Funky Frankenswitches

[skepp]

Oh, and one more thing, is it the same springs as in regular gateron yellow?

[Deadeye]

I tried a few different springs including the stock Ink Yellow one, and they didn’t change anything aside from the weighting. The stock springs in the yellows are definitely not the same ones in the blues or blacks. For most of the combinations I tried, I used whatever spring would normally be paired with the housing.

In that frankenswitch above with the Ink Yellow housings, I used the 68g “Magically Progressive” springs from Thic Thock. Of all the springs I have, those were the only ones that gave me the “poppy” experience I was looking for, being light enough at first not to outshine the bump, and heavy enough at the bottom to have a nice, bouncy return. Donut-dipping is a must, though.

[skepp]

Ok, I was thinking more about the famous Gateron Yellow /Milky yellow springs and if it’s the same in ink yellow.

I put in 63.5g Complex SPRiT springs tonight in mine. Feels nice and I’m probably going to keep them like that cuz I don’t think my Quefrency pcb can handle another desoldering.

[Deadeye]

Ah I gotcha. I’m not certain but I don’t think so. It’s a black, loose-coil spring of standard height. I don’t have any classic yellows to compare that to.

[skepp]

Well thanks for all the info.

[Deadeye]

Poli Panda

• YOK Red Panda housing & spring
• Kailh Polia stem
• It’s just like a Holy Panda
• But extra pretty

Oh, this one’s mostly a gag - but I genuinely do love the color combination between the Red Panda’s burgundy housing and the Polia’s periwinkle stem. A stem more than just a little similar to that of a Halo…

Panda re-colors, JWK re-colors, Halo re-colors… it might make things less simple with all those around, but it does provide more opportunities to coordinate with a theme.

[Deadeye]

Deadpool ~ aka Gazzew-ron Pro

• Boba top housing
• Gateron KS-3 bottom
• Kailh Pro Burgundy stem
• “Speed” linear; short travel & actuation
• Great “tak-tak” bottom-out sound
• Super stable and free of harshness

A tight, smooth, speedy linear with a distinctive look and sound.

Credit goes to to u/slowshi on reddit for this recipe; you can see their original post with notes and typing test here.

A note about this switch and some others; Gazzew tops on Gateron bottoms leave the leaf without proper retention, so using on a hot swap board is not recommended. For solder builds, just make sure the pins are in proper position before soldering - they can be pulled down if they get out of whack.

I’ll also note this recipe is very similar to @donpark’s Red Tap Dancer, trading the already great Mauve top for the softer, lighter, and tighter Gazzew Boba top.

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Note: Slowshi’s original recipe calls for a 55g Durock spring or something lighter, but that was a little too light for me, so I decided to go for the Gateron Yellow spring I had leftover from harvesting the KS-3 bottom housing.

Using a black-housing Gateron Yellow as a baseline for comparison, the Deadpool obviously has a shorter travel, but is also notably more smooth, stable, and aurally distinct.

For me, this one’s all about the sound, and I really like it.

Compared to some other switches that bottom-out on a long center post, this one has a much less harsh impact and no associated rattle that I could hear. I think they sound a lot better than my Red Burgundys, for example.

The KS-3 and Boba housings are both a lot softer than, say, any part of a Panda housing - and I think this does a lot to mitigate those high-frequency vibrations while allowing the rest of the unique sound-profile through.

[Deadeye]

Sake ~ aka Holy Boba

• Gazzew Boba housing
• Input Club Halo stem
• Strong, smooth tactility
• Clean, tight operation without rattle
• Refined, thocky sound and feel

A remarkable switch that manages to be very snappy without the expected harshness in sound or feel.

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Did you enjoy Holy Pandas, but find them a bit too harsh - or maybe just a bit too loud? Maybe you enjoyed the strong tactility, but thought you might prefer something more refined? Perhaps none of that matters and what you’re really after is a fresh, hip tactile that isn’t a Panda.

If any of that vaguely sounds like a “yes” to you, then Holy Bobas just might be worth your attention.

These have a bump profile pretty similar to the aforementioned Ailuropoda Sacris, but with more emphasis on the bump’s resistance than the stem’s bottom-out. The bump is firm on the way down as well as on the way up; springs below 55g may not return it crisply without lube on the tactile legs. I’m currently using the 62g Boba springs in them, and while they feel incredibly satisfying, I find myself looking for just a little bit more pop-up force for my nerve-damaged fingers.

What my fingers do appreciate about these is the soft plastic in the housing - and the effect that has on the feel of the switch. Gone are the harsh feeling and sharp, clacky vibrations of my other favorite be-halo’d switches, Heisenbergs and Holy Pandas - replaced with crisp but comparatively muted alternatives - making for what I consider a much more pleasant sound and feel. I’m currently finding them a fantastic pair to ABS MT3 keycaps.

Designed for and well-suited to silent switches as the Boba housings may be, I’m convinced the path of Holiness is their true calling. They were only tangentially on my radar at first, but have very quickly become one of my very favorite switches overall, both in feeling and sound.

