How to build my own custom keyboard?

Building your own custom keyboard can appear daunting for newbies uncertain of where to start. Fortunately, the process is relatively simple. Nonetheless, acquainting oneself with the specific jargon, various components, and the procedural steps beforehand is advisable.

Decide on what you want

It may seem like a simple matter, but it's a good idea to have a clear clear thought beforehand about what you specifically want. This makes it easier to navigate through the wide range of products available. If you have experience building a computer, you know that individual components must be compatible to function as a whole. The same principle applies when building a mechanical keyboard. The great thing about keyboards (unlike computers) is that they have fewer parts, offering more possibilities than limitations.

Here's a list of decisions you'll want to make before you start looking for products:

What layout and size do you want? ISO? ANSI? TKL? Full size? Read more about different layouts here.
Do you want to solder the switches into the circuit board yourself, or do you want to be able to mount and replace switches without soldering? In the latter case, you should look for printed circuit boards that support "hot-swap".
What's your budget? It's easy to go on a rampage here, so it's good to have defined how much money you actually have at your disposal.

These components must be included in te budget

A pre-built mechanical keyboard consists of the following components. To give you an idea of the price level, the estimated price for each component is set.

Chassis (case). There is wide variation in price and quality here. The cheapest plastic boxes can be bought for 20 dollars and upwards. In the premium segment, you can find cabinets made of aluminum, wood, acrylic and other materials. Prices usually start at about a hundred dollars for mass-produced products, and between two and five hundred dollars for more exclusive products.
Printed circuit board (PCB). A printed circuit board has a price of about 50 dollars. The biggest difference lies in whether the card supports "hot-swap" or not. Often, printed circuit boards are sold along with the enclosure, so you can be sure they are compatible. Printed circuit boards are typically sold with support for either ANSI or ISO layout. Read more about the different keyboard layouts here.
Stabilizers. Helps keep large keys stable during keystrokes. A set of stabilizers costs about 20 dollars. There are generally two variants: Cherry and Costar, where Cherry is easiest to assemble while Costar has better stability. There are different mounting solutions such as "screw-in" and "clip-in". Stabilizers are attached either to the mounting plate or to the printed circuit board.
Switches. Switches can be purchased in packs or individually, and prices vary considerably, from 25-100 dollars for a full keyboard. There is a wide variety of different switches to choose from. Read more in this article.
Keycaps. Again, there are plenty of options to choose from, and prices vary widely. You can find keycapsets for 20 bucks, or up to 200 dollars for the most exclusive sets. GMK has long been considered the best of the best. Read more about keycaps in this guide.

In addition, you often need:

Mounting plate where the switches are mounted. It's always included with the chassis, unless the keyboard has a plateless design. If the keyboard has a plateless designs, the switches are fixed directly onto the PCB.
USB-C cable.

Other items are usually sold separately, as accessories:

Dampening/soundproofing gaskets, tape and inserts. This is optional to buy/use. Sometimes damping materials are an integral part of the construction, for example, in gasket mounted keyboards.
O-rings for the keycaps. These are used to mute the sound of keystrokes (on downstroke) and are attached to the keycap stem. Completely optional to use.
Tools and lubricants for lubricating stabilizers and switches. If you want less noise from the stabilizers, it is a good idea to lubricate them. Switches also achieve a more pleasant sound/feel with lubrication. Some switches are sold pre-lubricated from the factory. Read more about switches and lubrication here.
Equipment for soldering switches if you prefer to solder yourself instead of using "hot-swap".
Switch-puller and keycap-puller (tool to remove switches and keycaps).

What about compatibility?

In theory, you could buy all the individual parts separately from different suppliers and online stores. But in practice that is a bad idea, as it is very likely that you'll run into compatability issues. The safest way is to buy components in kits. More on such kits in the next paragraph.

A rule of thumb is that the following components should be purchased together:

Chassis (case), printed circuit board (PCB) and mounting plate.
These three components make up the skeleton of the keyboard, and must be compatible.

This can be purchased separately, from other suppliers / by other brands:

Switches (If you have switches in MX design, you should also buy keycaps that fit. Read more about keycaps here).
Stabilizers
USB cable
Gaskets and dampening materials

Barebone

The easiest way to get components is to buy a barebone version of a keyboard. In simple terms, this means that you buy a ready-made kit that contains the chassis/case, printed circuit board and a mounting plate if needed. In some cases, it may also include damping materials, cables and stabilizers. The barebone version typically includes a pre-assembled keyboard, excluding switches, keycaps, and lubrication tools.

Some websites offer configurators that can help you in the buying process. You will usually see a menu where you can select the desired components. Or you'll get a reminder if you forget to add a required component to your cart.

The building process

Watch our keyboard, Drekiskip, being built from the ground up:

Once you've acquired all the components for your keyboard, it's time to start the build process. Depending on the keyboard, there are different mounting solutions, but the process is generally similar step by step:

Test the circuit board to make sure it is working. Connect the card to your computer (USB) and visit the VIA test. There you will find a test program. Use tweezers to close the circuit for each switch on the circuit board to verify that they are working. This is done to avoid detecting faults in the circuit board after the keyboard is fully built.
If you want to lubricate the switches yourself, then this must be done before assembly. You will need switches, lubricant, a brush and a tool to open the switches (a switch opener).
If desired, lubricate the stabilizers (if desired) and mount them on the circuit board/mounting plate. If you use stabilizers with screw fasteners, you will need a screwdriver. The clip-in fastening system clicks into place.
Install the switches on the circuit board. If you have a mounting plate, the switches attach both to the plate and to the circuit board. Any damping materials (platefoam) are put between the plate and the circuit board as a kind of sandwich. Some also use standoff screws to keep circuit boards and plate together at the correct distance.
Solder the switches onto the circuit board. You will need a soldering iron and tin for this. If the circuit board supports "hot-swap", you do not need to solder the switches firmly.
Install any supplied or desired damping materials in the chassis and/or on the mounting plate.
Place the "sandwich" with circuit boards, plate, and switches into the enclosure, and connect wires to any daughterboards and batteries. Attach loose parts and screw the keyboard together according to the instruction manual.
Mount the keycaps on the switches.
Connect to your computer.
(Optional) Load programming software. If your keyboard is compatible with QMK/VIA, visit canisuevia.com and set up your personal keyboard layout. Read more about this here.
Enjoy! (Not optional )

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