Apple Extended Keyboard Retrobright

[SeanTNT]

Before pictures

I bought this from an ebay seller for somewhat reasonable price. I had pay a ton for shipping though about 50 USD in shipping alone. RIP wallet you will be thoroughly missed but it's not everyday you find an AEK I especially where I live.
The dirty



Once it arrive to my location I found out it slightly less than clean ಠ_ಠ. But again its an AEK I with orange alps
Retrobright process
So impatient me couldn't bare to take a better and more picture of Retrobright process. I also may have forgotten to take pictures of the clean plate and cleaning the keycaps¯\_(ツ)_/¯.
After






The final keyboard after the Retrobright. Overall thoughts about the keyboard is not bad I will probably keep it. I just need to find an ADB to USB adapter since I sold my AEK II with the adapter to a friend 3 days before I bought this one (╯°□°)╯︵ ┻━┻. I heard something about how one can tell if the AEK I would be Orange Alps or Salmon Alps based on the serial number but I dunno lol ¯\(°_o)/¯. Sorry for the bad pictures and the emoticons if you were offended by it. I don't have much experience with photography in fact the camera is my dads and he doesn't own a macro lens.

[seebart]

Wow real nice job, the AEK 1 is totally worth the effort. This is what I need to do with mine also. Thanks for sharing!

[Wingklip]

You need to clean the switches as well, my man. Open them up with a tool I made, basically a keypuller without protrusions on the end. I can send you the STL or the print if you want it. Helps you open the switch housings much faster than with just toothpicks.

I also sell ready made ADB converters preflashed with firmware (or unflashed) with magnetic snap fit and screw mountable cases for $15USD each

[macboarder]

Looks smashing! Orange Alps are delicious and the AEK makes them sound the part too.

[macclack]

Looks greatI AEK is well worth it the restoration process--Orange Alps are some of my favorites. I did one a year ago using Retrobright although it's starting to turn yellow again

[E3E]

Yeah, RB jobs sadly do not last forever, which is why I cherish NOS one without any yellowing so very much!

[wobbled]

Yeah, RB jobs sadly do not last forever, which is why I cherish NOS one without any yellowing so very much!

Can't you just retrobrite it again?

[SeanTNT]

You could retrobright then apply UV protector polish like Armour-All or Autoglym.

[E3E]

Yeah, RB jobs sadly do not last forever, which is why I cherish NOS one without any yellowing so very much!

Can't you just retrobrite it again?

Yeah, for sure. That's no problem. It's said that RB weakens plastic though. I've not had any issues with plastic cracking or becoming brittle after several Retrobrights, but I also don't doubt that it does cause damage to the plastic either.

It's just a shame, that unlike a NOS board, it can yellow again over a somewhat short period compared to one that has always been white, though I have no clue how long natural yellowing sets in itself. With different additives in plastics, I'm sure some are a lot more prone to it while others aren't.

You could retrobright then apply UV protector polish like Armour-All or Autoglym.

I thought of that once, actually, but I'm not so sure that will help it from reyellowing again. I've had keyboards stowed away that have reyellowed. Heat, UV, and exposure to the air seem to worsen it.

[wobbled]

Unfortunately I have no experience with retrobriting, I ordered a yellow af AEK II a while ago to experiment with and the seller thought it would be a good idea to tape two cocopops boxes together and ship it in that. There was no case left when it arrived

[Wingklip]

Unfortunately I have no experience with retrobriting, I ordered a yellow af AEK II a while ago to experiment with and the seller thought it would be a good idea to tape two cocopops boxes together and ship it in that. There was no case left when it arrived

Was he on LSD or the Australian government?

I've found that if you left a full bottle of hydrogen Peroxide with enough water to cover the keyboard + some vanish napisan enough to make the water slightly clouded, it retrobrites under the sun in a few days. If you have a white or reflective inside, it will greatly even out the briting. Use mirrors? idk

[SeanTNT]

Unfortunately I have no experience with retrobriting, I ordered a yellow af AEK II a while ago to experiment with and the seller thought it would be a good idea to tape two cocopops boxes together and ship it in that. There was no case left when it arrived

Was he on LSD or the Australian government?

I've found that if you left a full bottle of hydrogen Peroxide with enough water to cover the keyboard + some vanish napisan enough to make the water slightly clouded, it retrobrites under the sun in a few days. If you have a white or reflective inside, it will greatly even out the briting. Use mirrors? idk

OR he could just grab some white paint and paint it instead. No way it could yellow now

[Wingklip]

Unfortunately I have no experience with retrobriting, I ordered a yellow af AEK II a while ago to experiment with and the seller thought it would be a good idea to tape two cocopops boxes together and ship it in that. There was no case left when it arrived

Was he on LSD or the Australian government?

I've found that if you left a full bottle of hydrogen Peroxide with enough water to cover the keyboard + some vanish napisan enough to make the water slightly clouded, it retrobrites under the sun in a few days. If you have a white or reflective inside, it will greatly even out the briting. Use mirrors? idk

OR he could just grab some white paint and paint it instead. No way it could yellow now

Might as well paint it orange, because that's what it wants to be

Besides, white paint yellows a little too with age, especially the enamel ones.

[Findecanor]

It's said that RB weakens plastic though.

Plastic could weaken with age anyway, so it could be hard to tell if it was RB or if it would be brittle anyway?

OR he could just grab some white paint and paint it instead.

In case you were serious: you loose all surface texture with paint.

BTW, I heard that Montana Gold Shock Cream White would be a good match to Apple's platinum plastic colour, but I have not tried it yet. I'm planning to maybe go buy me some later today, but I'm actually looking for a match to BTC or Cherry, so I might not.

[seebart]

It's said that RB weakens plastic though.

Plastic could weaken with age anyway, so it could be hard to tell if it was RB or if it would be brittle anyway?

The question remains if and how much RB weakens the plastic then? I have several 20+ year old keyboards here that I have submitted to 2-3 rounds of RB but I cannot see any evidence of weakened plastic.

[andrewjoy]

Nice job , i did something similar with mine , but i did not retrobrite the bottom as i am lazy.