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Edit: The first post I’ve found mentioning these is from u/skypm on reddit, and they decided called this combo “Sake”, so I’ve updated this entry to reflect that. I think it’s an appropriate name for a switch with this housing, which itself does resemble the look of unfiltered Sake.

[MrWaffleCats]

Zoo Panda

It’s a YOK Purple Trash Panda housing and spring with a Jailhouse MX Cherry Blue. It’s pretty similar to the normal pandas in that the bump is all the way at the top. Aside from that the Purple Pandas are slightly more tactile, but it’s more nice and rounded. The Zoo Pandas are slightly less tactile, however the bump is more sharp. They feel very similar, however the jailhouse stem makes the throw shorter by half a millimeter as well as make the switch quieter compared to the Purple Pandas. The experience is surprisingly nice, and is very comparable to the Purple Pandas that’s just quieter and shorter. I haven’t tried these on a keyboard yet because I’m a poor boi with only one keyboard without hotswap. So if someone wants to make these and put them on a keyboard…

[pixelpusher]

I think I found an issue with the below suggested mod, but I’ll keep this here for anyone interested in trying. Seems that when you rock the switch in the down position there is a clicking action. It’s a bit edge-case, but it might bother some. I’m trying zilent housings now which eliminate the issue.

Smokey Naevy (meh, I we don’t really need to name these, do we?)

Recipe:
Naevy stem, T1 smokey housing and stock spring (has to be filmed).

Comments:
Smoother than stock naevy housing. Slightly shorter travel, which seems hard to belive, but it’s like a teeeeeny bit shorter. Medium-light tactility. Bump lasts from the very top to the very bottom of the keypress.

Give it a shot if you have time. It’s nice. Not for those who have disdain for shorter travel switches.

These are some of the older T1 switches. I believe they were the first batch to sell on PrimeKB
I tried this with Lilacs and it didn’t feel as good. Not sure, but I think the housing allowed for even less travel than the T1s.

[Sumthing]

Cherry MX Clear stems in Cherry MX Blue housing. Typing Test

Recipe: Clear stem, Blue housing, 0.15mm TX films, 63.5g Sprit Extreme Slow springs, and Tribosys 3203.

I really like the snappy tactility of these. It’s similar to the medium tactility of my Deskhero POM Pandas but with the bump after the start of the keypress, with what feels like 4mm of full travel for a satisfying bottom out travel after the bump.

My only gripe with this switch would probably be a slight return issue, that carries forward from Ergo Clears. It’s a little bit more apparent than the return issue of Ergo Clears, but it’s really no big deal to me. Using heavier 67g springs did nothing to change this, since the issue is at around the activation force which most linear springs would not have too much energy at. Instead, Sprit 63.5g Extreme Slow springs seemed to do the best job. I love these.

[Deadeye]

They do sound snappy! If I ever do get some Cherry Clears, all those de-soldered Blues I have laying around will finally have a purpose…

I like naming things… petition to call these “MX Clues”

[patcoll]

I just made a batch of these with Sprit 63.5g progressive and I love em. Putting them on a board soon.

[Shibanana]

Hi! I’m a complete novice to modding switches and I just rummaged this up from the stuff I have lying around.

I really don’t have a name for it but here we are.

NK Cream Top/Bottom housing
AEBoards UHMWPE Tactile Stem
Gateron Yellow spring
Lubed with 205g0, legs left unlubed

I’m not very knowledgeable on tactile switches, but from what I can tell these feel real smooth. Tactility is more Zealios than HP, but absolutely zero scratchiness and a pretty nice thockiness on bottom out. The stems are extremely wobbly, though. Not unusable, but really bad tolerances.

[ddrfraser1]

Cool. Have you tried films?

[Shibanana]

I plan to when they come in stock at my local place, circumstances don’t allow for international stuff.

[ddrfraser1]

Will help with the wobble.

[Deadeye]

Lilac Tea

• NK Ink Kangaroo housing
• Kailh Polia stem & spring
• Smooth and clean
• Round, wide bump
• Bouncy & gentle

Take a walk on the mild side.

This simple mod yields a more clean tactile profile than a Polia while taking off the 'Roo’s sharp edge.

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Do you want a silky-smooth Ink tactile with a bit less 'tude than the NK Kangaroo? Well. If the 'roo is Surge then the Lilac Tea is, um… tea.

That is to say, while the switch shares a similar tactile bump profile to the harsh Heisenbergs, the relative weighting between the spring’s bottom-out and the peak force of the bump makes for a very different and altogether more gentle experience.

Where the 'bergs practically demand smashing the bottom-housing with the stem, the Polia’s spring and 'Roo’s leaf make it much easier to have a very light bottom-out.

Compared with a Holy Panda, the bump and bottom-out alike are quite a bit softer despite sharing the shortened travel via the center post.

With a gentle appearance to match its character, the Lilac Tea could be a good option for those seeking a high quality tactile switch of the less bombastic variety.

[ddrfraser1]

Mild switches are underrated

[pixelpusher]

Are there any other stems similar to a Polia? I don’t own those switcheds, but the mod sounds nice.