(US) eBay: IBM Model M (silver label)

[1391406]

It appears to be in really good condition. Bids start at $100:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/RARE-IBM-model-M-silver-label-1386718-Early-production-19851986-/181146416180

[fohat.digs]

Good news for our South American friends.

Price would be high for a comparable 1390120 here, but they are probably hard to find in Chile.

[Krogenar]

Silver labels are my favorite Model M. I would get this if I didn't have one already.

[Mandolin]

Its my sell and as somebody said, it's in pristine condition, it's almost impossible to find around here. In fact that's the first one I've seen live. I've not had the chance to see the industrial model yet but I keep going after them

[The_Ed]

My NIB 1390120 was $58.40 shipped, but of course all NIB model M's seem to be riddled with broken rivets... (And a broken in half barrel frame in my case...) But after repairing it, it and it's NIB 131 brother are my favorite clicky tactile boards (**** blues).

That is a nice find you have there, but a starting bid of $100? Really? It's not even NIB...

[Riddixk51PB]

i wouldn't bid 50 cents on it, never liked that sort of enter key.

[The_Ed]

i wouldn't bid 50 cents on it, never liked that sort of enter key.

Then you would be a dumbass. You can rearrange the layout back to ANSI when you bolt-mod it.

[1391406]

About the only enter key I've had a real issue with is the one for the Model F XT.

[dorkvader]

My NIB 1390120 was $58.40 shipped, but of course all NIB model M's seem to be riddled with broken rivets... (And a broken in half barrel frame in my case...) But after repairing it, it and it's NIB 131 brother are my favorite clicky tactile boards (**** blues).

That is a nice find you have there, but a starting bid of $100? Really? It's not even NIB...

My 1390120 wasn't NIB, but it only had three broken rivets. Maybe their riveting machine was better in the early production days, or maybe mine is just very lightly used
http://i.imm.io/11OCn.jpeg

The_Ed is right: modifying an M from ANSI to ISO (or vice-versa) is very easy once one has done a bolt mod.

[The_Ed]

My NIB 1390120 was $58.40 shipped, but of course all NIB model M's seem to be riddled with broken rivets... (And a broken in half barrel frame in my case...) But after repairing it, it and it's NIB 131 brother are my favorite clicky tactile boards (**** blues).

That is a nice find you have there, but a starting bid of $100? Really? It's not even NIB...

My 1390120 wasn't NIB, but it only had three broken rivets. Maybe their riveting machine was better in the early production days, or maybe mine is just very lightly used
http://i.imm.io/11OCn.jpeg

The_Ed is right: modifying an M from ANSI to ISO (or vice-versa) is very easy once one has done a bolt mod.

Mine is 02SEP86 though... I imagine why the NIB ones are more likely to have broken rivets is because people played floor hockey with them in all the warehouses of all the failed businesses they went through first, and then USPS drops them another few times before kicking them to our doors.

[fohat.digs]

You never can tell.

I bought a 1986 1390131 about 2 years ago and ALL of the rivets were intact. I could hardly believe my eyes.

I think it may have to do with the pressure setting - if the rivets were simply melted over without being in tension they might last longer.

In other words, if the press that crunched the plates together was set looser, then rivets had less tendency to break.

[The_Ed]

You never can tell.

I bought a 1986 1390131 about 2 years ago and ALL of the rivets were intact. I could hardly believe my eyes.

I think it may have to do with the pressure setting - if the rivets were simply melted over without being in tension they might last longer.

In other words, if the press that crunched the plates together was set looser, then rivets had less tendency to break.

In other words: Either the rivets are tight and break, or they are loose and intact. But you need to bolt-mod it either way to get crisp actuation from a tight fit.

[Mandolin]

In this case I checked it and it got maybe 3 rivets off and one poped out when I touched it, the rest are super sturdy, but I've gotten later models that simply got almost every rivet off. Maybe early construction is more solid, at least in my experience, but in any case any serious user might want to do the bolt mod to get it impecable for posterity.

Also in this silver label kbds the clicky sound is different, the ones who have tested might recognize it. It kind of reverberates less, each actuation gives a more solid clack, don't know how to express it neutrally.

[dorkvader]

Also in this silver label kbds the clicky sound is different, the ones who have tested might recognize it. It kind of reverberates less, each actuation gives a more solid clack, don't know how to express it neutrally.

The really old model M's have a different and much thicker plate. Even before I bolt modded it, my 1390120 sounded different than my unicomp. My non-bolt modded M has about 12 rivets that are intact (ever 30 broken) so I don't think it's a fair comparison.

Post bolt-mod, the thick plate IBM sounds excellent and feels nice, though the actuation point is now almost at the bottom of the keystroke. I suspect this is partly due to the new (much thinner) unicomp mat I installed.

Anyway, I don't know what such a well-kept and interesting M is worth, but there's no denying that this is an excellent keyboard.

[fohat.digs]

Post bolt-mod, the thick plate IBM sounds excellent and feels nice, though the actuation point is now almost at the bottom of the keystroke. I suspect this is partly due to the new (much thinner) unicomp mat I installed.

The back plate was thinned-down about 1987-88 and then again about 1992. Maybe one more time, I once had a late-1990s that seemed incredibly thin.

Vader - I have a new Unicomp mat (white) that I have been meaning to put into my "pride and joy" Model M (a 1986 1390131 with all the upgrades) because some people (mkawa and others, iirc) described it as "springier" and more crisp.

But, lowering the actuation point would be a disappointment for me, I would rather raise it, if anything. Could you elaborate?

Also, do you tighten your bolts hard? I leave mine pretty loose, I would say, to keep the feel livelier.

[dorkvader]

Post bolt-mod, the thick plate IBM sounds excellent and feels nice, though the actuation point is now almost at the bottom of the keystroke. I suspect this is partly due to the new (much thinner) unicomp mat I installed.

The back plate was thinned-down about 1987-88 and then again about 1992. Maybe one more time, I once had a late-1990s that seemed incredibly thin.

Vader - I have a new Unicomp mat (white) that I have been meaning to put into my "pride and joy" Model M (a 1986 1390131 with all the upgrades) because some people (mkawa and others, iirc) described it as "springier" and more crisp.

But, lowering the actuation point would be a disappointment for me, I would rather raise it, if anything. Could you elaborate?

Also, do you tighten your bolts hard? I leave mine pretty loose, I would say, to keep the feel livelier.

Sure! Right after I finished it, I noticed the actuation point was lower for almost all keys (right ctrl not included). I still don't know why this happened. There is a small crack in the barrel plate in the numberpad area, but it isn't affecting anything (luckily it's not near switches)

That said It's not as far off from my other BS keyboards. I just tried a few model F's I have sitting around, and I notice they actuate pretty low, too.

My bolts are pretty tight, I may decide to loosen them soon.

Despite the actuation point feeling rather low, I don't bottom out often. If anything, it's less frequent. I much prefer the feel with the new mat.