Editing Topre Realforce (section)

==Design details==

===General construction===
The Realforce keyboard design has remained largely unchanged since it was first introduced, and in fact some elements of the Realforce keyboard remain almost the same as Topre keyboards made as far back as 1987. The case is made of [[ABS]] plastic and, in the tenkeyless and full size models, is held shut without the assistance of screws. The Realforce numpads do have screws along the top edge holding the enclosure shut. 

There are two height-adjustable feet on top edge of the keyboard, and rubber feet on the front edge. On some models, there are four rubber feet arranged in such a way so that if the height-adjustable feet are deployed, two feet will still be in contact with the desk surface. The main internal components consist of the PCB, metal mounting plate (sometimes painted), [[Topre switches]], and connector cable (with [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferrite_bead ferrite bead] inside the case). The cable is fixed internally via a removal 4-pin connector, generally in the top-right corner with the ground wire attached to the mounting plate. 

Internal routing channels run the cable to the centre of the keyboard where it can then be routed externally to the left or right of the keyboard as desired. On some models (mostly tenkeyless variants) there are [[DIP switch|DIP switches]] for controlling various functions which can include switching the left Ctrl and Caps Lock keys, enabling/disabling an embedded numeric keypad, enabling/disabling the Windows key and enabling/disabling the Firmware update mode. Some full sized models also have DIP switches which can only be accessed by opening the case. LED indicators for Num Lock, Caps Lock and Scroll Lock are present in the top-right corner of full sized keyboards, and on the keycaps themselves on many of the tenkeyless models.

===Keycaps===
Realforce keycaps are made of [[PBT]] plastic; however, the longer spacebar which is present on ANSI keyboards is made of ABS plastic which has drawn some criticism from the community, to the point of creating demand for a [https://www.massdrop.com/buy/topre-pbt-spacebar replacement PBT spacebar]. According to Topre, ABS plastic was used for the spacebar because of difficulty in estimating shrink rates on PBT plastic resulting in warped spacebars. PBT plastic is generally more resistant to visible wear and retains its finish longer than ABS plastic. This is a problem for the spacebar on ANSI keyboards, which can develop a shiny patch where the finger or thumb hits the key. The use of ABS for the spacebar was especially noticeable on coloured keycap sets released by Topre in 2011 because of the difficulty in closely matching the colour of ABS and PBT plastic which, in general, is difficult to notice on a black or white set of keycaps.

Topre use two printing methods for the legends on their Realforce keycaps. The first, and more popular method, is [[Keycap_printing#Dye_sublimation|dye-sublimation]] and the second is [[Keycap_printing#Laser_etching|laser etching]]. They have also released some models with [[blank key|blank]] ("otaku" style) keycaps.  Dye-sublimation is used on both their black and white keycaps. Topre’s black keycaps are not completely black which means that the black ink from the dye-sublimation process can still be seen, although it can be difficult to see in low-light conditions and people who have trouble [[Touch typing|touch typing]] should be aware of this. Laser etching is only used on their black keyboards. The gold colour is achieved as a direct result of the laser etching process and a coating is applied over the top to protect the etched legends. Topre’s laser etching is not as durable as their dye-sublimation and perhaps for that reason, it is not as popular; even on their black keyboards. One of Topre’s OEM keyboards was even released with replacement laser etching keycaps for high-frequency used keys<ref name="realforce_6" />. 

Although subtle, Topre use two font sizes for their printed legends. The smaller size was used on some of their older keyboards and keyboards that have two language character sets (e.g. English + Hiragana or English + Hangul). The easiest way to tell is to observe the distance between the top of the keycap and the top of the printed legend. The larger font will be much closer to the top edge of the keycap than the small font.

Keycaps can be removed easily with most standard [[Keycap puller|keycap pullers]] with perhaps the only exception being some plastic ring-pull varieties which can be difficult to attach to the keycap. Some Realforce keyboards come with a Topre keycap puller which is not particularly ideal for larger cap removal and should be used with caution as it has been known to slip off and scratch the keycap during removal attempts. Home row indicators on the ‘F’ and ‘J’ keys are the [[Home_dots#Homing_bars|homing bar]] design.

===Key weight===
Key weight refers to the amount of force required to actuate a key and register a key press on the keyboard. The Realforce keyboard was the first Topre-made keyboard to feature “variable weight” switches. What this means is that keys that are supposed to be pressed with the pinkie/ring fingers, such as ‘1’, ‘Q’, ‘A’ and ‘Z’ on the left and ‘9’, ‘O’, ‘L’, ‘.’ on the right, require less force to actuate than the keys in-between. This is advertised as being a more ergonomic design intended to allow longer typing sessions without fatigue. 

There is some debate{{citation needed}} about whether or not Topre’s diagram representing the variable force weight distribution is correct. Community measurements have indicated that modern variable force Realforce keyboards actually have three distinct weight levels{{citation needed}} of 45 grams, 40 grams and 35 grams (excluding the ‘Esc’ and, on full size keyboards, 'Num Lock' keys which are weighted at 55 grams). It has been noted that earlier Realforce keyboards such as the 86U have only two distinct force levels and that the lightest weight on the 86U is actually 30 grams, not 35 grams. The original Realforce 106 also had 45 grams and 30 grams weighting as mentioned in Hyakkei PC (パソコン百景) monthly Vol.27, dated February, 2003<ref name="realforce_2" />. It’s possible that Topre’s suggested weight distribution diagram was simply not updated when they updated the Realforce keyboards to have three weight levels.
Realforce keyboards with uniformly weighted keys are also made in 30 grams, 45 grams and 55 grams configurations. Uniformly weighted configurations are perhaps more popular with gamers because the popular ‘WASD’ cluster is not made up of differently weighted keys like it is on a variable keyboard.