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Tano Dragon 64

I've done some asking around, and it appears that there are at least 2 possible alternatives to an original Dragon disk controller, adapting the CoCo disk controller or buying a modern clone.
The latter is available from lafuentemateos at gmail dot com and he gave me a very reasonable quote. The former involves a a ROM adaptor and an EPROM containing a special version of SuperDOS. I have not tried either solution yet.
 
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barythrin said:
There are some services that will forward you the auction and you provide their address for shipping. I can't remember the names right this minute but I think they're used mostly by international buyers in similar predicaments.
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JetCarrier and similar companies, yes I know about those. If I had been *extremely* interested in a Dragon 64, I would have gone that route. I'm only at the curiosity level, so when it is too expensive or involves too many "hoops", I just move on to another project.
 
barythrin said:
<head explodes>
Is that the virtual drive for the CoCo? (Wondering if that's the local dude in TX, considering the Spanish pun)
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My impression has been that it is a clone of the disk controller. He is in Spain,I believe. I know his price was in Euros.
 
vwestlife said:
I'm willing to sell my Tano Dragon, if anyone is interested. I bought it "new" in the original box last year and only ever used it once, to make a video about it. PM me if you're interested.
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I left you a private message about purchasing the Tano Dragon
 
Interested in a Tano Dragon 64 computer

Interested in a Tano Dragon 64 computer

Lucas Art said:
All, Paul R is no longer working on this. We do however still have a few Tano Dragon units available (same specs as original post by Paul R). Send me a message if you are interested. View attachment 11811
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Does the Tano Dragon 64 have a real ACIA driven RS-232 port? I've been wanting one for a while now. I have all three Cocos and would like to complete my Color Computer Collection. How compatible is the expansion slot to the Coco? I'm on the Coco List at coco@maltedmedia.com. If you're not registered you can get registered at the following link.
http://five.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/coco
Just ask for Kip Koon or computerdoc. I check it everyday. You can also email me directly at
c o m p u t e r d o c at s c dot r r dot c o m
If you still have any, please contact me. Thanks.
Kip
 
I can't find my Dragon Power Supply. Can anyone point me to a source for a replacement US 100v 60hz Power Supply for my TANO Dragon?

Also, can anyone take a good digital photo or a scan of the label on the top of the TANO dragon and give me the measurements so I can make a new one? My Dragon doesn't have a label.
 
The Tano Dragon's power supply provides 8 volts AC at 1.5 amps and 28 volts AC at 0.25 amps, with a grounded center tap. It uses a female DE9 connector, which you can easily get by chopping off the end of an Atari joystick or Sega Genesis controller cable. Here is the pinout:

http://dragon32.info/info/psu.html
 
That's not helpful:

A. Because it's information I already knew.

B. I'm not an Electrical Engineer who can design and build an analog power supply.

I was looking for a source of already made power supplies where I could order one as I just ordered a Dragon Video cable, or last year ordered an Atari 800 Power Supply.
 
Al Hartman said:
That's not helpful:

A. Because it's information I already knew.

B. I'm not an Electrical Engineer who can design and build an analog power supply.
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Sort of rude to vwestlife, wasn't that?
He had a valid answer to your search, and you didn't spell out that you wanted an original in the first place...
 
It wasn't a valid answer at all, for just the reasons I posted. It as if I said I needed an engine for my car, and someone posted a manual that showed how engines worked rather than directions to a shop that sold engines and could sell me a working one.

Always assume that when someone asks for a power supply, they are asking for a completed power supply that is ready to go. If I had wanted a schematic to build one, I would have asked for that instead. Make any sense?

And, that page comes up when you do a Google search for "Dragon 64 Power Supply", so I had already seen it and dismissed it as unworkable as a solution to my problem.

You post on a forum like this hoping that someone knows of an obscure source of replacement Dragon Power supplies that easy things like Google searches, and E-mails to California Digital does not turn up a solution to. I in fact searched high and low for an American supplier for the transformer called for in that schematic and couldn't find it. For the cost to order it from overseas, with shipping, and taxes (not including buying the rest of the parts) -- I could buy a whole new Dragon from California Digital.
 
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Al Hartman said:
It wasn't a valid answer at all, for just the reasons I posted. It as if I said I needed an engine for my car, and someone posted a manual that showed how engines worked rather than directions to a shop that sold engines and could sell me a working one.
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You might as well be asking for an engine for a 1936 Duesenberg Model J, because the part you're looking for is just as impossible to find. In which case, given exact specifications on how to build one yourself but lacking the skill to do so, you have two solutions: either hire someone to build one for you, or give up on the whole thing and find something else to occupy your time with.
 
The Dragon computers have one of the most obscure Power supplies ever, from voltage and plug they are very unique, so if you ain't much of a soldering fan then the only solution is to try getting something off ebay, craigslist, local classified listings or other vintage computer market places. You'll prolly have to buy a complete Dragon 64 as the power supply itself is unlikely to ever surface for such a rare system.
 
With mine I found it easier to just lift the 3 DC lines between the internal regulator board and the computer board, and feed in another power supply.
I used a PC power supply which is a bit hideous, but you only need to source three common voltages.

One example -
Pop this in a cute plastic box http://www.ebay.com/itm/30W-5V-12V-...-30B-unique-/181470881197?hash=item2a4081e5ad
Screw on mains cable
Disconnect the wires in the Dragon which supply power (as per webpage diagram)
Run 4 DC wires inside machine, and push them down in to the crimp connector (no solder required).

Added benefit is bypassing the 25-30 year old internal regulator board.
 
SpidersWeb said:
With mine I found it easier to just lift the 3 DC lines between the internal regulator board and the computer board, and feed in another power supply.
I used a PC power supply which is a bit hideous, but you only need to source three common voltages.

One example -
Pop this in a cute plastic box http://www.ebay.com/itm/30W-5V-12V-...-30B-unique-/181470881197?hash=item2a4081e5ad
Screw on mains cable
Disconnect the wires in the Dragon which supply power (as per webpage diagram)
Run 4 DC wires inside machine, and push them down in to the crimp connector (no solder required).

Added benefit is bypassing the 25-30 year old internal regulator board.
Click to expand...

Funny, I had this very thought a couple of hours before reading this. This may be what I end up doing. Discussed it with a friend. We'd probably cut the traces on the regulator board going back to the regulators to make sure we don't blow them out, and if I ever find the supply, or a replacement, it's a simple job to repair them.
 
I decided I'm not going to hack a one-of-a-kind prototype.

So, I ordered a Dragon from California Digital. I'll use the Power supply and leave the rest of the unit alone. If and when I find my power supply, I'll just resell the new one and get as much of my money back out of it as I can. It's the best I can do right now.
 
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