Re: Franklin Ace 100 keyboard repair?

["Liam Busey" <buseyl@yahoo.com>]

Bruce Tomlin wrote:

> I found an Ace 100 for under five bucks yesterday (with six cards
> including an AE 80-column and an AE Z80), and it seems to be in good
> shape except for one thing.  Half the keys on the keyboard don't work.
> They key positions on the circuit board work fine when I short them with
> a wire, so it's just the keys themselves.  The plastic foil has a lot of
> little blackened circles on it on it, and the foam under the foil isn't
> springy any more.
>
> Does anyone have suggestions on how to repair it?  I have a roll of
> metal foil tape that I got from Wal-Mart to use for EPROM window covers,
> so I can probably cut replacement circles from that, maybe using a AAA
> battery for a guide.  As for the foam, some of that real thin 1mm
> closed-cell foam that new electronics are wrapped with might work.

Nice find! That's a historically significant machine.

With regard to the keyboard, it sounds like one of the capacitive
sensing variety that's always causing Processor Technology Sol fans
grief. It seems to be more of an age than a wear problem. Here's a link
to repair article.

www.sol20.org/keyboard.html

I have a new old stock Franklin Ace 1000 keyboard I got off of Ebay a
year or two ago that I'd be willing to trade. From the few pictures
I've seen of the FA 100 they appear identical. Unfortunately I now
suspect the foam isn't in much better condition.

Liam Busey