steampunk keyboard

This is how i built a steampunk keyboard. Tired of the ever present brass frame i wanted a wooden frame with hand made brass keys.

Step 1 Select a keyboard

Select a keyboard that will allow you to wrap the wood in one axis. More than one axis will complicate the process to an unbelievable level. Remove the top of the keyboard and all of the keys . Do not damage the key stems as yo will be reusing them later. Steam the wood to allow it to bend to shape. If you choose a very hard wood it will crack and splinter as you bend it around the keyboard frame. The next step is to use cyanoacrylate to adhere the wood to long edge of the keyboard. Leave some overlap on the sides of the keyboard , you will be cutting them off later. With a thin seam of thin quick dry glue adhere the wood to the plastic frame until the entire face is covered. Once the forward face is covered. Cut the side bars to cover the sides of the face of the plastic frame. Once the sides and top of the keyboard are covered with wood cut out the holes for the keys. some will be square and some round. square holes will require a great deal of extra care for the wood will split.

Comments

[Sulfurite]

nice tutorial there :)
surely i make one of these keyboards :D

[greencat1477]

Sorry if I missed it but could you possibly send a list of the supplies used.Thanks

[pteranosaur]

..and somewhere between the SP genre and modernicity,I removed the keys from a nicotene-stained keyboard.The asset being that the key tops (letter surface) are permanently yellowed,and multi tone metallic spray bombs were available.Using strategic color placement,said keyboard looks like a metal salvage dream-Antique Gold,Brass and Bronze keys with a heavy -looking malleable housing.The key tops are reminiscent of ivory keys,and are prominent (but not bright) thamks to the metallic tones of their sides and housing.

[jballantyne]

Is there a way that I can buy an already built steampunk keyboard and how much would it cost?

[gbredemeyer]

Very awesome, i hope i can catch someone at a maker faire sometime with similar stuff.

-Graham, www.pypline.com -The online community for makers

[Win Guy]

This is cool! 5/5 I'm making my own version with real copper keys! I'll let you know how it turns out when I'm finished!
Win Guy

[Win Guy]

UPDATE: Resin is too expensive, so I put the copper rings (soon to be keys) on a piece of paper and filled them almost to the top with hot glue. I then cut out the keys (paper and all) and slipped the paper letters into the rings (the rings have a natural lip from being cut that holds the piece of paper in place). So far, the keys seem pretty solid and stable.
I'll keep you posted!
Win Guy

[Win Guy]

STATUS REPORT: About 2/5 of the keys are finished now! I purchased a keyboard at a thrift store for $3.00 ( ! ) and it looks pretty boxy - perfect for this project! I also discovered that the "Insert" key on the new keyboard doesn't work... So I made a "Skull And Crossbones" key (toward the right) to represent the "dead" key.
More in a few days!
Win Guy

[Win Guy]

I'm almost finished with all of the keys, and I'll be cutting the key shafts soon. I might just paint the keyboard copper-ish instead of making it look woody, because that's what I have on hand... I've probably only spent $4.00 on this project so far!
I'm sorry if I'm a bother, what with all of the commenting here, but I just want to show you the process through which I'm going to build this.
Win Guy

[Win Guy]

Sorry, I was going to post an update sooner, but lost it due to a browser crash.
I'm almost finished with everything, and I'll post it in an Instructable when a good Steampunk or other conest comes along.
Cheers!
Win Guy

[Win Guy]

I'm finished! Check it out: http://www.instructables.com/id/Make-a-Simpler-Steampunk-Keyboard-Win-Guy-Style/
 Win Guy

[bubblebut]

hello phirzcol I think that this is such an amazing project that I think that you should try to produce more keyboards because i would really like to buy one and i'm sure a lot of other people would too. Please Respond Soon.

[phirzcol]

Working on a solution. Could produce something nice for 45 usd retail.

[theburn7]

There's somebody on ebay that sells these for 500 USD each.

[evindrews]

not to be mean, but there seems to be alot of people who would like to buy stuff on instructables...

[mhandy]

Although i have no projects on here...i can look for hours and hours and be fascinated at some peoples creativity and dedication...and i think im slowly becoming more of a fan of the "Steam Punk" Genre

[mhandy]

Ya there does seem to be, but aside from overlooking the "D-i-Y" aspect of it...maybe with the great importance of economic values today..a person that finds out that their "Artwork" or project is valuable enough to catch another's eye..that they may finally find the way to become happy at doing what they love instead of working at a job that they hate

[phirzcol]

Artifact :Magic item, in fantasy, any object that has magical powers so powerful that it cannot be duplicated or destroyed by ordinary means

[bubblebut]

ok i know that a should'nt exspect him to mass produce them and also what if the materiels are to hard to find or order online and maybey some people don't have a month of free time so onistly would'nt you like to buy this because if you don't i say that you have no taste in steampunk art like this

[crawdad]

might want to put some clear coat om the brass to keep it shiny.

