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I’m not going to lie, I love peripherals. I’ve gone through 4 sets of speakers in the past couple years and pretty much a new mouse every 2 months. But one peripheral I have never changed is my trusty IBM Model M keyboard. It works great but let’s be honest, the thing is hideous! It looks very out of place on my desk full of matte black and titanium devices so I decided to turn my 20 year old Model-M into a top of the line Das Keyboard II clone.

The Player: IBM Model-M (Part no. 1391401; Date of Birth: July 28, 1988)

Never heard of a Model M? It’s an old school keyboard that is built like a tank and uses a buckling spring mechanism to give it a nice *click* sound with every keystroke. The tactile response of the keys are unmatched by modern day cheap and inferior rubber keyboards.

The Target: Das Keyboard II (website)

The Das Keyboard II is known as the “Ubergeek keyboard”. Like the Model M, it too uses mechanical key switches for good tactile feel but the distinguishing factor is that none of the keys are labeled. Aside from the geek-appeal, unlabeled keys increases your typing speed by forcing you to type without looking at the keyboard! All good things come at a price however, the Das Keyboard II is priced at almost $100 US after shipping and taxes!

The Equipment:

• Model M Keyboard (preferably one with a black tray)
• 1 can of Black Vinyl Dye
• 7/32″ Deep Socket 6pt (or 5.5mm)
• Flathead screw driver
• Old newspaper or cardboard
• (Optional) Soap/Isopropyl Rubbing Alcohol

Your original keyboard should have a black spill tray. This is the tray visible between the keys. If you do not have a black one, you will also have to colour the tray – which is not an easy task. I would suggest trading a friend or finding another Model M.

Vinyl Dye (or Vinyl Paint) is awesome. You should be able to find it at most auto stores as it is used to colour dashboards and interior vinyl. The great thing about it is that it works wonders on plastic. Unlike traditional spray paint, vinyl dye does not create a layer of paint. The paint is so thin it actually seeps into the plastic and colors it from the inside. This means that the plastic will not flake or rub off with the constant wear that comes from using a keyboard. I purchased my can at Canadian Tire for $8 – the colour is up to you, but to clone a Das Keyboard, I chose gloss black.

Also, the screw driver you need to open the outer casing is a 7/32″ precision nut driver (5.5mm works fine too if you can only find metric screw drivers). It may take you a while to find one as this is a relatively uncommon piece. 3/16″ (6/32″) and 1/4″ (8/32″) are both very common, but a 7/32″ won’t be found at your local corner store and may be expensive. The easiest and cheapest method I found was to get a Socket set and buy a 7/32″ bit. I couldn’t find a deep socket bit at Canadian Tire but I found one at the Sears hardware department for $2 believe it or not!
VERY IMPORTANT – make sure you get a deep socket bit, otherwise the screw driver will not fit into the hole. I made the mistake of purchasing a regular socket one first.

Total cost: $10 + cost of keyboard

The Setup

1. Open the Keyboard
   This is relatively straight forward. Once you take out the hex screws on the back, the casing comes off with very little effort. There may be a single flat head screw connecting the spill tray to the controller hardware. Using pliers or something to hold the bottom nut in place, remove the screw. The spill tray then slides out easily.
2. Remove the key caps
   Another advantage of the Model M are the removable keycaps. You’ll need to take off all the key caps as we will be painting them as well. Place the keycaps in soapy warm water to get any dirt off.
3. Clean the Keyboard
   In order for the Vinyl Dye to colour the keyboard properly, you’ll need to clean off any dirt that may inhibit the dying process. And depending on how old your Model M is, the innards may or may not be dirty. Mine was filthy. A little alcohol will go a long way in cleaning your keyboard. Simply dab paper towel with a little isopropyl alcohol and clean away!
4. Cover up logos and labels
   Using masking tape, you can cover up parts of the keyboard you don’t want dyed. In my case, I covered up the IBM logo and the LED indicator lights on the front as well as the birth certificate on the back.
5. Protect your floor
   Put out some old cardboard or newspaper so you don’t end up painting your floor. I myself put a few layers of newspaper over a big piece of cardboard just to be safe. No paint got onto the cardboard though, so just newspaper should be fine. You may also want to wear a mask and make sure you spray in a well ventilated area!
6. Lay out keyboard and key caps
   Lay out everything in such a way so you have a clear view of the parts at all angles. The space bar and the Enter/Plus keys on the number pad have a metal hinge attached. You’ll want to remove the hinge but be careful not to break off any of the plastic. If you wish, you can also paint the cord.

The Plan

1. Apply a Light Coat
   From at least a foot away, spray a light mist over all the parts. It won’t be completely colored but you must spray in light coats to give the dye some time to seep into the plastic.
2. Wait for paint to dry
   Vinyl dye dries in about 10-15 minutes. If you accidentally sprayed too much, don’t attempt to wipe off excess paint. It will seep into the plastic and the surface will smooth itself out after a while.
3. Repeat Steps 1 and 2
   Continually apply thin coats of paint until none of the base colour shows. Some hard to reach places may require touching up, such as grooves and sides. If you wish to paint the inside as well, this is the time to do it. It should be noted that the plastic may be soft for time. The dye seeping into the plastic softens it up a bit, but the keyboard will fully cure (harden) within 24 hours.
4. Partial Reassembly (Optional)
   
   Put only the spill tray back and reconnect the ribbons to test the keyboard. Make sure it works by plugging the keyboard into the computer. It should be noted that my X41 Tablet doesn’t have a PS/2 port, so I need to use a PS/2 to USB adapter. Any old converter will NOT work, there are specific ones that work including the one shown above which I purchased on eBay.
5. Full Reassembly
   
   Put everything back together in the reverse order of how you took the keyboard apart. It’s alright if the key caps aren’t in the right places as long as the general shapes are in the correct spaces. Make sure the F, J and Number pad 5 key all have the raised bump!
6. Remove Masking Tape
   You can now remove the masking tape to reveal undyed areas of the keyboard. Personally, I think the LED status lights seem out of place – but thats something to fix for another day.

The Result
Here are some pictures of the final result. Its been working great so far! Next up: replacing the LED status indicator with a nice face plate, as well as changing the green LEDs to a cool blue!

View the full Flickr photoset!

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This entry was posted on Monday, March 12th, 2007 at 10:47 pm and is filed under How-to, Personal. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.