Most valuable retro keyboards?

[base_on_base]

Pretty soon I'm going to start looking around for old keyboards that might be worth something. I know about IBM's Model F, Model M, and Model M13 and was wondering if there are any other keyboards I should keep an eye out for. It would also be nice if anyone could give me the current market value for the keyboard. Thanks!

Edit: Yeah I get it, this was a dumb idea. You can all stop practically copy and pasting the same reply now.

[fohat.digs]

Pretty soon I'm going to start looking around for old keyboards that might be worth something. I know about IBM's Model F, Model M, and Model M13 and was wondering if there are any other keyboards I should keep an eye out for. It would also be nice if anyone could give me the current market value for the keyboard. Thanks!

Didn't you start a similar thread a week or 2 ago?

[nubbinator]

**** value, if you're just looking for them to make money, you're in the wrong place.  Look out for any mechs, cool old stuff, unusual but not really worth much stuff and so on.  Expand knowledge and share affordable boards.  If you want to find and sell boards, do it like Cindy over at DT, by that I mean more than fair prices (often well below secondary market) and with lots of communication with the community.

[SpAmRaY]

Pretty soon I'm going to start looking around for old keyboards that might be worth something. I know about IBM's Model F, Model M, and Model M13 and was wondering if there are any other keyboards I should keep an eye out for. It would also be nice if anyone could give me the current market value for the keyboard. Thanks!

Didn't you start a similar thread a week or 2 ago?

Your thinking of this thread https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=68150.0

[base_on_base]

Pretty soon I'm going to start looking around for old keyboards that might be worth something. I know about IBM's Model F, Model M, and Model M13 and was wondering if there are any other keyboards I should keep an eye out for. It would also be nice if anyone could give me the current market value for the keyboard. Thanks!

Didn't you start a similar thread a week or 2 ago?

No...

[base_on_base]

**** value, if you're just looking for them to make money, you're in the wrong place.  Look out for any mechs, cool old stuff, unusual but not really worth much stuff and so on.  Expand knowledge and share affordable boards.  If you want to find and sell boards, do it like Cindy over at DT, by that I mean more than fair prices (often well below secondary market) and with lots of communication with the community.

I was hoping to be able to trade them for new boards and keycap sets.

[demik]

**** value, if you're just looking for them to make money, you're in the wrong place.  Look out for any mechs, cool old stuff, unusual but not really worth much stuff and so on.  Expand knowledge and share affordable boards.  If you want to find and sell boards, do it like Cindy over at DT, by that I mean more than fair prices (often well below secondary market) and with lots of communication with the community.

[Geroximo]

All these resellers make it impossible for me to get a Model M cheap. I hate them.

[Firebolt1914]

All these resellers make it impossible for me to get a Model M cheap. I hate them.

I honestly don't find it too hard, you just have to act fast, and search a lot

[base_on_base]

All these resellers make it impossible for me to get a Model M cheap. I hate them.

I plan on buying them cheap from thrift stores and reselling them here for a reasonable price. I'm not a money hungry monster, I just want more keyboards 

[Fragil1ty]

Isn't the IBM SSK really expensive/hard to get hold of? I'd love to get my hands on one of them to be honest, but I'm never going to pay the prices that they're going for. I can't stand the full-size IBM Model M's either


fml

[rowdy]

Industrial SSK.

[noisyturtle]

Industrial SSK.

Isn't there an even rarer model SSK? My retro keyboard knowledge isn't so hot, but I swear I saw something like 2-3 years ago about some SSK board that no one even knew existed or something.

[bueller]

Industrial SSK.

Isn't there an even rarer model SSK? My retro keyboard knowledge isn't so hot, but I swear I saw something like 2-3 years ago about some SSK board that no one even knew existed or something.

Yeah Clack posted a picture of one that he found attached to some sign machine a couple of years ago and there have been some other pictures that have popped up lately too but no-one is sure if those are legit or hack jobs.

[madhias]

Industrial SSK.

Isn't there an even rarer model SSK? My retro keyboard knowledge isn't so hot, but I swear I saw something like 2-3 years ago about some SSK board that no one even knew existed or something.

Yeah Clack posted a picture of one that he found attached to some sign machine a couple of years ago and there have been some other pictures that have popped up lately too but no-one is sure if those are legit or hack jobs.

