When look at a mechanical keyboard, at the first glance there must be the keyboard case and keycap set. If we are not satisfied with the keyboard appearance design, we are probably not going to explore more details about this mechanical keyboard. If we are interested in the keyboard designs, then we would probably dive into the components inside the keeb and other specifications.
Apart from the keyboard designs, each layers of key boards material make up the unique performance of a keeb keyboard, from function, typing feel, typing sound to keyboard life span. There are examples of Kzzi mechanical keyboard, like K75 series, although the design looks the same, but there is still differences between K75pro, K75dazzling and K75lite.
In this article, I will share the components to build a mechanical keyboard. If you are going to get start with the hobby of mechanical keyboard, after reading, we will finger out the basic parts of a keyboard. While if you are already an enthusiast with computer key board, you must be familiar with the content of this blog. Welcome to share the parts that are not covered in the the article.
Physical parts of a mechanical keyboard
Each part owns its location and function from the top to bottom. If we wanna know more details, we can move forward for the detailed introduction part.
Keycap
Used to press the switch to get the keystroke, differs in material and keycap profile. In the market, the most common material is PBT or ABS. And some studio also uses metal material to make custom keycap.
PBT material
The typing sound is more resonant and powerful (suitable for users who prefer the "mahjong sound"). The service life is usually 3 to 5 times that of ABS. The surface has a strong matte texture, and it is unlikely to develop the "greasing" (smooth and shiny) phenomenon over a long period of use. While the price is normally higher than ABS keycaps. And the color is not as bright as the ABS keycap, like the gradient style and high-saturation color.
ABS material
ABS is designed for gradient keycap, or transparent, semi-transparent keycaps. In coordination with double shot process, the letter patterns will never fade. The surface is smooth for consistent keystroke. The lightweight feature can reduce the total weight of mechanical keyboard. While the hardness is lower than PBT, when switching the keycaps, we need to be careful. After long time typing, it often occurs oil surface.
We recommend ABS if you prefer:
- Colorful keycap, like unique theme
- RGB effect lover, the light transmittance is over 40% higher than that of PBT
- Smoother operating for gaming
We recommend PBT if you:
- Need a anti-oil keycap for longer typing
- Use it in a wet environment
According to the shape and height of keycaps, there are some common keycap profiles. For example: OEM, Cherry, SA, DSA, XDA, etc.
Keyboard Housing
The basic frame of a keyboard. Some keyboards have a integrated shell, while others are divided into a top case and a bottom case. It mainly depends on the keyboard mount structure. The material brings different keyboard weight, sound and durability.
We can find plastics keyboard, aluminum keyboard, wooden keyboard carbon fiber keyboard, or other metal material and so on. Besides gasket mount keyboard, some common mounts like Tray mount, Top mount, Leaf spring mount, Sandwich mount, or O-ring mount can be found.
Switch
Moved with the keycap, once they are pressed, keystrokes are transferred to Printed Circuit.
A mechanical switch is mainly composed by 5 parts, top housing, stem, spring, metal leafs, and bottom housing.
There are mainly 4 types of keyboard switches: linear switch, tactile switch, clicky switch and silent switch. We introduce the structure of switch and differences between 4 types in detail. See more details in the article: How to choose between 4 Main Keyboard Switch Types
Stabilizers
There are some large keys take up more than 1U, like Spacebar, Left Shift key, Right Shiftkey,Enter key, Backspace key, + Key on the numpad. Just like its name,this is why we need the stabilizers to keep balance on large keys. Making sure that the entire key is smooth and stable, no matter which part is pressed, it should move down properly. According to the fixed method, there are mainly 2 types of stabs( short of stabilizers).
Plate-Mounted Stabilizers VS PCB-Mounted Stabilizers
Plate mounted stabilizers mount directly into the keyboard plate by clips. Plate stabs is easier to install but maybe less stable. After moving the keycaps and switches, we can see the stabs and pc plate.
While PCB-mounted stabilizers mount themselves to the keyboard PCB, mostly using screws or clips. Generally speaking, PCB-mounted stabilizers are more stable than plate-mounted stabilizers because using the screws. But if we need to adjust it, we have to disassemble the keyboard.
Holee Mod Tutorial - The ULTIMATE Stabilizer Mod!
Positioning Plate
It is located between the switches and PCB. The PC board helps to fix the switches. And there are materials like plastic FR4, metal brass and so on. The material can significantly influence the typing feeling and sound. Here are the differences:
| type | typing feeling | hardness | suits for |
| steel | stiff | 5 | gaming & fast typing |
| aluminum | stiff,little soft | 4 | gaming&office |
| PC | soft | 3 | silent environment |
| FR4 | smooth,balance | 4 | Hifi sound lover |
| Brass | heavy | 5 | custom keyboard lover |
As a starter, we recommend FR4/PC for softer typing feeling, or aluminum for hard typing feeling.
Sound-absorbing material
Different types of computer keyboard will adopt various of filling material. They are placed around the PCB, improving the typing feeling and typing sound by reducing the hollow noise of typing.
As for kzzi mechanical keyboard, there are 5 layers of filling material to ensure the best typing feeling and typing sound. Even for a low profile keyboard, kzzi still remain the foam and dampening material inside.
For some model, there is a PORON cotton above the PC plate to buffer the contacting of switches and PC board.
Between PC plate and PCB, there are 3 layers of foam. IXPE pad, Poron cotton and PCB film. The poron cotton between pc plate and pcb is used to fill in the space room after assembling the switches. And the IXPE pad is exactly under the switch to reduce the friction produced by pressing down the switch. And the pcb film is normally a ultra slim layer to prevent the static electricity damaging the PCB.
Under the PCB but above the bottom case, we can find another layer of foam and silicone pad to reduces case echo and hollowness.
Printed Circuit Board (PCB)
The most important part of any types of keyboards. This is the place where we assemble the switches and solder the socket as well as light beads. Once it is broken, the keyboard can not registers key presses nor work functionally. And we order a keyboard with screen or roller, we can find the other small pcb to convert the signal.
In the market, there exits 2 kinds of PCB.
Hot Swapping PCB
The switches can be removed with switch puller, no need soldering tool. We can easily try types of keyboards switches. And if there is one switch broken, just replace it with another one.
Solder PCB
All the switches are soldered in the PCB. Less flexibility but better stabilization. We can not remove the switch and try a new style, even if one of the switches is broken, we will the solder tool to repair it.
Battery
If it is also a wireless key board, there must be a battery above the bottom case. The capacity of battery will determine the lasting time when using it as a bluetooth key board or 2.4G keyboard.
Weight plate
Normally it is added on the bottom case of the keyboard, usually can be found in the custom mechanical keyboard. But it is also used in mechanical keyboard, like K98. It is mainly used to add the weight of keyboard to enhance the stability and aesthetics of keyboard. The brand name or other unique design with various of material.
Conclusion
There are also other parts like anti-slip pad, volume/rgb knob. keyboard with a screen, RGB stripe, or other keyboard designs is making keyboard market more prosperous and diverse. Actually each components make influence in the keyboard’s performance. After knowing the basic information of keyboard parts, it will be more clear to choose the most suitable keyboard according to needs., not just following the trend or making decisions blindly.
Welcome to share your standard to choose your best mechanical keyboard?