geekhack
geekhack Marketplace => Great Finds => Topic started by: nowsharing on Fri, 10 July 2009, 17:32:56
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:mod: :mod:
For those of you using a typical search on ebay such as "IBM Model M Keyboard" here are a few alternatives that might get you a steal, depending on your patience and competition:
Search in title & description for: +keyboard +"model m"
This gives you results of Lexmark and Unicomp Model Ms, as well as sometimes finding something titled "old keyboard" which is described more thoroughly in the auction a Model M.
My most recent find with this search was an '86 1390120 (http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&Item=260437808297) that I nabbed for $15 shipped while on vacation via sniping (http://www.gixen.com), and this '95 Lexmark w/trackball for $11.50 (http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&Item=190317263087).
Search in titles for: "IBM Keyboard" or if you're crazy, try the descriptions and remove the quotes. You may wish to add things like -thinkpad -lenovo -laptop etc to slim down your results. Additionally slim them down with a price limit, such as $1-20.
Believe it or not, I've found a lot of gems with this search, such as: this "IBM Keyboard" (http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&Item=180353370779), a NIB '95 for something crazy like $19 shipped, a "vintage, clicky style keyboard," (http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&Item=230344168261) and this "Old IBM Keyboard." (http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&Item=130308903597)
Another idea which I had some luck with was setting saved searchs for specific auction such as:
1390120, or +keyboard +"Model F" - in the title and description, with a price limit, and then have the search emailed to you with updates. Early on I got a very nice price on a poorly titled 1390120 this way.
Want Benjamin Franklin's advice?:
If you are only looking for one Model M; just buy a nice one, or splurge and buy one NIB. Think of the dollar per hour for one nice keyboard and they're practically free. In another thread, I suggested emailing sellers and asking for actual shipping if there is something nice with a ridiculous fee. You must respect the seller and do this before the auction is over of course. The best single piece of advice that I could think of is to use patience; better deals come up every day. Combine that with never early bidding (http://www.kenrockwell.com/tech/ebay/early-bidding.htm) (snipe instead), and you'll save money. I also found a 1390131 (http://geekhack.org/showthread.php?t=6228) in the classifieds section here at GH, and the seller threw in an AT Model F for $5 more; can't beat that.
Any other ideas? What does everyone else do to find the elusive "Old Keyboard" deals?
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Mmhhh... interesting :)
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You can also search the Vintage Computing section for just "IBM". A lot of the time someone will be selling an IBM PC that comes with one of those keyboards, a lot of the time for even less than what the keyboard alone is worth.
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More local boards here for the best deals.
Craigslist sometimes has interesting things listed in the states as well. For some reason, I had a lot of success last year convincing people to ship me their espresso machines & grinders from CL, but I've never been able to convince anyone on CL to ship me a board.
A lot of the time someone will be selling an IBM PC that comes with one of those keyboards, a lot of the time for even less than what the keyboard alone is worth.
Your excellent advice nabbed me an '87 space saver using this technique.
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A beautiful piece of vintage equipment.
The PC, not the wife.
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I wonder when it is from?