I didn't see any new pics, but only this bad photoshop!

[Findecanor]

One way to check what goods can sell for is to search on eBay for completed auctions - where the items have been sold.
But keep in mind that a very tiny minority here is actually willing to buy these highly priced old keyboards. I think it would be better if you focused on moderately-priced keyboards that would appeal to more people.

[fohat.digs]

I plan on buying them cheap from thrift stores and reselling them here for a price.

I drive around quite a bit with my job and pop in to at least a couple of thrift stores per week. In about 4 years I have only found 3 Model Ms, and one was broken and incomplete and one was a 71G with rubber domes. Plus 1 M2 that was also a 71x model with domes.

3 years ago I could still find the occasional Apple board but those have dried up, too.

But I live in the Atlanta, Georgia area, and have 2 disadvantages: customers around here are very active and sophisticated, and the Goodwill of North Georgia region does not carry computer gear due to complaints from the "legitimate" computer retail stores.

[fohat.digs]

I will double-post and place this jewel here, too:

[TheO-RingGuys]

DELL did make a line of rubber domes named QuietKeys. Imo they're the best rubber domes in the market due to their durability and reliability.

(also they have A LOT of tactile feedback)

[fohat.digs]

DELL did make a line of rubber domes named QuietKeys. Imo they're the best rubber domes in the market due to their durability and reliability.

(also they have A LOT of tactile feedback)

The early ones made in Malaysia or Thailand or wherever are much better than the later ones made in China.

The IBM KB8923 is also very good, and available in black and also with a trackpoint (different number).

[cinnamonrollz]

The  IBM displaywriter keyboards are always something to look for. They weigh alot and you probably want to lift it with your legs.

[demik]

All these resellers make it impossible for me to get a Model M cheap. I hate them.

is this really a thing? model m was a dime a dozen. now they are hard to find and/or expensive?

[nubbinator]

All these resellers make it impossible for me to get a Model M cheap. I hate them.

is this really a thing? model m was a dime a dozen. now they are hard to find and/or expensive?

They've been going for ~$100 on eBay lately.  Total bull**** pricing and people driving those prices up.  If you keep your eyes open, you can get them for $25-50 still, it's just less common outside of terminal boards.

[demik]

ah noobs and people like OP ruin everything

[fohat.digs]

now they are hard to find and/or expensive?

I always looked at the used IBM Model M aftermarket relative to the price of a new one from Unicomp.

A couple of years ago, old-school ones sold for considerably less, but today they are on par, or even a bit more for more desirable ones.

[base_on_base]

ah noobs and people like OP ruin everything

I've already said, I just want to trade the Model Ms for modern keyboards. I'm not some ******* whos trying to drive up prices.

[sethk_]

ah noobs and people like OP ruin everything

I've already said, I just want to trade the Model Ms for modern keyboards. I'm not some ******* whos trying to drive up prices.

Then use the money you would buy the model ms with to buy a board you like? Don't get into boards for the profit, get into it to enjoy the community and the hobby.

[Snowdog993]

I plan on buying them cheap from thrift stores and reselling them here for a reasonable price. I'm not a money hungry monster, I just want more keyboards 

Naturally a keyboard enthusiast.  You already said you're not interested in vintage keyboards, and here you are asking about which ones are valuable.  Get whatever you want and hike the price up, will ya?  Make more money and laugh all the way to the bank.  I hope a dozen SSK's just fall into your lap and you get $2000 each.

I'm tired of this.  People like you give me the urge to vomit.

Edit: Please find another hobby.

[Melvang]

ah noobs and people like OP ruin everything

I've already said, I just want to trade the Model Ms for modern keyboards. I'm not some ******* whos trying to drive up prices.

Then use the money you would buy the model ms with to buy a board you like? Don't get into boards for the profit, get into it to enjoy the community and the hobby.

I second this motion.

[MGH]

All these resellers make it impossible for me to get a Model M cheap. I hate them.

is this really a thing? model m was a dime a dozen. now they are hard to find and/or expensive?

They've been going for ~$100 on eBay lately.  Total bull**** pricing and people driving those prices up.  If you keep your eyes open, you can get them for $25-50 still, it's just less common outside of terminal boards.

WTF?!? When I was eyeing Model M's a few months ago, terminals were $15 and PS/2 ones were $40 at the most. Now they're $100?

