Brand New Model F January 2026 Update: new reviews and customer images, beam spring production updates, new firmware, and more!
When will my order ship? How long do I have to wait before my order ships? Can I still order a new Model F or beam spring keyboard from the current stock and have it arrive soon?
Yes, there is still time now to join in this month on the project and get a keyboard from the current stock, as I have ordered extras. Even if you read this post several months from now, the shipping backlog is typically about a month or two for in stock items, sometimes longer. In other words, everyone has to wait in line for their order to ship; there is no way to have an order ship immediately. In terms of the timeline from here, I cannot estimate the timeline for any specific order, so please do not email me asking for a personalized update on when your order will ship. You will receive an email with a tracking number once your order is all done. All keyboard models are in stock, except for the Round 2 beam spring keyboards (see below for details). The compact F50, split ergonomic F15, and split ortho are out of stock, though you can still order one of the remaining the NOS IBM classic style F50 keyboards.
Check out the geekhack or DT forum thread for the latest updates (see the About page for the link) including production status. The updates on the forum threads are far more frequent and recent than the periodic updates posted several times per year on this blog page. Just because this post is dated from a while back does not mean there have been no updates!
Please sign the following interest forms if interested and if you have not done so already:
Pad Printed keys interest form: https://forms.gle/Md7p5oA8zySy6pkG7
2025 Model F Project Interest Form for new designs (see the prior post below for more details): https://forms.gle/c9cSCCmsDhZk4ZDR6
ISO Black, Industrial SSK Blue, Dark Gray Key Sets, Big Enter Keys, Code Keys Interest Form: https://forms.gle/cDDypmZii6ihxgDY8
After thousands of original project new Model F’s have shipped, we are down to the last remaining units of these F62/F77 classic and compact boards, so I also recommend getting one of these soon if you want one, before they are gone. Pricing usually goes up as we get closer to the last remaining units of each series; for example the final compact case boards have sold for $600 to $800 instead of as low as $199 now.
As always, feel free to add on some extras to your order by placing a new order and picking free/other shipping at checkout, right before clicking Place Order, so that you don’t have to pay extra shipping charges (it ships with your keyboard order). I recommend getting all of the available extras while they are still available.
All variations are available, if they can be added to the cart. The current discounted pricing is not guaranteed for the future and some keyboards have already started going up in price compared to the earlier discount as those keyboards are running out of stock, so I recommend joining the project this month and not waiting since you may be paying double or your favorite color or layout may no longer be available to order. If you are interested in skipping the line feel free to order the skip the line option mentioned below; otherwise you have to wait with everyone else in line! The project always has an order backlog, so please do not email me asking when your order will ship.
Read the manual fully before touching your keyboard, even if you have experience with these old style keyboards: After your new Model F keyboard arrives, I strongly recommend starting from the beginning of the setup video and the written manual, to minimize the time you need to figure things out. Do not only watch the hour-long setup video, as there have been many changes and other required steps not shown in the video. Since so many keyboards have shipped in a short timespan, there have been a higher-than-usual number of questions from folks, and almost all of the questioners show that they did not read the manual, and the solution to their issue is in the manual. Don’t be one of those people and spend hours more than you need to set things up! A fix for every potential Model F issue is described in the written manual. Part of the manual discusses an issue with transposed keys. The manual has been updated recently. The main thing to fix is removing and reinstalling the affected springs with the proper process described there and also shown in the hour-long setup video. Reports posted on the forums and messages sent to me indicate that this almost always fixes the issue. If that step does not fix the issue, the manual also notes the next steps in the diagnostic process.
The most common questions I get are directly answered in the manual, so I know who hasn’t read the manual at all when I get these questions! “A few keys do not work, my spacebar gets stuck, my shift or enter key is hard to press, how do I flash firmware, how do I adjust key mapping”
Here are all the models that are now being offered
There is still time to order the original project’s F62/F77 and other keyboards, but they are on a “while supplies last” basis.
