I Turned This Block of Wood Into a Mechanical Keyboard

Custom wooden mechanical keyboard case made entirely by hand. This is the process from start to finish.
Make sure to check out rescue wood rehab: www.rwrnc.com/
Board: Handmade Spalted Maple Case
Switches: Anubis Lubed+Filmed (Stem & housing Krytox 205g0/Spring Krytox 105/Deskeys Films)
Stabilizers: Durock V2 Lubed+Balanced (Housing & wire Krytox 205g0/Holee +baind-aid mod)
Plate: Cannonkeys Universal TKL FR4
Acoustic adjustments: Sorbothane/PE Foam [1 layer]/Tape Mod [1 layer]
Keycaps: PBT (GMK) Botanical Clones
Deskmat: Custom
USB Cable: Define Cables Commission
Switch: cannonkeys.com/products/anubi...
Switch lube (stems/bottom housings): amzn.to/2ZeURNl
Switch lube (springs): amzn.to/3DO155J
Switch Film: divinikey.com/products/deskey...
Plate: cannonkeys.com/collections/ac...
Keycaps: amzn.to/3HOy787
Stabilizers: amzn.to/3CN0akG
PE Foam: amzn.to/3FEplHV
Construction Masking Tape: amzn.to/3xgqTVS
Rubber Sorbothane: amzn.to/3xaMO0w
USB Cable: www.definecables.com/
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-Chapters-
Intro: 0:00
Design & Planning: 0:50
Build Process: 2:20
Acoustic Tuning: 7:46
Reveal: 9:17
Sound/Typing Test: 10:11
Future Build: 11:53
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Need PC or keyboard questions answered? Maybe some pretty pictures to look at?
Discord: / discord
Twitch: / jdtechgear
Instagram: / jdtechgear
Twitter: / techsetupgear
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My Studio Equipment:
Microphone: amzn.to/2WVkVHQ
Interface: amzn.to/2LpdFPh
Camera: amzn.to/3dGhprD
Lens: amzn.to/3dGhprD
Lens For Ultra Bokeh: amzn.to/2xYakUb
Voice-over microphone: amzn.to/2Z0Sknt
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Merch that won't make you feel ashamed to wear in public...IDK maybe:
teespring.com/stores/tech-jun...
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*Note: The included product links are in Affiliation with Amazon in which earn a small commission.
♫Music:
Ante Up - BLUE STEEL
Mellow Soul - Auxjack
Startup - Auxjack
Zema - Martin Landh
JDTechGear

[@jdtechgear]

I originally wasn't planning to make another handmade wooden keyboard since this content was outside my normal review routine, but with the recent flood of support from you all I think I might just change that decision. I still don't have a CNC router, but where's the fun in that...thank you all for the support and comments! Much love, -JD

[@mrproplayer7687]

Did you use router when making that wooden case?

[@Steven-ye8ys]

You should use strong magnets for the frame so it's easier to remove

[@dwalker8262]

Hey there, great video, just wondering what threaded inserts did you use. Planning on building my own!!

[@ako4693]

Where did you get the stand-offs from I'm trying to do a build sorta like this with the wooden case it would be great if I could get the parts. As you know I'm trying to do this is there any way I can be walked through with the steps etc? I also can't find any wood for my keyboard :(

[@1cubsfan100]

@@ako4693 you should have some kind of lumber store near me.

[@nerdonabudget]

That wood burned logo was such a nice touch to the keyboard!!! The entire project came out so nicely, crazy considering how limited experience you had going in!

[@jdtechgear]

Thanks man 🥲 It was a last minute decision and recommend trying at least once for fun! Will be watching your Z build!!

[@negasonic8434]

What's up

[@drumdover]

Hell of a job man, what an accomplishment. Sounds lovely, looks beautiful, and you own something functional no one else in the world does. Well done.

[@jdtechgear]

Thank you so much, functional art is some of my favorite. It would be awesome to develop these honestly as commissions, who knows

[@josherz_]

How has this video not blown up yet?!?!!? This is amazing, everything from the build, the b-roll, the sound testing. This video is insane, props to you on the keyboard cuz that sounds like genuine heaven.

[@MatthewEncina]

Great project and sound 👌🏽

[@felixhuemer4576]

Funny to see you here 😂 You are a real inspiration to me 🙏

[@jords3623]

I applaud you, sir. Those custom built wooden case keyboards are so time consuming but the result is awesome in the end. I love the choice of keycaps and switches as it really give the build an earthy feel. Btw, that left shit key sounds incredible

[@jdtechgear]

Exactly, very time consuming, but so it waiting on a group buy to come through, so I figured why not give this a shot. Thank you! That's exactly the look I was aiming for, earthy tones and organic feeling. The left shift key is really something...