[jacobolus]

I suspect you you’ll get a better return on your time by just getting a minimum wage job instead of cruising thrift stores and reselling stuff on ebay, when you factor in all the time it takes to learn about what to be looking for, actually finding stuff, cleaning it all up, taking decent pictures, etc.

[jacobolus]

Now they're $100?

No, that’s hyperbole:
http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_sacat=0&_nkw=ibm+model+m&LH_Complete=1&LH_Sold=1&rt=nc

Some of them end up going for $100 to idiots. Most go for $30–60.

[berserkfan]

ah noobs and people like OP ruin everything

I've already said, I just want to trade the Model Ms for modern keyboards. I'm not some ******* whos trying to drive up prices.

Then use the money you would buy the model ms with to buy a board you like? Don't get into boards for the profit, get into it to enjoy the community and the hobby.

Really not happy at the way geekhack is going. Sure, some people may say that's good, we now have more dumpster divers looking out for us and increasing supply of ancient stuff. But we're not building a healthy membership roll.

Someone wants to pick up stuff for $5 and flip them for $60 and maybe do that a couple times to get his Razer Chroma or Corsair RGB. In the meantime he doesn't care or express interest, he just wants people to help him choose what's valuable. He's using our shared knowledge to make some money for himself - and he doesn't even want to look up old posts to find out what's valuable - he want us to tell him what we value so that he can make money from us!

Ellipse II in the making.

[Snowdog993]

ah noobs and people like OP ruin everything

I've already said, I just want to trade the Model Ms for modern keyboards. I'm not some ******* whos trying to drive up prices.

Then use the money you would buy the model ms with to buy a board you like? Don't get into boards for the profit, get into it to enjoy the community and the hobby.

Naturally a keyboard enthusiast.  You already said you're not interested in vintage keyboards, and here you are asking about which ones are valuable.  Get whatever you want and hike the price up, will ya?  Make more money and laugh all the way to the bank.  I hope a dozen SSK's just fall into your lap and you get $2000 each.

I'm tired of this.  People like you give me the urge to vomit.

Edit: Please find another hobby.

Really not happy at the way geekhack is going. Sure, some people may say that's good, we now have more dumpster divers looking out for us and increasing supply of ancient stuff. But we're not building a healthy membership roll.

Someone wants to pick up stuff for $5 and flip them for $60 and maybe do that a couple times to get his Razer Chroma or Corsair RGB. In the meantime he doesn't care or express interest, he just wants people to help him choose what's valuable. He's using our shared knowledge to make some money for himself - and he doesn't even want to look up old posts to find out what's valuable - he want us to tell him what we value so that he can make money from us!

Ellipse II in the making.

I think that's what you were trying to post there?

[rowdy]

Industrial SSK.

Isn't there an even rarer model SSK? My retro keyboard knowledge isn't so hot, but I swear I saw something like 2-3 years ago about some SSK board that no one even knew existed or something.

Yeah Clack posted a picture of one that he found attached to some sign machine a couple of years ago and there have been some other pictures that have popped up lately too but no-one is sure if those are legit or hack jobs.

But have you ever seen that (or those) for sale?  What price did they consistently fetch?

I mentioned Industrial SSK as they do turn up from time to time, and usually sell for at least $800 (that would be a cheap one), and more often $1000+

Repeated demonstration of the value of this rare model.

[Signature]

Every keyboard ellipse sells

[XMIT]

Reading this thread I don't think the OP is trying to make a profit per se, drive up prices, or otherwise be difficult. I think he just wants his keyboard collection hobby to be self sustaining. I can relate. I do have a couple of spare Model Ms that I am considering selling or trading just to try something new. If nothing else I try to add value by replacing missing keys, cleaning cases, and in some cases doing bolt mods.

By inquiring on value I think the OP is just trying to figure out how to best use his time. Spending a weekend cleaning and fixing say an Apple Design Keyboard may not be the best use of time.

Though, the OP is perhaps better served by doing his own research. Check the marketplace to see what has been selling. Check this forum to see what keyboards people are finding and trading. Make an effort.

As for me I'm just trying to figure out how to source spherical key caps!

[berserkfan]

'
Though, the OP is perhaps better served by doing his own research. Check the marketplace to see what has been selling. Check this forum to see what keyboards people are finding and trading. Make an effort.

