Good afternoon —
I recently came into possession of the IBM Model F keyboard that came with my Dad’s IBM AT that he purchased back in 1984, and I’m hoping to bring the keyboard back into service in some way. The inner foam has, as expected, disintegrated into a fine powder, and due to having been stored in a humid basement for something approaching 30 years, the top plate has corroded to the point where it’s no longer black, it’s actually completely white on the top instead, and the foam residue on the inside of it has left behind a rather disgusting, sticky, flaky mess that seems like it might be more trouble to clean up than to try to rescue.
I saw that you have a foam insert that, after a little trimming with some scissors, will work with an AT-layout Model F (the F107 layout, if memory serves), but when I look at the repair kits available, it seems that there are kits for every Model F except that layout. Is there a way to obtain a repair kit that has the correct foam insert for this layout?
I’m also hoping that you might be able to provide (or know how to source) a top plate for the same layout, since I’m not sure that I can strip the top plate of all of the corrosion and re-paint it without it winding up worse.
Any hints or advice would be very welcome.
Thank you!
~~ Matt Balmer
Great Matt; glad you are restoring this great keyboard! I have restored many such boards in the condition you describe. Yes, you’ll need to take a toothbrush to scrub the foam flakes off each of the barrels.
Follow the instructions on this page to order the right foam for your board (see the description for details): https://www.modelfkeyboards.com/product/extra-inner-foam-f62-f77-f62-split-shift-f77-split-shift-f107-f122/
Then you can order some replacement flippers with springs to have as spares. Most of the originals are probably still good even if they appear rusted.
To clean the case and keycaps, I recommend generic non-branded melamine foam sponges and water, with a few drops of dish soap in the water. Do not scrub hard or you will wear the surface texture. I usually put the keys in an ultrasonic cleaner for a half hour and then let air dry for a few days (do not try to speed up drying with a hair dryer etc.). Never clean the flippers and springs except by dry cloth; do not try to remove rust from the springs or you’ll damage them. They will almost always work fine even if rusted.
For the corrosion, you could follow recommendations for rust removal online (soaking in vinegar for a few days and then scrubbing, etc.) but other than looks even a ton of corrosion does not affect functionality. All those folks who strip the rust and sand and then spray paint are just doing it for aesthetic reasons. Once you put on the keys it will be near-impossible to see anyways.
If this is too much please do sell or give your board to someone else as there are many folks willing to do this if it means they get to own and use a Model F!
And of course if you like these old boards I recommend considering one of the brand new Model F keyboards which don’t require restoration.