I will take any and every opportunity to write a long comment now so here comes my :

2023 Keyboard Building Guide From a noob for noobs '

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Before I start this guide I just want to point out that making your own keyboard will take a lot of time. Don't rush any steps. I believe that taking things slow makes the process very pleasant and you'll get a nicer end result. The amount of money and time you can end up spending on a keeb is absolutely abysmal. For example my keyboard cost in total ~800$CAD and 30 - 40 hours spent on research and actual work on the board and this is NOTHING compared to some people that go as far as making their own PCBs and custom cases. You really don't need to be spending a lot of money to get something incredible but the deeper you dig, the more expensive it gets. Building Keyboards is HIGHLY addictive. Be warned. ;)

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Switches.

First I suggest you find out what switch you like most. You can either go to your local computer shop and they usually have some mechs on display. You can test them there or there are test kits sold online to get a bunch of switches to feel.

They come in different colors and materials but there are 3 basic categories.

1. Linear
2. Tactile
3. Clicky

Some swiches are better suited for different usage. You wouldn't want a heavy switch if you type all day but even so there is no right or wrong switch for any case scenario. Only you can decide for yourself which switch type you'll like best and there is so many choices you will probably feel lost. Take the time to research this thoroughly as this will essentially detemine the feel of your keeb. You might want to look into optical switchesas they are fairly new on the market and the actuation point is adjustable.

Once you've decided a switch. There is the matter of how many you will need.

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Form Factor.

Now comes the part where you need to decide which layout of keys you want. There is a lot of different layouts but the basics are as follow.

100% All the keys, numpad, Function row, everything.

96% Almost all the keys. More compact. Most likely missing Pause, Insert, Scroll Lock.

80% Everything except numpad.

75% No numpad, Pause, Insert, Scroll Lock. Smaller footprint.

65% Essentially a 75% without Function row.

60% Even smaller, probably no arrow keys.

The specific keys present on each layout depend mostly on the manufacturer of the PCB. There are even smaller keyboards for people who want to maximise desk space. On these smaller keyboards the user will rely on having software layers to access keys that aren't present otherwise on their keyboard. There are also split keyboards that are seperated in two "half boards" for better ergonomics.

Once you've figured out the layout. You'll know approximatly how may switches you'll need and it will narrow your search for your case.

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Case / PCB.

You now know what switches and layout you want which means you can decide on the housing you want for your keyboard. You can go balls to the wall and go for over the top full metal cases to wooden ones. RGB no RGB, blutooth, wireless... so.. many.. choices..

PCB or Printed Circuit Board is the medium between the switches and the computer. It is where the switches connect to the electrical circuit to send the signal to the computer on which key has been pressed.

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There are two basic styles of PCBs.

• *Hot-Swappable.*If you go witch Hot-Swappable it means that the switches will connect into a socket. Kinda like a wall outlet where you can plug the whiches in and out of.
• *Soldered.*If you go with Soldered you will need to solder both leads of every switches to the board manually.

I would suggest for a first build to go with hot-swap. The reasonning behind it is that if you realise you don't really like the switches you picked or if you want to experience another type of switch down the road, you will have the flexibility to do so.

With the type of PCB you want in mind comes the hard task of deciding on a case for the build.

There are three basic styles of cases and most of them have 3 different parts.

Parts.

• *Top Housing.*Top of the case. What will be seen(or not seen?) from the top around the keycaps.
• Plate.Holds the switches and stabilisers.
• Bottom Housing.The bottom of the case. Will make contact with the desk.

These part come in so many different appearence and materials it is overwhelming. Most of my reaserch time was spent on finding the perfect case. I found so many cases I absolutely loved but didn't come in the layout I wanted. You'll need to do some digging to find something that checks all of the boxes.

Styles.

• *Top Mounted.*The PCB will be screwed in from the bottom to the plate.
• *Gasket Mounted.*The PCB will rest on soft gaskets sandwiched between top and bottom housing giving the keys a softer bottom out. Imagine having suspention on your switches.
• *Bottom Mounted.*The PCB will be screwed in from above to the bottom Housing.

The case materials and mount style will ultimately play a role in the sound, feel, look and weight of your keeb so chose wisely :).

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Keycaps.

This is the moment to tighten your seatbelt as you are in for a ride. Keycaps are what will determine the personallity of your creation. Mean Machine? Pastel serenity? Monocrome classic? Let your creative side take control. There are thousands of colorways and fonts and design for keycaps for you to chose from. Just make sure you get keycaps that are compatible for your switch stem style and that the profile selected doesn't interfere with the orientation of the switches.

• Materials.
  Keycaps can be made from a variety of different materials in different thicknesses. They can have a great impact on the sound profile of the build so chosing the right product for your build is an aspect you chould take the time to consider. Here is a great guide on how materials and thicknesses can impact your end result. *credit to /u/Circle26
• Legends.
  The legends are the lettering and symbols on the keycaps. There are three basic ways manufacturers put legends on their keycaps

1. PrintedLegends are printed on the keycaps. Least durable
2. Dye SublimationLegends are dyed into the plastic. Very durable. Edges of legends may be uneven.
3. Double ShotKeycaps are made in two different shots of plastic, one with the legend, one with the second color around it. Most durable. Crisp legends.

Profile.

