GMK Bleached is yellowing after 4 months

I work next to a window (which is closed) but even then wouldn’t expect it to yellow this badly.

I have confirmed with 2 other people with Bleached and they have also confirmed there’s have yellowed (although not as bad as mine)

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And here’s a picture of the board itself, the enter and ~ are relatively new (as I had an artisan + black enter instead)

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Who would have thought GMK Bleached would need bleaching?

Seriously, though, that’s wild. Definitely not something I expected to see but there it is. I hope this can be resolved for all the affected sets.

Ha, welcome to Keebtalk! Resin QC issues aside, that’s quite a cool polycarb-looking thing under those caps.

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i kinda expect abs to yellow after awhile, but didn’t expect it to be that fast? was it in a place regularly exposed to sunlight/UV?

i just remembered i had Boba U4 RGB switches mounted on a board. when i went to change keycaps (some of the switches regularly come off the plate/pcb becos of tight keycaps), i noticed that the lower halves of the switches have all yellowed. couldn’t confirm what materials were used in the bottom housing but the tops were clear polycarb

Ha, welcome to Keebtalk! Resin QC issues aside, that’s quite a cool polycarb-looking thing under those caps.

Thanks! It’s a m65b from rama with a PC plate.

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It’s exposed to sunlight but through a window so wouldn’t expect it to yellow this fast, a couple of other people I have asked have also noticed theirs yellowing also.

Person 1


Unexposed vs exposed

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Sorry for the multiposts, not allowed to have multiple images. Second example/person

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I have bought old Cherry G80 with ABS doubleshots and strong yellowing. I would put them out in the sun for a couple of days and the yellowing would go away. I was under the impression that sunlight through a window causes yellowing, but direct sunlight with no window in between will have a bleaching effect.
Just try to put it into the direct sun for a day and see if it helps. I have removed yellowing on several Cherry G80 cases and keycaps with this method.
Also: you should get a keyboard cover which you put over the board when you are not at your desk. Especially if you sit next to a window.

but isn’t yellowing caused by both bromine and exposure to UV light?

Retr0bright seems to remove yellowing from ABS: Retr0bright - Wikipedia

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Retrobright is faster to brighten keycaps but they can also easily overbrighten or nor brighten evenly. Sunlight (with no window in between) is my go-to method these days for all my vintage stuff.

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Ill try the Sunlight tomorow, interesting idea!

I wonder if RGB LEDs contribute to the yellowing. Not because of the light, they should not be emitting substantial ultraviolet light - but because of the heat over time.

Interesting.

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All plastics yellow eventually, that’s just the nature of plastics, but this is crazy for just 4 months of use. Either this is really cheap plastic (like, a really cheap type of ABS. maybe only in this set because plastic shortage, or in more than that set) or most GMK people just don’t actually use their keycaps and leave them in the box to resell them later so we never hear about it. I also sit next to a window and use a white keycap set (PBT, though) and have no yellowing yet after some months of use.

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Makes me feel good that I’ve left my M65-B with Bleached in a carry bag vs on a shelf since I haven’t been using it. I don’t mind a little yellowing but I’d prefer at least a year before it gets that noticeable :grimacing:

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just a heads up, I had my original m65a nylon bottom in it’s original box ever since I got it, it’s yellow. has never seen sunlight…

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sunlight would remove or prevent yellowing from plastics, not cause it. but thats just from my anecdotal experience with sun bleaching most things plastic.

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This thread is so freaking me out. Idk what to do now. :dizzy_face:

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yellowing can’t be avoided. plastics just yellow, that’s in the nature of them. some faster than others, but they all do it in the end. it’s just astonishing that those oh-so praised GMK keycaps yellow this quickly. that shows it’s really cheap plastics that have been used (could be because of material shortage worldwide).

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I was wondering if the color of Bleached could have something to do with it too. WS1 is such a stark blue-ish white, of all the stock white colors that GMK offers this one seems like it would be the most blatant to see yellow. Still that time frame is iffy.

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That is awful especially after only 4 months! GMK quality is good, maybe 4 or 5 years that is acceptable but not that amount of time.

Same^^^ Clearly the proper solution:
lap top privacy sweater

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