[@CoalitionGaming]

Loving the humor you added throughout the video

[@jdtechgear]

Which layout/style should I tackle next? List out some layouts that have an available PCB and matching Plate that are in stock

[@Green-Man]

Do Alice- Style next. I wish you best of luck with that.

[@jdtechgear]

@@Green-Man yeah that would need some machine precision. Or the ability to make KZbin fulltime to dedicate that much time haha

[@johnkang1202]

How about low profile 96% or 1800? May be more unique and propose new challeges. In any event, I gotta good feeling whatever you do is going to be real nice 👌

[@brananandreu4086]

@@johnkang1202 oh yea 1800 would look great

[@Gravoli]

65% but theres function keys on the side (idk what that layout is called)

[@cutiepye4606]

honestly deserves more views tbh

[@fish2860]

Amazing and incredibly well edited video! I’m definitely using it as inspiration to make my own wooden case one day. This deserves 1000x more views

[@jdtechgear]

Thanks man, I can only hope to inspire others to make their own from scratch just to drive the self made pride

[@fn2287]

Enjoyed this video so much. The humorous intro captivated me and the incredible content made me watch it 3 times.

[@PublixFan]

I was not expecting that sound from that board. Super dope build, the wood burned logo looks natural on that wood too. Awesome idea.

[@mariescheidt2639]

Amazing wood working with basic tools, and wonderful photography overall. Thank you for sharing this with us! 💜 I think a 60% or 65 would be a breeze for you now that you did a tkl. Look forward to seeing what you have in store for us next time.

[@miguel96ANGEL2]

It can not be done without GMK Botanical. So beautiful.

[@MitchyMitchhhhh]

This is incredible! Fantastic job, this whole video must've been so much work, subscribed!

[@user-vv7oi8ug8x]

Just amazing work and fantastic result!

[@Amiro05]

This came out unbelievable, great keyboard and incredible video man!

[@virryth776]

my god this took so much work and sounds super nice in the end. kudos to you.

[@pbales8951]

It turned out super nice! I was a little worried when I saw the scroll saw cuts--but it sanded up cleanly. Great job!

[@jdtechgear]

Thank you! Trust me I was really nervous if I could get the scroll saw cuts right. As long as the sections in between the key clusters were sturdy enough I could file them down and sand to a better finish.

[@toobad8657]

This is honestly a great video. Straight to the point, but also includes the highs and lows of making something yourself.

[@Narukiko]

I am actually very impressed on how this keyboard turned out! It was amazing, and even nice sounding! I'll give you an applause for this talented project! 👏

[@Wosa_]

THE LOOKS OF THE KEYBOARD AND SOUND IS ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL. :0

[@gecko100]

holy hell hats off to you sir!! insane build. enjoyed the video a lot!!!

[@PeterTruely]

this is crazy, you not only made it yourself from wood, you did almost every mod i could think of, and the video was great!

[@nomox1235]

I like how you put all of the technical specs of the sound for all the enthusiasts :)

[@johnkang1202]

I've been fantasizing about making a deck from wood as well. Thanks for showing us some of the steps you had to go through. You're doing a public service for us geeks :) btw, I saw a small company selling mx keycaps made from walnut/beech/pear. Keyboard is a rather personal choice, though. Thanks again.

[@beriu3512]

The watched count doesn't do this video justice. Nice job!

[@Kikeybs]

Wow turned out amazing:) love the sound

[@dref30guy]

this is so sick, love the sound and look

[@copperhead228]

Nice job dude, looks and sounds great.

[@abramgoh7306]

speechless! what amazing production quality

[@anthonytang9558]

this deserves way more views than it already has! keep it going JD

[@jethrudemendina9084]

That was all lovely, the keyboard and mostly the sound is so satisfying!

[@oliviaw5250]

This keyboard is gorgeous!! 😍😍😍

[@nichlqs]

honestly, this video is way too underrated

Amazing sound! Love the build. Would love to make one, just the same.

[@p0keyy]

Hope you hit the algorithm one day man, been a semi long time sub and you deserve more subs and views for the effort you put in these videos. Keep it up man

[@CGMossa]

My wife was impressed with this build and boy is that a sentence I rarely write. I loved this thing.

[@jammies701]

Nice vid mate !

[@Liam-B]

Wood is so under-utilized in the keyboard world. Bravo!

[@11696Ron]

Awesome build. It's really inspiring, especially because you didn't use any really expensive tools.

[@Ligitzs1]

I'm so confused. I thought this video would have at least a few million views from how well-made this video was!