The profile of the keycaps determines the height and angle of each row of keys on your keyboard. The most common keycap profile is known as Cherry but there are many others.

When selecting your keycap set, make sure you have the right lenght of modifiers to fit your PCB as the lenght of certain keys varies from layout to layout. Lookout for what key is on what row as well. You don't want to end up with different profile keys on the same row.

*The Elephant in the Room.*You will probably see the mention of "GMK" at some point in your research. They are probably the biggest name in keycap manufacturing. They own the original tooling for the Cherry profile and pump out some of the very best looking and feeling keycaps on the market. Their quality standards are very high, they use quality materials and most of their sets boasts novelties(keycaps with designs instead of letters and numbers).

All of this comes at a price. GMK keycaps are notorious for their prices and they almost exclusively sell their products through group buys. If you miss the group buy, you most likely won't be getting the set or will end up paying even more money for a second hand set. Depending on the depth of your wallet and the limit of your patience you may or may not want to go for GMK keycaps but at the end of the day the decision is yours. Just a heads up :)

To spice things up and make for a unique look checkout artisan keycaps online. You can support the community and make your keyboard truly stand out from the crowd in one fell swoop!

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Stabilisers.

For longer keys like "Space" and "Enter", you will need stabilisers to ensure the key travels up and down evenly even when pressed on the ends. They come in different colors, materials and style. I wil refer you to this guide for a good explanation. I've placed stabs down here in the guide as you will need to know the lenght and amount of stabilised keys to figure out which ones you'll need. Also some cases come with stabilisers so be sure to check if you need/want to buy additionnal ones first.

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Connectivity.

There is a couple options for connectivity. Some cases offer blutooth or wireless connectivity (or both) aside from wired usage. Think about if this is important or not for you as it may drive the price of the board up for something you might never use.

Side note : There are beautiful braided/coiled cables with different colors to match your build, don't forget to consider them as they can really bring your build to the next level.

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Lubing Switches and Stabilisers.

Most likely the biggest improvement you can make to your keyboard is lubing your swithes and stabilisers yourself. There are hundreds of guides online to teach you how to lube your switches as well as sound tests so I won't linger to long on the subject but please do yourself a favor and lube your switches. I used Krytox 205g0 to lube my switches and stabs 10/10 would recommend.

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ALL THE MODS.

When building your keyboard, there are a variety of simple to complex modifications you can do to certain part of your keyboard to make it feel and sound better. Most mods cater to the tightness of the keys and stabs to the sound profile of the whole board. Here I will only mention the ones I've been aquainted with and the ones I used in my build but there are many more mods documented/undocumented. If you are a DIY type of person you might even come up with brand new ways to modify your keyboard to better suit your preferences.

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• Tape mod.Consists of applying tape (usually painters tape) to the back of the PCB. This has the effect of making small resonance chambers under the PCB and makes the key presses really pop sound wise. Easy to do with a noticable difference in sound profile.
• Clipping your stabs mod.Some stabilisers are made with little tiny feet under them. They make the stabs feel a little softer but often makes an undesirable sound. The mod consists of cutting the little legs so the stabs make full contact with the PCB. Easy to do with fine point wire clippers and make the stabs feel more planted.
• Bandaid Mod.This mod goes hand in hand with clipping your stabs. On the PCB, where the stabs will rest, apply a small strip of bandaid (the ones made in fabric) to deaden the sound of the stabilisers. Easy to do and improves the sound profile and feel a little.
• Ho Lee Mod.This mods consists of applying small strips of bandaid inside the stabiliser stem to reduce considerably the wire rattle inside the stab. Hard to do, this mod tested my fine motor skills and tested the limits of my patience. However, the result can be immediatly noticed and felt and the rattling of stabilisers becomes close to non existent.

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Prebuilts.

After reading all of this, you may be wondering of this hobby is for you. If you are unsure, there is always the option to buy a prebuilt mechanical keyboard. Some prebuilt are very well made and feel absolutely fantastic out of the box and will only require you to get your credit card out and wait for it to arrive. Prebuilts from some manufacturers feature hot swappable PCBs for you to be able to swap switches down the road and most of them are still easy to open up and customize to your taste. For my build I actually went with a prebuilt from Nuphy and swapped the switches, stabs, keycaps and performed a bunch of mods to it. It has blutooth and wireless aside from wired usage, Has a Mac and Windows switch for me to switch between operating systems easily.

Keychron and Nuphy comes to mind for quality prebuilts. My Nuphy Halo96 came with 5 different switches in a little package for me to feel so of course I recommend them for newbies like me. It was also super satisfying to type on out of the box.

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Conclusion.

Building a keyboard goes into so many niche markets that are dwelling so deep into the hobby that I often needed to take a step back and really collect my thoughts as there were so many options to every parts of one keyboard that couldn't bring myself to pick only one. It becomes clear why you see these posts of people with 10-15keebs as one board won't scratch every itch.

I know this guide is most likely incomplete and some information might not be accurate. If anyone has something to add or finds something that need to be corrected I will gladly edit the comment for future enthusiasts that might stumble onto it.

If anyone has any questions feel free to ask, I don't think I have the answer to every question but if I don't someone else might have the answer and I would love to learn everything there is to know about the hobby as I will definitly build another board in the future. Hope this helps at least one of you :)

Thanks for giving me an excuse to spread my fingers on my new board this was a blast to write.

-Peace