How to Lube Mechanical Keyboard Switches: The Cheap Upgrade

I've got 30+ sets of switches in plastic tackle boxes under my desk, and maybe a third of them felt terrible out of the box. The fix wasn't buying better switches. It was a $12 brush, a $10 jar of Krytox 205g0, and an afternoon I initially resented spending.

Here's the thing nobody tells you: lubing is the single biggest performance-per-dollar upgrade in this hobby. It turns a scratchy $40 board into something that feels like it costs three times as much. And you don't need to be a builder with a soldering station to do it. You need a switch opener, a small brush, and about two hours.

Lubing your mechanical keyboard switches is the cheapest way to transform your typing experience, because it fixes the scratchiness and ping that budget boards ship with, and it's a one-time afternoon of work that pays off every single day you type.

Pros

• Massively reduces switch scratchiness, especially on budget boards like the RK61
• Kills the high-pitched spring ping that cheap switches make
• Costs about $25 total for enough lube to do 10+ boards
• Makes pre-lubed switches like the Leobog Reapers sound even deeper and creamier

Cons

• Takes 2 to 4 hours for a full 75% board with 84 switches
• Easy to overlube, which makes switches feel mushy and slow
• Hot-swap sockets are basically required, unless you enjoy desoldering

What You Actually Need

I'm going to assume you have a hot-swappable board. If you don't, stop reading and go buy one. Soldered switches mean you're desoldering 84 joints, and that's a different article for a different kind of masochist.

Here's the shopping list:

• Krytox 205g0 (about $10 to $12 for a 5g jar, which does 100+ switches easily)
• A brush set (I use a fine-tip artist brush, about $6)
• A switch opener (the metal tweezer-style ones are about $8; the plastic 3-in-1 ones work too)
• A small container to hold the loose springs
• Paper towels for the inevitable mess

Total: about $25. That's less than the price difference between the AULA F75 Pro and the Logitech MX Mechanical, and it upgrades every board you'll ever own.

The Method, Step by Step

Step 1: Pull the Switches

Pop off the keycaps first. Then use a switch puller to yank the switches out of the board. If your switches are tight, wiggle them side to side, don't just pull straight up. I've bent more than a few pins learning that lesson.

Step 2: Open the Switches

The switch opener goes on the top and bottom clips. Squeeze, and the top housing pops off. The stem stays in the bottom housing, and the spring is loose inside. Set the springs aside in your container. Don't lose them. I have a bag of orphaned springs from switches I opened before I learned to use a container.

Step 3: Lube the Stems

This is the part that matters. You're lubing the sides of the stem, not the top. The stem is the cross-shaped piece that the keycap sits on. The sides are what slide against the housing, and that's where the scratchiness comes from.

Dip your brush in the lube, wipe most of it off on the edge of the jar, and paint a thin, even layer on each side of the stem. You want it to look like a light frost, not a thick coat of butter. If you can see globs, you've used too much.

Step 4: Lube the Springs

This is optional but worth it. Spring ping is that high-pitched "sproing" sound you hear on cheaper boards, and it comes from the spring resonating when you release a key. Dip the ends of the spring in the lube, just the bottom coil or two. That dampens the ping without making the switch feel sluggish.

Step 5: Lube the Bottom Housing Rail

The bottom housing has two little rails where the stem slides. A tiny dab of lube on each rail makes the upstroke smoother. This is the difference between a switch that feels "fine" and one that feels "expensive."

Step 6: Reassemble

Put the spring back in the bottom housing, drop the stem in, close the top housing, and press until the clips click. Test the switch with your finger before you put it back in the board. Press it slowly. It should feel smooth, with no scratchy spots and no grittiness. If it feels mushy or slow to return, you overlubed. Wipe it down and start over. It's a 30-second fix.

What Lube Actually Does to Different Switches

I've lubed everything from Gateron Reds to the Leobog Reapers that come in the AULA F75 Pro. Here's what I've found.