- Currently in stock: All F104, FSSK, F122, F62, F77, IBM NOS F50 macro pad (very limited quantity, see below for details)
- Currently in production and assembly: the Round 2 classic style Beam Spring keyboards (expected to ship from China in Feb. 2026 for the B104 and May 2026 for the B122, B62, and BSSK)
- Currently out of stock: Model F Split Ortho, Split Ergonomic F15, Ultra Compact F50, Classic Case style Beige F62
REQUEST: please share your photos, reviews, and postings on the Model F and Beam Spring Projects!
Please spend a few minutes to help the project: For those of you who have been using your Brand New Model F and Brand New Beam Spring keyboards, please do post a quick video on YouTube if you don’t mind! How do you like using your keyboard, how does it compare to your other keyboards, how was the setup experience, any recommendations and/or custom modifications, etc. A lot of folks find out about the project through YouTube nowadays. If you post a review please do set the title to something like “Brand New Model F Keyboards by Model F Labs review” or “Brand New Beam Spring Keyboards by Model F Labs review” – and let me know once you post as I want to share the various reviews, postings, and videos. Is there any feedback on the Model F ergo boards from folks who have been using them?
Major project milestone:
In October the keyboard projects passed $4 million in total orders!
Email follow up – is your new Model f or beam spring keyboard not working?
As a reminder, if you fully follow the step-by-step setup manual, you will not be left with a non-working keyboard. Do I need to replace any non-functional parts damaged in shipping, or if something is not working please email me again to follow up if you have had a support request and your keyboard is still not working. I may be waiting on your reply, which you may not have received if it went to the junk folder.
If for any reason your keyboard is not working, please look through the recently updated manual to go through all of the troubleshooting steps. Do not only try to pick the section that you think will be most relevant to whatever your specific issue is. Read the manual from beginning to end again, and do not skip any parts. As a last resort, email me and I can help. Please note that I cannot accept support requests until after you have gone through the manual. I have had a few folks email me questions that indicate they have not followed the manual at all, and I just direct them back to the manual as the first required process before I can step in. When emailing me for support, you’ll need to provide the documentation noted in the manual for that particular issue, such as screenshots of the signal level monitor, photos of the broken parts, and listing exactly which troubleshooting steps you have done.
For those who have received and started using the new F122 keyboards:
Please email me with feedback on how things are going. As always, make sure you’re running the latest firmware (see the below link in the firmware section of this update) which fixes potential issues with key ghosting, etc.
Is the F122’s RP2040-based Leyden Jar controller better able to handle KVM switches, USB hubs, USB extension cables, etc.? I recall that these caused issues for some xwhatsit controller-powered keyboards.
Reviews continue to come in!
The long-awaited Chyrosran22 new F122 keyboard review has just been posted!
My reply is copied below in case you can’t find it among all the comments:
Thanks Thomas for making a great Model F F122 video! I greatly appreciate what you have done to keep these great old style keyboards alive and to make folks aware of all the various options that are lesser known. I will try to keep my replies more terse per your advice but it takes far fewer words for some of these commenters to mislead someone with a one-liner than it is for me to offer an explanation. Your video was incredibly detailed in featuring different aspects of the board and some amount of detail is beneficial in response.
Replacing parts: I am seeing that some folks in the comments noting that I have not followed up with replacing some of the parts. Please note that damaged parts will be replaced as part of the limited warranty. Please email me a reminder so I can follow up on getting out your replacement parts as I am still going through the backlog. Normally I also cover shipping fees for replacement parts, even for international folks.
Case material: The new production cases are all aluminum now, while the original project F62/F77 cases were Zamak 3 Zinc. Otherwise these keyboards would be even heavier! The inner assembly plates are steel.
USB Cable: The USB-C cable is detachable at the controller, if you open up the keyboard you can replace the cable with your own cable, or even with a short extension cable so that you can detach the cable externally. For my future models (ortholinear, split, 5×12, Kinesis style, etc.) since they will be compact case style, they should have externally detachable cables.
