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Ebay rant

Ioncannon

Experienced Member
Joined
Jan 17, 2010
Messages
74
This ebay account annoys me when I am searching for vintage computers. Recently I have been looking for a 5150, and this guy has like 8 5150s for $300+, and most are in incomplete condition!

Example (5160):
http://cgi.ebay.ca/Vintage-IBM-5160...100?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_2&hash=item3cb364ee94

No floppy/hdd drive, no cards, and doesn't come with monitor or keyboard. And there are like 8 of them! And it isn't just IBM's either!

I have watched the ebay space for quite a while and I don't think a single one was ever sold. Anyway just fuming.
 
I am near Toronto (funny the guy who sells these over priced IBMs lives here too).
 
I am near Toronto (funny the guy who sells these over priced IBMs lives here too).
It ain't me, but although you didn't grab the one I offered earlier I think I do have another one; just have to find the time to check it out. Figure about $150 working and complete with kbd & monitor (and shipping included of course ;-) )

I should also have an XT somewhere.

If Glitch has a deal for you I *might* be able to spare a monitor and avoid the risk of his getting damaged.
 
Already have a monitor (5151) and found a 5152 in Value Village of all places. Just need a 5150 and a Model M keyboard.
 
Already have a monitor (5151) and found a 5152 in Value Village of all places. Just need a 5150 and a Model M keyboard.

Just be warned that not all Model M keyboards provide support for the 5150 and 5160.

Besides this, it seems like the seller in the auction don't know much about these things. He calls that card a "monochrome graphic card", while it's in fact a true-blue IBM EGA card.
 
The prices that seller is wanting, certainly seem high.

I like the ads though - I can always get a good laugh out of most of them.

The one the OP linked to says:

Enjoy Watching the Big Pictures taken from us


I wonder who took the pictures from them, and how they got them back.
 
Just be warned that not all Model M keyboards provide support for the 5150 and 5160.

Besides this, it seems like the seller in the auction don't know much about these things. He calls that card a "monochrome graphic card", while it's in fact a true-blue IBM EGA card.

Oh thanks for the info, well obviously I mean the Model M that came with the 5150.

The prices that seller is wanting, certainly seem high.

I like the ads though - I can always get a good laugh out of most of them.

The one the OP linked to says:

Enjoy Watching the Big Pictures taken from us


I wonder who took the pictures from them, and how they got them back.

XD didn't notice that, it's hilarious.
 
I think you mean the Model F keyboard. That's the PC/XT keyboard that originally came with the system. 83 keys, I believe.

Kyle
 
Oh thanks for the info, well obviously I mean the Model M that came with the 5150.

They did sell some "LED-less" Model M's with the later 5160, but not with the 5150. As of I know, most Model M's made before the early/mid 90's should work, but I can only back this up with a Model M from 1991 (which worked). The 5150 and most XT's use the infamous 83-key keyboard. It looks much like the Model F (84-key) keyboard for the AT, but it's not exactly the same.

Random detail: The overpriced XT in the link from the first post has a rev.0 motherboard, which means that it was made between 1983 and the spring of 1984. Problably closer to 1984 as the serial number sticker differs from the first line (or lines; unconfirmed) of produced units.
 
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I had a friend who had one of the LED-less Model Ms on a 5160. I had a couple of occasions to use the 83-key keyboards. They had a very good feel, but the layout was a little bit awkward. The Model F was an improvement, and the Model M was a really big improvement. There's a reason that the keyboard changed three times from 1981 to 1987, and since then, hasn't changed at all except for the addition of the Windows keys.

My memory of the original PC and XT keyboard is a little bit faded, since I haven't used one in 20 years. I know the enter key was too small and too far to the right. Maybe the shift keys were too small. I'm overly picky about keyboards so that may have bothered me more than it bothered others.

Seems to me the earlier, pre-M keybaords had a slightly heavier feel. I would have liked to have had that, plus the Model M layout. But I learned to type on manual typewriters, so that colors my preference.
 
Is the 83-key keyboard not the same as the Model F? I thought it was. I could be wrong though.

Kyle
 
Is the 83-key keyboard not the same as the Model F? I thought it was. I could be wrong though.

Kyle

As of my understanding, the Model F was the 84-key keyboard shipped with the early AT's. As commented earlier, it had LEDs, some improvements like resized enter/shift buttons and some rearrangement of other keys when compared to the previous PC/XT "83-key" keyboard. And, yea, it had one additional key.

You can see pictures here:
83-key PC/XT keyboard
Model F keyboad
Model M keyboard
 
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