[John Roberts]

I am putting together an order for a few bits and pieces to Tormach. I notice that they now sell a IP65 rated water resistant key board. The one I have has the thin removable cover that fits over it, when I bought the mill some years ago. Can anyone recommend the above as an upgrade. It may be available to buy else where at a cheaper price as it has no Tormach marking on it?
Living in the UK there is always the extra cost of importing from the US and would like to keep to a minimum . It may be available via Amazon UK. Does anyone know the make / model no?

[Jim Dawson]

I use only the finest keyboards that US$5 will buy. They live about a year or so, and I keep a few on the shelf. I'm typing on one of them right now. Pretty resistant to chips and coolant. This one has chips and coolant all over it.

[jwatte]

Any USB keyboard will work, so here's an IP65 rated one on Amazon: https://amzn.to/3hn8IVR
That being said, most "membrane" capacitive keyboards are actually fairly resistant to liquid -- you can often run them in the dishwasher if they get too grody.
I like Jim's approach of just using cheap ones, and keeping a spare or two :-)
One benefit of the Tormach keyboard is that it's nice and small, if your area is cramped.

[kstrauss]

Using keyboards and discarding when chips get under the keys is cost effective but may be dangerous depending on what key gets stuck. Note that being IP65 protects from liquid spills but not chips between keycap and keyboard top.

I bought this keyboard perhaps 5 years ago for about $45 on eBay and it has worked perfectly. It is positioned so I often get showers of aluminum chips onto the keyboard and a burst of compressed air clears things instantly.

https://www.amazon.ca/Sejin-M778MSLN.../dp/B00UPKV3D8

(currently out of stock at Amazon.ca but highly recommended if you can find one)

[MichaelHenry]

Using keyboards and discarding when chips get under the keys is cost effective but may be dangerous depending on what key gets stuck. Note that being IP65 protects from liquid spills but not chips between keycap and keyboard top.

I bought this keyboard perhaps 5 years ago for about $45 on eBay and it has worked perfectly. It is positioned so I often get showers of aluminum chips onto the keyboard and a burst of compressed air clears things instantly.

https://www.amazon.ca/Sejin-M778MSLN.../dp/B00UPKV3D8

(currently out of stock at Amazon.ca but highly recommended if you can find one)

I have two of the same keyboards, one on my mill and the other on my lathe and they have both worked very well for me as well.

[Advil]

Or you can get Logitech's venerable MK120 kit for $16 then get a $5-20 cover depending on what suits your needs. I steer the mill with the full arrow keys and pgup/pgdown, and being an old gamer I can steer it in every axis at once with one hand. I couldn't do that without the full size traditional keyboard layout, plus it's just easier to type on.

So, MK120 keyboard:
https://www.amazon.com/Logitech-Desk...1930973&sr=8-1

fully waterproof type cover than wraps around and sticks to the bottom:
https://www.amazon.com/Viziflexs-Log...1931005&sr=8-5

lighter style silicone cover that just sits on top:
https://www.amazon.com/Masino-Silico...1931083&sr=8-1

Logitech keyboards are the go-to of the computer industry. It'll probably outlive your mill if it has the cover on it. Mine has no cover and even with bits of chips everywhere inside it by now it's still fine after 3 years. I really should clean it out and put a cover on it though.

Nothing in the world wrong with Kstrauss's industrial keyboard either. I'd use it if it had a more traditional layout. Purely personal preference.

Tormach's waterproof mini keyboard has a pretty decent layout and certainly isn't terribly expensive at $40.

[CL_MotoTech]

Not a Tormach, but here's how I did my keyboard. It's an off brand mechanical board with Cherry switches that I machined a frame for and mounted it on my mill. The keyboard would be perfectly fine without the frame and mounting. The nice thing about the frame though is that the switches can be removed and since the frame is flat it's easily blown off and wiped down. The keys can even be run through the dishwasher, the drying cycle ins't recommended though. I've never had an issue with coolant or chips with it, but i'm not sure how the chips and coolant would really get on it beyond maybe my hands being wet from grabbing a part off the mill.

[mountaindew]

anyone find a keyboard with trackball or touch pad that works with pp?
I would like to get rid of dumb mice in my shop.
I use touch screens and keyboards all day. Only touch mouse for right click run from here menu.

[John Roberts]

Thanks guys for your suggestions. I think I will go for the Tormach recommended key board.

[MichaelHenry]

anyone find a keyboard with trackball or touch pad that works with pp?
I would like to get rid of dumb mice in my shop.
I use touch screens and keyboards all day. Only touch mouse for right click run from here menu.

The keyboard that kstrauss linked to has a mouse "track button" in the bottom center that eliminates the need for a mouse. I find it clunky to use but you might adapt with frequent use.

[kstrauss]

The keyboard that I mentioned earlier includes a trackball that works with PP.

[mountaindew]

The keyboard that I mentioned earlier includes a trackball that works with PP.

I looked at your link and quickly noticed ps2 cables. The tiny 24r brix size control box has only network, usb and lcd connections no ps2 port for a mouse.
That type keyboard will work with the older style control box with ps2 mouse port. Will look around here to see if I have one to try and maybe replace mill keyboard.
Anyway imho it would be nice if PP/ Tormach included support for a keyboard - usb mouse/trackball and dump the need for a mouse. I have a couple small format usb keyboards with a track balls. They even claim to have Linux support but no joy with PP.
As I mentioned above, with touch screens you end up only using the mouse right click button for access to the one run from here menu. Otherwise it just sets there taking up space and collecting dust.

[kstrauss]

Maybe an Arduino USB Right Mouse Click box would solve the problem!