[@maudeboivin6690]

Congrats on a superb job! I’m piecing up the components for a wood case/keyboard but it’ll be a “commission” instead of a build as I have no tools, no skills … only imagination. In the end it’ll probably look nice but I’ll never be able to call it my own… Being from Canada, I too chose Maple but the Birdseye variety… it’ll have Dark Walnut and maybe Amboyna Burl if I have the patience to wait for it being delivered…

[@dinkles_woodshop]

Dude this build is awesome, so happy I came across this. I recently did a wood keyboard build video myself and it was such a struggle, the thin wood grain around the keycaps borders is so weak. I'm shocked you did this with only a trim router and scrollsaw, and got it on the first try. I had to do like 6 tries on mine bc the wood borders kept snapping 😭 Cheers!!!

[@jdtechgear]

Thank you so much! That was one of my primary concerns that the spaces between the key clusters would break since the wood is so thin. This Maple is sturdier than I expected so they were able to be filed and sanded without much worry. What kind of wood are you cutting? I know some species of maple are softer than others, but it is possible! I really didn't expect to get this far with a scroll saw haha

[@dinkles_woodshop]

@@jdtechgear I did oak, also a hardwood, but I used a full sized router so it's power kept blowing out the weak points. This video gave me alot of ideas for my next wood case build. The scroll saw is so gentle and quiet so that's probably why you had more luck. Makes me think I should've used my coping saw to cut out the delicate parts (don't have a scroll saw)

[@jdtechgear]

@@dinkles_woodshop Oh I see, the blowout would be an issue I'd be worried about as well. I hope there is an easier solution than using the scroll saw. I wonder if there is a router dedicated to precision, low power cutting? I guess that's why aluminum works so well as a case. Interesting to hear your side of it. I'd like to do something similar like this again, however the cutouts were so tedious it makes me nervous to test my luck again.

[@dinkles_woodshop]

@@jdtechgear I might try to lower my router to it's slowest rpm, but I think it might still be too powerful. I think next I'm just gonna make a 40% case with no borders in between 😅

[@jdtechgear]

@@dinkles_woodshop I would also be interested in knowing if the lower speed will help blowout. I certainly want to look in this direction for future projects, it will require some tiral and error. I'm pretty sure I was going cross eyed from staring at the scroll saw blade on the pencil line for so long...40% minivan style board would be perfect!

[@lindis8030]

That is a work of art...holy. And the acoustics tooooo UGH 🥵

[@Dubya1886]

Love it, great job!

[@zotokbd]

GREAT CONTENT! Hoping to see rubber o-ring mount configuration (like bakaneko), no standoffs but provide flexy/bouncy typing experience and provide even sound across the whole keyboard. I think it will be pretty straight forward but giving you new challenges at the same time 😂

[@niko1even]

That pop is amazing

[@captainpotato76]

Been a while! Glad to see a new JDTechGear vid!

[@jdtechgear]

It's an honor to have you back Captain

[@bumls]

i think this looks better than any other wood case

[@hotsammo1081]

this is so awesome, NEEDS MORE VIEWS! like and subbed for sure

[@sshum00]

I've started messing around with wood builds and honestly they feel like cheat mode. They sound so good. Something about wood. I started experimenting with wood and plateless build and honestly it's pleasantly good.

[@urielalbertosanchezm]

Nicely done! I going to make mine with parota wood!

[@kingofcampbell6413]

such a talented performance

[@LiquidXiron]

Would love to hear it with some SA or MT3 keycaps for added thock

[@BlueManatee]

Holy shit this is gorgeous. Very good job!

[@jdtechgear]

Thanks Matt!

[@amizan8653]

I fucking love this. holy shit dude, nice!

[@benjaminvanderhoff7101]

How is this not viral?

[@AzeharaCh]

This is beautiful

[@okand3758]

Gorgeous.

[@indrajitghosh4187]

Ooh! That sound!

[@jebaited966]

Really interesting video, lots of effort was put in. Thanks for that. Have my like and sub

[@trashgarb]

What a project! Looks great man. Well worth the loss of sanity.

[@shamsilareefin2567]

man.. that was so good! i'm new in the scene and want to build a wooden case just like yours... please mention the dimensions of the wood and the depth of each pieces of wood.

[@Lacsap3366]

Mad respects and thumbs up for Anubis switches! This is truly end-game !

[@jdtechgear]

I really like them! I do wish the bump was bit earlier in the key stroke, but that's a preference that I can get used to. I would use these in another build for sure!

[@Lacsap3366]

@@jdtechgear cool to hear. I am going with holy Bobas in my upcoming build but if i had known that the Anubis switches existed before I bought the holy bobas I might have settled for those instead.