[phirzcol]

One could, However I was looking for an antique look.

[ryanmuller]

How do you attach the section of brass tubing with the serrated edge to your drill press or whatever you are using? I wouldn't think they'd have ready-made adapters for that...

[phirzcol]

duct tape on drillbit :-)

[phirzcol]

its a hand tool. hold in palm and twist! dont cut your hand.

[phirzcol]

 The brass pipe is the tool. leave it long so you have something to hold.

[rrrmanion]

if using a harder wood, would it be helpful to drill a hole then fit a rod and use that as a handle (think like a box spanner ) ?

[phirzcol]

I went with a screwdriver style twisting motion. The key to the tool is that the disks get stuck in the tool and need to be pushed out. the long (spanner)(wrench) lever action of the arm makes it hard to prevent wobble when cutting and lead to rounded edges on the disks.

[ryanmuller]

wow... how long does it take to get the wood for one key? I'd think that would take forever

[phirzcol]

3 seconds

[phirzcol]

 I used balsa, so the cutting went quick. I later strengthened it with thin ca.

[thoughtstorms]

I may not be aware of a common abbreviation... "thin ca"? I'd like to do this, but i've never strengthened balsa before!

Great project and instructable!

[phirzcol]

thin or more viscous (free flowing) Cyanoacrylate. Cyanoacrylate comes in three flavors. "Gap filling" THICK NORMAL and THIN

[Blubber300]

would one of those flexible keyboards work for this?

[phirzcol]

Yes, You will need to mount the flexible membrane inside a keyboard sized container. after use a post and hole to membrane with backstop -o [ | on the inside of the body on the key post to keep the keyboard post from falling out. just for starters. post pictures let us know!

[freerunnin1]

doubt it because the keys aren't like on a normal keyboard, there usually made of a rubber like material, you could make it with one but it might be difficult, you would have to make the key so they have a stopper to stop them coming out the top and the extra weight might not let the key spring up again

[Kruegem]

could i use copper pipes after i sand them to give them a nice shine or is there a reason for using brass?

[phirzcol]

brass tends to have a higher reflective quality when not covered to prevent oxidation. Copper is incredibly mailable, or soft. Machining it can be complex because larger walls are needed on the pipe to keep it from crushing. The crushing happens when using the cutter and more material would need to be removed post cutting to eliminate the bezel created by the cutter. look into using brass or copper "olives" pipe mating seal devices available at the hardware store. Alternatively prop the tube in a grinder and use a cut off tool or hacksaw etc.

[kwhitacre]

Is the light coming out of a hole? Or is there some cover? I see a design and don't understand if that is part of the light or part of the cover?

One more question on putting keys onto plastic key: is it only glued? Is there anything for structural stability? A shaft? BTW, this is way cool. Thank you for your post.

[phirzcol]

A piece of braided steel was used on the inside of the brass pipe its as long as needed for the soldered shut side going down and the cap soldered on the other end holds it in place. To get the braid get a length of coaxial cable (tv cable) and remove just the outer pvc plastic. the next layer on the inside of the cable will be woven wires /////\\\\\\////// over layed . Slide this down the next layer of foil covered foam and wire. Cut the foam covered wire off and let the braided wire go cut off the braided wire off and use the same style push together slide to work it onto existing wire and slide it inside the brass tube with the led to make an inside grill.

[Paturnus Prime]

Didn't read all the comments yet, but a few people spoke of the cord to the computer. Think! It needs to be cloth covered, like a 1920's radio powercord. If you could get a length of legit old cord, you hold the wires and push back on the cloth sheath, making it bunch up and expand. keep going till you have enough cloth covering to accomodate the length of the cable that is on the keyboard. Strech out the coils if your keyboard has a coiled cord so you know how much cloth to stip off the old powercord (the coils can mess up the length measurements). You also might need to do the cord first, before the wood because once the wood goes on, you probably cant open the case for the keyboard anymore. Possible source for the power cord (they might even have the cloth cover itself) is Antique Electronic Supply. ( All old radio stuff) There used to be a shop in NYC called Waves(dont know if still there) that had old radios and parts.
PS-Instructable is probably the coolest one Iv'e seen-Kudos!
PPS- look into really old typewriters that you don't mind destroying to harvest ready made keys from!