Oak FTM Switch Dissection

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pyrelink

02 May 2014, 19:40

So I mentioned in my first thread that if I was able to find a way to safely remove one of the switches, that I would take some photos. Well as you can probably assume, I managed to find a way. Basically its just a matter of prying off the flattened plastic on the other side of the plate. The switch still stays in the plate, but you can now pop the switch off with a little force. SO here it is:

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So yeah! Thats about it. Not all that exciting, but basically the large spring is the main source of the "weight" in the switch, as well as what returns it to its resting position. I mentioned in the other thread, that it felt like towards the middle of a keypress, that it all the sudden got stiffer, as if something was pushing against you. Well now we know why. The stem has a second mini spring underneath it, that seems to be the spring that contacts the membrane. Without that second spring, the switch presses a lot lighter, and actually doesn't feel that bad, but the second spring makes the typing experience quite unpleasant. I have more photos in the album here and again use them where ever you please.

User avatar
Muirium
µ

02 May 2014, 19:44

Any force curve that gets heavier after activation and on down to the bottom sounds unpleasant to me. But yes, it's easy enough to make with a second spring.

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Daniel Beardsmore

02 May 2014, 23:25

At first glance, the legs look like those of a Cherry MY, but they're not the same.

I mistook my OK-100M for linear, so I got a real shock when I bought a Cherry MX Red keyboard, and found that it felt completely different, despite being very similar in weight.

The reason? The same thing: external and internal springs. I'm using "progressive rate" to refer to such designs (for now, until someone proves that's abuse of the term), and it's very reassuring to know that you actually perceive it that clearly, because I can categorically state that Oak FTM is progressive rate.

Muirium: it's actually quite fun to type on light progressive rate switches. It's got a nice cushioning feel. The chief reason I don't (above the terrible layout and the awful variable weighting) is that the OK-100M is complete trash and several keys get stuck. Those that do work feel nice. I think I would side with MX Red, as it's just such a nice switch.

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Daniel Beardsmore

03 May 2014, 01:37

PS: wiki page is up: [wiki]Oak Full-Travel Membrane[/wiki]

Also listed on [wiki]Generic cross mount recognition[/wiki] and [wiki]Other mount recognition[/wiki].

User avatar
pyrelink

04 May 2014, 00:13

Daniel Beardsmore wrote:PS: wiki page is up: [wiki]Oak Full-Travel Membrane[/wiki]

Also listed on [wiki]Generic cross mount recognition[/wiki] and [wiki]Other mount recognition[/wiki].
Awesome! Yeah, I want to like it, but it just isn't pleasant. Reds really are excellent linear switches. Progressive rate sounds like a good term for them. Basically the only thing that I do like about the keyboard, is the really awesome keycaps (which appear to be made by SP, which is cool).

Also I assume you wouldn't have a problem with me going and adding some of my images to their respective wiki pages? I still need to take the time to figure it out, but that would be okay right?

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