Keyboard Builders' Digest / Projects
Matcha59
The Matcha59 is a hand-wired, angled, 3D-printable Preonic alternative by rykbio.
Published May 8, 2021
STL files: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4850429
The Matcha59 is a handwired Planck/Preonic alternative with rotary encoder in the center and a 4 degree incline. Info on wiring and firmware is included in the Github repository:
[repo is under construction, this link will be updated later]
The board in the photos is shown with Gateron Yellow switches, a Vintage Forged nickel guitar knob, and either NP Crayon or YMDK ZDA Matcha keycaps. Sound dampening foam is highly recommended by the author though it stiffens typing feel considerably. The board is handwired meaning that it does not use a PCB and thus is NOT compatible with the Preonic or Planck ofc.
Intermediate soldering skills are required.
Typing feel is bouncy toward the center of the board though it gets stiff toward the edges. Switch fit came out loose enough in this print that author rykbio has to hold them in place with a spudger while he pulls the caps so as not to damage the wiring.
Microcontroller reset button location varies by model, in this case a hole was drilled where it would fit the unit used by rykbio.
Designing a hole for the MCU is highly recommended (you can do this in your browser on Tinkercad.com) or drilling it in manually is an option too.
Modelling & Design
The board was designed in Autodesk Inventor, and the parametric files will be released in the linked Github repository in case anyone would like to make changes.
Published on Sat 8th May 2021. Featured in KBD #25 (source).
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