No. 04 - Materials

The material library behind every keyboard.

We hold no opinions about materials in the abstract - only about which one belongs in which keyboard. A short, honest tour of what we keep on the shelf.

Keycap polymers

The cap is the surface you actually meet.

PBT

Polybutylene terephthalate

The studio default. Dense, slightly textured, refuses to shine after years of use. Holds dye-sublimated and double-shot legends with equal honesty.

Profile | cherry | OEM | MT3 | KAT
Finish | matte fine grain
Wear | ages slowly, evenly

ABS

Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene

Brighter colours, sharper edges, a slightly higher-pitched voice. Reserved for sets where chromatic precision matters more than wear.

Profile | GMK cherry | SA
Finish | semi-gloss
Wear | develops shine over years

Resin

Hand-cast resin artisans

Translucent, pigmented or layered. Each cap poured, demoulded, sanded, polished and signed. Numbered editions only.

Mounts | MX | Topre | Choc
Finish | gloss | satin | sculpted
Edition | 1 - 5 typical

Metal

Machined accents | brass & aluminium

For escape, enter, modifier or single-cap punctuation. CNC-milled in small runs, anodised or left to patina.

Brass | raw | brushed | tumbled
Aluminium | anodised palette
Use | accent caps only

Switches & feel

Four families. One right answer per keyboard.

Linear

Smooth top to bottom. Ideal for long prose, gaming and quiet rooms. Lubed and filmed by hand.

Tactile

A defined bump on actuation. Preferred by programmers and editors who want acknowledgement without sound.

Clicky

Audible click-bar or click-jacket. For typists who treat the keyboard as percussion.

Silent

Dampened stem with linear or tactile feel. For shared studios, late nights and early mornings.

Assembly standards

How a keyboard holds together.

Hot-swap. Switches lift out without solder. Recommended for typists who want to evolve feel over time.

Hand-soldered. Each switch fixed permanently to the PCB. Slightly cleaner acoustics, slightly less mercy. Recommended once feel is final.

Modular plates. Plate material - POM, FR4, polycarbonate, brass, aluminium - chosen per build. Plates may be swapped without rebuilding the keyboard.

Custom engraving. Laser-etched serials, dedications, studio marks or full bottom-plate artwork. Available for every build.

Durability & care. Wipe with a barely damp microfibre. Lift caps annually for a quick rinse. Keyboards from this studio are designed to outlast a decade of daily writing with no maintenance beyond that.