Had one in my field service kit never used it always made sense to get a new keyboard.
Mechanical keyboards are a "thing".
Lots of folks actually build their own keyboards from scratch, buying the best PCB, plate, switches, stabilizers, LEDs, keycaps, case, cord, etc. Some actually 3D print their own cases. Others desolder each individual key switch, disassemble them, lubricate the sliders and and swap the little springs inside, "film" each switch, and then resolder them back in place. There are hundreds of different kinds of key switches available, all with different characteristics - weighting, click/nonclick, tactile, silent, etc.
The keyboards themselves are in hundreds of different shapes and sizes: full size, TKL, 75%, 65%, 40%, split, ergonomic, ortholinear, etc. Key layouts include normal QWERTY, Dvorak, Colmak, and many local language layouts, including Icelandic.
The goal is to obtain a keyboard that is not only beautiful and unique, but more importantly, feels and sounds great when typing on it.
There are thousands of keycap sets available in every imaginable color scheme. Also, the keycaps are made in dozens of different "profiles" (shapes, sizes, heights), such as Cherry profile, OEM profile, SA profile, MT3 profile, DSA profile, KAT profile, SS2 profile, XDA profile, etc.
Keycaps are made of ABS, PBT, or POM, and unlike the legends on cheap keycaps, the legends are dye-sublimated or double-shot molded (in which each keycap is actually made in two pieces - an outer cap and a different color inner cap that pokes up through the outer cap to form the legend, which can never fade or wear off).
Keycap sets are often purchased in "group buys", where people order in advance and then wait for months or even years to receive their keycaps, which can cost several hundred dollars for a single set.
So lots of folks have keyboards that end up costing more than $500, and it's not uncommon for collectors to have a wall of custom keyboards that they have bought or made themselves.
PS. Just for laughs, here's a picture of my keyboard collection. They are all prebuilt boards, but with custom keycaps on them. So yeah, as I said in my original post, I have accumulated a drawer full of keycap pullers!
Also, just for cool value is a picture of an Ergodox ergonomic keyboard with cute custom "Scrabble" keycaps on it. And a small ortho layout "vomit" board with random keycaps. And a very elegant walnut split ortho board with blank keycaps.
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