After playing with a C64 Maxi replica (mine has the VIC-20 colors) I can't think of using a vintage computer without a matching keyboard (and often mouse). The experience is not only the pixels on the screen and the sounds of the speaker, but the whole spatial relationship with the physical object.
It probably doesn't need to be an almost perfect replica like the 64 Maxi, but having the keys in the same places (even if there is no ESC key - looking at you, DEC LK-201). On my desk, my two daily drivers are a Sun Type 7c (Type 7 is in storage, waiting for its rotation) and an IBM/Lexmark/Unicomp PC-122 Model M, and I can say each of them provides a unique experience, tactile, spatial, and, on the Model M's case, auditory.
I'm thinking about learning how to build keyboards and make a couple DIY ones. Switches can't be the same, but, at least, physical layout, keycap shapes, labels, and colors can be matched.
It probably doesn't need to be an almost perfect replica like the 64 Maxi, but having the keys in the same places (even if there is no ESC key - looking at you, DEC LK-201). On my desk, my two daily drivers are a Sun Type 7c (Type 7 is in storage, waiting for its rotation) and an IBM/Lexmark/Unicomp PC-122 Model M, and I can say each of them provides a unique experience, tactile, spatial, and, on the Model M's case, auditory.
I'm thinking about learning how to build keyboards and make a couple DIY ones. Switches can't be the same, but, at least, physical layout, keycap shapes, labels, and colors can be matched.