Author Topic: My garage sale find  (Read 1949 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Offline wheeltowheel

  • Thread Starter
  • Posts: 1
My garage sale find
« on: Thu, 12 August 2010, 15:12:09 »
I picked this up for 5 bucks at a local garage sale today. Is it worth keeping and finding a PS/2 adapter for it?

Also, can anyone ID the switches?



« Last Edit: Thu, 12 August 2010, 15:14:15 by wheeltowheel »

Offline didjamatic

  • Posts: 1352
My garage sale find
« Reply #1 on: Thu, 12 August 2010, 15:23:43 »
Nice!  That should have complicated white clicky ALPS in it, definitely worth an adapter.
IBM F :: IBM M :: Northgate :: Cherry G80 :: Realforce :: DAS 4

Offline Phaedrus2129

  • Posts: 1131
My garage sale find
« Reply #2 on: Thu, 12 August 2010, 15:27:47 »
Thought so. I can't tell SMKs from Alps.


What switches did the 5181 use? They used like four types over time. MX blues, complicated white Alps, Monterey SMKs, and... was it fake MX blues or simplified white Alps?
Daily Driver: Noppoo Choc Mini
Currently own: IBM Model M 1391401 1988,  XArmor U9 prototype
Previously owned: Ricercar SPOS, IBM M13 92G7461 1994, XArmor U9BL, XArmor U9W prototype, Cherry G80-8200LPDUS, Cherry G84-4100, Compaq MX-11800, Chicony KB-5181 (SMK Monterey), Reveal KB-7061, Cirque Wave Keyboard (ergonomic rubber domes), NMB RT101 (rubber dome), Dell AT101W

Offline ch_123

  • * Exalted Elder
  • Posts: 5860
My garage sale find
« Reply #3 on: Thu, 12 August 2010, 15:33:15 »
Quote from: didjamatic;211945
Nice!  That should have complicated white clicky ALPS in it, definitely worth an adapter.


At first I thought they were clones, then when I saw your post I zoomed in and enhanced (i.e. moved my head closer to the screen) and saw the faded "ALPS" markings.

Quote
Is it worth keeping and finding a PS/2 adapter for it?


That depends on whether you like typing on it :)

My garage sale find
« Reply #4 on: Thu, 12 August 2010, 20:44:25 »
You should be able to get an AT -> PS/2 adapter for less than you paid for that board. Probably worth it - if, as ch_123 says, you like typing on it.

EDIT: If you don't like it and those are original white Alps switches, you can probably find people here who at least would be willing to buy it off you just to get the switches for more than what you payed for it.
« Last Edit: Thu, 12 August 2010, 20:49:59 by Superfluous Parentheses »
Current collection: HHKB Pro 2 black on black, HHKB Pro 2 white/grey blank, [strike]Dell AT101W[/strike] (sold to SirClickAlot), 1992 Model M, Key Tronic Ergoforce KT 2001, BTC 5100 C. Dead boards: MS Natural Elite, MS Natural 4000.

Offline aegrotatio

  • Posts: 335
My garage sale find
« Reply #5 on: Thu, 12 August 2010, 22:22:51 »
I'm typing on this exact model keyboard right now except it uses blue Montereys.  Another model, the KB-5191, uses Cherry MX Blue copies (I didn't know the 5181 did).
« Last Edit: Thu, 12 August 2010, 22:28:15 by aegrotatio »
Daily Drivers: Ducky DK1087XM || DSI ASK-6600 || Rosewill RK-9000 BL, BR, BL, and RE || ABS M1 || Das Keyboard Silent || HHKB Lite and Lite 2 || DSI Big Font (kids love it)
Yearning for: Any ALPS keyboard || Any tenkeyless mechanical keyboard
Permanent collection: Poker Blue and Brown || Adesso MKB-125B || SIIG MiniTouch Geek Hack Space Saver || Chicony 5181 Monterey Blue || Chicony 5191 Clone Cherry Blues || Key Tronic 3600 || Unicomp Endurapro & SmarTrex || A crate of IBM Model M and Model M Space Saving boards || NeXTstation Slab || Amiga 3000 || BTC-5100C black and beige || SIIG MiniTouch Plus black and beige
Retired collection: SIIG MiniTouch Monterey Blue || Razer BlackWidow

Offline chongyixiong

  • Posts: 257
  • Location: South East Asia
My garage sale find
« Reply #6 on: Thu, 12 August 2010, 22:36:54 »
Quote from: Superfluous Parentheses;212031
You should be able to get an AT -> PS/2 adapter for less than you paid for that board. Probably worth it - if, as ch_123 says, you like typing on it.

EDIT: If you don't like it and those are original white Alps switches, you can probably find people here who at least would be willing to buy it off you just to get the switches for more than what you payed for it.


Are complicated white ALPS switches worth that much?

Might consider selling my board (which I dont use often) just to get some extra cash.