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DIY Alps build, including Walnut case with Pecan inlay. (lemmy.ml)
submitted 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago) by wjrii@lemmy.world to c/mechanicalkeyboards@lemmy.ml
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More pics: https://pixelfed.social/p/wjrii/838255973232132267

I messed up in a million ways, but I managed not to screw it up too badly to be happy with it. This was also my first build with QMK and then VIAL. Some lessons:

  • ALPS stabilizers are a pain.
  • Don't let sleepy English majors design PCBs after midnight. Seriously, the thing barely works for this layout, but should be slightly better for Cherry MX switches.
  • One is strangely zen when one accidentally deletes all the PCB design files for such a flawed PCB. Still have the fabrication Gerber, but with half a dozen errors that's very near to useless.
  • Don't be a coward with your woodworking. There is a bigger gap between case and keys than I'd like.
  • On the other hand, don't be stupid. The pecan inlay on the back may be there to cover up where I sliced right into the dowels joining the frame together.
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[-] not_woody_shaw@lemmy.world 2 points 2 days ago

Nice. SKCM Whites are a little heavier than blues, and feel and sound even better IMHO. Your projects very similar to something I've been putting off for several years already. Any PCB design resources you can share, that you found especially helpful, would be cool.

[-] wjrii@lemmy.world 2 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

For the very basics of KiCAD, their own intro is helpful. I had to wrap my head around the workflow: first schematic, then PCB.

Once you grasp that, some keyboard specific stuff is described by Joe Scotto in this video. He tends to rush his tutorials though, so best to go through the KiCad page first or revisit the video after.

For resources, I found Ai03's library of footprints to be perfect, except that his vertical 2U were not oriented how I needed them, which I realized too late, LOL. Then, the kbplacer plugin by adamws was absolutely invaluable and saved me so much time. I used JLCPCB, because even when US-China tariffs were at their worst (and goodness knows they could be again if Trump gets a hangnail or something), JLC was still the cheapest option for me.

If you've never done a PCB before, I might humbly suggest keeping to a fixed layout for the first go-round. I did that on my first board and it worked perfectly for what I intended it to be. I got a little ambitious with this one, and ambition+inexperience+impatience led to a flawed project.

this post was submitted on 11 Jun 2025
54 points (98.2% liked)

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