Consumer Rights Wiki

Model F Labs

Revision as of 22:05, 1 June 2026 by Louis (talk | contribs) (restore sourced material scrubbed by a day-old single-purpose account (rev 55388/55390); re-embed warranty + wear scans removed under a pretextual "dmca" summary; forum/social reports kept but attributed and footnoted as unverified community reports; re-source dead journalism cites; drop promotional rewording)

Model F Labs LLC is an American company, operating online as modelfkeyboards.com, that sells reproductions of IBM Model F and beam-spring mechanical keyboards.[1][2] Its Terms and Conditions declare that all sales are final, require buyers to accept cosmetic defects as standard, and furnish the limited warranty only after delivery or by mail-in request rather than before the sale.[3] Several of those terms conflict with mandatory European Union consumer protections that apply to distance sales and that cannot be waived to a buyer's detriment.[4]

Model F Labs
Basic information
Founded
Legal Structure Private
Industry Technology
Also known as
Official website https://www.modelfkeyboards.com

The project was started by Joe Strandberg, known in keyboard communities as Ellipse,[5] to recreate the buckling-spring keyboards IBM produced in the early 1980s.[6][1]

Consumer-impact summary

  • The company's own Terms and Conditions state that all sales are final and require buyers to agree to accept cosmetic defects as standard, not as non-conforming.[3]
  • Warranty terms are not presented before purchase. They are furnished only on request before the sale, or with the product after delivery.[3]
  • The Terms and Conditions concede that finishes and surfaces wear down with use, sometimes exposing the bare metal underneath.[3]
  • The homepage shows an order deadline set to the end of the month and presented as urgency to buyers.[7]
  • For buyers in the EU, the no-returns policy and the absence of an upfront two-year guarantee conflict with the Consumer Rights Directive and the Sale of Goods Directive.[8][9]

Background

Model F Labs produces small batches of keyboards modeled on IBM's capacitive buckling-spring designs, including the 62-key F62, the 77-key F77, and larger F104 and F122 layouts, alongside beam-spring reproductions.[2] At launch the reproductions sold for about $325 before keycaps, with keycap sets around $35.[6] The classic F62 and F77 use zinc metal cases, with later and larger models built from aluminum, following the solid-metal construction of IBM's 4704 banking-terminal keyboards.[10]

The operation runs as a hybrid of an enthusiast group buy and a retail storefront. Earlier rounds were made to order with long production waits, while later rounds are sold from in-stock inventory.[2] Model F Labs has said that production will eventually end, with no firm date, and that products remain available until stock runs out.[7]

Controversies

Order-deadline urgency

The Model F Labs homepage displays an order deadline set to the end of the month, urging customers to have their orders in by that date. Presenting a month-end cutoff as urgency is a dark pattern that draws on FOMO.[7] The company has paired this with statements that production will eventually cease without a specific end date, while continuing to sell from existing stock.[7]


Finish wear and the company's response

 
Finish wear reported on a Model F Labs F62 case, which the buyer who posted the photo said appeared after roughly nine months of use. The image is a community forum report.[11]

Model F Labs' Terms and Conditions state that buyers agree to accept cosmetic defects, listing chips, scuffs, and lost or missing paint as allowed examples, and that keyboard finishes and surfaces will wear down over time with usage, "sometimes exposing the bare metal material".[3] The same terms state that such cosmetic defects are not considered "non-conforming".[3]

Rather than treating wear as a defect to be remedied, the Terms and Conditions tell buyers that each keyboard is powder-coated or anodized and direct them to buy their own touch-up paint, naming ordinary paint-store touch-up paint or Birchwood Casey Aluminum Touch Up to "improve any issues".[3]

On the Deskthority keyboard enthusiast forum, several users reported that the powder-coated finish on their F62 and F77 cases wore through within a few months of use, exposing the bare zinc underneath, a timeline they considered inconsistent with the company's promotion of the keyboards as long-lasting.[12][13][11] In the same threads, members said Strandberg defended the wear as normal and within the Terms and Conditions, and that he offered full case replacements in some instances, which the participants attributed to community pressure rather than a change in policy.[14][15][11]


