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Things to watch for at sales and recycle centers

D

DumbQuestionDuJour

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Jun 7, 2012
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So it has become fairly evident that I live in an area where few people realize that vintage computers have value. If you lived in that sort of an area, what sort of things are keys that something has value?
 
I don't think you can really just say "because it has this" it has value in a general way. It seems to be knowledge coming from browsing the internet and doing lots of googling on the devices you spot.. well thats how i've come across my luck.

When I travel through the shops that collect e-waste i usually give them a description on a piece of paper. The easiest thing I tell them most of the time is that the older and more archaic it looks the better it usually is.
NOW I DO KNOW this is incorrect in saying this but I've had some good finds keeping it simple with people.


If you head to E-waste pickup centers that are unmanned or if you can get away with trades/picking up stuff.
I think if you can find things like the Turbo Button on the front of a desktop that would indicate its age... or the CRT built into the unit seems to be a key thing to look for as well.


I live in an area where its pretty obvious how little people know about computers. ( kijiji actually had a PIII for $200 on it, selling P4s for $300 sometimes too) Yea.... Not many people know much about computers here.
 
If you ask 200 people what has value you will get 200 answers (mostly for what they collect).

In general if you find any system that looks very clean and is complete and running somebody will want it. The trouble is finding a buyer close to you because shipping can be a deal breaker.

Generally if you have collected for a while and something comes in you never seen before, you might want to snag it.

I generally worry about my collecting more then finding something of "value".
 
It just all depends on what collector you ask. As in the forum subtopics, there are people who collect and specialize in certain computers and know exactly what they're looking for. At E-Waste events and yard sales, you'll have the occasional spotting of something that you've never seen before. But it's all up to you in using your judgement to decide wheather it looks neat and fits into your collection or wheather it is of little or no value.
 
Thanks. I don't have room to collect, unfortunately, and with two teenagers in the house, there are other financial priorities as well. Just wondering whether there are any items that are indicators that something is worth picking up -- e.g. 8" floppy drive, or 5 1/4" drive with the lift-top door as opposed to the lever, etc., or any particular generally-unknown brand names (all assuming that the stuff works, of course). I guess I'll just have to go with my gut, though. :)
 
Really depends and again it's all in the eye of the beholder. The problem is the time it takes to turn the stuff around and sell it. Are you just looking (and nothing against it, if it's at a recycler it's doom and gloom anyway right?) to flip vintage computers for profit? I'm sorta guessing that's your idea. Again, yeah some folks will flame it but hey, you're finding it at it's final grave site and getting it to a better home at whatever going rate there is.

One indicator is age of the device (always exceptions but consider pre-1988 is of general interest, the earlier the more interest) or visual uniqueness. Another may just be what you can afford to save and what you can afford to store for X time. If you can't save all the huge pieces that ya want (like you see all of us chatting away about the auction for 70 Commodore Pets). They're awesome systems but they're worth maybe $100ish depending on shape and functionality. Not too many of us have a few thousand to spare or the space/equipment to go take 70 of these full computers. If I saw one at the recycler I'd probably save it and know it's easy to get sold but shipping sucks so I'd be prepared to store it for a bit.

The more competent you are at fixing the machines and showing them work the easier a sale will be also. That's a huge tip for a successful vs unsuccessful auction/sale/etc. If you're confident enough that you think it will work (or if you're willing to fix it or list the problem it shows if not) you'll do well with lots of pictures.

Best of luck! It's quite a tough question and yes the gut feeling is what you'll need to follow. Some are winners, some aren't. Search for completed auctions on an item (by itself otherwise you might get thrown for a loop because it had some additional rare hardware or software with it that raised the value) and you can see what you think is worth your time. Certain models of common systems are also more rare than others. Take a Ti99/4a for example which is worth a case of beer generally. If you happen to find the more elusive ti99/4 (without the a and with a different keyboard) it's worth a lot more even though it's an older system and technically worse than the 99/4a. It's all about how many sold and how many are still out there with those.
 
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