Buckling Spring Key Switch
By Xah Lee. Date: . Last updated: .
Unicomp bucking spring
[photo by Amir Yalon, August 2009 at flickr © [https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/legalcode] ]
The Buckling Spring Key Switch is famously used in IBM Model M keyboard
buckling spring switch
[[ image source 2020-07-23 https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bucklingspring-animation-300ms.gif ]]
buckling spring key switch mechanism
You press the key, the spring compresses, then at some point, it can't
take it anymore,
🗦
TAK
🗧
, it buckles, giving up all resistance.
That means you get a clean precise feel when the key is activated.
A drawback is that it is very loud. The sound came from the spring hitting
the key's inner wall. It's crispy and precise.
Buckling Spring Switch Sound
IBM Model M keyboard buckling spring sound
Keyboard with Buckling Spring Switch
