you've had your keyboard for a while now and things are starting to get serious
you like to take long walks in the park you've enjoyed your fair share of
candlelit dinners you're both ready it's time for things
to go a little bit further welcome to the ultimate mechanical keyboard guy
before making your move you'll need to gather some information about your
keyboard start by identifying your keyboard stem this is the part of the
keyboards exposed switch which connects it to its own key cap now usually these
stems are unique to which switch they are on like Cherry MX toper or Alps but
luckily there's some exceptions for example the razer blackwidow z' razer
mechanical switches made by kail will work due to inherited Cherry MX 10
compatibility and in more extreme cases the one we'll be showing you today you
have the Nova touch from Coolermaster where they have adopted the stem of a
toe / switch to work with cherry MX compatible key caps this guy will focus
on upgrading keyboards with Cherry MX switches or in other situations Cherry
MX compatible stems because they are by far the most widely available
replacement key caps once you've identified your keyboard stem things get
a lot simpler is your keyboard ISO or a NSI layout this is one of the easiest
things to identify by just looking at your enter key on an ISO layout keyboard
the in Turkey will be taller and have a little bit of an odd shape on an a NSI
keyboard your enter key will be flat and just a horizontal bar fairly
straightforward next you have the size of your keyboard the two most common
sizes are just a standard full-sized keyboard or an 80% of the size of a
standard full-sized keyboard which is also known as a 10 keyless keyboard due
to the fact that it doesn't have the number keypad that you would find on a
standard full-sized keyboard on the right hand side there are also some fun
but less common sizes like the 60% sometimes referred to as poker and a
couple other sizes as well knowing the layout and size of your keyboard will
help you buy the right amount of key caps and for the final bit of
information you just need to know if your keyboard is backlit or not
this won't technically restrict you in any way as you will be able to you put
any Cherry MX compatible key cap on top of the backlit switch but if you want to
be able to see the backlighting effect of your keyboard it will limit your
options now this part is all about you what do you want are you looking to
replace all of your key caps in this case we actually have quite a few
options to consider first off you have the type of plastic you have three main
options there with abs abs is the most common type of
plastic found in keycaps today and is probably what was on your keyboard to
start with abs is very adaptable allowing for things like clear lettering
which lets backlighting shine through just the lettering on your key cap the
second option is if you want the entire key cap to be transparent that is KBC it
allows for a unique look and it also allows for the entire key cap to shine
while the backlight is on and finally if you're looking for something more
textured and more durable you'd want to check out pbt key caps that's my
personal favorite it can be a little bit more expensive but some people including
myself swear by the very subtle but definitely noticeable texture
differences also pvt key caps are shine
resistant due to their durability making it much more difficult for the oils in
your hand to wear them away giving them that glossy appearance that you'll find
typically on old keyboards a definite
bonus one thing I left out about these materials is the general feel it's hard
to quantify but especially if you bottom out your keys when pressing them down
the material of your key cap can entirely change the feel of typing due
to how it reacts with the base of your keyboard and its weight compared to your
stock key caps next you have to decide how you want them printed you've got
some options for locations you can have the printing on the top of the key you
can have no printing at all leaving them completely blank or you can even have
side printing also known sometimes as ninja printing which results in a
stylish looking blank top with the printing on the front of the key cap
just in case you need to check them out every now and then but that's not all
when it comes to printing now you need to pick what type of printing you
actually want first off we have pad printing it's extremely common due to
its inexpensive application and ability to print in more than one color but it
definitely has its drawbacks as well not
only can you feel where the key cap has already been printed but the printing
will wear away relatively quickly which makes that feeling even more odd as the
printing starts to disappear and it loses its shape then we come to laser
etching or laser engraving which is nice because it doesn't wear out nearly as
fast as pad for and it will last a very long time under
standard environments you can still feel the printing but some people don't
really mind this option as it generally won't change its feel much over time
next we have dye sublimation which is more expensive than the previous options
and can only be set in one color which is darker than the rest of the key cap
as the dye has to be set into the plastic after it is formed but it won't
really wear out and can be set in multiple colors and doesn't have any
noticeable textures to it and last but definitely not least we have a double
shot injection molding this method is definitely the most expensive but the
quality is beyond question these key caps are comprised of two entirely
separate pieces which unfortunately limits you to only two colors but also
makes it so that the lettering will literally never wear out and also
doesn't have any noticeable texture to it which brings us to the overall shape
