FEEL'S - A Minimal, Gasket Mount 65% by The Key Factor

FEEL'S 65 - A Minimal, Gasket-Mount 65% by The Key Factor
IC Form: https://forms.gle/Zy1gZS4jhMHPxTu46
Discord


After months of design and learning, I am ready to present the first board I designed. This keyboard's design draws inspiration from within the industry, creating a minimal and contemporary aesthetic. The naming convention was inspired by the Japanese tuning company well-known to Honda fans, Feel's Twin-Cam. I felt that by using the ever-so-popular gasket mount technique, this board is tailored to those who value typing feel more or just as much as the aesthetics of the board.

The goal and purpose of this board isn't innovation. I am aware that I do not have enough experience in the hobby to be revolutionizing anything. The goal of FEEL'S is to use pre-existing techniques that are tried and true to produce a mid-level board with the typing feel of a premium alternative.



Features
• ~20mm front height
• 7° typing angle
• Gasket-mounted plate
• Plate foam and other optional sound dampening
• 2-piece machined aluminum-6063 case
• Hot-swap offering
• Addressable RGB for at least the hot-swap version
• ANSI/ISO support
• USB-C Daughterboard by ai03 et al.

Options
• Colors (top): E-White, Annodized Gray, Annodized Navy
• Colors (bottom): Annodized Black, Annodized Bronze
• Plate Material: Aluminum, Polycarbonate, Brass (extra)
• Weight Material: PVD-coated Brass, Polished Stainless Steel

Any options you want to see, please refer to the IC form!

PCB and Layout
The PCB is in the process of being designed via a commission. I plan to have 2 different PCB options:
1. Hot-swap fixed-ANSI WK layout
2. Soldered that supports ANSI/ISO, split left shift, split backspace, and alternate 7U+WKL bottom row



Assembly

The plate will be isolated using 12 poron gaskets (pressure-mounted). The top and bottom case are held together by 2 ✕ M2 screws on the front and 4 ✕ M2 screw in the rear. The weight is screwed into the bottom case using 4 ✕ M1 screws.

There will only be 1 plate layout available which supports all the different layout offerings described above. Brass will be offered as an additional material available as an extra, along with other materials I plan to be experimenting with. These include:
• SS
• FR4
• Carbon fiber
• Titanium (unlikely)
• Copper (unlikely)



Renders
Keycap sets used: GMK Birch, GMK Muted, GMK Agent01, GMK Lunar

Renders by shamit0011




Renders by Kingk22




Pricing, Vendors, Units
Price: TBD, aiming for mid-$300.
Vendors: TBD
Units: TBD based on interest shown

Progress
Dec. 22 Protos ordered, IC posted, PCB design in progress
Dec. 28 Design changes/optimization in progress.
Jan. 9 - - R1 case prototypes are finished production and will be shipped to me next week
- PCB design is nearing completion, prototypes will be ordered next week
- Gasket/foam options being explored and will be experimented with
- Few changes were made to design for R2 prototype and forward:
- All edges use 2mm fillets instead of 1mm
- Front screws will be removed
- 8 bottom-up screws added
- Inner edges and bottom case optimized to be more CNC friendly
- WKL option is removed in favor of a Tsangan bottom row
Closing Remarks
By now, I'd expect some of you to be skeptical of the design. Yes, I do realize that the design resembles Smith and Rune's design language and shares a lot of resemblance and similarities to the IRON series. I have shown the design to voxkey and consulted with him regarding the design and he has kindly allowed me to keep the board's design as it sits.

At this time, I do not have a Discord channel yet. If you would like to follow the progress, please fill the IC form! This thread will be updated when there is new information. I can be reached on Discord dotor#0067 if you have anything questions.

Thanks for reading and I hope you guys enjoy the design.