The pinging/ringing sound: you noted that the original F produces less of a ringing sound. I have noted that many Model F boards vary in their pinginess. I have found the earlier Model F keyboards to produce more ringing (IBM XT, and the original 4704 boards like F62/F77) while the later ones produce less ringing (AT, the later production F122’s such as your two-piece version). My reproductions were designed around the 62/77 so they will make more sound.
Regarding criticism: some folks may think that companies must always deferentially accept criticism and that otherwise they are in the wrong. I feel I have a right to respond, and I don’t have to accept the criticism as valid and apologize for customer service that does not meet expectations that are not in line with the project philosophy, which emphasizes empowering users to set up and maintain their keyboards and accept small but noticeable cosmetic defects (more details can be found on the project site). Companies can do this if the manufacturing cost is many times less than the sales price or those that have enormous markups. In summary I can’t sell these keyboards at as low a price as they are currently without having users learn how to replace springs, reseat keycaps, etc. instead of having to take back the entire keyboard for repairs. My goal is to get as many of these keyboards out into the world and that limits my ability to raise prices to pay for repair technicians, customer service reps, etc. I’d rather have 0.5% of orders having complaints than having 50% fewer folks being able to afford it if pricing is increased for everyone to make the 0.5% happy with extra “free” services.
Limited warranty: I would agree that it would not be economical if the keyboards cost double but everything is taken care of, no questions asked, like those complete warranties offered by big companies. I am looking for folks who prefer the former, and not the latter. I ask that folks review the manual to fix things themselves, and go to me as a last resort, where I will usually replace what is non-functional for free.
Once again thanks for putting all of this together!
Chyrosran22 has posted the new F122 unboxing video:
Chyrosran22 has posted the new F122 review trailer:
Here we have a great review over on reddit of the Ultra Compact FSSK!
My comment: Thanks for your thoughtful review alifen! And for sharing a nice custom photo! It creatively addresses adding other color keycaps with the limitations of the pebble ISO color scheme (the stepped ISO Enter key comes from Unicomp, which doesn’t offer any other colors that match the colors offered by the new Model F keyboard project).
New Model F Customer Images: (please send me some photos of your setup so I can share!)
With permission I am posting a nice new production F122 setup with a CRT monitor. I had one of those old Dell CRT’s back in the day! I don’t recall the specific model but we got it in 1997 or 1998 I believe.
With permission I am posting some interesting photos:
First, here is a customized New F122 with third party extras: an IBM badge and LED overlay.
And here is a very rare IBM Selectric I typewriter repair log / service transcript. A true testament to the repairability of built to last IBM products.
With permission here are photos of another nice F122 setup that combines two different-color key sets as well as the HHKB style split right shift and split backspace layout.
I like how these days the old style keyboards are bigger and heavier than the entire computers they are used with!
With permission I am posting some nice photos of the FSSK at home with a family of original IBM keyboards, including a Model F Unsaver! I like the placement of the Model F badge on the FSSK. Reminds me of the raised badge on the IBM 4704 promotional prototype photos posted a while back.
With permission I am sharing a custom “all pads” layout with the custom 3×5 cut out mod. These mods were first suggested by this user, who is nicknaming this version the F138; now several others have ordered this mod for their F122 (you don’t have to use all pads with the 3×5 cut out mod – you can have a regular ANSI/ISO/split shift layout just with 5 keys added above your cursor keys). I still have some cut out cases but they are only available in certain colors (beige and others, no more black cut out cases). Please email me if interested in ordering one.
With this layout, every available pad is used for a key. Each key can be configured in Vial as there is a working pad for each one.
Beam Spring Round 2 Production Update:
The factory expects to complete all or almost all B104 before the Chinese New Year (mid-Feb.). Before they leave they will load what they have completed onto a container shipment, so the B104’s can start going out to everyone in early April if all goes well. It is going to take more time but they are aware of the high quality requirements and have been inspecting each keyboard for cosmetic defects, and discarding or repairing cases that do not meet the requirements.
