geekhack
geekhack Marketplace => Great Finds => Topic started by: REVENGE on Sat, 18 June 2011, 23:59:00
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http://cgi.ebay.com/IBM-Keyboard-Model-M-Small-Clicky-/250839821112
Single SSK
http://cgi.ebay.com/IBM-Keyboard-Model-M-Small-Clicky-2-/250840368143
Dual SSKs
http://cgi.ebay.com/Vintage-IBM-Type-M-Clicky-Space-Saver-Keyboard-/250841070768
Dual SSKs
All from the same seller.
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It's the apocalypse, I tell ya.
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It seems there are only 3 SSKs up for auction after looking at the ID number
The seller made it sounded like there are 5
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Let's hope the supply and demand theory works in our favor now :)
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It seems there are only 3 SSKs up for auction after looking at the ID number
The seller made it sounded like there are 5
It looks to me like there are a pair in 2 auctions and a single one. So yeah, 5 total.
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(DELETED)
EDIT: Screw this, it's not that I'm going to bid for it anyway
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I have some friends that have a couple that they haven't sold...
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5 spacesavers..... :O
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http://cgi.ebay.com/IBM-Space-Saver-Clicky-Keyboard-/250841868452
Another one from the same seller.
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A seller with only 11 feedback responses, and none in the past year. While there may be nothing wrong with him, there certainly is no degree of confidence. Especially in trying to sell two together in one lot, while splitting up the other. Just seems a bit strange. More importantly, as kaiserreich mentions, he's pictured the very same keyboard (same serial number) in two different auctions. Maybe he just screwed up with posting the wrong picture, but he may also be trying to scam people, and might never send the keyboards. Whenever there's something fishy like this with the listing, I'm super cautious. When the seller doesn't have any significant feedback, I will generally not bid at all. I'm not saying this seller is necessarily being purposely dishonest, but I'd be very surprised if these sell for anywhere near what the other SSKs have been selling for.
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What's sad about Ebay is you can never tell if the seller is scamming (a hijacked account for example) or just stupid.
No so sure I'd necessarily use the word 'stupid' to describe all of them. In this case it might be his first time listing items on eBay and he might have just screwed up due to lack of experience. Well, at least I'd like to think that's what's the case. For someone who's sold a lot and makes these kinds of mistakes, then I'd say either stupid or lazy.
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kaiserreich pointed out earlier that the auctions with two SSKs show the exact same keyboards in the pictures. Again, buyer beware. I've encountered legit sellers who list different items using one listing as the template without bothering to change pictures, but this guy does seem a little suspicious.
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He just added yet another one:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250842943479 (http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250842943479)
I think that makes 7 total SSKs from the one seller, assuming that the two listings with double SSKs was a photo error, and there are four different SSKs in those two listings.
Plus a different seller has one, making 8 total SSKs up on eBay at one time.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=150622204603 (http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=150622204603)
With so many to choose from, my guess is that not all of these will go for even close to the going rate. Sounds like a good opportunity to perhaps pick up a SSK cheap, if you feel comfortable bidding on this guy's listings.
Edit: Just looked at his listings of double SSKs and someone asked him about the duplicate serial numbers, and he replied:
Q: Hello. You show the same rear-label phograph for both of your auctions for two keyboards. Are there four keyboards with the same manufacture date?
A: Yes there are four of these keyboards with the same manufacture date. I apologize for the confusion.
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...from the newest listing
Just to let you know....I'm not a scammer. I'm not trying to cheat anyone. You can bid with confidence.
I always ship the items once they are paid for. I was stuck in Ohio the past year, unable to get to my computer and my lockup in GA.
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What does the last part even mean
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An interesting comment. I wonder if someone sent him some messages questioning his integrity, or perhaps he's a member here and reading this thread. If the seller is reading this, I certainly hope there's no bad feelings between him and other GH members. It's only natural I think for people to be suspicious when seeing situations like this.
Wonder how many more SSKs he's got.
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What does the last part even mean
Evidently he lives in Georgia (GA), and he had to go away to Ohio for a year, and couldn't get back home to his things. Now that he's back home, he wants to sell some of his SSKs for whatever reason.
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One more SSK just listed, from a third seller, making 9 now up for sale on eBay.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=180685635187 (http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=180685635187)
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[edit] I just posted a link to the same one Sam just mentioned, so in order reduce the confusion I have edited my post.
Wow, 9 SSK's at one time. Quite amazing.
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Interesting. One of bryan_twizzle's SSKs was actually manufactured on my birthday (just the day and month, not the year - I'm too old).
