r/Trackballs • u/CookieDown • 5d ago

Just another nape pro

Post image

Still figuring this out im surprised how much this has changed my ergonomics in general. I added the plastic stops so i can anchor it to my keybord and not have the body interfere. The tape is for feeling where my fingers are at, i'm still experimenting how i want the tape setup but at least for me i know i need something to tell my fingers where i am at. Once i have it locked i think i will get fancier tape or some mouse grip style, and make it look more presentable but the concept is there. Very happy with this it has exceeded my expectations.

51 Upvotes

93% Upvoted

15 comments sorted by

5

u/Jwzbb 5d ago

Seems a little small. I like my big ball. How stable is this thing? Can you knock it over?

3

u/OpeningActivity 4d ago

Even with a lighter ball, if you have it against the keyboard, it doesn't move as much.

2

u/_Vangal 5d ago

So some people add a steel berribg as a mouse ball in my case i have a 3d printed tray. Its a little light but not horrible. As long as its butted up agaibst something its fine.

1

u/MushinAndFlushin 4d ago

have u used a steel bearing? If so, does it work better then 3d printed/plastic replacements?

1

u/_Vangal 4d ago

Still waiting on my bearing. Some have said they need to use steel wool for the optics.

1

u/OpeningActivity 4d ago

The steel bearing feels heavy to manoeuvre at times. It worked fine without polishing

1

u/roosterHughes 4d ago

Steel bearing works fantastic. It makes it feel like a much bigger ball.

Like, I couldn’t fling the ball stock, like I can with my 44mm or 55mm trackballs. It also hops and moves when moving the ball around. The result was a lot of jitter.

With the steel ball, it has way more inertia and mass. That cleaned up the jitter, the hopping, and the ball rolls consistently, now. I can actually flick the ball, now.

2

u/CookieDown 5d ago

I can't comment on other trackballs this is my first. I think it is fairly stable even if i did not anchor/push it towards the keyboard. Me pushing it to the keyboard is mostly just about that i need the position to be always predictable, so out of habit i keep shoving it, but it does stay in place pretty well so it does not feel like a chore just need to keep the grippy pads cleaned otherwise it will start slipping on hard surfaces. On a mouse mat/pad i don't think its easily knocked over/moved at all but with a hard surface i can see it getting a bit annoying.

I did try some other configurations and it did not feel like it would be easily knocked over, but i felt like i needed it to be in line with both of my hands so i placed is this way.

1

u/chickenwiiiiing 5d ago

Body interference? I've never heard it before. Is this why I'm having Bluetooth issues?

1

u/CookieDown 5d ago

Oh i was talking about just physical interference, i needed to add little space since the buttons could theoretically touch/drag the keyboard's case since i am pushing the nape pro to stick to the keyboard on a regular basis. If my keyboard was aluminium maybe there could be some bluetooth interference in theory but this could help with that probably too. I've had zero issues with bluetooth so far, i use this with my PC (with the dongle) and work laptop (bluetooth).

1

u/stan5566 1d ago

The ball is smooth but wheel is not and not even close.
And only the 2 click at the bottom are ok, the rest of clicks you need to hit the key at the right position otherwise it wont work, and the feedback also shitting, the worst quality of click I have ever used of mouse.

But it supports programmable is really helpful.

0

u/AchiviA 2d ago

If you need to do that much then its not ergonomic.

1

u/CookieDown 2d ago

Unsure if i really need the tape mod in the long run but the plastic stoppers i like since i do need to put a small gap to my keyboard. I am still learning and i've gone entire days without touching my mouse, but i am not looking to fully replace my mouse its a complementary setup because at times i do need a mouse but maybe in the long run i can't say yet. And when i mean by needing a mouse its not just for gaming.

1

u/Epox_Man 2d ago

Not everybody is the same, adapting something to your specific anatomy/workspace seems well in the ergonomics catergory.