Newly Aquired Mark-8

[Moonferret]

Hi Folks!

I was recently lucky enough to snag a Mark-8 on Ebay. It appears to have been built using home etched boards rather than the set that was offered at the time for $50. I was initially unsure if it might have been a recent build but components have date codes no later than 1977 and after a close inspection of the boards, it's obvious that there is real age to them. It came with some cables that would have been used to hook up to peripherals of some kind but I have no idea what they might have been. At least I know the machine must have worked well enough at the time

It's going to require a little work to get it running again. My plan is to build a small base for it to sit on, containing a modern switch mode PSU but I'm unsure if I should relocate the small PCB containing the switches to the base or if I should leave them where they are (ie try to keep everything as original as possible) Open to any ideas or recommendations on how to restore / build this up.

Here's some photos of the boards..




Cheers,
Dave

 

[daver2]

Nice.

And there is space to expand the RAM as well!

Dave

 

[Moonferret]

I know! It's tempting to populate it but I have no idea how I could possibly ever use a full 1024 bytes!!

 

[snuci]

Awesome. I am a "keep it original" type of person but in this case, if a faceplate could be added without adversely affecting it, I would do everything possible to try to reproduce the front faceplate with the two rows of switches and relocate the switches there. This can give you a bit of an enclosure at the same time.

Good luck!

 

[Moonferret]

When I built my Mark-8 replica a couple of years ago, I bought an extra chassis. I might use this and assemble it in a similar way...



I love the vintage look of these boards but the way they are mis-aligned is triggering my OCD a little

 

[SLCAK02]

When I built my Mark-8 replica a couple of years ago, I bought an extra chassis. I might use this and assemble it in a similar way...

View attachment 1246056

I love the vintage look of these boards but the way they are mis-aligned is triggering my OCD a little

Would you be interested in selling the replica?

 

[mountainking]

Hi Folks!

I was recently lucky enough to snag a Mark-8 on Ebay. It appears to have been built using home etched boards rather than the set that was offered at the time for $50. I was initially unsure if it might have been a recent build but components have date codes no later than 1977 and after a close inspection of the boards, it's obvious that there is real age to them. It came with some cables that would have been used to hook up to peripherals of some kind but I have no idea what they might have been. At least I know the machine must have worked well enough at the time

It's going to require a little work to get it running again. My plan is to build a small base for it to sit on, containing a modern switch mode PSU but I'm unsure if I should relocate the small PCB containing the switches to the base or if I should leave them where they are (ie try to keep everything as original as possible) Open to any ideas or recommendations on how to restore / build this up.

Here's some photos of the boards..

View attachment 1246042 View attachment 1246043 View attachment 1246044 View attachment 1246045
View attachment 1246046 View attachment 1246047 View attachment 1246048

Cheers,
Dave

Congratulations on such a fantastic acquisition 👏🏻

 

[mountainking]

Ha! Just noticed how old this thread is, well, congratulations anyway!

Congratulations on such a fantastic acquisition 👏🏻

 

[Martynv]

Wow they look very original. How have the copper tracks not tarnished after all this time though

 

[Moonferret]

Wow they look very original. How have the copper tracks not tarnished after all this time though

Overall, the boards are in excellent condition but there are a few tracks that have tarnished a little as have the legs on the LEDs. I'm guessing the LED legs are tin plated as they have turned black. Judging by how clean the boards were, I'm guessing the machine didn't see a lot of use so probably has spent nearly all its life boxed up, protected.