Shipping damage

Forum users reported that keyboards arrived with shipping damage, which they attributed to the packaging. The keyboards ship in a tab-locking box with foam endcaps, with the keys left uninstalled so the barrels and springs are exposed, and with loose parts bagged on top of the springs.[16][11] Members said the company generally replaces parts damaged in transit on request, and that Strandberg acknowledged the problem and said more tape and padding would be added to future shipments; the posts noted that he did not say whether the bags resting on the springs would be secured.[17][11]


Group-buy conduct and forum disputes

Model F Labs presents itself as a small enthusiast group buy while its own homepage reports thousands of orders and millions of dollars in sales.[7] On Deskthority, some members argued that the operation functions as a retail business and criticized its refusal to share certain production details with contributors who had helped develop the designs.[18][11] Members also said Strandberg promoted Model F Labs products in community group-buy threads rather than the sub-forum set aside for keyboard manufacturers, and asked moderators to move the discussion; as of February 20, 2025 the posters said that had not happened.[19][11] Separately, members reacted critically to a proposal by Strandberg to buy the Deskthority forum with help from community funding, which some saw as a risk to independent criticism of the company on the platform.[20][11]


EU consumer-law shortfalls

 
Scan of a Model F Labs warranty flyer that ships with a keyboard. The company states in its Terms and Conditions that the warranty is otherwise available only by mail-in request or on arrival of the product, so a buyer does not see these terms before purchase.[3]

Model F Labs ships to customers in the European Union, which subjects those sales to EU distance-selling and consumer-guarantee rules. Several of the company's terms conflict with those rules. Forum members were the first to raise the EU-compliance question, before the legal analysis below.[21][11]

Returns and the right of withdrawal

For distance contracts, Directive 2011/83/EU gives consumers a right of withdrawal. Article 9(1) provides that, save where the Article 16 exceptions apply, "the consumer shall have a period of 14 days to withdraw from a distance or off-premises contract, without giving any reason."[8] The company's "all sales are final" term offers no such withdrawal window.[3]

The directive also requires that goods conform to what was agreed and to objective standards. Under Directive (EU) 2019/771, Article 7, a seller is not liable for a deviation from objective conformity only where the consumer was specifically informed of that deviation and "separately" and expressly accepted it when concluding the contract.[22] Model F Labs' acceptance of cosmetic defects is set out in the Terms and Conditions rather than as a separate, express acceptance at checkout.[3]

Article 16(c): made-to-order exemption

Directive 2011/83/EU, Article 16(c) lets Member States withhold the right of withdrawal for "the supply of goods made to the consumer's specifications or clearly personalised."[23] Whether that exemption reaches a reproduction keyboard chosen from a fixed set of catalog options, such as a predefined layout, case color, or keycap set, is a contested legal question. The European Commission's guidance on the directive treats the exemption as covering non-prefabricated goods made on the basis of an individual choice by the consumer, such as tailor-made curtains.[24] In Case C-529/19 (Möbel Kraft), the Court of Justice held that the exemption applies from the moment the contract is concluded, regardless of whether the trader has begun manufacturing, but the case concerned goods made to a customer's specifications.[25]

The two-year guarantee that cannot be waived

Separately from withdrawal, Directive (EU) 2019/771, Article 10(1) makes the seller liable for any lack of conformity that exists at delivery and becomes apparent within two years.[9] Article 21 ("Mandatory nature") provides that a contractual agreement which, to the consumer's detriment, excludes or varies the directive's protections before the consumer notifies the seller of a lack of conformity "shall not be binding on the consumer."[4] A blanket "all sales are final" term therefore cannot remove the two-year conformity liability for buyers in the EU.[3]

CE marking

A mechanical keyboard is electronic equipment, which brings it within EU harmonized product rules. The Electromagnetic Compatibility Directive 2014/30/EU applies to apparatus liable to cause or be affected by electromagnetic disturbance.[26] The Restriction of Hazardous Substances Directive 2011/65/EU restricts substances such as lead and mercury in electrical and electronic equipment, and CE marking is required to show compliance.[27]


