Alps Appreciation

[Aran.E99]

My issue seems to be an internal compiler error and recently it couldn't even recognize 'make' even though it worked before (after fixing one of the errors which has now come back). I didn't even know kbfirmware existed until now so thanks, I will give that a try!

[Drclick]

Hey guys, I found a acer 6023 keyboard long ago and I have time to clean it today.
I thought they were faded skcm blues but there are some bulges in the stem
Remind me of gainsborough's KB-101A/TK
So they are not faded blues?
Any other ALPS stem like this?

[Chyros]

Never noticed it on any of mine Oo .

Congrats on the find! The DT wiki says the 6010 series is considerably less rare than the KB-101A, but I'd beg to disagree with that - I've only ever seen a handful of these. Noice!

EDIT: also, did you say 6023?

[Drclick]

EDIT: also, did you say 6023?

Yes, it looks like a keyboard for SunOS. I will post more pics later.

[Lbibass]

Hey guys, I found a acer 6023 keyboard long ago and I have time to clean it today.
I thought they were faded skcm blues but there are some bulges in the stem
Remind me of gainsborough's KB-101A/TK
So they are not faded blues?
Any other ALPS stem like this?

Yeah, those are definitely blue alps. Do you have any more photos of the entire board?

[macboarder]

Acers are a fantastic platform for clicky Alps. I have recently finished a project long in the making with Amber Alps, SGI Granite caps and click-modded Orange Alps (click leaves from some type OA2 clone board and sliders from a NOS Dell Bigfoot, the housings were ultrasound cleaned). The feels and the clacks are top notch ^_^

[Drclick]

Acer 6023

[Myoth]

*snip*

your finds keep impressing me, this looks so good, shame about the missing keys, and switches :/


though, I have to wonder if this should be named something different than SKCM blues, given the consistent differences with SKCM Blue ... SKCM Sky Blues ?


credits to zod000 for the naming of the colur, I thought it was more of a baby blue, but this doesn't seem to be the case

[ppCircle]

My last three alps finds:

Chicony Kb-5161A Alps Blue:

Ok condition, needs switches cleaning, some of them needs clicknes restoration.





Focus Fk-727 Alps Blue:

Almost perfect condition. Keyboard has little scratches on 2 keycaps and dusty plate. Probably NOS.





Acer Kb-101A Alps Blue:

Currently my main board. In good condition. As you can see the case and keycaps are yellowed. (im planing to whitewash them) Metal plate has little rust around arrows. After all it is in very good condition. Switches are after 14h cleaning.







At this moment i'm looking for SA double shots alps keycaps.

[Aran.E99]

At this moment i'm looking for SA A double shots alps keycaps.

Funny you say that - literally 3 days ago I got a typewriter (Canon S-16) than has doubleshot SA alps caps. Unfortunately, I can't find any typewriters with enough keys to fill an entire board and some keys are non-standard such as the enter key.

[ppCircle]

At this moment i'm looking for SA A double shots alps keycaps.

Funny you say that - literally 3 days ago I got a typewriter (Canon S-16) than has doubleshot SA alps caps. Unfortunately, I can't find any typewriters with enough keys to fill an entire board and some keys are non-standard such as the enter key.

Yeah this is sad. Technically you need to find 2 of them to fill your board. If i will have free time i think i gonna make them on my own.

[Dingster]

Thats a whole lot of blue alps. Nice find

[Aran.E99]

At this moment i'm looking for SA A double shots alps keycaps.

Funny you say that - literally 3 days ago I got a typewriter (Canon S-16) than has doubleshot SA alps caps. Unfortunately, I can't find any typewriters with enough keys to fill an entire board and some keys are non-standard such as the enter key.

Yeah this is sad. Technically you need to find 2 of them to fill your board. If i will have free time i think i gonna make them on my own.

That is my plan too - I want to actually make some molds of the caps I have so I can cast them from resin but it will be expensive and will take a lot of time.

[ppCircle]

Thats a whole lot of blue alps. Nice find

My wet dream is to find heavy blues. But in my country it is impossible i think. Also i love those switches. Thanks a lot.

[Dingster]

Thats a whole lot of blue alps. Nice find

My wet dream is to find heavy blues. But in my country it is impossible i think. Also i love those switches. Thanks a lot.

Still waiting to find a mystical blue alps board here....or just any alps keyboard really...

[ppCircle]

Thats a whole lot of blue alps. Nice find

My wet dream is to find heavy blues. But in my country it is impossible i think. Also i love those switches. Thanks a lot.

Still waiting to find a mystical blue alps board here....or just any alps keyboard really...

I my hobby with keyboards just started over a year ago. (thats can be funny for somebody, but that hobby stopped my suicide thoughts) And after watching much videos about alps and other switches. (most of chyros videos ) I decided that keyboard for me is the blues one. After 6 months of everyday searching (morning and evening ~30 minutes) i found my blues board for which i paid around 15$. What is funny i found acer and focus in the last two months. One day you will find your alps board. I wish you luck to find what you want.

