How many keyboards do you own?

[SL89]

That's about the right balance. But you need some Model F to be taken seriously here. Or something vintage with sphericals.

Get cracking.

That is the keyboard equivalent of the typical hipster quote 'ive really been into this band lately... But you probably haven't heard of them'

[Spikebolt]

That's about the right balance. But you need some Model F to be taken seriously here. Or something vintage with sphericals.

Get cracking.

I'm actually not that much of a fan of the bucking spring, heh

I absolutely love the looks of a Model M, but I don't enjoy typing on them for extended periods. Sometimes I circle between the Realforce and the Model M at work and feel very relieved when I go back to the Realforce. Go figure.

[Muirium]

Makes sense. Ms are real rough compared to a Realforce. Fs are smoother and sharper (and LOUDer and heavier built). But for light feel, Topre's got it aced.

[zts]

maybe around 30ish. A mix of home and work KBs ...

TOPRE (Addictive stuff)
- Realforce 87UW55 (daily driver; excellent all over)
- Realforce 87UD55 10th (same as above; anniversary colors)
- Realforce 104UK-HiPro YK11K0 (outstanding; wish for a TKL version)
- Realforce 104UG-HiPro YK2100 (outstanding; wish for a TKL version)
- Type Heaven (Type Heaven + Topre PBTs = Realforce ... or very close to it)
- Leopold FC660C (White; Leopold will never make a better product than this; outstanding)
- Leopold FC660C (Grey; same as above)
- HHKB Pro 2 Type-S (excellent all over; best PBTs ever)
- CM NovaTouch (... almost there ... maybe in the next version)


OLDIES
- IBM Model M SSK (great stuff ... yep, great classy stuff)
- IBM (green ALPS tee)
- Chicony 5191 (with yellow MX mount; more tactile than expected)
- SIIG MiniTouch (model 1903; Taiwan; Monterey blues; luv it)


ALPS/MATIAS
- Matias mini quiet pro (impressive; very quiet; glossy plastic case)
- Matias secure pro (impressive; nice wireless; very quiet; glossy plastic case)
- KBP V60 Matias Click (impressive; loud in a good way)


CHERRY MX & MX CLONES (mostly games and work-related)
- Leopold FC660M (a class bellow FC660C, but still one of the best Cherry MX boards)
- Filco Majestouch 2 (excellent browns; office people love these)
- Filco Majestouch 2 TKL (again great browns)
- Filco Majestouch Minila (built like a tank, smooth browns nice sounding bottoming out and back to reset; short spacebar)
- Max Blackbird TKL (well built; solid browns performance; side lights)
- WASD/CODE v2 TKL (sick unevenly-spread metallic resonance with the clears; greens & browns OK)
- Deck Francium Pro TKL (well built; solid browns performance; PBT+POM; funky font that gradually grows on you till you start disliking it again)
- Ducky Shine 3 (solid build; possibly the best sounding MX blues)
- CM QFR (slightly louder blues but still pleasant sounding)
- CM QFR-i (LEDs tend to die; otherwise solid)
- Razer BlackWidow Tournament Edition (TKL; 2013 Cherry MX Blue -- very loud)
- Vortex KBT ONI TKL (PBT; slightly louder browns; light ping and squeak spacebar; well built)
- GANNS GS87 TKL (nice smooth Cherry MX greens; cheapo keycaps; slight ping in the middle)
- Noppoo Choc Mini 84 (very smooth Cherry reds)
- Keycool PBT TKL (Kailh; PBT; scratchy browns; harvest keycaps and move on)
- Keycool Mini 84 (Kailh; PBT; smoothest Kailh browns I've seen; crap spacebar switch DOA)
- Das Keyboard 4C TKL (WTF ... WTF, Greetech switches???)
- Rapoo V500 TKL (*factory* or *homemade*, whatever that means, yellow Kailh; in between Cherry MX blacks and reds)
- Rapoo KX 5G (*factory* yellow Kailh; closer to Cherry reds; dual wireless/wired; clicky???; tactile vibration on the F row; built-in rechargeable bat; definitively different feel from V500 *homemade* Kailh yellows; limited keycaps choices due to the top metal frame cutouts)

[deeyay]

-Func KB-460 (MX Blue)
-Project (Dell AT102W variant) (Damped White Alps)
-Matias Tactile Pro (Modified White Alps)
-Dell AT102W (Black Alps modified to White Alps but heavier)
-Chicony KB-5191 (MX Blue)
-Keytronic (Non Ergoforce variant)
-BTC 5349 (Foam and foil)
-Apple numeric keyboard

Keyboards I have sold that I did not like:
-Topre Realforce
-IBM Model M

I guess the last will surprise a few people.

[seebart]

Keyboards I have sold that I did not like:
-Topre Realforce
-IBM Model M

I guess the last will surprise a few people.

not at all, I find that quite likeable.

[002]

<snip>

Solid Topre collection, man
How did you get the 104UK-HiPro?

[zts]

<snip>

Solid Topre collection, man
How did you get the 104UK-HiPro?

A family friend who does a biz travel+family visit trips every other year to Japan/Korea/Taiwan. Others are a mixed source ... Amazon, widebasket, EK, etc. Topre love & addiction ... BTW, you have an amazing, super amazing, awesome, coolest, etc. Topre collection http://deskthority.net/wiki/User:002

[Redmaus]

All I have is IBM because I have a cherry mx switch tester and as far as typing goes none of them compare to tactility, feedback, and sound of buckling spring. Especially capacitative BS.