The inner assembly plates were previously completed for all B104. Just the cases and final assembly are remaining. About 100 B104 keyboards were fully assembled as noted before, and an additional 100+ completed inner assemblies are waiting to be dropped into the cases when the next batch of cases are done. These 200 B104 inner assemblies were completed in August, and since then they have been working on the other inner assembly plates and the cases. You can see an earlier batch of completed B104 cases in the mini factory tour video in a recent post. Their production process is to slowly complete a smaller batch of 100 first and work out any issues. That process is done and now they moved to full speed production and assembly for the remaining boards.
After they return in March, they will start working on the B122 cases. After that, they plan to work on the B62 and BSSK cases; both B62 and BSSK are confirmed ready to proceed and they are making one more B122 pre-production sample to make sure all the tooling is correctly set up and the pieces are properly positioned after assembly. And while they work on the cases, other workers are finishing up all the top and bottom inner assembly plates which need to be laser cut, bent to shape (top inner assemblies only of course, since the bottoms are just flat plates), and plated (bottom) or powdercoated (top).
The other keyboard parts were all completed (modules, PCBs, controllers, keycaps, etc.) so they just need to work on the cases and plates and then finish up assembly. Based on the current rate of progress, they expect to complete the remaining 3 keyboard models in the two months after they return from break. Their main bottlenecks are the laser cutting machines (they can only cut one per machine at one time) and the custom-tooled case bending machine (only one case can be bent at a time); see prior videos to see the Model F laser cutting (similar process) and beam spring case bending.
Now that all of the issues have been worked out, they are finally able to concentrate on finishing production and assembly. I appreciate everyone’s patience with bringing these keyboards to life once again. The Model F reproduction boards similarly took about three years to start going out, but production and assembly are now going at full speed and some of the B104 boards have already been completed. Crowdfunded projects often take longer to ship than stocked products, or products for which the tooling has already been completed, since the tooling needs to be made all again. For the round 2 boards, the tooling and injection molds had to be made again (see the update postings on the project website for the full details). That was successfully completed just this year, with the case tooling only ready to go late this year.
As always, if you want to get your keyboard as quickly as possible and help cover the project cost overruns, there is still time to skip the line of hundreds of keyboards through the custom/low serial product add-on.
The first photo below shows part of the quality control inspection process. After assembly of the inner assembly, each key is tested with the signal level monitor tester of the Leyden Jar or xwhatsit utility and modules are identified for repair/replacement. The factory has also finalized the boxes and outside foam, now that we are getting close to finishing up. The design is back to the double-walled box design of the earlier rounds. Below is the B104 prototype box that was approved in August.
Some examples of items that needed reconfirming or correcting over the past six months, just as an example of the many small details that are updated behind the scenes to make things as good as possible:
- The countersinking on the bottom cases (everything countersunk except the 4 holes for threaded bumpers).
- The bottom case height was about 1-2mm too different from the bottom case (they need to add some spacers inside so that it is close to flush, and adjust the tooling as production continues).
- They also need to be careful with the alignment of the keys around the border, especially since the metal parts are not made with die casting (sometimes the drilling is not precise enough and stuff has to be redone).
- Tracking inventory for the end of the year update (some inventory is lost or discovered to be damaged – for example PCBs and beam spring plastic parts).
As production and assembly continue, in November we saw some new production images from the factory. Here are the first photos of the beige and light blue production beam spring keyboards (they are the same color mixes and powdercoating as the Model M style case Model F keyboards).
New project video: Brand New Beam Spring Keyboards factory tour – powdercoating process
Just a quick walk around the factory’s powdercoating area. This video shows some of the B104 cases that are drying after being powdercoated. While the laser/bending process to make the cases saves a huge amount of cost instead of making an injection mold (only some custom tooling is needed, as seen in the video posted some time ago), it is a far slower process than die casting as all the parts of the case need to be bent and welded together one at a time. There is always a tradeoff between time and cost, if we keep quality as a constant. These boards are already expensive so adding extra cost would reduce the number of folks who would be able to get one of these great old style boards.
In June we saw some more production photos, this time of the powdercoating process of the top inner assemblies and the completed bottom inner assemblies.
