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Switches & Key Caps
Switches
The Qwerkywriter uses that old standby, clicky Blue switches--in this case, Kailh Blues. A blue switch is the obvious choice for a keyboard that's aping a typewriter, when you think about it. It has the click people expect from mechanical keys, and other clicky switches (like Greens) are too heavy for most casual typists.
Keycaps
Keeping with the retro typewriter aesthetic, the Qwerkywriter has round, slightly concave typewriter-style keycaps. The spacebar, though, is plain black ABS with a flatter profile, whereas most boards are sculpted from one row to the next. This will take some getting used to if you're accustomed to regular "OEM" caps.
The surface of the ABS is slightly textured, so it will wear down and develop shine over time. There's also a shiny outer rim on each cap that looks like metal, but it's just more plastic. ABS plastic is not necessarily a poor material for keycaps; GMK makes some of the most highly regarded keycaps on the market (some of which you can buy here), and they're all ABS, for example. In any case, the quality of different ABS designs varies widely, and the Qwerkywriter's keycaps aren't terrible from a material standpoint. There are design issues, though.
The legends are laser-etched, which is better than pad printing but inferior to doubleshot molding. A lasered legend won't wear off too quickly, but it does tend to get dirty and discolored. On the underside, these keycaps have an unusual stem mount. It's a rectangular box, and much more complex than the standard Cherry-style cross. Part of the mount on the underside of the cap fits on the standard Cherry cross stem of the switch, but there's a lot of extra plastic around it. The "box" is basically the same size as the opening in the top of the switch housing, which is a problematic design. If you press these keys off-center, some of them will actually catch on the housing and interrupt your typing flow. The saving grace here is that you can swap out the keycaps, most of which are standard sizes.
The stabilizers under the longer keys are Cherry-style. These stabilizers make it easier to swap keycaps than the Costar stabilizers many boards use.
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