Friday 19 July 2013

Steampunk membrane keyboard hack



This functional art was custom created after the beetle & owls. I wanted to combine the same lovely textures of brass teak & beeswax with a modern tech keyboard to use at home.

The board is carved from a solid piece of timber. The shape was chosen to be agreeable & it is sanded & finished with beeswax for that warm wood feel. It was accurately drilled & recessed to enable the keys to work smoothly. The end plates are cut from solid brass & screwed to the wooden body with solid brass slotted screws. The black detailing is stencilled to the endplates. The retro feature pen groove is actually quite useful..

Each of the new 105 brass keys are 5/8"(15mm) diameter & individually engraved using a Roland Modela to give the quality finish I require. The Imprint MT font seems to work well. The engraved key pads are threaded into round brass tubes which pass through the solid teak body & are bonded directly to the switches.

This direct connection gives a solid feel, light touch & pleasingly dull sound. The donor keyboard is purchased new & dismantled to provide the reliable switch layers. This means I can concentrate on replacing the original "clicky" plastic keys with lovely new brass ones.

The photos shown are of my personal keyboard which I use daily. I chose polished laquered brass keypads, which is a bit shiny for most tastes, so you may prefer satin finish. The approximate size is 21"x7"x1.5". Weight is 2.45kg



Ingredients

Materials
550x200x30mm Teak or other suitable wood
105 key membrane USB keyboard
105off keys - Brass mirror coveralls Dia15 (5BA threaded)
2m brass tube (OD4mm x ID3mm)
Silicone glue
Dia3x12lg pozi woodscrews
Lens material for lamps & brass strip for endplates. Brass screws for endplates.

Equipment
Pillar drill & dia4 wood drill bit
Hand drill with dia4 bit & countersink tool
Router with assorted radius tools
Sanding tools
Modela MDX15 or 20 & engraving tool
5BA rolltap & Rotary tube cutter
Dia3 & 4.2mm drill bit
Optional Bordeaux etch solution (copper sulphate )
 
 
Making the keyboard housing:
 
nNB For future reference (key placement), photograph the layout of the keyboard.
 
nIdentify the final size of the surround.
nDismantle keyboard & keep all the bits (keep clean, in a plastic bag).
nMeasure the silicone membrane &, allowing for the surround, plot the centres of the key nipples on the top face of the wood. Beware : Take care to ignore any location tabs at this stage as they do not require through holes!
nUsing pillar drill (for squareness) drill the dia4 through-holes from the top face.
nTurn over the wood & mark out the extent of the membrane.
nRecess the lower face deep enough to accept the membrane layers, backing plate & screw sandwich; To ensure keyshafts are adequately supported it is good to leave at least 16mm thick material from recess to the top face.
nFit the countersink tool to the shank end of a dia4 drill(ie use it as a non-cutting guide) & countersink the holes in the recessed surface to accept the membrane flex.
nPlot the location tab positions & drill out to 3mmx5deep.
nLoose assemble the membrane & backing plate. Ensure the nipples can line up with the centre of the keyholes.
n
Now make the final shape & form of the keyboard, sanding to suit. 
 
 
Modela engraved keys
Making the keys:
Using the reference photograph of the keyboard identify the keys.
n
Either engrave or electro-etch the keys (Letraset mask).
n
(Optional) Laquered keys can be dipped in the etch solution which will deposit a nice brown copper onto the fresh engraved (ie laquer-free) surface.
n

 

Stems added

Lock the tube in a vice & for each key in turn;
  • n
Roll tap the thread (use battery hand drill)
  • n
  • Assemble the key to the tapped tube & tighten fully whilst still hot from tapping.
  • n
  • Using the tube cutter & a suitable spacer, cut off the assembly from the tube. To ensure keys do not bottom out on the top face of the housing, set the spacer so that there is 2mm more than the material thickness between recess & top face.
    n
    Drill out the open end of the tube to (3 or 3.2mm) to suit the membrane nipples.
     
     
    Assembly:
    nUsing the reference photograph of the keyboard identify the keys.
    nLoose assemble the membrane & backing plate using pozi screws.
    nEnsure the nipples can line up with the centre of the keyholes.
    nFit the keys to the board & ensure they locate to depth over the nipples (may need to ease tube with 3.2mm drill).
    nCheck all keys operate freely. Note any tight key holes to ease later with the 4.2mm drill. Reassemble after easing.
    nOnce you are content that the assembly will work, vacuum out & reassemble.
    nAgain ensure the nipples can line up with the centre of the keyholes.
    nSecure each key onto the nipple using silicone glue applied to the centre of the key tube.
    nWipe glue from the outside of the tube lest it stick to the bore – you have been warned…. 
    nAfter 24 hrs cure time, check glue fastness.
    nTighten the backing plate to a position where all keys operate freely.
    nFit the usb lead interface. 
    nAdd brass endplates if you like… or maybe an owl or beetle mouse?….