Pad Printed and Dye Sublimated Keycaps:
Based on feedback with a focus on durability instead of authenticity to original standards, these keycaps will be using the highest quality abrasion-resistant inks offered by a major manufacturer, as well as a protective coating on top of each legend, with a slight margin of safety. The original IBM M13 boards were known to wear more quickly as they had no protective coating. While this reduces originality it should greatly increase durability.
I will be proceeding with the pad printed Model F PBT keycap project. Due to poor quality I had to switch factories. Below is the new factory sample. This company is one of the largest keyboard manufacturers in the world.
Please disregard the lack of alignment for these test prints; the production keys will have normal alignment.
After the other pad print supplier failed to produce keycaps that met my requirements, I changed to another factory earlier this year. They have been in business for a couple decades and focus on computer peripherals.
A reminder to sign the Google form (link below) to reserve a pad printed key set. The first batch of about 250-300 will be white text on black keys, US key sets only, no front printing. Additional sets will proceed based on demand.
https://forms.gle/moBjiL2uPUGTosWZ6
To protect the pad printing which is less durable than sublimation printing by design, these keycaps will be packaged both before and after the pad print process in custom blister packaging. The first sample blister pack is below (apologies for the low quality image). These should be available to order separately in the future, to store other Model F keycap sets. Note: by design, the blister packs do not hold a spacebar, and they contain additional spaces for keycaps, more than what would fill a regular board.
Below is a photo from the first batch of combined Apple/Mac Text and Icon keys, which are now in stock and available to order.
Apologies that both photos are slightly out of focus for parts of the image.
And with permission I am sharing a nice image of the Quebec CSA key set:
3D Printed Parts Update – now available to order:
https://www.modelfkeyboards.com/product/3d-printed-parts
On the above product page, everyone can now get Model F – related 3d printed parts from the shop, including 3d printed solenoid driver and solenoid holders, flip out feet, and original Model F feet. If any others should be added to the page, please email me.
Solenoid Driver and Solenoid Holder Example 1
Solenoid Driver and Solenoid Holder Example 2
Solenoid Driver and Solenoid Holder Example 3
Spacebar adapter (set of 2)
PC XT Replacement Foot
Riser Stand for Classic Style F104/FSSK
Flip Out Feet Example 1 (set of two)
Flip Out Feet Example 2 (set of two)
Any other ideas for 3d printed parts?
Has anyone come up with additional Model F 3d printed mods? I have looked around the various 3d parts sites.
I have purchased a 3d printer to help with prototyping as well as to offer 3d printed items to those who do not have their own 3d printer – items like 3d printed solenoid holders and feet.
Maybe even some flip-out feet like the IBM F122 and XT/AT feet that could be attached by bolts to the holes in the bottom of the cases.
I wanted to share a terrific 3d printed solenoid and solenoid driver holder project from f4pv:
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:7076392
This allows for secure mounting of both the solenoid driver and solenoid inside the F62 and F77 keyboards, as well as being an external solenoid holder for the compact case F62 and F77 keyboards.
Here’s a nice article on the 40th anniversary of the Model M keyboard this year: https://www.pcgamer.com/hardware/gaming-keyboards/the-keyboard-that-all-other-keyboards-copied-turns-40-this-year-heres-how-the-ibm-model-ms-legacy-lives-on-today/
Leyden Jar Controller Firmware Update
In November, Rico published the latest firmware update for all Leyden-Jar based keyboards. It allows more space to store macros compared to the Vial default and all firmware files can now split and unsplit keys (no need to reflash the allpads firmware).
https://github.com/mymakercorner/vial-qmk/releases
This firmware fixes a bug where the keyboard needed to be unplugged and plugged back in to work after certain computers resumed from sleep mode. It also fixes an issue where splitting certain keys in the allpads version was not saved after the keyboard is power cycled.