Hmmmm. Very tempting. I haven't quite made up my mind to have a go at it or not.
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Interesting. One of bryan_twizzle's SSKs was actually manufactured on my birthday (just the day and month, not the year - I'm too old).
Hmmmm. Very tempting. I haven't quite made up my mind to have a go at it or not.
Now would be the time, if ever.
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Dont you guys just hate ebay and the pictures they show? I just skipped on a new looking black M13 that was BIN for $119 because the picture quality was bad..
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The guy with the seven space saving keyboards indicated in a private message that he has some bills to pay, this is why the keyboards are all going at once.
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Hello and welcome. I have some pictures here showing proof that I have 7 keyboards in total. I'm fair and honest. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me through Ebay or here. Thanks again, Bryan.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]19465[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]19466[/ATTACH]
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Hey! Welcome.
May I ask how you got to own 7 of them?
Good luck with the sale.
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I'd like to buy one but tired of having to keep bidding or checking on bids and stuff. lol Anyone wants to sell me one just let me know via PM.
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"Ships to: United States ", Never bought anything from ebay but im guessing that it means it sucks to live in Sweden right now, doesn't it?
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Nice score Bryan! Someone must have updated a data center that had them in the racks. My DC at work has Compaq MX-11800's which are better than rubber domes but not as rare as IBM Mini's.
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Bryan if it's possible can you take some more pictures up close or tell us about any damage. It would probably help you get higher bids that way too
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Bryan,
Any reason why you're selling some individually and some in pairs?
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BTW, I have a SSK for sale in the classifieds and I'm from Europe ;)
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I wonder if Bryan keeps a least one for himself.
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Hey! Welcome.
May I ask how you got to own 7 of them?
Good luck with the sale.
Hey! Thank you so much! Sorry for the delayed reply. I was unable to get to the computer until now. My grandpa got into computers back in 1991 and used to go to auctions and get computers from schools and these had just been sitting on the shelf in a climate controlled storage unit for over ten years and right now he is bed ridden and can't really do anything and my grandma told me to clean it out and I'm using the money to pay on my car payments because I just recently lost my job and had been in Ohio for a year and moved back down here. the economy is really bad.
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Bryan, sorry to heard that. You should be able to get pretty good return on the SSKs. Good luck with your sales.
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Nice score Bryan! Someone must have updated a data center that had them in the racks. My DC at work has Compaq MX-11800's which are better than rubber domes but not as rare as IBM Mini's.
Thank you. Yeah I didn't know about these until I saw one on Ebay. I've seen people throw these away before. Makes you sick to your stomach you know?
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Does your grandpa have keyboards other than SSKs?
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I sure can. Give me just a few minutes. Again, sorry for the wait. I'm using a Nikon S550 camera. Not the best but at least you will be able to see the pictures better..
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Does your grandpa have keyboards other than SSKs?
He sure does. He has several kinds. I'm new in the keyboard world but it's very intriguing. What kind do you look for?
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Bryan,
Any reason why you're selling some individually and some in pairs?
After listing the first keyboard I had 4 others that had the same date and I figured that someone would like to have 2 together that had the same date. I'm not sure how rare it is or how common that date is. I may be stupid for doing so but I'm learning. I stepped into this kinda blind folded, Lol.
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Sounds like your grandpa has been collecting very old school keyboards. I think a lot of people on here would be interested in any vintage keboards. It would be great if you could take a few pictures of other keyboards and post them here.
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I wonder if Bryan keeps a least one for himself.
Sure does make me want to keep one for myself. I'm just unsure what date of keyboard I would like to keep. I still haven't gone all the way through my grandpas lockup so I will definitely check to see if I have anymore in the coming weeks.
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Sounds like your grandpa has been collecting very old school keyboards. I think a lot of people on here would be interested in any vintage keboards. It would be great if you could take a few pictures of other keyboards and post them here. I'm just showing one of them here and they are not the clicky type sadly.
I certainly could do that. I have 2 identical keyboards in front of me that look very old and are in excellent shape other than slight damage to the beginning of the cord that is closest to the keyboard itself. They are Telex Computer Products Inc. Looks like they are made in 1987.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]19541[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]19542[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]19543[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]19544[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]19545[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]19546[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]19547[/ATTACH]
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Bryan if it's possible can you take some more pictures up close or tell us about any damage. It would probably help you get higher bids that way too
I sure can. Here is a few pictures of the first keyboard that I put up for bid on Ebay. It has some etched writing on the back by the label and in another picture you can see some of the residue left from a piece of masking tape that must of been on the keyboard at one time. I'm going to clean that up before I ship it. It's very easy to take off.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]19548[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]19549[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]19550[/ATTACH]
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Thanks for the pictures. If u have time for the rest that would be great. Or at least a little more description on the condition.
