Posted this on eab but I thought I'd share it here too.
I recently bought an A1000 keyboard and when it showed up it was in pretty ratty shape. Thanks to a few threads here and on a1k.org I managed to take apart the keyboard and fully fix and clean it. When it first arrived about 65% of the keys didn't respond. So the first step was to remove the caps.
I did this by bending two paper clips into a cap puller (I'm cheap) and the process went well. No broken stems (the F1 key already had a broken stem when it arrived). I'd have to say this is probably the hardest part of the repair as the plastic is old and the risk of breaking the stems on the switches is high. I just took my time and skipped the caps that seemed to be really stuck. Also, wiggling a bit helps pull the cap off easier.
Next up was de-soldering each switch. Since the legs are space far apart this was no problem. All I used was a de-soldering bulb and some wick to clean up anything that was missed. The metal plate that the switches sit in is also grounded to the board.
After removing all the switches I sanded the metal back plate with increasingly higher grit sand paper to remove the rust and paint. I also used a wire brush on a dremel tool to remove the rust that was too stubborn to come off with sanding. I also used the wire brush to remove rust in the holes for the switches.
Next I wiped down the back plate and gave it several coats of gloss rustoleum. I messed up the paint job on the front and gave it an eggshell texture because the nozzle was not depressing fully when i was painting it. The back has a smooth paint job
.
Next on the list was to take apart each switch and clean them. This was the most time consuming process since most of the switches weren't working to begin with. Most of the switches tested fine on my multimeter after I cleaned them but a few needed to be "re-bent" in order to make good contact. In the end all of the switches tested fine after this.
The next step was to re-solder everything to the board. I just snapped all the switches into the back plate and lined it up with the board. Soldering was simple since the pcb is nice and roomy.
After soldering everything all that was left was to clean the caps. I just let them soak in the sink with a small amount of dish soap then scrubbed each one individually. Once they were dry I popped them back on the stems and put the case back together.
I still have a few things left on my list. I would like to retrobrite the spacebar and the case. As I have never done that before I'll just leave that for another day. Also, I need to replace the stem or maybe glue the F1 key to the broken one. This seems like something someone with a 3d printer could do (anyone own one?
) Also, pictures were an afterthought for this project so the few I took were hasty and kind of crappy. Sorry about that.
I recently bought an A1000 keyboard and when it showed up it was in pretty ratty shape. Thanks to a few threads here and on a1k.org I managed to take apart the keyboard and fully fix and clean it. When it first arrived about 65% of the keys didn't respond. So the first step was to remove the caps.
I did this by bending two paper clips into a cap puller (I'm cheap) and the process went well. No broken stems (the F1 key already had a broken stem when it arrived). I'd have to say this is probably the hardest part of the repair as the plastic is old and the risk of breaking the stems on the switches is high. I just took my time and skipped the caps that seemed to be really stuck. Also, wiggling a bit helps pull the cap off easier.
Next up was de-soldering each switch. Since the legs are space far apart this was no problem. All I used was a de-soldering bulb and some wick to clean up anything that was missed. The metal plate that the switches sit in is also grounded to the board.
After removing all the switches I sanded the metal back plate with increasingly higher grit sand paper to remove the rust and paint. I also used a wire brush on a dremel tool to remove the rust that was too stubborn to come off with sanding. I also used the wire brush to remove rust in the holes for the switches.
Next I wiped down the back plate and gave it several coats of gloss rustoleum. I messed up the paint job on the front and gave it an eggshell texture because the nozzle was not depressing fully when i was painting it. The back has a smooth paint job
. 
Next on the list was to take apart each switch and clean them. This was the most time consuming process since most of the switches weren't working to begin with. Most of the switches tested fine on my multimeter after I cleaned them but a few needed to be "re-bent" in order to make good contact. In the end all of the switches tested fine after this.
The next step was to re-solder everything to the board. I just snapped all the switches into the back plate and lined it up with the board. Soldering was simple since the pcb is nice and roomy.
After soldering everything all that was left was to clean the caps. I just let them soak in the sink with a small amount of dish soap then scrubbed each one individually. Once they were dry I popped them back on the stems and put the case back together.
I still have a few things left on my list. I would like to retrobrite the spacebar and the case. As I have never done that before I'll just leave that for another day. Also, I need to replace the stem or maybe glue the F1 key to the broken one. This seems like something someone with a 3d printer could do (anyone own one?
) Also, pictures were an afterthought for this project so the few I took were hasty and kind of crappy. Sorry about that.
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