Everyone feel free to test this latest version and let me know if there are any other issues.
pandrew utility update, additional source code location
Everyone please check out GH forum member ploxiln’s updated Linux and Mac pandrew utilities as well as other updates here, and let us know your feedback:
“Hi Ellipse, I’ve been working on building the xwhatsit/wcass firmware an util for all platforms, and my own scripts for building and flashing, etc. It’s not really better than NathanA’s r5 release build, as far as I know, but the purpose is more to confirm that my scripts can do it all “from scratch”. These scripts are in the repo: build_vial_xwhatsit_all.sh, flash-util/, keyboards/xwhatsit/util/.sh You can see the resulting builds of all this at https://github.com/ploxiln/vial-qmk/releases/tag/newfxx_r5c
Something new included there is a Linux AppImage build of pandrew-util. (There’s also a Windows exe and macOS app, but built for the newer cpu archs compared to NathanA’s builds, see release description). I took the liberty of using your favicon from modelfkeyboards.com and scaling/adapting it “quick and dirty” for pandrew-util, I hope that’s OK.
See also the updated repo README starting around here: https://github.com/ploxiln/vial-qmk?tab=readme-ov-file#build-vial-firmware
Regarding syncing both the leyden_jar and xwhatsit github repos / branches … it would probably have been simplest to “fork” from both my repo and rico’s repo, but you mentioned you can’t do that because both forks are in the “vial-kb/vial-qmk” “network” and you can only have one fork related to that network in your github account. I could theoretically unlink my repo from upstream “vial-kb/vial-qmk” but actually that function is disabled because my repo “already has child forks”. Hmm. I think maybe the cleanest thing to do is just fork from the more-upstream “vial-kb/vial-qmk”, and then use git locally (or some git gui) to periodically sync the branches from rico and I, if there are changes. If someone else effectively takes over from me (or NathanA comes back), it would be simpler to switch to pulling a branch from them at that point.”
Bluetooth wireless Model F update:
Is anyone interested in making their Model F wireless?
I recently saw a post on this, for the Model M: https://deskthority.net/viewtopic.php?t=29368
Maybe it can be an update or add-on PCB to Rico’s Leyden Jar controller or the xwhatsit controller, or a new controller entirely (less convenient as it would require everyone to desolder their current controller).
The Leyden Jar RP2040-based controller does accept power and signal on its header extension, so something like the Supermini NRF52840 used for the above project may be able to work with a battery. Ideally, if a PCB is needed it could be designed to be manufacturable by JLCPCB. If it is powered off the header extension, it might also be helpful to have an extension header on the add-on PCB for a solenoid driver and solenoid (though the battery won’t last as long). The Leyden Jar currently allows one controller to communicate with and power another: https://github.com/mymakercorner/Leyden_Jar
And here is the latest update from someone who got Bluetooth working with their new Model F keyboard, which uses Rico’s RP2040-based Leyden Jar controller:
“I was able to get this https://www.amazon.com/Ruitutedianzi-Bluetooth-Converter-Keyboard-Wireless/dp/B0DP6WTZY4/ Bluetooth adapter to work on this Leyden Jar board, whereas my xwhatsit based restored IBM F122 does not register any keypresses with it. The Handheld Scientific BT-500 does not work with either controller, but does at least register double keypresses with the Leyden Jar. I don’t have their updated BT-600 to test with. According to my in-line USB meter, the BT adapter and keyboard idles at 26mA (with all LEDs on, each consuming ~1mA). With the solenoid at factory settings, I’ve seen it peak at 189mA – but the ~1s sampling rate makes this a very rough estimate.
Using an average 2000mAh 18650 Li-ion cell, I would guess we’d get ~76 hours (or as little as 10 with the solenoid and constant firing).” In other words, one month of battery life with a 20000mah battery.
There are other projects not specific to the Model F that may work but are currently not tested with the Model F:
https://handheldsci.com/kb/
https://sterling-key.com/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MEMyae7b74I
https://www.wscome.com/product/wired-keyboard-converted-to-wireless-keyboard-diy-kit/
https://www.wscome.com/product/convert-a-wired-keyboard-to-wireless-keyboard-wbt-v2-wbt2-v4/
https://git.kkozai.com/kenji/pico_ble_hid/
My guess is that the Model F would require a much larger battery to be able to run for several weeks (15000mah?). Maybe one of those Lithium iron phosphate batteries of that size could be used.
