Pink Vs. Orange ALPS

[Daniel Beardsmore]

I've just checked my AT102W – white switch plate, and very visibly doesn't reach the bottom of the switch. Something gives the keys an odd force curve – there's a second tactile point after the first, at the end of the travel, but not on all of the keys.

Maybe this is why I was finding the keys to have a scrapy, rough feel? My Tulip has grey switch plates, and after the tactile point the travel is perfectly smooth.

It's hard to make a comparison because the Tulip is heavily used, and the AT102W is NIB (the switch I opened up is immaculate), and the keys on the AT102W vary considerably in feel. My Fukka TP3 is smoother as well; not perfect, but a much cleaner feel than the Dell.

[ripster]

That is my theory. And the force curves DO show that.

[Lenny_Nero]

That viglen I got has Montereys.
I also dont think my oranges (if they are) are in very good nick because the above post seems to say what I think.
There is loads of side to side and the home row is very different to the F keys,
but its got 2 shots.

The board was covered with an inch of dust and I got that and the Viglen for sorting the owners computer

That is even if they are oranges I think half of the problem with ALPS is the picture that is taken of them and the white balance ...or lack or.

(I thought my pinks were orange, because it really is not a true pink color, I think salmon is a better word too).

I would be willing to agree again.

[Magna224]

I know I'm bringing back a dead thread but...

I would like to make it clear that black ALPS and Pink ALPS feel nothing alike. Pink ALPS are among my favorite switches while black ALPS are one of my least favorite.

[ripster]

because..............

[002]

It's because they're black isn't it? ISN'T IT!?

[Magna224]

The Black ALPS I have used were on two separate AT101Ws. I pressed the switches a few times to find out which one I thought felt better and I used that one for a day and decided then I dislike black ALPS. That was probably 6+ months ago. From what I remember Black ALPS were very frictiony and barely tactile and just felt very balky. Pink ALPS feel smooth. It feels pretty close to my blue ALPS. The tactile feel is not as sharp as it is on complicated blues or whites though.

[ripster]

Thanks...

It's because they're black isn't it? ISN'T IT!?

Oh you STOP that! This is a great day for our president! We finally have universal health care like you had decades ago.

Took a while for FoxNews to get it right.

[TexasFlood]

Thanks...

It's because they're black isn't it? ISN'T IT!?

Oh you STOP that! This is a great day for our president! We finally have universal health care like you had decades ago.

Took a while for FoxNews to get it right.

I don't think FOX is spelled CNN, although they both got it wrong apparently.

[ripster]

Your stalking reminds me of KL at reddit.

As you know from my other post both got it wrong.

Standing with White House chief of staff Jack Lew and looking at a television in the “Outer Oval” featuring a split screen of four different networks, the president saw graphics on the screens of the first two cable news networks to break the news — CNN and Fox News Channel — announcing, wrongly, that he had lost.
Senior administration officials say the president was calm.

A couple minutes later, White House counsel Kathy Ruemmler came to Outer Oval and gave him two thumbs-up. Ruemmler had gotten the correct information from a White House lawyer at the Supreme Court and from SCOTUSblog.com.

Scotusblog.com was the place to be for Supreme Court geeks.

It stayed up unlike other geek sites we know.

[TexasFlood]

Your stalking reminds me of KL at reddit.

The pot calls the kettle what?

[ripster]

Black.

Black versus Pink ALPS is the topic currently in discussion in case you haven't noticed.

Time to ask for RipOmeter numbers.

oh wait. Link dead..

[fohat]

Ripster - I particularly liked the bit about the mechanical computers flying in airplanes.

Tangential to topic, but not quite off it, what is the current up-to-date consensus on cleaning and lubricating Alps switches?

I just got what looks to be a nice Apple Extended Keyboard M00115 with orange, but it is dirty and a couple of switches seem to almost stick on occasion.

I am very reluctant to lubricate plastic because I am paranoid that almost anything will either start to degrade it, or attract dust, but this one might need it.

A light paintbrush and denatured alcohol will probably be my switch cleaner of choice, and I really want to avoid taking apart all the switches if I can help it.

What is the most reliable and effective technique, and please answer only if you have actually done it yourself and lived with the results.

Thanks!

[ripster]

Well, that's easy. I have a Apple M0110 I haven't had a chance to try R0-59 on yet.

I like short answers.

<queue Limmy?..1, 2, 3..>

[Limmy]

In my experience, metal to plastic friction was the main culprit of gritty feel in NEW Alps black switch in Dell AT101W. Most of the gritty feel went away after lubricating the metal leaves with silicone oil(I used Victorinox multi tool oil). It was about two years ago when I first tried lubricating and silicone oil was only lubricant I had at the moment. After two years of spotty use, it works just fine. It didn't get sticky and dust accumulation didn't seem to cause issues.

Here is where you should put some lubricants. I used oil dropper and smeared some oil on the metal leaves.

source: http://www.kbdmania.net/xe/116178
by digipen(2004)

Alps lubrication points 1.gif (7.56 KiB) Viewed 6457 times

Also, the Alps switch housings are ABS plastic which is known to have friction issues. ABS plastics degrade when rubbed against and the friction becomes an issue after some time. So, I think it is important to put some lubricant on the sliders where it touches the switch housing. See red arrows in the below pics.

source: http://www.kbdmania.net/xe/122939
by Capriong(2008)

Alps lubrication points 2.gif (98.71 KiB) Viewed 6457 times

Here is a link to lubrication wiki I maintain in Korean. KBDMania lubrication wiki If you know Korean you might find the information useful, not so much if you don't.

I tried Krytox GPL100 on the metal leaf and it seems to work pretty well without changing the feel that much. If you want to try some exotic / top of the line lube I would recommend you try Krytox GPL100. Search Krytox GPL100 in ebay and you should be able to get some in small quantity. Victorinox multi-tool oil seems to work well too, but it seems to change the feel of the switch a bit. The silicone oil makes the lubed switches a bit softer. I personally like the softer and more dampened feel, but it is my personal preference. Both oils are pretty easy to get, so you might want to try both and see what you like.

I hope it helped. Personally, I think lubrication is a MUST for Alps switches. I cannot say the same for Cherry switches, but it certainly feels nice to type on lubricated Cherry switches.

[ripster]

Ooh, awesome. A wiki. I'll load up Chrome when off my iPad and give it a whirl Limmy.

I'd give a link to all my lube experiments but GH is not safe currently.

[Limmy]

Ooh, awesome. A wiki. I'll load up Chrome when off my iPad and give it a whirl Limmy.

I'd give a link to all my lube experiments but GH is not safe currently.

Please don't bother. I tried google translate and the outcome is USELESS.

The wiki is currently more or less collection of links to helpful post in KBDMania. It is a starting point, but far from complete.

[ripster]

I know how you feel. My wikis may be reincarnated but I have a feeling the links and Pics are now in the R00TW0RMHOLE.