[Hirudin]

Sorry for the cursing. I'm a little pissed off...

I don't know about you guys, but I use a wired keyboard with my machine. I set it off to the side when it's not in use and put it on the table or vise when I'm typing into it. I've gone through about 5 keyboards this way. The ****ing things always break when they've got too many chips or too much coolant in them.

The last keyboard I bought, I thought would solve all my troubles. It's a "Seal Shield Glow Pup 2". It *could* be a perfect solution if the damn thing wasn't a colossal piece of ****. Even though it has a rigid base, it will sometimes refuse to work if it's not one a flat surface. Other times it'll somehow cross some wires or something and Windows will pop a message up saying "USB device not recognized". Of course, when this happens Mach3 completely ****ing flips out and stops working. Thankfully, it hasn't happened in the middle of a program yet - who knows what would happen.

The last one I had was a Logitech washable keyboard. Model: K310
It was fine, until coolant particles apparently got into it and made some of the keys stick.

[slowtwitch]

I've been using keyboards designed for kiosks. I believe they are the Storm 2200. I bought them used on Ebay for about $25. I have them on my mill and lathe.

They work well, but, I will say that both the mill and lathe are enclosed and they don't get much coolant sprayed on them. Also, I did remove the trackball once to clean it after about a year of good use.

Here is the keyboard that is used on the lathe....



There are a couple drawbacks with these keyboards. One is that they don't have a delete button ( you have to use backspace). the other is that there are no "F" keys.

[LeeWay]

This is the little stand I made on my Torus. Works well. That keyboard in the picture was temporary. I use a roll up silicone rubber type that cost maybe $4 from Ebay. I bought three at once. They work fine. They are wired type. No back lighting in these. Just like this one, but mine are gray.
New USB2 0 Computer Keyboard Silicone Flexible Keyboard Waterproof 109 Keys Blue | eBay

[MichaelHenry]

I think that Tosa Tools is selling industrial keyboards that are supposed to be good for this sort of application:

Tosa Tool - Prototypes and Manufacturing Solutions

I just tried to verify, but couldn't get the site to load. As I recall they were fairly expensive but the cost and hassle of changing out 5 cheaper keyboards is pretty high.

I think I'm using one of those K310 keyboards and as you say it is supposed to be washable. Have you tried giving it a bath yet?

Mike

[Hirudin]

Yeah, I think a nice keyboard tray would do me a lot of good.

I'm pretty sure my K310 is beyond repair now. I never tried to actually wash it.

Thanks for the Tosa Tool tip. They do indeed have one. It's $165. Definitely an expensive keyboard, but as you said, less than multiple cheap pieces of crap. I'll think about that one.

[jcposada]

Consider the ikey (iKey.com Tough Keyboards) line of industrial peripherals. Most models can be found on eBay at semi-reasonable prices.

[Hirudin]

Thanks for the tip! I just got one from eBay. I even had a few eBay Bucks so I got it for even less. I hope "Tech4Less" comes through. It seems that they're selling through every channel they can muster (their own site, through Sears, through Amazon, and through eBay).

[MichaelHenry]

Those iKey keyboards look pretty decent. Which one did you get?

Mike

[Hirudin]

I went with the white one with short keys. An SLK-101-FL-USB.

[MichaelHenry]

I went with the white one with short keys. An SLK-101-FL-USB.

Looks like a medical keyboard, judging from an Ebay listing. Please let us know what you think of it after you've had a chance to use it for a bit.

Mike

[CROSSHATCH]

Since we are on this topic, I don't mean to Hi-jack this thread...

I find the Keyboard I am using (Cheapo Logitech) to very unresponsive with Mach3 and my set-up. I have it plugged into a High Quality USB extension but after sitting for some time, if I move the keys I can see the Mach3 screen DRO working but the machine does not move. I do NOT LIKE this one bit...Any help?


I do want to get a new keyboard but I do want a Pendant more to avoid those troubles above....

-Jason

[LeeWay]

Guys, I normally do not like wireless keyboards, however I bought one for my plasma cutter and like it a lot. I still use a regular keyboard for most input, but setting zeros with the small wireless hand held is a lot like a pendant. The one I bought has a very strong battery and lasts weeks without a recharge. It recharges on USB as well, which makes it even more convenient. This one here.

I can tell you that I love mine and it will be replaced if it ever fails.

All my other machines have the keyboard close to the machine, but the plasma cutter is the largest and the controls is on a roll around cart. Not that close to the machine.

[Hirudin]

SpeedsCustom, I get that too. It's very annoying! Every time I come back to Mach3 after a fair amount of down time the first time I jog is a little nerve-racking. The problem hasn't cropped up lately... I don't think it's a coincidence that I've been using a pendant a lot lately as well. Maybe that really is a fix. I will also sometime click on the Start Menu and then click back on Mach3. My thinking is that by doing that it might 'wake it up' without jogging and potentially screwing up the zero-point.

That keyboard looks very cool! I use a little Lenovo wireless keyboard on occasion as well. The thing about wireless keyboards, for me, is that they will sometimes register a single tap as multiple taps. Usually it's just a double-tap, which isn't too bad for jogging and can be caught easily enough if you're paying attention when typing in MDI. Sometimes they'll 'decide' a key is being held down though. Just today I was writing a forum post and in middle of a sentence the cursor started moving to the right as if I was holding the space-bar down. I had to turn the keyboard off to make it stop.

[bill south]

Slowtwitch;
Can you share how you constructed your keyboard mount for your storm 2200?
Many thanks.
B

[slowtwitch]

Slowtwitch;
Can you share how you constructed your keyboard mount for your storm 2200?
Many thanks.
B

It's nothing special...just some .500 thinwall I had laying around and some scrap plywood. Here's a link to some closeup pics...

http://www.cnczone.com/forums/vertic...e-project.html

[bill south]

Thanks Pete;
Just what I needed!
B

[Hirudin]

After a little bit of time with this iKey keyboard I have nothing bad to say about it. It's somewhat heavy, which makes it feel sturdy, and so far it hasn't missed a single keystroke. It also hasn't randomly repeated any keystrokes. The low profile keys are nice as chips are less likely to get jammed between them. The bottom is hard plastic and is basically a flat surface; there aren't any nooks or crannies for chips to get caught in. The fact that the cord is decently long and comes out in the middle of the 'board are "pluses" as well.

What more can I say? It's a washable keyboard and it hasn't failed - exactly the kind of keyboard I was looking for!
Thanks again for the tip jcposada!

[bill south]

I went with the storm 2200 from fleabay and and inexpensive touchscreen monitor. The only thing I miss on the storm is the pg up and pg dn keys for the z axis. Not really a problem though. I just use the touch screen or my pendant.
Thanks for sharing everyone! (sorry for the out of focus pix but I'm half blind so it looked ok to me when I shot it!!!!)

Bill

[jcposada]

[gabyxie]

We use this stainless steel keyboard www.inputel.com