you can choose between cylindrical the most common type flat which is usually
found on laptop keyboards or spherical which is mainly found on extremely old
keyboards and stuff like typewriters I hope you chose cylindrical as finding
flat or spherical key caps will be extremely difficult to say the least if
you're only looking to replace a very small amount of key caps like say a
couple F keys or just your Escape key you will have many more options in the
custom sections of some stores including things like fully 3d printed key caps in
the form of skulls or pistols or some
other interesting custom printing to make your keyboard uniquely yours the
job of a keyboard dampener is to reduce the clack of your keyboard not to click
the click on a keyboard is the sound the switch makes as it actuates on a clicky
switch to help tell the difference between linear and clicky switches click
here to check out why missus fast as possible episode explaining the
differences between Cherry MX switches the clack on a keyboard actually doesn't
have anything to do with the switch necessarily and is just to send your
keyboard makes when you bottom out the key cap hitting it against the base
board of the keyboard starting with a rings the most common dampeners there
are a ton of differences aside from just color there's thickness which is pretty
self-explanatory and durometer or hardness thickness will mainly a
back to the travel distance with under two millimeters affecting it slightly
above two millimeters affecting it in a very noticeable way around two
millimeters is recommended for say clicky switches with above two
millimeters only really being recommended for linear switches then we
have the durometer which gets slowly harder starting at forty al onward to
fifty a - r with 40 a - L feeling quite
squishy and 50 a - are feeling not as hard as hitting the bottom of your
keyboard but still quite hard our rings
are available in two main rubber materials nitrile and APD em don't worry
about this as they're functionally the same moving on from a rings we've got
soft landing pads the main source of these soft landing pads is elite
keyboards com although they can be found elsewhere and these are rather easy to
make on your own if you can find a good material from elite keyboards they come
in either a firm grey or a soft black for varying effect and lastly we have
surprisingly enough dental bands the
requirements for a Cherry MX o ring is an inner diameter of five millimeters
and an outer diameter of somewhere around eight millimeters dental bounds
are inexpensive and available in many different varieties they can be found on
eBay or honestly just from your local dentist office so you've done your
research and you know what's the best for both of you you're ready to make
your move but first you need to acquire supplies in the small niche but awesome
world of custom mechanical keyboards there is a surprising amount of places
to buy things from from the widely known WASD keyboards who were kind enough to
supply us with the key cast we'll be using today to the Wow
this really looks like this websites gonna scam you out of my money but is
actually somehow legit vendee o eSports also known as q10
for a pretty extensive list of vendors of keycaps dampeners and more please
check the forum link in the description down below once your new key caps
arrived it's time to get down to business when engaging in the delicate
process of key cap removal first and foremost you need to be gentle and
always use the right tools for the job you'll need preferably two key cap
pullers wire pullers are ideal but if you can find plastic ones those will
work - or even an improvised paper-based
wire puller but just don't use your fingers a coin a
screwdriver or anything of that nature one precaution with removing key caps in
general is that you need to make sure that you don't pull the entire switch up
off the keyboard when you do pull it if you have a keyboard that has switches
going directly into the PCB this could be a problem but if you have a keyboard
that has switches going into a plate which is in the middle it should be fine
but I would just check either way that your puller is only grabbing the key cap
before pulling up PCV mounted switches aren't all that common but it's better
to be safe than sorry there's nothing too complicated about normal square
alphanumeric keycaps so just go slow and be patient but some of the bigger ones
can be a little bit trickier first we'll go over how to remove dummy stabilizers
as they're probably the most common all you need to do is spread your wire
puller over the key cap ensuring you are only grabbing the cap or slide your
plastic puller over the cap which will only grab the cap then proceed to wiggle
gently if the key cap just won't come off for some weird random reason got
something like a flathead screwdriver a coin a credit card or your hopes and
dreams and hold down the switch below the key cap and then continue to wiggle
a little bit harder and then hopefully the key cap will come off at that point
for the spacebar the method is essentially the same but you need to
place a puller on each end of the spacebar and lift up equally now things
someone help you hold down your keyboard at this point would probably help now if
you have wire based stabilizers things change a little bit most the keys are
gonna be the same process as that dummy switch stabilizer keyboard we just dealt
with but the longer keys like shifts and our spacebar and backspace will all have
a wire based system which will take some dealing with once you've removed the
keys neighboring these longer keys you can actually start working on them
directly as an example we will remove the space bar so position your key
pullers on each end of the space bar and wiggle very very gently eventually you