First one went for decent price. At least these boards are much more reasonable then the brand new ones. I don't even think I would have the courage to type on those comptek ones...
Btw does anyone know if the 10% eBay coupons work on normal bid items? Got one not too long ago.
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Thanks for the keyboards, Bryan. Payment sent.
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I hope you'll be less bored when you get them!
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Me too.
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Same here. Can't wait to get my 2 boards
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Looking at the listing that closed at $333.33 (nice number!), there seems to be a buying agent bidding (with 4249 feedbacks). This person bidded at $250 and then $300. His 30-day bid history is all over the place in many different categories. I saw another bidder like this with 30K+ feedbacks) bidded for the dye sub Cherry keyboard, and lost. May be our Korean keyboard comrades?
ricercar and Tennobanzai, I would be interested in knowing the condition of the twin-pack keyboards. At around $170, that is pretty good deal if the condition is great.
Congrats!
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Thanks for the keyboards, Bryan. Payment sent.
You're very welcome. I'm sending them first thing Monday morning from here in Warner Robins, GA. How would you like them shipped? I always put insurance on them. My wife and I did our best to clean them and they turned out great. They're really nice to type on and work excellent! Let me know how they work for you. I appreciate the bidding.
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How would you like them shipped? I always put insurance on them.
UPS Ground is the only error free delivery service in my experience. So far.
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lol, ups.
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lol, ups
Somewhere in their micetype I read one time it said something along the lines of "all packages subject to at least 6 foot drops"
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I once sent an M13 to another member here USPS, and they managed to punch a hole in the case. Do you realize the amount of impact required to do that to a Model M keyboard!?! I think it would take a hammer and a screwdriver to do it.
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I sent this thinkpad (http://geekhack.org/showthread.php?9315-Thinkpad) to someone in the middle east and it arrived with the whole freaking corner busted off and the rest of it looked like it had been sledgehammered... and the box was fine.
The taliban prob found the porn on the laptop and after wacking off for a few days, used it to flog an infidel.
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is comptek2wk actually selling a spacesaver every 2weeks?
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I once sent an M13 to another member here USPS, and they managed to punch a hole in the case. Do you realize the amount of impact required to do that to a Model M keyboard!?! I think it would take a hammer and a screwdriver to do it.
OMG!!! Are you serious?? That's insane!!! I know I'm definitely shipping UPS with insurance.
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I've seen worse. Far, far worse. For example, one time I had ordered a bunch of IBM Model F terminal keyboards. These things are from '84 and '85, so they are brittle. When I got them? Cases annihilated. And they were packed decently. Internally they were fine because they're metal. But those cases are irreplaceable as Unicomp does not make them anymore. Same with an SSK case if yours were to get owned.
Oh, and if you are shipping with UPS/insured be prepared to pay $12 per hundred dollars at the UPS store.
That's wild! Actually they only charged me $1.25 per one hundred for insurance.
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Hm, thought it was $12.. perhaps they overcharged me. Will have to ring them on that.
Sure thing. When you said $12, I was like, "Whoah!"
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Thanks, got the packing slip email!
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Thanks, got the packing slip email!
Your very welcome!!
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I think as long as you pay for insurance or at least tracking they'll at least to halfass get it there intact, no matter the carrier. If you send something untracked and uninsured I fully expect it to either never make it or not make it in one piece.
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Here is an example of how clean the keyboards are that I sell.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]19869[/ATTACH]
Other than the dust you can see in the photo, lol.
I like to take all the keys off and clean underneath and clean each key individually.
I found a few more keyboards and I have one person interested in one of them.
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It seems to me that the IBM Space Saver Keyboard is presently losing it's value due to so many people having them right now.
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Yes, it looks like the market for SSKs is saturated at the moment. The two of yours that just ended sold for $80.33 and $86 for used boards in working condition. I think that's a new low in recent history of eBay auctions. Then there were two problem SSKs sold by a different seller earlier in the day, selling for $66 and $82.62. Also record lows for recent auctions of problem SSK on eBay. Then a third seller had one on eBay which sold today for $163.50, plus another from the same seller a used SSK in the original box which went for $200, both of which were the exceptions to the extreme downward trend. Both of those were originally purchased from Clickykeyboards, as referenced by the serial numbers. The one without the box had the very low serial number, 2000010, which I'm guessing means it's the 10th production SSK made of that particular model.
