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Looking for an IBM 5170 PC AT System

NF6X

NF6X

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 9, 2013
Messages
1,534
Location
Riverside, CA, USA
I've recently developed an interest in adding an original IBM PC AT system to my collection. Considering what a PC hater I've always been, that came as a surprise to me! But I have a specific taste for a model 5170 with a model 5154 EGA display and the original Model F type PC AT keyboard. I've been watching eBay recently, and I have not managed to hemorrhage enough cash to win a suitable system so far. I did just gamble on buying one of the plastic rear trim panels off eBay, because for some reason those appear to be missing from most of the systems I've ever seen, so I may have a use for the panel if I manage to acquire a matching computer. I've mostly been focusing on complete systems so far, rather than trying to piece one together.

I hope I'll find a cheaper deal than the prices I've seen on eBay recently for early IBM PC series machines. I'd also consider a straight trade, especially if somebody in southern California might like to meet for a trade rather than shipping heavy, fragile stuff around. Maybe somebody would like to trade for my working TRS-80 Model 12? Or maybe for my recently-acquired IBM System/23 Datamaster? How about a few untitled CUCV truck carcasses, or a non-running M35A2C? :)
 
NF6X said:
I hope I'll find a cheaper deal than the prices I've seen on eBay recently for early IBM PC series machines. I'd also consider a straight trade, especially if somebody in southern California might like to meet for a trade rather than shipping heavy, fragile stuff around. Maybe somebody would like to trade for my working TRS-80 Model 12? Or maybe for my recently-acquired IBM System/23 Datamaster? How about a few untitled CUCV truck carcasses, or a non-running M35A2C? :)
Click to expand...

Just out of curiosity did you pickup that Datamaster out in Riverside?
 
Shadow Lord said:
Just out of curiosity did you pickup that Datamaster out in Riverside?
Click to expand...

Yes, it's the one that Steve posted about on CCtalk. It's a neat machine, and I hope that I'll be able to find some supporting software and documentation. I'd also consider swapping it for something else, though, since it's outside the main focus of the stuff that I collect. I won't sell it outright, since it would be jerkful to get it for free and then turn right around and sell it for infinite profit! But I think a straight trade for something else would be ethical.

If it stays with me long enough and I find suitable technical documentation for it, I might feel compelled to design some arbitrary plug-in expansion board for it. I wonder if there's any way to talk to hardware in it that's not already supported by its ROM? In my poking and prodding, I haven't found any equivalent to peek() and poke() commands in its BASIC yet. I don't know if it provides a way to load binary programs from disk, or just BASIC.
 
NF6X said:
Yes, it's the one that Steve posted about on CCtalk. It's a neat machine, and I hope that I'll be able to find some supporting software and documentation. I'd also consider swapping it for something else, though, since it's outside the main focus of the stuff that I collect. I won't sell it outright, since it would be jerkful to get it for free and then turn right around and sell it for infinite profit! But I think a straight trade for something else would be ethical.If it stays with me long enough and I find suitable technical documentation for it, I might feel compelled to design some arbitrary plug-in expansion board for it. I wonder if there's any way to talk to hardware in it that's not already supported by its ROM? In my poking and prodding, I haven't found any equivalent to peek()

and poke() commands in its BASIC yet. I don't know if it provides a way to load binary programs from disk, or just BASIC.
Click to expand...

Different machine then the one I was thinking of. There were tw0 5322s that showed up on ebay a few weeks back, both by one seller in riverside. One was messed up and I was hoping to work out a cheap price for it for parts for my machine. But he sold both. If you got yours for free then it is not the same machine. Is yours working? (i.e. does it boot to the ready prompt)?

To answer your question yes you can loadprograms off of the disks. The only language supported AFAIK is BASIC. Access is a bit convoluted - at least for someone like me who is used to DOS based systems and such. For example I can not find anyway to "format a disk" but disks seem to be accessible. Did you get any manuals with yours? Also did yours by any chance come with the lower back cover?
 
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Oh, I missed seeing those ones in Riverside, then. I did not get any disks or documentation with mine. I think it is missing the lower back cover… I haven't seen what the cover looks like, but it looks like it has provisions for a cover to snap in place over the connections on the rear. Mine does boot up and I can type in a BASIC program and run it. I think I've experimentally figured out some of the basic (pun intended) commands for accessing disk files, but I only have unformatted disks to experiment with. If it's like the 5110 that I found documentation for on Bitsavers, then maybe I could format disks if I had the CSF utility floppy for it?

I have another thread where I'm asking for any disks, documentation, disk images, etc. for my machine.

I gather that you have a Datamaster. Do you have any readable disks for yours? If so, do you have any way to image one of them, such as with ImageDisk, a KryoFlux, etc? If I could get or make an image of one with something like my KryoFlux, then I may be able to create formatted Datamaster disks in a round-about way even if a CSF disk doesn't turn up.
 
Lets take this off the forums since we are way off topic now... :D Send me a PM if you get a chance.

BTW: here is a picture of the back side. Mine is also missing the bottom part. I am guessing they broke off easily or people took them off for easier access.

5322 Back Side.jpg
 
I'll PM you, but I wanted to say here that the back cover looks about how I expected. The placement of the central cable clamp and a notch in the case bottom suggested to me that cables would probably exit at the left side (when viewed from the read). It's nice to see confirmation of that.

Don't feel bad about wandering off topic… I thread-jack my own threads all the time! :)
 
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