As for me I'm just trying to figure out how to source spherical key caps!

The problem is, OP isn't actually interested enough to read. The info is freely available.

That makes the difference between a hobbyist who reads out of interest, and a merchant who wants to cut out the distraction and start making money right away.

If you want just SA blanks I have plenty.

[hking0036]

**** value, if you're just looking for them to make money, you're in the wrong place.  Look out for any mechs, cool old stuff, unusual but not really worth much stuff and so on.  Expand knowledge and share affordable boards.  If you want to find and sell boards, do it like Cindy over at DT, by that I mean more than fair prices (often well below secondary market) and with lots of communication with the community.

Show Image

I'm in tears.

[jdcarpe]

Really, I think the entire issue here can be traced back to the way in which the OP went about looking for the info he wanted. OP starts new thread, asking for info on which 'retro' keyboards are most valuable, so that he can be on the lookout for some to buy cheaply, and flip them for a small profit to fund future keyboard purchases.

On the other hand, another member went to the Price Check thread and inquired about the value of a couple IBM keyboards, listed by part number. I responded to him in the thread, and he replied with the cost to him, and conversation ensued as to whether he could resell those keyboards to members here.

I then sent that member a PM, showing my possible interest in one of the part numbers he listed. He replied with a list of part numbers, cost to him, and amount available, and asked if I would help him determine what, if anything, would be worth him picking up and passing on at a good value to others here. I helped him with his inquiry, and we had a nice chat via PM. When I found out that the member currently owns no mechanical keyboard at all, I offered to send him one of mine, at no cost to him, and with no expectation of anything in return. I have lots of keyboards, and I simply wanted to help a new member get started.

Now, the member I helped basically wanted to do the same thing that OP wants to do, but he went about asking for the info in a much different way. I gave him the fair market values of the part numbers he asked me about, so that he can determine if it's worth it to him to sell those keyboards at a very slight profit. Is it worth it to him to purchase a keyboard for $10, and sell it for $20 plus shipping? I don't know, but the he has the info to make that decision. He didn't ask about which keyboards would bring the most resale value, but rather the value of the keyboards he has access to, in case he can pass on some good values to other members here.

There's probably a lesson to be learned in there, somewhere.

[fohat.digs]

There's probably a lesson to be learned in there, somewhere.

The lesson is that the answer that you get depends on the question that you ask.

Learning to ask the correctly nuanced question in the appropriate terminology makes all the difference in the world, over the internet.

Speaking to someone face-to-face, or even over the telephone, allows for a lot of non-verbal communication that disappears in print.

And that explains how something like a political poll can get 70% of the people seemingly "for" something, while 70% of the people are seemingly "against" the same thing.

[Signature]

There's probably a lesson to be learned in there, somewhere.

It's not gay when it's in a 3-way aka the golden rule

[sethk_]

Really, I think the entire issue here can be traced back to the way in which the OP went about looking for the info he wanted. OP starts new thread, asking for info on which 'retro' keyboards are most valuable, so that he can be on the lookout for some to buy cheaply, and flip them for a small profit to fund future keyboard purchases.

On the other hand, another member went to the Price Check thread and inquired about the value of a couple IBM keyboards, listed by part number. I responded to him in the thread, and he replied with the cost to him, and conversation ensued as to whether he could resell those keyboards to members here.

I then sent that member a PM, showing my possible interest in one of the part numbers he listed. He replied with a list of part numbers, cost to him, and amount available, and asked if I would help him determine what, if anything, would be worth him picking up and passing on at a good value to others here. I helped him with his inquiry, and we had a nice chat via PM. When I found out that the member currently owns no mechanical keyboard at all, I offered to send him one of mine, at no cost to him, and with no expectation of anything in return. I have lots of keyboards, and I simply wanted to help a new member get started.

Now, the member I helped basically wanted to do the same thing that OP wants to do, but he went about asking for the info in a much different way. I gave him the fair market values of the part numbers he asked me about, so that he can determine if it's worth it to him to sell those keyboards at a very slight profit. Is it worth it to him to purchase a keyboard for $10, and sell it for $20 plus shipping? I don't know, but the he has the info to make that decision. He didn't ask about which keyboards would bring the most resale value, but rather the value of the keyboards he has access to, in case he can pass on some good values to other members here.