Then there's a NIB SSK ending in less than 24 hours, which will naturally go for significantly more.
Seems there's a real glut of SSKs for sale these days, meaning probably most who have been looking for an SSK have had a chance to get one by now, unless their budget is extremely limited. So I'd expect prices to remain depressed until the supply dries up a bit and some new buyers enter the market.
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Very good analysis, Sam.
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Also worth noting that there were six SSK auctions all ending on the same day. I think that's a new record. Plus two other SSKs auctions ending soon. Fairly recently we had another period where there were I think eight SSKs up for auction, the same as today, but I think this is by far the biggest concentration of them ending on a single day. Combined with it being summer in the northern hemisphere, and many people are away on vacation, it was a real buyer's market.
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It seems to me that the IBM Space Saver Keyboard is presently losing it's value due to so many people having them right now.
Why are you selling multiple ones at the same time, and why set the starting price at under $100?
It seems you are shooting yourself in the foot...
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I disagree with starting the auction at $100. I think that would have generated even less interest, and they might possibly not have even sold at all. If they ended up selling for under $100, then obviously nobody, except possibly the winning bidder, was willing to pay even $100. So if they were listed for $100, they would have either sold for exactly that amount, or not sold at all. In my opinion, history shows again and again that starting an auction too high has a negative effect on generating interest. That said though, there wasn't a whole lot of interest in these period. I think it was up until the last hour that one of them still only had about $1 bid on it.
Prior to these, the lowest prices on eBay auctions for used SSKs this month were $131, $121, and $107.50. So there was already a definite downward trend, being $200-$250 was the going rate just a few months ago.
As for putting two up for sale at the same time, I agree that normally isn't the best tactic if you want to get a higher price. But there were two other sellers who did the very same thing. Out of the six SSKs sold today, there were three sellers with two each.
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I disagree with starting the auction at $100. I think that would have generated even less interest, and they might possibly not have even sold at all. If they ended up selling for under $100, then obviously nobody, except possibly the winning bidder, was willing to pay even $100. So if they were listed for $100, they would have either sold for exactly that amount, or not sold at all.
Well, if you look at it differently, selling at $100 would be better for the seller than $80, and even if they did not sell at all, it might actually be a lot better for the seller (if he waits a bit and sells them during a time the prices go up again).
Bryan has sold several of these at double these prices. I guess it all has to do with whether the seller is interested in a fast sale, or has the luxury to wait things out for a few weeks/months.
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If he's got any more I'd suggest doing the one every two weeks or so thing.
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Is that why the latest NIB IBM Mini sold for $300? (http://geekhack.org/showthread.php?19925-NIB-Space-saver-that-isn-t-from-comptekw2k/page2)
Those used ones were pretty funky if I remember correctly. Missing keys and stuff.
NIB and used are two different animals. I was referring to used SSKs with my comments. NIB are still quite rare, though the one that just sold went for less than they typically do.
There weren't any missing keys on any of the recent SSKs that sold on eBay that I saw. The two from Bryan had all the keys, and they all worked. The two problem ones from sliznike also had all the keys. But one of them had a non-functioning left control key, while the other had a problem with the keys on the left side generating multiple key codes. There were several SSKs back around the end of last year I think which had lots of missing keys, but I don't recall off-hand seeing any since then.
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Why are you selling multiple ones at the same time, and why set the starting price at under $100?
It seems you are shooting yourself in the foot...
Yeah that's true. I had promised my wife that I would take her up to Ohio to see her dad for her birthday and I still can't get her up there because of my car payment.
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Yeah that's true. I had promised my wife that I would take her up to Ohio to see her dad for her birthday and I still can't get her up there because of my car payment.
I think you should try selling a few keyboards here, in the geekhack classifieds section, so you can name your price and avoid surprises.
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I think you should try selling a few keyboards here, in the geekhack classifieds section, so you can name your price and avoid surprises.
That would be a good idea and I use a keyboard testing program called Keyboard Test by a company named Pass Mark to test each keyboard. I also have plenty of new springs and lots of keys.
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Seems to me getting over $50 for a nonfunctional keyboard isn't bad.
Well, even if you bought two nonfunctional keyboards for $60 each, and they each had different problems, you ought to be able to easily combine working parts from the two and make a working SSK for $120, plus have a bunch of spare parts for the future. $120 would have been a good deal up until very recently.