Have

93' Blue Label SSK
2x Bolt Modded 122 key M's(selling them)
122 key model F(best feels)

Want
HALL EFFECT WOO
107 key 4704
EMR XT

EDIT: Unsaver found!

[Ace]

EMR XT

EMR?

[zts]

EMR XT

EMR?

scroll down to IBM EMR Keyboard (about the middle of the page) to get some info on the EMR:
http://deskthority.net/wiki/IBM_Model_F

[strafe]

Various CM Quickfire Rapids (Black Switches)
CM Quickfire Pro w/ Black Switches
Phantom (Vintage Black Switches)
Filco Ninja TKL (Black Switches)
Choc Mini (Brown Switches)
FC200R (Red Switches)
Various Model M's (White Labels, Silver Label, SSK)
IBM M4 -1
Chicony 5161 (White Alps)
G80-11900
G80-3700
G81's (Olivetti and Old White on Black)

For my next keyboard I would like to try a Novatouch.

[XMIT]

Egad I'm up to 20 or 30 at this point. I should really make a "which keyboards I own" post. Trouble is most of them are filthy! I'm cleaning them, one by one.

[brend_b]

I've had a bit of a Model M problem for a while now

I have the following BS boards:
5 x Model M 101 white label 1301401
4 x Model M 101 blue label 1391401
3 x Model M 101 blue label 82G2383

I currently use the blue label 1391401's as my daily drivers at both home and work.

Based on reading various posts around here, I have only just recently acquired 2 x 6110668 Model F 122 Terminal Keyboards. These are both destined for a refurb and Soarers Converter. I might even try using one of these at the office!

[zts]

^ that's a nice M collection, brend_b

[Muirium]

I was about to say needs some Model Fs, but you're already working on that. Good stuff!

If I ran this poll, I wouldn't ask for numbers. Instead the options would be:

• Too many.
• Not enough.
• Quack.

[Redmaus]

Quack! http://deskthority.net/w/images/d/d9/IBM_Model_Ms.jpg

[Dihedral]

Quack! http://deskthority.net/w/images/d/d9/IBM_Model_Ms.jpg

Two Industrial SSKs?!

[Redmaus]

Quack! http://deskthority.net/w/images/d/d9/IBM_Model_Ms.jpg

Two Industrial SSKs?!

Not me. From Webwits collection.

[seebart]

Quack! http://deskthority.net/w/images/d/d9/IBM_Model_Ms.jpg

Two Industrial SSKs?!

Not me. From Webwits collection.

yeah that picture has been haunting me for over a year now. I wonder what he paid for all those together!?

[Redmaus]

yeah that picture has been haunting me for over a year now. I wonder what he paid for all those together!?

I doubt even webwit knows...

[scottc]

Probably not as much as you'd expect, to be honest. Webwit is a very lucky guy.

[webwit]

In those years you could buy stuff like 3 Model F terminal keyboards on eBay for $20 because no one else wanted that crap or pay for the shipping.

[Muirium]

Lucky = early. Prices for a lot of stuff have grown as the keyboard community picks up.

I do wonder about the sustainability about some things, of course. The ones that are all about scarcity are endangered by any sizeable find. (Why do the big Kishies cost so much less than the 62 or 77 keys? Because Cindy!) And I suspect certain Korean customs and Clacks might not exactly be prized in many years from now. But there's no way to short this market so I can't speculate…

But then again, maybe someone will found a keyboard stock exchange someday.

Spoiler:

[Dihedral]

In those years you could buy stuff like 3 Model F terminal keyboards on eBay for $20 because no one else wanted that crap or pay for the shipping.

If those kishsavers hadn't been shredded I suspect prices would have plummeted.

[webwit]

It's all your faults. With your demand you raised prices!

[Muirium]

Indeed. And I ain't selling mine. I think the 62 key Kishsaver market isn't even liquid right now. Everyone's sitting tight. Not for higher prices but because we want to have Kishsavers!

[Redmaus]

Where do you think the Unsaver market would be at?

Do I want to know?

[Muirium]

You mean the numpad-less terminal Model Fs?

All Model Fs are well made and worth something, inherently. But yeah, those ones are overpriced at the moment because of scarcity. Nothing like as bad as the Kishsaver situation, more like SSKs.

Speaking of which: if Unicomp ever succeeds in launching a new SSK, the effect on IBM SSK pricing will be informative. I expect it to stay quite stable as IBM's other boards are all better made than Unicomp's. But there's definitely some SSK buyers who are simply motivated by the need for a TKL buckling spring. If they have something else available, they won't be buying originals as keenly any more. It'll be back down to the collectors instead.

[Redmaus]

You mean the numpad-less terminal Model Fs?

All Model Fs are well made and worth something, inherently. But yeah, those ones are overpriced at the moment because of scarcity. Nothing like as bad as the Kishsaver situation, more like SSKs.

I think they might be more rare than an SSK. But like you said, if I was early I would be lucky. I do believe Cindy sold 3 for 25$ each a year or so ago. Now the only one I can find for sale has a price tag of 520$!!!