[Dingster]

Thanks man, glad to hear the hobby helped you. Ironically I've seen more beamsprings than alps keyboards

[Polecat]

Hey guys, I found a acer 6023 keyboard long ago and I have time to clean it today.
I thought they were faded skcm blues but there are some bulges in the stem
Remind me of gainsborough's KB-101A/TK
So they are not faded blues?
Any other ALPS stem like this?

Thanks for sharing! I just checked several of my blue SKCM boards, including a Multitech KB-101A and a very early Northgate 102, and none of them have the bulges in the sliders. And none of them are the sky blue color. Another piece of the never ending Alps puzzle.

[Rauha]

Keyboard from Toshiba T3100 with 'Alps common mount low profile/SKFM' on the left and keyboard from Toshiba T3200 with Alps SKFL on the right.

Currently in the process of converting these. They use some kind of ancient FCC cable with a pitch that no one seems to make anymore. Finally managed to find source for a cable connector from China. Can hopefully build converters for them now. Really like the Alps common mount low profile switches. SKFL is much more mediocre. Both have lovely double shot keycaps, altough ruined by strange finnish/swedish key legends combined with ANSI(!) Enter combo. To find nordic Alps keycaps with this quality...then they have ANSI Enter...feels like a crime against the human spirit.

[//gainsborough]

I my hobby with keyboards just started over a year ago. (thats can be funny for somebody, but that hobby stopped my suicide thoughts) And after watching much videos about alps and other switches. (most of chyros videos ) I decided that keyboard for me is the blues one. After 6 months of everyday searching (morning and evening ~30 minutes) i found my blues board for which i paid around 15$. What is funny i found acer and focus in the last two months. One day you will find your alps board. I wish you luck to find what you want.

God bless, my dude. Glad to hear this hobby saved you =) Congrats on the good finds as well!

[keyboard Kultist]

Just recently I got a Computerland badged board with blue Alps in great condition.

That takes me back....wavy lines....my first computer, a Commodore Vic 20,
was bought at a Computerland with the prize money the physics at my University gave me. I guess that was my very first keyboard too.

[xs_xs]

some vintage alps keyboards

[Obscure]

Put me in the dishwasher baby, oh yeah!

[swampangel]

I bought this M0110 in the winter, and I'm at a crossroads. Like others, I find the ping and the angle are a bit much, and the KRO isn't very impressive (with hasu's converter, but I'm pretty sure it's limited by the pcb).

So far I've added new rubber feet, put foam strips inside for dampening, and removed the locking mechanism from capslock. All reversible.

I'm not interested in it as a piece of history. Should I put the lock bar back and sell it, or go all in and replace the pcb with something like https://easyeda.com/cerement/M0110-PCB (with the original SKCC switches, for sure)?

[Darkshado]

Of the issues you mention, the PCB would only solve KRO. Do you see yourself keeping it in rotation long term with the rest?

[swampangel]

Of the issues you mention, the PCB would only solve KRO. Do you see yourself keeping it in rotation long term with the rest?

I've read that removing the pcb and hand wiring reduces the ping substantially. I figure I could do something similar with some foam or rubber mat between the switches and new pcb. Could just handwire it, but that's less fun as a project. I think if it turned out "right" it would stay in the rotation.

[xicanoink]

Ebay gods were smiling down upon me.

This arrived today.

The F9 key is missing and the switch is broken, missing the slider. Thinking I'll just buy a replacement switch and replace the guts. See if that works.

My first blue alps board and it feels amazing.

Using Soarer's USB converter. Had to move the AT-XT switch to get it working.

Now it just needs to get cleaned up!

deltagold.jpeg (2.47 MiB) Viewed 15045 times

[Lbibass]

Ebay gods were smiling down upon me.

This arrived today.

The F9 key is missing and the switch is broken, missing the slider. Thinking I'll just buy a replacement switch and replace the guts. See if that works.

My first blue alps board and it feels amazing.

Using Soarer's USB converter. Had to move the AT-XT switch to get it working.

Now it just needs to get cleaned up!
deltagold.jpeg

So you were the one that got it! Nice! I couldn't afford it at the time.

[xicanoink]

Ebay gods were smiling down upon me.

This arrived today.

The F9 key is missing and the switch is broken, missing the slider. Thinking I'll just buy a replacement switch and replace the guts. See if that works.

My first blue alps board and it feels amazing.

Using Soarer's USB converter. Had to move the AT-XT switch to get it working.

Now it just needs to get cleaned up!
deltagold.jpeg

So you were the one that got it! Nice! I couldn't afford it at the time.

Thanks!
Glad the seller did a a buy it now, it was a great price for blue alps.

[Mattelec]

What could be a Pine top housing donor? Want to repair some damaged blue alps with strange marks