There's probably a lesson to be learned in there, somewhere.

This is the proper way, not making new threads with a question, we have dedicated threads for that.

[jdcarpe]

This is the proper way, not making new threads with a question, we have dedicated threads for that.

You bring up a good point. I think it also represents a 'cultural gap' between people who have been on the forum for a while versus people who have come here recently from reddit. The accepted way of going about things on reddit is to make a new post. That post gets attention for a while, and people can comment on it. Then it sinks into oblivion as people lose interest in the topic.

On the other hand, here at Geekhack, we organize our information into permanent threads. Those threads are and will be accessible, and searchable, for the foreseeable future. Rather than starting a new post for every question, members are encouraged to read the FAQ in the Simple Questions, Simple Answers thread, and if they cannot find the answer to their question there, to post it in the thread. Also, for price checks, there is the Price Check - What's It Worth? thread. There are other examples, but these are some common ones I could think of.

[base_on_base]

I plan on buying them cheap from thrift stores and reselling them here for a reasonable price. I'm not a money hungry monster, I just want more keyboards 

Naturally a keyboard enthusiast.  You already said you're not interested in vintage keyboards, and here you are asking about which ones are valuable.  Get whatever you want and hike the price up, will ya?  Make more money and laugh all the way to the bank.  I hope a dozen SSK's just fall into your lap and you get $2000 each.

I'm tired of this.  People like you give me the urge to vomit.

Edit: Please find another hobby.

And you guys wonder why /r/MK is kicking your ass in subscriber count.

[jdcarpe]

I plan on buying them cheap from thrift stores and reselling them here for a reasonable price. I'm not a money hungry monster, I just want more keyboards 

Naturally a keyboard enthusiast.  You already said you're not interested in vintage keyboards, and here you are asking about which ones are valuable.  Get whatever you want and hike the price up, will ya?  Make more money and laugh all the way to the bank.  I hope a dozen SSK's just fall into your lap and you get $2000 each.

I'm tired of this.  People like you give me the urge to vomit.

Edit: Please find another hobby.

And you guys wonder why /r/MK is kicking your ass in subscriber count.

Ever heard the expression 'quality over quantity?'

[base_on_base]

I plan on buying them cheap from thrift stores and reselling them here for a reasonable price. I'm not a money hungry monster, I just want more keyboards 

Naturally a keyboard enthusiast.  You already said you're not interested in vintage keyboards, and here you are asking about which ones are valuable.  Get whatever you want and hike the price up, will ya?  Make more money and laugh all the way to the bank.  I hope a dozen SSK's just fall into your lap and you get $2000 each.

I'm tired of this.  People like you give me the urge to vomit.

Edit: Please find another hobby.

And you guys wonder why /r/MK is kicking your ass in subscriber count.

Ever heard the expression 'quality over quantity?'

People like you give me the urge to vomit.

Edit: Please find another hobby.

Yeah, REAL quality!

[jdcarpe]

"People like you give me the urge to vomit.

Edit: Please find another hobby."

Yeah, REAL quality!

Please, feel free to return to reddit if you prefer it over Geekhack. Nothing is keeping you here.

[noisyturtle]

I plan on buying them cheap from thrift stores and reselling them here for a reasonable price. I'm not a money hungry monster, I just want more keyboards 

Naturally a keyboard enthusiast.  You already said you're not interested in vintage keyboards, and here you are asking about which ones are valuable.  Get whatever you want and hike the price up, will ya?  Make more money and laugh all the way to the bank.  I hope a dozen SSK's just fall into your lap and you get $2000 each.

I'm tired of this.  People like you give me the urge to vomit.

Edit: Please find another hobby.

And you guys wonder why /r/MK is kicking your ass in subscriber count.

Yeah but that's reddit though. It's the club that lets any kinda rabble in, not hard to get subs over there.

What you should be focusing on is how many members migrate from /r/mk to GH after visiting here.

[base_on_base]

"People like you give me the urge to vomit.

Edit: Please find another hobby."

Yeah, REAL quality!

Please, feel free to return to reddit if you prefer it over Geekhack. Nothing is keeping you here.

I was making a comment that "snowdog"'s comment was unwarranted, angry, and rude, I never said I preferred /r/MK. It gets a bit boring staring at the same pictures of k70s day in and day out.