DROP + MiTo GMK Laser Custom Mechanical Keyboard Novelty Keycap Set - 44-Keys, Doubleshot ABS, Cherry Profile (Novelties)

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But fret not! I’m here to guide you through all you need to know about the most well respected and undoubtedly the most popular keycap manufacturer in the world. What is GMK? Photo by Jay Zhang on Unsplash Still, I'm hoping to find someone making 'stamped' metal keycaps to keep costs (any keycap mass) down. metalkeyboards.no's milled keycaps remind me of the custom metal keycaps LTT had made. The first is that, since they are part of group buys, every GMK keycap set needs to wait till they reach or exceed their MOQ to even begin to move ahead with production. So, it doesn’t matter how early you cash in on the group buy, you will almost always have to wait months to receive your set of keycaps.

I'd also have thought more people would 'take issue' with spending premium-pricing on what are otherwise: keycaps made from sewer pipe ( ABS)) However, there are some disadvantages to using ABS keycaps. Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene plastics are considered of being lower in quality than PBT plastics. This is evident in ABS keycaps as they tend to shine after a period of use. PBT keycaps generally resist shining much longer than ABS. Among die-hard mechanical keyboard fans, GMK is considered the holy grail of keycap manufacturers. Mechanical keeb connoisseurs on the internet (especially on Reddit) would go above and beyond to praise GMK for the excellent quality and craftsmanship that they put into all their keycap sets. But the name GMK might not mean anything for a novice who has only just dipped their toes into the world of mechanical keyboards.

Whoops!

I can see in my head how to 'make' stamped keycaps, affordably; but, I have 0 access to laser cutters, sheet metal, and presses.

The main advantage that ABS plastics have over PBT is that they’re much softer. This allows manufacturers to easily include a large variety of colours than what is possible on PBT. Since they are able to use double or triple shot processes to integrate colours, ABS keycaps tend to be much brighter and vibrant than PBT keycaps.There you have it! That’s everything you need to know about GMK keycaps if you’re someone who’s just getting into mechanical keyboards. Mechanical keyboards and keycaps are made in various shapes, sizes and colours. They are made by companies or even individuals who wish to add something new to the world of mechanical keebs. For them, to make just one or two sets is simply not cost-effective, as a lot of money and time go into the design and the allocation of specialised machinery and moulds. Not to mention that many keycap sets are handcrafted to ensure they meet high-quality standards. GMK electronic design GmBH was founded in 1992 in Germany by Manfred Güntner, Jürgen Meinhardt, and Wolfgang Kredler—whose surnames make up the titular acronym. Keycap manufacturing is only a tiny slice of what GMK does. In fact, they only began selling their iconic keycaps in 2011! GMK also makes PCBs (printed circuit boards), keyboards, HMI control panels, IoT devices and many other types of electronic equipment. What’s so good about GMK keycaps?

All GMK keycap sets are made for Cherry style switches and clones, as long as they have a Cherry stem. This means that any keyboard with Cherry MX switches, as well as Gateron, Kailh or any other Cherry clones are fully compatible with every GMK set. Since GMK uses the original Cherry moulds to craft their switches, their keycaps have a great fit and finish on original Cherry switches, meaning you will not notice any discrepancies in their craftsmanship. GMK’s manufacturing process prioritises excellent colour reproduction on all their sets, which means that you’ll be hard-pressed to find any of their keycaps with subpar colouring. It only takes a simple glance at any of the GMK sets to see the care and craftsmanship that goes into each keycap. Their handcrafted quality as well as their attention to detail (especially in the designer sets) are the reason why keyboard fans hold them at such a high standard. The concept of stamping is to use as little material as possible to 'form' a sturdy keycap: laser cut the 'foldable-shape' and character/typeface, then stamp/bend into keycap shape, finally brazing or welding in a cast/MIM/extruded 'stem'. The way in which PBT keycaps are made causes its legends to be generally much darker than ABS keycaps. In a nutshell, ABS keycaps offer much higher customization options as they offer a larger variety of colours. Jul 4th 2023 HYTE in Collaboration with hololive English Unveils the New Limited-Edition Mori Calliope Y40 Bundle (2)

Secondly, these wait times have doubled and tripled recently due to COVID, with production delays colliding with a staggering increase in demand. A lot of group buys that took place last year won’t ship until 2022! There have been groupbuys for cheaper aluminum sets too. If you're waiting for something like this to be advertised to you, you'll never see it.I'd expected such a concept would be more desirable/popular. The ePBT spacebar is hollow. I don’t know the correct term for it, but it’s just a single layer of plastic, while the GMK and GMK clone set has a second ridge layer of plastic. I'm not sure the reasoning behind this, but, personally, it ruined the typing sound for me. Interestingly, the ePBT 6U spacebar has two layers, so it’s just the 7U that’s like this. When comparing the GMK clone to the GMK set, there's obvious differences in both quality and material (or how its applied). I know that GMK is getting a lot of hate on this subreddit, but the quality of GMK is better. The clone set can't replace that, if money isn't a factor. Even if I shared with you what I think the best GMK keycap sets are, the chances are that you probably will not be able to buy it.