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The Dome Lab.
Three tools for understanding Topre & EC.

Built for people new to Topre and EC modification — and rigorous enough for people deep in it. First, understand the switch: the interactive Switch Explorer is the starting point. Then navigate the parts: one place with everything needed to build a custom board without open questions. Then compare domes on a standard: measured weight and Snap % instead of marketing numbers — with the goal of a complete library of every dome made. Secondary to all of it: measured tests of parts and setups, and how they change travel and feel.

Topre 45g — as measuredreal bench data
0.005 mm
bench displacement resolution
<1 g
run-to-run collapse deviation
µm
parts micrometer-measured & hand-modeled
100%
raw data public on GitHub

The instruments

01

Topre & EC Switch Explorer

The starting point. A working, interactive cross-section that teaches everything about how a Topre & EC switch works — press it, swap sliders, fit silencing rings, watch the dome's skirt hinge and snap through on real measured curves. Built to take a newcomer to fluency, and detailed enough that veterans learn from it too. Every part was measured with a digital micrometer and solid-modeled by hand; the section is traced 1:1 from those models.

interactive teaching modelmicrometer-measured geometrymeasured collapse physics
learn the switch, interactively →
02

Topre & EC Parts Library + Builder

The map through the complex world of Topre & EC parts: every part with the details that matter — sources, systems, and the tolerance findings nobody publishes — in one place, so you can spec a custom board without open questions. The builder checks every combination live: stem fit, ring preload, drilling requirements, system conflicts, before you spend a dime.

every part, one placecompatibility enginefield notes
browse every part & check your build →
03

Force Curve Analyzer

The standard for comparing domes. Every dome is sold as one number; your fingers feel the whole curve. Overlay measured curves for every dome and slider configuration and compare them by Total Energy (how heavy it really is) and Snap % (how tactile) — the standardized read on weight and snappiness, working toward a complete library of every dome. Includes measured tests of parts and setups and how they change travel.

measured dataSnap % standardauto-syncs new tests
compare measured force curves →
04

Topre Modification Guide

The practical companion: how to actually perform the modifications the other instruments quantify — silencing, dome swaps, slider work — done properly, in order, without ruining parts.

hands-onstep by step
open the modification guide →
05

REAL Typing Tests

A library of 29 typing tests recorded in the same sound-treated room, with the same equipment and settings, and zero audio alteration — no EQ, no filters. Every test opens with a Bic Clic pen clicked over the board, so you calibrate your own volume with a pen from your desk drawer and hear the keyboard's true loudness and tone. The only source dedicated to honest, directly comparable tests — between boards, and before/after modification.

unaltered audioBic Clic calibration29 tests
hear the real sound →

How the lab works

Measured, not quoted

Every force figure comes off a calibrated instrument at 0.005 mm steps, averaged across runs. If it wasn't measured here, it's labeled.

Modeled by hand

The Explorer's parts were measured with a digital micrometer and solid-modeled in SolidWorks by a professional design drafter with seven years in the trade — then the cross-section was traced 1:1 from those models. Credentials here.

Open by default

Raw CSVs, the viewer, and the tools live in a public repo. Push a new test set and every tool picks it up automatically.

Credit where due

The force-curve instrument is a build of bluepylons' open-source Open-Switch-Curve-Meter. Sources, patents, and designs are cited, always.

Deep cuts

unrealkeyboards.com force curves on the site explorer on the site parts library on the site © 2026 Brian “BuddyOG” Gebo — Unreal Keyboards. All rights reserved.