Update on USB keyboards output to PS/2, AT, and XT signal:
I have received a small number of requests on this topic. This open source project (also available for purchase pre-built at the second link below) notes that it converts any modern USB keyboard to work with PS/2 input on a computer, as well as the XT and AT protocols for original IBM computers:
https://github.com/rasteri/HIDman
Project bolt/screw specifications:
Yes, all of the bolts for this project are 6-32 (classic cases and the two controller ground screws for all keyboards), T8 (compact cases), M3 (2 solenoid screws), and 8-32 thread (medium threaded bumpers). The 6-32 bolts use a T8 size or Philips driver.
July 2025 Container shipment update:
The 7th container shipment for this project (with the second and final batch of F122 keyboards) departed in June 2025 and arrived to me in August. After each container ship arrives, I work on organizing and preparing the remaining shipments, starting with the low serials.
Since I am mailing out so many orders, this will take months for me to mail these remaining orders. As always there is still time to upgrade your order to the low serial skip the line through that low serial store item. The F122’s have proven even more popular than the FSSK’s, so if you are looking to get one I strongly recommend getting it soon while stock still remains.
After this shipment, the only things we are waiting on will be the Round 2 beam spring keyboards.
Major project milestone:
In November, the keyboard projects passed 7,000 shipped keyboards! Shipping started in late 2019.
We still have the normal backlog of recent orders as well as the round 2 beam spring keyboards, which are currently in production and expected to go out over the coming months (more details on the beam spring thread).
Orders (with and without keyboards) have gone to 71 countries in total (per ISO 3166):
Argentina
Australia
Austria
Bahrain
Belgium
Brazil
Bulgaria
Canada
Chile
China
Colombia
Croatia
Curaçao
Cyprus
Czechia
Denmark
Estonia
Faroe Islands (the)
Finland
France
Germany
Gibraltar
Greece
Guam
Hong Kong
Hungary
Iceland
India
Indonesia
Ireland
Israel
Italy
Japan
Kazakhstan
Korea (the Republic of)
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Macao
Malaysia
Mauritius
Mexico
Netherlands (the)
New Zealand
Norway
Oman
Peru
Philippines (the)
Poland
Portugal
Puerto Rico
Qatar
Republic of North Macedonia
Romania
Russian Federation (the)
Saudi Arabia
Senegal
Serbia
Singapore
Slovakia
Slovenia
South Africa
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
Taiwan (Province of China)
Thailand
Turkey
United Arab Emirates (the)
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (the)
United States of America (the)
Viet Nam
Comments on the powdercoating and setup process:
The first round boards (classic style F62/F77) did have a more authentic and less durable powdercoating finish, which was changed years ago but some stock remains of these older boards so those who have such a board are the only ones posting the same note about the powdercoating. The new boards (2021 onwards – compact F62/F77, F104/SSK/122, round 1 beam) have had no complaints about paint wear as the formulation changed, and these boards have been out for years. In other words, if you can’t accept old style powdercoating, you can choose any other board besides the classic F62/77 and the issue with wear will not be present.
The setup process does involve following the step by step guides to adjust the keyboard, as adjustments are specifically noted as being a part of the normal setup process. Having to make adjustments during setup is not a failure of QC, as these boards are treated heavily by the shipping companies and springs and such may fall out of place and spacebar wires may need adjustment. Due to these keyboards being a far higher weight, they are subject to far higher g forces in shipping than most lightweight 1-2 pound boards, as pointed out by a YouTube commenter. My earlier postings and the project web site blog post updates explain the reasoning behind requiring users to learn how to maintain a Model F keyboard hopefully for the rest of their lives, instead of selling a product that arrives ready to plug in and start using but doesn’t last more than a couple years. The alternative (including staff for support, etc.) would make these already-pricy boards cost even more.