Linear switches benefit the most. That's because they have no tactile bump to hide the scratchiness. A lubed linear goes from feeling like sandpaper to feeling like, well, butter. The Reapers are already pre-lubed from the factory, and they're "smooth to type on, has no scratchy noises" out of the box. But a fresh coat of 205g0 on top of the factory lube makes them sound deeper, more thocky, less clacky. It's a marginal gain on a board that's already good, but it's real.

Tactile switches are trickier. You have to be careful not to lube the tactile bump itself, or you'll kill the bump and turn a tactile switch into a mediocre linear. Lube the sides of the stem and the rails, but skip the little legs that create the bump. I've ruined a set of Boba U4Ts this way. The bump went from a satisfying thock to a vague mush. I had to clean them all and start over.

Clicky switches are a different story. I generally don't recommend lubing them. The click comes from a separate mechanism, and lube can mute it or make it inconsistent. If you have clicky switches and they're scratchy, your problem is the switches themselves, not the lack of lube. Buy better switches.

Compared To: The Alternatives

Buying pre-lubed switches. The Leobog Reapers in the AULA F75 Pro are a great example. They're smooth out of the box, no lube required. But you're paying for that convenience, and you're locked into whatever the factory decided was good. A $25 lube kit lets you tune any switch to your preference, and it works on boards you already own.

Buying a more expensive keyboard. The Logitech MX Mechanical is $150 to $200, and it's still clacky. One reviewer said it "sounded a bit too clacky for my liking." You can't lube the Logitech because the switches are soldered, not hot-swap. So you're stuck with that sound profile forever. Meanwhile, a $60 AULA F75 Pro plus $25 of lube gets you a board that sounds better than the Logitech and feels just as good.

Buying new switches. A set of 90 Gateron Oil Kings runs about $45. That's the same price as a lube kit plus a cheap set of budget switches. But lubing what you have is cheaper than replacing it, and it teaches you how switches work. That knowledge pays off every time you buy a new board.

The Sound Signature Test

After I lube a board, I do the eyes-closed switch test. I press each key slowly, then fast, and listen. Here's what I'm listening for:

• Scratchiness: A gritty, sandpaper-like sound on the press. Should be gone after lubing.
• Ping: A high-pitched ringing after release. Should be gone after lubing the springs.
• Clack: A sharp, high-pitched bottom-out. Lube doesn't change this much; that's the plate and case. But it does get slightly deeper.
• Thock: A deep, resonant bottom-out. This is what you want. Lubing gets you closer to this.

The AULA F75 Pro, already decent out of the box, becomes genuinely thocky after a lube job. The Logitech MX Mechanical, which I can't lube because it's soldered, stays clacky forever. That's the difference between a board you can tune and a board you're stuck with.

Should You Buy a Lube Kit?

If you have a hot-swappable board and you've ever thought "this keyboard feels scratchy" or "this keyboard sounds cheap," yes. It's $25, it takes an afternoon, and it's the difference between a board you tolerate and a board you look forward to typing on.

If you have a soldered board like the Logitech MX Mechanical, skip it. You can't get the switches out without a desoldering pump, and at that point you're spending more time and money than the board is worth. Save your money for a hot-swappable board instead.

If you're happy with your board's sound and feel, don't fix what isn't broken. Lubing is a solution to a problem, not a mandatory ritual. Some of my switches are still unlubed because they sound great as-is. The RK61 I started with, though? That thing needed lube like Waffles needs a walk after dinner. It went from a scratchy, pingy mess to something I actually enjoyed typing on.

Update, March 2026: I've been running the lubed AULA F75 Pro as my daily driver for three weeks now. The lube hasn't worn off, the switches still feel smooth, and the battery still runs on wizard energy. I'm testing the Logitech MX Mechanical side by side, and the contrast is stark. One board I can tune, the other I'm stuck with. I know which one I reach for.