Introduction

Touch typing on mechanical switches is faster, more confident and satisfying than on bubble dome switches, because mechanical switches are more reliable and give tactile and audible feedback as you type. Yet all mechanical switches are not created equal. They have a wide range of attributes. I’ll discuss these attributes, name a few switches and list my favorites.

Switch Makers

Back in the day it was IBM with their buckling spring switches, the classic of the 1980s. Alps was another big switch maker. After IBM stopped making buckling springs Unicomp bought IBM’s patent and carried that torch forward to this day. Cherry entered the picture, then Gateron and Keychron. We also have smaller volume boutique switch makers like Zeal PC. And many others…

Some of these makers have shared the same color coding of their switches by attribute. More on this later.

Switch Attributes

Switches have 3 basic attributes:

• Sound: how loud is the switch?
  • Ranges from silent to loud
• Tactility: whether the switch has a tactile “bump” during the keypress
  • Ranges from linear (none) to highly tactile
• Weight: how much force does it take to press the key?
  • Ranges from light (40 grams) to heavy (70+ grams)

Switches have additional attributes like smoothness, but the above 3 are the primary attributes by which they are grouped.

All high quality mechanical switches are reliable and durable, meaning no missed or double strikes (common with cheap bubble dome switches), and last for 50 M or more actuations.

The most common switch size & shape is Cherry. Gateron, Keychron, Zeal PC and others copy this design – it’s become the standard. The bottom of the switch has flat copper pins that stick straight down to connect to the keyboard backplane (whether press-fit or soldered). The keystem sticks up with a + shaped male connector, and keycaps have a center stem with a female connector that plugs in. The switch housing has top & bottom halves held together with press-fit snaps. They can be separated, disassembled and reassembled.

Switch Colors

Most of the common switches have colors that indicate their attributes, and these colors are mostly standardized across makers.

My Favorite Things

I like switches with plenty of feedback, both tactile and audible, with moderate to heavy actuation force.

My 2 favorite switches are Zeal PC Clickiez and Buckling Springs. I like them about equally, though the Clickiez are more convenient since they are Cherry compatible. However, these switches are both loud enough that I can’t type notes during Zoom calls, and they obstruct music on open-back headphones.

I don’t like silent switches, but the least bad I’ve tried are Zeal PC Zilent V2. They make several versions having different weights; I use 67 gram. Linear switches are the most common choice for silent switches, but lacking any feedback, they are not as satisfying or confidence inspiring. The Zilent V2 gives decent tactile feedback and is just as silent as linear switches. They feel like what Cherry Browns strive for, yet utterly fail to become. If Brown switches became smoother, more tactile, and didn’t suck anymore, they would become Zilent V2.

Lubrication

The latest fad is to lubricate switches. More specifically, lubricate the interface between the switch stem and housing, and the top & bottom of spring where it connects to the stem and housing. It’s a tedious process, as you must acquire special greases or oils, open the switch housing, take apart the switch, use a tiny paintbrush to apply grease exactly where needed, not too much nor too little, and reassemble the switch. It can take 4 hours to lube the 80-100 switches of a normal keyboard.

I’ve tried this and I’m not a fan. My lube experiment was successful and the switches were quieter and smoother. But they also felt sluggish, ruining their feel. Perhaps lubing just the spring and not the keystems would be better. But the spring usually doesn’t contribute much sound. IMO, lubing makes mechanical switches sound and feel more like the cheap bubble domes that we are trying to get away from.

Padding

Switches can be padded in 2 ways: in the keystem, or in the keycap.

Keystem padding is a rubber insert fitted into the keystem (inside the switch) that protrudes just a bit on the top & bottom of the side rails. It damps the top & bottom, softening the sound & feel when the switch hits the top & bottom of the stroke. Keystem padding is applied by the switch maker inside the switch and usually cannot be added afterward.

Keycap padding is an o-ring fitted around the center stem of the keycap. It damps the bottom-out of the switch, which hits the o-ring before plastic meets plastic. Keycap padding can be added to almost any switch or keycap, though it can conflict with some stabilizers. Keycap padding is easy to apply and to remove, and a set of o-rings only costs about $10, so it’s an experiment worth trying. O-rings come in different hardness and thickness. I prefer 40A hardness which is soft. For thickness, 0.2 mm is “L” and 0.4 mm is “R”. Most of the time I go with “L” but which works best depends on the application.