Live and Building

Build
Guides.

A growing pile of keyboards and macropads we built by hand, with all the files you need to make them your own. Real builds from real makers, nothing locked away.

Guides

5 available

Method

Handwired

Files

All on GitHub

Everything we make lives on GitHub and it is all free to download

Our GitHub

Tool // Firmware Generator →

Keymap Editor

Lay out your keys, layers and macros by clicking a matrix, then download an Arduino sketch that is ready to flash. Works for every board here, plus any matrix you wired yourself.

Guides // Step by step ↓

Browse the Builds

Every board we have documented, from a nine key macropad you can finish in an afternoon to a full thirty nine key keyboard. Parts lists, wiring, firmware and photos for each one.

How a Keyboard Comes Together

From a blank layout
to a board you built.

Every one of our builds follows the same rhythm. Here is the whole journey, start to finish, so you know what you are getting into before you open a single guide below. The per board guides fill in the exact pins, parts, and photos.

This walkthrough covers the handwired route, which is how we prototype everything. If you would rather skip the wiring, we have started printing PCBs too, and a dedicated PCB guide is on the way. Either way, every plate file, PCB design, and firmware sketch is on GitHub, free to download and free to change.

Phase 01 Design

Map out your layout

Start on paper, or better yet on the Keyboard Layout Editor. Plan where every key sits in 2D before you touch anything physical. It saves you a world of trouble later.

Pick your MCU

This little chip runs the whole board. The ATMega32u4, RP2040 Zero, and full RP2040 all work great, and there are plenty of others out there. I usually reach for the RP2040 Zero because it is tiny and still plenty capable for its size.

Model your plates in OnShape

Head into OnShape and design your 3D printed files. We keep ours minimal, just a top and bottom plate with the wiring matrix sandwiched in the middle and switches and keycaps sitting on top. Screws and PLA keep it cheap, simple, and still tough. One thing to remember, carve a small rectangular hole in the bottom plate so the MCU has somewhere to sit.

Phase 02 Print and Assemble

Print the whole thing

Send your plates to the printer and let them run. PLA is cheap, prints easily, and holds up just fine for a keyboard.

Mount your switches

Press the switches into the top plate and click everything into place. Give each one a wiggle to make sure it is seated flat.

Phase 03 Wire It Up

Solder your diodes

Add a diode to each switch with the black tip facing the rows. Keeping them all pointed the same way is what stops your keys from ghosting.

Diode orientation, black tip facing the rows

Solder your rows and columns

Run wire across the matrix, joining every switch into rows one way and columns the other. Take your time here and keep your lines tidy.

Wire into the MCU

Bring each row and column over to the microcontroller and solder them down. This is the bridge between your handwiring and your code.

Phase 04 Flash and Finish

Upload, debug, and test

Flash your code onto the board, then press every key and watch for the ones that misbehave. Chase down any cold joints or crossed wires until the whole matrix reads clean.

Hot glue it down

For handwired boards a little hot glue keeps everything sturdy. It is optional, but if you want your keyboard to feel permanent and firmly structured, this is the step that gets you there.