IBM Model M Buckling Spring vs Unicomp New Model M
Nothing in the spec sheet decides between the IBM Model M Buckling Spring and the Unicomp New Model M, so this comparison comes down to voice and to what each one costs to fill a board. Our full switch library cross-links them because this matchup keeps coming up. Start with the A/B bursts below, then take the spec table and the picks in order.
Hear them back to back
simulated from real specssound loads on your first tapShortcuts: press A or B anywhere outside a text box to fire that burst. Use the volume trims to loudness-match the pair before judging which sounds better.
Spec by spec
| Spec | IBM Model M Buckling Spring | Unicomp New Model M |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Clicky | Clicky |
| Brand rates force at | actuation | actuation |
| Actuation force | 67 g | 65 g |
| Bottom-out force | not published | not published |
| Pre-travel | 2.3 mm | 2.3 mm |
| Total travel | 3.7 mm | 3.7 mm |
| Silent (dampened) | No | No |
| Factory lubed | No | No |
| MX-compatible stem | No | No |
| Price tier | Mid-range | Mid-range |
| Street price | varies | varies |
IBM and Unicomp both advertise an actuation force, so the two headline figures in this table are measured at the same point and can be read against each other.
Verdict
The IBM Model M Buckling Spring and the Unicomp New Model M are both clickies, so nothing separates them at the fingertip until you look at springs and acoustics. The IBM Model M Buckling Spring is the firmer of the two at actuation, 67 g to 65 g, though 2 g is not much to choose between. With the numbers this close, the honest tiebreak is the voice: loud full clack-click with steel-chassis ring on the IBM Model M Buckling Spring, the Model M voice in a slightly smaller case on the Unicomp New Model M. Where we land: the Unicomp New Model M for gaming, the IBM Model M Buckling Spring for typing and a shared office. Read that office call as relative: the IBM Model M Buckling Spring clicks too, just less insistently.
- Gaming pick
- Unicomp New Model M
- Typing pick
- IBM Model M Buckling Spring
- Office pick
- IBM Model M Buckling Spring
Force curves
IBM Model M Buckling Spring
IBM publishes no bottom-out force for this switch, so the dashed end of the curve is an estimate, not a spec. Everything up to actuation comes from the published numbers.
Unicomp New Model M
Unicomp publishes no bottom-out force for this switch, so the dashed end of the curve is an estimate, not a spec. Everything up to actuation comes from the published numbers.
IBM Model M Buckling Spring or Unicomp New Model M: the long answer
The table above already holds the answer. Here is what it means under a finger. The stroke is the same shape on both: both fire an audible click alongside the bump. That leaves the spec sheet to separate them. The IBM Model M Buckling Spring is nominally firmer at actuation, 67 g to 65 g, but 2 g is not a gap you buy a switch for. Distance is not the difference: both register at 2.3 mm and stop at 3.7 mm. None of these gaps is large. Stack them up and they still point somewhere, but gently.
Sound is where most people finally pick a side. Put them through the player above and the IBM Model M Buckling Spring lands as loud full clack-click with steel-chassis ring where the Unicomp New Model M lands as the Model M voice in a slightly smaller case. A click you love at your own desk can still be the loudest thing in someone else’s meeting. The usual caveat applies. Nothing here is a studio recording; both packs are synthesized from published specs, and the players say so.
On price and practicality, both are mid priced. Lube is on you with both of these, which is a real cost in time whichever one you order. Worth knowing before you order: neither of these uses an MX style stem, so neither will drop into a standard hot-swap board or accept ordinary MX keycaps, and they do not share a mount with each other either.
This one genuinely splits. The Unicomp New Model M for games, because this axis is nearly a tie, and it comes out ahead only once the scoring is added up. The IBM Model M Buckling Spring for writing, since the click is a metronome for a long draft, which some writers will not give up. The IBM Model M Buckling Spring for an office, as neither of these belongs in a quiet shared room, and this is only the less punishing of the two clicks. Before you order either, match the volume trims above and hear them back to back.
There is more on both than a head-to-head can carry. Start with the IBM Model M Buckling Spring page and the Unicomp New Model M page, or test how your current keyboard performs with our free keyboard tester.
Frequently asked questions
For gaming, should I buy the IBM Model M Buckling Spring or the Unicomp New Model M?
We pick the Unicomp New Model M for gaming. This is close to a coin toss. The scoring hands it over by a margin you would not feel in a match.
Which is quieter, the IBM Model M Buckling Spring or the Unicomp New Model M?
Neither, honestly. Both are clicky switches that announce every keystroke, so neither belongs in a quiet shared space. If noise is the deciding factor, a silent tactile is the better direction entirely.
Which switch is heavier, the IBM Model M Buckling Spring or the Unicomp New Model M?
The IBM Model M Buckling Spring. Both brands publish at actuation, which makes 67 g against 65 g an honest 2 g rather than two numbers from different rulers.
More comparisons
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