How to make a silent Unicomp IBM Buckling Spring Keyboard
120So macht man ein Unicomp/IBM "Buckling Spring" Keyboard leise. Es ist nicht "lautlos", aber merklich leiser.
This is how to silence an Unicomp/IBM Buckling Spring keyboard. It is not "no-noise", but way more silent than the original.
For the English watchers who don't understand German: I am currently too lazy for subtitles or doing an English take, so here as text to read:
You need a cord, I used cheap Fackelmann cord, Beadsmith cord seems to be the US brand of the same. A lighter. Something to measure 13 mm. A scissor. A "fix when it failed" tool, mine is a wire from a former LAN cable. And I am using a "helper" which is 13 mm wide to help me cutting the right length.
First untangle the cord, normally it is too thick. Then seal the end using a lighter. Cut off 13 mm. Take a key off, put the damper you just made into the spring, put the key back on. Done.
If you made it too short the keyboard is still loud, like you did nothing. If you made it too long the pressure point disappears completely, or the key doesn't work at all. Then the "rescue tool" comes in handy, get the thing out, try again.
The only method I found via google was using silicone, which leaves no room if you mess up and is very likely to kill your keyboard. My method allows errors since you can undo whatever you did.