The problem might be something very simple, such as resetting a keycap/spring, a loose connector, etc, in which case you got a pretty good deal. It might require a bolt-mod, in which case you end up doing a bit of work, but still got a good deal. Of course if you know nothing about keyboards and how to repair them, then you ought to stay away from purchasing such keyboards.
I personally don't really see that selling a nonfunctional SSK for over $50 "isn't bad" unless the keyboard has multiple problems and is basically completely worthless.
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I think you should try selling a few keyboards here, in the geekhack classifieds section, so you can name your price and avoid surprises.
I've been following SSK sales for a while, and during that time the auctions on eBay have almost always brought better prices than on Geekhack. I'm not 100% sure why that is, but perhaps it's just because eBay just reaches a much larger group of potential buyers. Also, typically on Geekhack a seller just asks for a certain price (BIN), whereas on eBay an actual auction has much more potential. However, with the used SSK market in a near freefall lately, I'm not sure if this price differential will still hold true. You might be able to get more for a board here than on eBay. Whatever the case, it doesn't hurt to try here first, and if it doesn't sell, then try it on eBay.
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Maybe the next space saver will be sold at a higher price. There is currently no space saver that I can find on ebay. Hasn't been for a few days now. Well except those M4-1s.
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Maybe the next space saver will be sold at a higher price. There is currently no space saver that I can find on ebay. Hasn't been for a few days now. Well except those M4-1s.
One just ended for $107. The seller did not list it as a space saver though.
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One just ended for $107. The seller did not list it as a space saver though.
Have link?
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Ended at $107.50
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=330591661956 (http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=330591661956)
Ended at $123.50:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=130549863355 (http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=130549863355)
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http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=320735372490
this one should be cheap
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Shall we bet on the price?
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I tried to buy the one for 107... was bidding till the last minute too...
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I tried to buy the one for 107... was bidding till the last minute too...
It was a sniper carnage, as far as I can see. 50. Bang, bang, bang. Bang, bang. 107.
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Given that the same seller just sold a different NIB SSK for $300, my guess is that this one will go for a similar price. My wild guess is $310.
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Hehe. I'll risk a guess for 320.
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http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=320735372490
this one should be cheap
so far more than 100 USD and left more than 9 days. I can tell this guys are kind of stupid
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Only 4 bids and it's already up to $200. That sure was fast. Perhaps I underestimated how much this one will go for in the end.
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Only 4 bids and it's already up to $200. That sure was fast. Perhaps I underestimated how much this one will go for in the end.
These guys are either rich , they are completely stupid, or they are the typical macho man
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I don't see it as being stupid. If you use your keyboard a lot, it's well worth paying extra to get the keyboard that best suites you. Let's say that you use your keyboard five days a week. A NIB keyboard like this will likely last you for well over 10 years, and that's being conservative. The cost per day would be under 8 cents (USD) in that case. I know for me I'd certainly pay 8 cents a day to be able to type on the keyboard of my choice.
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I don't see it as being stupid. If you use your keyboard a lot, it's well worth paying extra to get the keyboard that best suites you. Let's say that you use your keyboard five days a week. A NIB keyboard like this will likely last you for well over 10 years, and that's being conservative. The cost per day would be under 8 cents (USD) in that case. I know for me I'd certainly pay 8 cents a day to be able to type on the keyboard of my choice.
You lost the whole point. I have several keyboards already and I spend a lot of money. My point here is YOU SHALL NEVER START BEADING TO EARLY otherwise the price is going to go high and high. If you have the money to start your biding at 300 USD the first day and if you think that is smart enough be my guest
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You're right, I did miss your point.
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You lost the whole point. I have several keyboards already and I spend a lot of money. My point here is YOU SHALL NEVER START BEADING TO EARLY otherwise the price is going to go high and high. If you have to money to start your biding at 300 USD the first day, and you think that is smart enough be my guest
Unless you're the seller, in which case this must be wonderful. Seems like it's financially better to be an SSK seller than a buyer. If only I'd known and camped out an the dumpsters of an IBM site at the right time, :wink:
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told my buddy to buy this when i saw it since he's been looking for a nice one in the $150 range:
http://cgi.ebay.com/IBM-Clicky-Keyboard-PS2-Model-M-1391472-RARE-Fun-/120756248146?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item1c1da21e52#ht_500wt_1413
I think it was listed for maybe 60min
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Someone just picked this up for 102 with shipping.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250861241862&ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT#ht_500wt_1156
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And another one for only $87.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250861241862 (http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250861241862)
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Yeah I was watching that one. My rule is I'll spend about 70 total to get one of these. And that is why I will never have one T_T