 years older it actually feels better and more consistent thanks to the work of love of phosphorglow, who gave it a new life. Really loving it!

gnrssk5.jpg (499.01 KiB) Viewed 8072 times

Sorry for the bad quality of the photo, there are more here: http://phosphorglow.net/2014/05/21/grun ... -4th-1991/

[Muirium]

Phosphor really knows what he's doing. Someday I'll save up enough for a nice one from him, too. These little guys are truly battle tested keyboards, good for the long haul.

[Madhias]

Better late then never! I would like to join this exclusive club too. The SSK i have got is in really good condition - as far as i can tell. I did not make that much pictures until now.

The build quality is impressive, i would have never expected that look and feel in reality as i only saw pictures and videos online until now. Also the sound of these BS switches is great, much better than the click of MX Greens or Blues (if a comparison can be made or is allowed; but the MX Greens are really a little bit similar).

Next step will be to use this bastard, and i have a feeling that this will be a daily driver. I think i will use a Teensy with Soarers converter, but i am not really sure. Otherwise to use an original cable is nice, so i have to think of.



There is the ESC key missing, and on it's place there's a strange cap with a skull

[Muirium]

Nice picture. I like that you didn't make it all about the little red guy! He stands out well enough deep in bokeh.

I'm half way through writing up a how to guide for building an external Soarer box. That way you can use your original cable, as I do.

[Madhias]

I think i saw already your project, but maybe i'm mixing up something! That would be really great, because i do not really want to "destroy" the original look. This is not a keyboard which i would take to work and back home riding my bicycle every day. Much too heavy. So i would not attach and detach cables all the time.

The red little guy is like the tip of the iceberg, the cream topping. I wanted to buy a SSK, and sometimes get a special artisan cap. This was like killing two birds with a stone, the price with shipping nice, a good offer in my opinion. Also it's my birthday present to myself...

[Muirium]

The SSK is definitely one of those landmark boards. I made my converter box last year and I've been using it daily since then. Just haven't gotten around to documenting it properly until now. Recommended piece of kit especially if you have several classic boards you want to use without modification.

[Hypersphere]

The SSK is definitely one of those landmark boards. I made my converter box last year and I've been using it daily since then. Just haven't gotten around to documenting it properly until now. Recommended piece of kit especially if you have several classic boards you want to use without modification.

We are eagerly awaiting your illustrated guide to building a switchable converter box! Will you be posting this as a new thread?

[Dubsgalore]

Nice Madhias! How's it feel?

[Muirium]

Will you be posting this as a new thread?

Yes, in the Workshop. But first I have some Photoshop to do to choose and trim the pictures so they'll fit. Also need to make a diagram for the rotary switch. But I'm guessing not everyone needs to make a multi mode box like I did. Way simpler without.

[HAL]

Have a great weekend everyone

[Madhias]

The dark grey one arrived already? That was fast!
[EDIT] How much was the customs fee? I've also ordered another SSK at ebay, which is already on it's way.

You definitely have to make a proper picture of these beauties If you need a good camera, i could help!

[HAL]

The dark grey one arrived already? That was fast!
[EDIT] How much was the customs fee? I've also ordered another SSK at ebay, which is already on it's way.

I was surprised usually it takes about a month. Customs fee was 224 €

If you need a good camera, i could help!

Thanks a lot. It is not the camera. I try to take all my keyboard pictures with natural light. And I have not quite mastered the low light scenarios (yet).

[Madhias]

Thanks a lot. It is not the camera. I try to take all my keyboard pictures with natural light. And I have not quite mastered the low light scenarios (yet).

Low light is always nice, i didn't want to criticize, the 4 SSK image just looks a little bit too soft for my taste (maybe because the focus is on the IBM patches). The dark and kind of evil lightning is just great for an image like that.

BTW, I also wanted to make a "my son and me doing keyboard stuff..." image, which ended up in a great yelling and chaos. In the back is my SSK waiting to be finished, to be connected all the time with USB.

Spoiler:

[Muirium]

Same here for natural light. Fake stuff just doesn't work right, to my eye. At least not without an enormous effort that I can't be bothered learning. Patience, and the right light will come naturally.

Moody, shadowy shots can work well with a tripod (so you can try multiple takes with different apertures) and a levels boost in your editor at the end. I set my old camera to underexpose by one full stop anyway, as its metering is bad, so boosting levels is as natural as cropping in my workflow. Can work wonders, and it's not even cheating!