Twitch Keycaps: what really wears out keys

A keycap almost never breaks. It degrades in other ways: the surface becomes smooth and shiny where your fingers rest, then the legend fades until it disappears. On the keys you hit most in-game — arrows, numbers, space bar — this shows after a few months of heavy use. The Twitch set relies on two choices that each delay one of these processes.

Shine comes from the material

Shine is produced by the plastic itself. ABS, softer and cheaper, gets polished by finger friction and takes on that greasy look typical of old keyboards. The PBT used here is denser, with a slightly grainy surface that handles friction much better. It doesn't make the key last forever, but it clearly pushes back the moment shine becomes visible.

Fading comes from the process

This is the second failure point, and the most common one. A legend applied to the surface, by pad printing or screen printing, wears away at the pace of the finger touching it. DYE-SUB printing works differently: the dye is diffused into the plastic by heat, so it's part of the key rather than a layer applied on top. Erasing the design would mean sanding down the keycap.

The set itself

Twitch brings a sewer-rat palette: poison green, dark mauve, hints of rust, with the crossbow and toxic vials spread across the twelve keys. The whole design is busier than average, which also helps hide the marks of a heavily used keyboard.

• Set: 12 keys.
• Material: PBT.
• Printing: DYE-SUB.
• Profile: OEM.
• Mounting: MX cross stem, compatible with Cherry MX, Gateron, Kailh and Outemu.
• Included: keycap puller.

In the same dark register, the Kha'Zix keycaps play on insectoid purple and black. The Nocturne keycaps go one step further into darkness, and the Graves keycaps offer an earthier alternative if acid green puts you off.

Two practical questions

Should you rotate your most-used keys from time to time? The practice exists to spread wear, but it mainly makes sense with surface-printed legends. With dye-sub PBT, the benefit becomes marginal.

How do you clean heavily used keys? Remove them with the included puller, wash them in warm soapy water and let them dry completely before reinstalling. No solvent is needed.