will feel it give way from that switch that's in the very middle but it will
still be attached to the exposed external wire that is going around the
outside so if you just push on one side of the key cap it will free from that
side and then you can easily just pull it off of the other side be very gentle
in this as well but it should be pretty easy once the key is free you'll notice
pegs underneath you should remove these with either your fingers or
but don't shove something like a flathead under that little loop as you
may risk breaking it if you are having trouble use a flathead to pry it
directly from its base not from under the loop and then that should actually
be fine another thing to note is that the other wire base stabilized keys will have a
shorter wire which will be more stiff so be ready to press a little bit harder on
the side of the key cap when you're freeing it from the wire so at this
point all of your key caps have been removed if this is a keyboard you have
been using for quite a while this will be a great time to do some keyboard
maintenance so grab some canned air a compressor or a data vac and give your
keyboard a good air base spray down to get some of the chunkier parts out of
there for more delicate cleaning you can use a clean cloth and a small amount of
water or isopropyl 99% alcohol but
please note that if your key caps are UV coated you should only use the water
alcohol can eat away UV coating also if
the casing is starting to yellow you can use Windex which only furthers my theory
that Windex can pretty much clean anything another thing to note is that
if you happen to break any small pieces or the entire upgrade of your keyboard
you can grab replacement inserts wires or even entire switches from WASD
keyboards and some other places as well which will be linked in the forum
discussion which you can find linked to under the video down below in the
description when moving up your keyboard you really only need to lube up specific
spots along the stabilizer bars or on the inserts and stuff like that and even
then the amount of leave required is very low the guide I usually use on how
much Lube to use is pretty much equivalent to the head of a computer
case screw I have many of them laying around and it's just pretty easy to
access all I can really stress here is that less is more it's easy to add a
little bit more Lube later on but it can be very annoying to take it off the lube
I would recommend is finished line Xtreme fluoro it is 100% teflon grease
based lube that is widely used by bike knife and gun enthusiasts and apparently
keyboard enthusiasts as well as it is already widely recommended almost
everywhere on the internet for switch stabilizer lubricant some enthusiasts
recommend removing your keyboard every 6 to 12 months but as I don't really
expect many of you to do that try to at least do it when you're
swapping your key caps out like now finally we are at installation
surprisingly enough possibly one of the easiest parts of this entire process for
this part turn on your PC a fire up a word processor and then proceed to press
each button on your keyboard to check what it does before putting the
appropriate key cap on just kidding you
have a spare keyboard use this video or maybe look up a picture reference online
to find the proper key cap placement take it slow and you'll be fine
now if you bought some oring x' or dental bands before you have to install
your key caps with those first so you'll need to push the ring or band onto the
cylinder underneath the cap after you've installed all the rings or bands you
just proceed like normal but this time push a little bit harder once the switch
is installed to make sure that the dampener Aero ring is pushed all the way
up into the cap if you bought dampening pads all you need to do is place those
pads around each switch before installing your key caps like normal if
you have a common dummy stabilizer based keyboard the process of installing keys
is quite simple all we have to do is line up the cylinder under the key cap with the
stems on your switches and push down gently if you have wire based
stabilizers it's just the reverse of uninstalling them once the keys will be
the same as the installation process of the dummy stabilizers but whenever you
have long key caps like space bar you will need to install the pegs that you
removed from the previous key caps with the long part of the peg facing the back
of the cap then you need to stand the wire up on the keyboard and hook one of
the insert pegs on to the wire push in the direction of the hooked in end and
then hook in the other side once you have each side hooked in you just need
to push down on the key gently onto the key switch and voila
you're done alright guys while I give
you a chance to enjoy some sexy glam footage of our freshly recap CM storm
Nova touch tkl I'd like to thank CM storm for sponsoring this guide the Nova
clutch tkl we featured here is pretty unusual in the fact that it features
premium topper switches but with cherry MX stem compatibility which made it
pretty fun to play around with all day today thanks to him storm and thanks you
guys for watching don't forget to subscribe and like this video and
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likes and dislikes like Linus says comment in the video down below and also
if you guys want more information on where to buy all this kind of stuff check out the link in the description to
the forum of this video while you're checking out that description check out
that forum topic and go over the forum and comment there if you don't like the
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when you buy some Amazon stuff thanks for watching let me know how you thought
my first altima guide went and I'll see you next time