See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "The IBM Model F keyboard returns from a 30-year hiatus". ExtremeTech. 2017-06-09. Archived from the original on 2025-05-26. Retrieved 2026-06-01.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "Brand New Model F and Beam Spring Keyboard Choices (store)". Model F Labs. Retrieved 2026-06-01.
  3. ↑ 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 "Terms and Conditions". Model F Labs. Retrieved 2026-06-01. Archived at megalodon.jp.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Directive (EU) 2019/771, Article 21 (Mandatory nature)". EUR-Lex. Retrieved 2026-06-01.
  5. ↑ "About the Project". Model F Labs. Retrieved 2026-06-01.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "Keyboard Enthusiast Sells Brand-New IBM Model F". PCMag. 2017-07-05. Retrieved 2026-06-01.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 "Model F Keyboards homepage". Model F Labs. Retrieved 2026-06-01. Archived at megalodon.jp.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 "Directive 2011/83/EU, Article 9 (Right of withdrawal)". EUR-Lex. Retrieved 2026-06-01.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 "Directive (EU) 2019/771, Article 10 (Liability of the seller)". EUR-Lex. Retrieved 2026-06-01.
  10. ↑ "Questions and Answers". Model F Labs. Retrieved 2026-06-01.
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 11.4 11.5 11.6 11.7 11.8 These accounts are drawn from user discussion on the Deskthority keyboard enthusiast forum and a related social-media post, archived for the record. They are first-hand community reports, not independent journalism, court records, or regulatory findings. The wiki's sourcing standard does not normally treat forum or social-media posts as reliable citations, so this material is included to document the consumer-side dispute and is attributed to the forum rather than asserted as established fact. The underlying claims have not been independently verified.
  12. ↑ "Forum reports of finish wear on Model F reproductions". Deskthority forum post. Archived from the original on 2025-07-08. Retrieved 2026-06-01.
  13. ↑ "Forum photo of finish wear on an F62". Deskthority forum post. Archived from the original on 2025-07-08. Retrieved 2026-06-01.
  14. ↑ "Forum discussion of the company response to wear reports". Deskthority forum post. Archived from the original on 2025-07-08. Retrieved 2026-06-01.
  15. ↑ "Forum discussion of case-replacement offers". Deskthority forum post. Archived from the original on 2025-07-08. Retrieved 2026-06-01.
  16. ↑ "Forum reports of shipping damage to Model F keyboards". Deskthority forum post. Archived from the original on 2025-07-08. Retrieved 2026-06-01.
  17. ↑ "Forum discussion of the company response to shipping damage". Deskthority forum post. Archived from the original on 2025-07-08. Retrieved 2026-06-01.
  18. ↑ "Forum discussion of the company group-buy status and production transparency". Deskthority forum post. Archived from the original on 2025-07-08. Retrieved 2026-06-01.
  19. ↑ "Forum discussion of product promotion in the group-buy sub-forum". Deskthority forum post. Archived from the original on 2025-07-08. Retrieved 2026-06-01.
  20. ↑ "Social-media post regarding a proposal to buy the Deskthority forum". Facebook (Model F Keyboards). Archived from the original on 2026-04-06. Retrieved 2026-06-01.
  21. ↑ "Forum discussion of EU consumer-law compliance". Deskthority forum post. Archived from the original on 2025-07-08. Retrieved 2026-06-01.
  22. ↑ "Directive (EU) 2019/771, Article 7 (Objective requirements for conformity)". EUR-Lex. Retrieved 2026-06-01.
  23. ↑ "Directive 2011/83/EU, Article 16 (Exceptions from the right of withdrawal)". EUR-Lex. Retrieved 2026-06-01.
  24. ↑ "Commission Notice: Guidance on the interpretation and application of Directive 2011/83/EU on consumer rights (2021/C 525/01)". European Commission / EUR-Lex. 2021-12-29. Retrieved 2026-06-01.
  25. ↑ "Judgment in Case C-529/19, Möbel Kraft GmbH & Co. KG v ML". EUR-Lex / Court of Justice of the European Union. Retrieved 2026-06-01.
  26. ↑ "Directive 2014/30/EU (Electromagnetic Compatibility)". EUR-Lex. Retrieved 2026-06-01.
  27. ↑ "Directive 2011/65/EU (Restriction of Hazardous Substances, RoHS)". EUR-Lex. Retrieved 2026-06-01.
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