Editing Pad printing (section)

==Description==
Pad printing has been the most popular form of applying legends to [[keycap]]s since the 1990s. Pad printing uses a rubber pad to transfer ink from a printing plate to the keycap. This method has the advantage of being cheap and flexible (the process can be adapted easily to print any character in any colour required) but the ink is prone to wear. Manufacturers will often coat the ink with a thick transparent coating, but this does not prevent legend wear.

<gallery widths=250 heights=187>
File:Zenith Supersport SX -- pad-printed colours.jpg | The secondary colours on these double-shot keycaps are pad-printed, as evidenced by the shine of the clear coating (date unknown; 1989 or later)
File:RCS KB-6368 -- pad printing detail.jpg          | Pad printing is a common choice for secondary colours, and for the full multi-colour legends on Chinese keyboards (thick ink example from 1995)
File:Pad printing -- worn legends.jpg                | Heavy wear on this generic membrane keyboard has led to significant loss of the selective-coated legends
File:Pad printing -- worn legends detail.jpg         | Keycap wear detail
</gallery>