[@jdtechgear]

@@Lacsap3366 You'll probably have a sharper tactile feel I believe? Similar sound, but the Boba U4's are good comparator. I haven't had much experience with frakenswitches. What kind of plate and keycaps will you be pairing with the holy Bobas?

[@Lacsap3366]

@@jdtechgear my whole build will consist of: - GMMK Pro - Polycarbonate Plate - Holy Boba / Sake Switches - Durock V2 Stabs Holee modded with UHMW tape, housings lubed with 205g0, wires lubed with XHT-BDZ, foam under the stabs - gasket mod using D65 gaskets - PE Foam mod

[@jdtechgear]

@@Lacsap3366Sounds like a solid build, I'd recommend leaving out the internal foam to get more sound out of your Sake switches, that board likes to mute a lot of sound.

[@susseratal]

This was a really enjoyable build to watch, and the outcome looks fantastic. The sound was a bit "generic custom keyboard" for my tastes, and I'd have liked a bit more case resonance, but it's your keyboard not mine, and if you're happy with the sound then that's what matters. Really impressive build man, super impressive!

[@miguelcollado5438]

Fantastic!

[@martskeebstudio]

another one! with shorter front height, and softer mounting style

[@moira1030]

The shift key sounds so good. WOW. Also should I pick up a pair of those keycaps from amazon?. Were the legends decent quality?

[@apachebcn]

Incredible. Was good idea made draws and name with laser cnc

[@JorgeGamaPsi]

MAN, ITS PERFECT

[@cliptch978]

Matcha green keycaps would be great match to the wood

[@sherrymartini_]

build is great!!!!! i honestly expected the sound test to be thockier, but it was decent anyway :))

[@itsslik9468]

this needs more views and likes

[@JadeZen520]

This is awesome. Sweet as chin on the front looks like it could kill, this contends with Taekeyboard's pain27 build

[@gabbu8908]

Dang this is amazing

[@nanodesu9031]

damn that shift key sounds amazing.. SO THOCKY!!

[@strogaren9818]

I think you should try Haninge like a dark tree colours looking keycaps I think that would look pretty cool

[@hao0423]

sounds like a piano. super cool

[@johnvincents.pangilinan5507]

beautiful

[@jdtechgear]

Thank you

[@datdang5042]

this build is awesome, Big applause for your work. Is it hard to make, btw can I have the dimension of some edges? I intended to make 1 by myself.

[@mikimbley]

Welp, I HAVE to try this now

[@csells99]

It sounds pretty good. What kind of wood is this keyboard? Have you experimented with different kinds of wood for keyboards? I'm interested in wood that will absorb the sound (I like my mechanical keyboards to be seen and NOT heard : ).

[@DaEmuGuy]

Amazing. I kinda wanna do this now lol

[@kenmastreams]

this is amazing ❤️

[@LimitzBlitz]

That is one awesome keyboard dude! But what r those black and pink key caps called in the beginning?

[@eddieliu3869]

What keycap set is that on the keyboard at the beginning of the video? The home cluster looks awesome!

[@tyronneformalejo9103]

Amazing artwork bruh! Really like it 🖤 hope I can Have one

[@elasmojones]

I'm planning on making a wood kbd8x...my main concern is allowing the RGB some shine through. Not sure how to do that yet.

[@prasanaydoshi2803]

can someone tell me what plate this is since I wanna follow along his build while I make my own

[@cvccvddiff2731]

Why is this man not getting more views

[@Interesting_Facts_101]

Great build. I'd love to do something like that but gasket mounted on my 75% board. What was the thickness of the wood in total?

[@paoloalipio6002]

priceless 👍 great job

[@georgedixon545]

Really nice looking keyboard, what keycaps are they ?

[@brandongear7184]

I’ve watched this entire video at least 5 times and I really want to make a wooden keeb but don’t understand half of the things he does and have no idea where to start with like measurements and stuff 😂

[@gnaarW]

I assume you made the keyboard by now?! 😅

[@brandongear7184]

@@gnaarW ahaha yes I did make it and ended up burning a really cool design into the back. I made it a 40%. Tbh. I made it, turned out pretty good, and I couldn’t really figure out the pcb software so it became more of a shelf decoration. But still a really fun project!

[@gnaarW]

@@brandongear7184 ya manual soldering and then just get an existing setup from the internet and put it in qmk 😉

[@patayder566]

glad you didn’t come out insane after this

[@Lucas_Alpay]

Now, that's custom.

[@dasdip2001]

beautiful ❤️

[@LittleMew133]

Serious question: is that a way to add tall sides around my keyboard. I already have the base case.

[@hahaowo]

Amazing ！