CNC – The Louie

After my second Ursa inspired keyboard was finished and I wasn't completely satisfied with the bulky look I decided to leave fabric and go back to a material I've worked with a bit more, wood. Also my newest PCBs had arrived a while back and I was eager to use them. I've also gotten some LOTR themed keycaps, more specifically the dwarvish set from Drop. So I started on the third iteration of the original design idea form Andreas Chlupka. Main body So I started with getting some oak planks and [...]

After I received my new PCBs I wanted to get a feel for them and start using them as fast as possible. So I grabbed a 22mm thick sheet of MDF from the stack and started cutting in to it. For the tray to have a bit more strength I soaked it was watered down wood glue a couple of times before I painted it black. The result wasn't amazing, or above average. But it at least let me start using my new nice pcb and keycaps while I created the first proper case. [...]

During the first months of the Pandemic I bought a small tabletop CNC machine from Switzerland (read: China). It has a working area of 60x40cm and work very well for wood and other softer materials. I've added some things to it, a vacuum-shoe for example. I've used it to make several prototypes of keyboard cases in wood. I've used oak, birch, pinewood, MDF and plywood. It's fun to design something in the computer and a short while later have it as a physical object. One idea I explored was to [...]