Kailh BOX

Kailh BOX

Manufacturer	Kailh
Introduced	Early 2017
Sense method	Metal contact
Rated lifetime	80 M (2017)
Keycap mount	Cherry MX mount
Switch mount	Plate mount, PCB mount (Kailh Box Crystal)

Kailh BOX is a series of switches produced by Kaihua starting in 2017. Another name for this switch series is the Kailh CPG151101F series.

The first iteration of the series had stems that could damage keycaps. A revised version 2 was introduced in fall of 2018. A Kailh Silent Box switch was introduced in 2020, with (presumably) mostly incompatible parts

Description

Designed by Kaihua, the switches were first produced in 2017. Externally they are mostly compatible with Cherry MX switches, but internally they have a slightly different build than them and their clones.

Design

The metal contacts are encased in a box, which is wherefrom the switch got its name. The box is there to prevent dirt and dust from interfering with switch operation.<ref name="kailh-video" /> According to Kaihua, these switches are IP56 waterproof/dustproof resistant. The switches come in linear, tactile, and clicky versions.

The main springs are smaller than those of Cherry MX, and are thus not interchangeable.

Tactile BOX switches use the same method of generating tactility as Cherry MX switches, with a bump on the slider.

Clicky BOX switches use a click bar — a small metal bar that is pulled back slightly, and then is slammed against the housing after the slider clears the bar, generating a tactile bump and a clicky noise. This results in a sharper click than click-jacket-based clicky switches, like Cherry MX Blue.

Known issues

Mount-thickness

In June 2018, several reports popped up that the cruciform mount in the BOX switch was too thick. This had reportedly lead to many keycaps' stems cracking, or that keycaps got their mounts stretched too widely to be able to fit other types of switches. <ref name="ghboxcrack">Geekhack—Kailh BOX Switches Crack and Stress Keycap Stems. Posted 2018-06-24</ref> After this, several vendors removed BOX switches from their inventories.

In July, NovelKeys (a vendor of BOX switches), posted an explanation and Kaihua's plan for going forward.<ref name="novelkeysreddit">Reddit—BOX Switch Updates from NovelKeys. Posted by novelkeys.xyz, 2018-07-30. Retrieved 2019-02-04.</ref> Apparently, the BOX switch had been thicker because Kaihhua's first (and then only) customer (supposedly Dareu <ref name="keychatterdebacle">KeyChatter—Unpacking The Kailh Box Switch Debacle. by Seth Coilander. Dated. 2018-08-16. Retrieved 2019-02-04</ref>) had asked Kaihua to widen the stem from 1.30±0.02mm to 1.32±0.02mm so that their own keycaps would fit more tightly. There have been reports of the actual dimensions of the stem having varied.

As response to the issues, Kaihua revised the switch to the narrower specification of 1.30±0.02mm. Switches with the new specifications were being sold in August 2018, with different varieties being updated later during the fall of 2018.<ref name="NovelKeys20180820">NovelKeys blog—August 20, 2018 Updates. Dated 2018-08-20. Retrieved 2019-02-04</ref>.

However, there have been reports that the revised "V2" switch stem would still have nubs on the stem that could still cause keycaps to crack.<ref name="DTStillCracking">Deskthority forum—BOX switches STILL cracking keycaps!. Posted 2018-10-03.</ref>

Interest checks have been posted for third-party tools for modding V1 switches to be safe: Stemshaver and Cruciformer.

Tactile switches clicking

Tactile BOX switches that are not supposed to click tend to start doing a clicking sound after some time of use. This can supposedly by alleviated by relubricating the notch on the stem responsible for the tactile feel. <ref name="ghroyalsclicky">Geekhack—BOX Royals quickly becoming clicky - major flaw?. Posted 2018-07-17</ref>

Twisted stem

Some switches have been reported to have the stem rotated a small amount: enough that keys look uneven, but not enough to impede operation. <ref name="reddittwisted">Reddit r/mechanicalkeyboards—[help] Twisted Kailh Box Jade stems. Posted 2019-12-06</ref>

Mismatch between click and actuation

On switches using a click bar, the position of the click does not match actuation in the key stroke. This is a problem inherent in all switches with click bars, and more-or-less with all switch types where the click-mechanism is not part of the actuation-mechanism. Only because of the Kailh Box switches popularity is this an issue that is more associated with it.

Click bar switches also emit a click on the up-stroke.

Variants

	Picture	Name	Key feel	Actuation Force	Bottom Out Force
		BOX Red	Linear	50g	60g <ref name="stock-box" />
		BOX Black	Linear	60g	70g
		BOX Dark Yellow	Linear	70g	80g
		BOX Brown	Tactile	50g	60g
		BOX Burnt Orange	Tactile	60g	80g
		BOX Royal	Tactile	40g	70g
		BOX White	Clicky	50g	60g
		BOX Pale Blue	Clicky	60g	80g
		BOX Jade	Clicky	50g	60g
		BOX Navy	Clicky	60g	90g
		BOX Crystal 62g	Tactile	67±10gf
		BOX Crystal 67g	Tactile	72±10gf

Collaboration with NovelKeys

Six other versions of the BOX switch were created in collaboration with NovelKeys.

Three of them are the same as the stock BOX switches, but with heavier springs, and a different colored slider to differentiate them from the lighter variants. These are BOX Dark Yellow (extra heavy linear), BOX Burnt Orange (heavy tactile) and BOX Pale Blue (heavy clicky). <ref name="novelkeys-heavy" />

Two others are those of the clicky design, but with a thicker click bar. The thicker click bar increases the tactility by a lot, and makes the switches louder. These variants are BOX Jade (lighter spring, thick click bar) and BOX Navy (heavier spring, thick click bar). <ref name="novelkeys-thick" />

The last variant is using the tactile design, but with stiffer contacts. This change increases the tactility quite a bit. This variant is the BOX Royal switch. <ref name="novelkeys-royal" />

Box Crystal

The Box Crystal is different from other Box switches in that it has a transparent bottom with fixing pins. The switch is tactile. It has also been available in two weights: "62gf" and "67gf" with the same-looking slider from Drop<ref name="dropcrystal"/>, KPRepublic and sellers on Aliexpress. The slider is translucent white like MX Clear.

See also

• Kailh Silent Box — a sound-damped variation of this family

References

<references> <ref name="kailh-video">Kailh BOX Switch Announcement Video — New Kailh BOX Switch mechanical gaming keyboard Switch - YouTube. Video uploaded 2017-05-09, retrieved 2018-11-13</ref> <ref name="novelkeys-heavy">Kailh BOX Heavy switches - NovelKeys x Kailh BOX Heavy Switches - NovelKeys, LLC. Retreived 2018-11-13</ref> <ref name="novelkeys-thick">Kailh BOX thick click switches- NovelKeys x Kailh BOX Thick Clicks - NovelKeys, LLC. Retreived 2018-11-13</ref> <ref name="novelkeys-royal">Kailh BOX Royal switches- NovelKeys BOX Royal Switches- NovelKeys, LLC. Retreived 2018-11-13</ref> <ref name="stock-box">Kailh BOX switches- Kailh BOX Switches- NovelKeys, LLC. Retreived 2018-11-13</ref> <ref name="dropcrystal">Drop—Kailh Crystal Tactile Custom Box Switches. Retrieved 2020-04-08</ref> </references>