Keycap Tilter Kit

[pcooke9]

I’ve always wanted to try a board with a key well. I guess this is the next best thing.

MX Tilter Kit

It’s actually quite comfortable, and I like it even more than I thought I would. The keys are so much easier to reach (mostly). I kind of expected them to introduce a ton of key wobble, but it’s really not bad at all.

I left the right side navigation keys flat because I thought it would help reduce accidentally tapping them, but honestly it just kinda feels right like this now.

Cons:

• Unfortunately this kit needs one more size to raise the top F-row a little. They have some 4 mm risers that I’ll probably grab soon. I just don’t get why they don’t already include them with this kit . These should work great on the UHK60 as-is though.

• Now I can’t see the OLED display. All I can see is the battery levels.

[Firngrod]

I like it! It looks like it would work well with a thick wrist rest.

I bet it’s really bad for portability though.

[pcooke9]

Yeah, you’d definitely need to be careful transporting it.

[maexxx]

It’s interesting that first you pick keycaps that are uniform and therefore not slanted, and then you add those tilting extensions to make the slanted.

I have always been a fan of SA profile keycaps, which are tall and slanted across rows.

Image Source: Overview of Different Keycap Profiles - The Keeblog

[pcooke9]

@maexxx

It’s interesting that first you pick keycaps that are uniform and therefore not slanted, and then you add those tilting extensions to make the slanted.

It’s less of a contradiction than it seems.

I prefer uniform caps for a couple of reasons-

1. They’re easier to swap around without mismatching row heights. With these tilters, you can still use uniform caps and swap positions while retaining the proper curve.

2. Most keycap profiles have a pronounced step between rows that tends to catch my fingernails. I really hate that . There’s not too much of a step effect with these tilters (Aside from the obvious F-row, which I hope to remedy with additional risers). If you were to use these tilters with a stepped profile, it’d probably exaggerate the height differences even more.

The curvature with this tilting kit is much steeper than a set of sculpted caps, and so the distance/energy required to reach everything is greatly reduced compared to caps alone. I also find that I type more softly on these, and don’t get tired nearly as fast.

Let’s also not gloss over how difficult it is to find UHK compatible caps, especially with more extreme curves.

This pseudo key-well, combined with slowly incorporating HRMs is yet another big leap in ergonomics for me, so I’m pretty happy for now.

---

I don’t want to go into a super long sob-story here, but it may help to understand why I keep tweaking my setup as much as I do, so…

Almost thirty years ago, I fell from a height of around fifty feet or so. I broke just about everything but my head. The worst of it was a spinal cord injury that left me paralyzed from the middle of the chest-down, and my left wrist was literally crushed. They had to remove most of my wrist bones, and then carved a new wrist out of a piece of my hip (it kind of resembles something like a weird ball socket, but it works). As a result, I have some reduced range of motion and a lot of tingling/reduced feeling in my hands.

At the time, they tried to tell me that my left thumb would no longer be opposable. I was a guitarist back then, and I refused to accept that. After a ton of physical therapy, I was able to get back to playing again. I managed to keep it up for a couple of decades before arthritis set in . Nowadays, all I’ve got going on is playing video games & staring at my PC all day. I have nothing but free time, so that’s why I’m always here annoying you guys…

Anyway, I chose the UHK because I needed ergonomics, and I’m really glad I did. The UHKs are comfortable and flexible without being ridiculously silly, like most other ergonomic boards (I prefer to add my own brand of silly tweaks ). It’s been a huge help, and you guys have been absolutely wonderful as well. So, I guess I should say thanks to you all again.

[maexxx]

And thank you, Phil; you are a great contribution to this community, too!

@pcooke9

easier to swap around without mismatching row heights

Yes, that is of course true. I had to search for Colemak-compatible sets of SA keycaps for my keyboards because of these different row profiles.

@pcooke9

pronounced step between rows

That annoys me as well, and that’s why I can’t do MT3 keycaps. Too much of a “border” (high-rise edge) between keys. I find SA profile, however, very comfortable for sliding my fingers from key to key. That edge is just at the right height to be comfortable.

@pcooke9

The curvature with this tilting kit is much steeper than a set of sculpted caps

I can see that from your photos. It really resembles a keywell more than SA caps. I’ve tried a Glove 80 with a pronounced keywell, and I didn’t like it. I think that is because it is too different from regular (flat, Laptop, …) keyboards. I go back and forth between different keyboards in my week, so I don’t want it to be too different.

SA caps have been the sweet spot for me for quite some time. I have to admin though that since I started using the Corne and Sofle low-profile keyboards, flat low-profile caps are now also a thing again.

Oh, and I am happy for you that you found a way to squeeze even more positive experience out of the UHK for you with that tilting kit!

[pcooke9]

@maexxx

And thank you, Phil; you are a great contribution to this community, too!

Aww, shucks…

@maexxx

I’ve tried a Glove 80 with a pronounced keywell, and I didn’t like it. I think that is because it is too different from regular (flat, Laptop, …) keyboards. I go back and forth between different keyboards in my week, so I don’t want it to be too different.

Right, most boards with a key well look like they’re too much. This kit definitely feels weird, but it works.