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03/18/2001: First edition of page. >>>

wanted:

WANTED - Dead Or Alive!

Important: The #1 item on my list is anything related to the Commodore VIC-20. That includes VIC-20 computers (working or not), the old white VIC-1540 (not 1541) floppy drive, cartridges, tapes, joysticks, paddles, light pens, books and other material.

Having said that, this page is a short list of the items that are in my mind right now and which I'm actively hunting. However, if you have any old computer equipment in your garage, and you plan to throw it out, please don't - I'll be more than happy to take it. In general, I'm not opposed to paying international shipping on interesting items (especially items that weren't originally sold here in the U.S.). However, common items (e.g. Commodore 64s, Commodore 128s, Amiga 500s etc) are not really worth shipping.

Note: I will buy hardware working or not working. Repairing these beasts is a fun art in itself.

I am also always on the lookout for consumables, particularly 5.25" SSDD or DSDD floppy disks (IBM 360K size, in other words - not high-density 1.2Mb disks). I'll buy boxes of unknown disks and computer cassette tapes, though it would be nice if you gave me some idea of what system they're for!

Apple:

  • A cheap Apple IIc (not IIc+) system unit.
  • Software of all sorts; original or not. I'm particularly eager to find the games Montezuma's Revenge and Lunar Leepers, but I'll take pretty much anything. If you have a bunch of unlabeled disks, I'll take 'em!
  • A joystick.

Commodore:

  • Amiga 1200.
  • A570 CDTV-ROM (CD-ROM drive with CDTV emulation firmware).
  • A590 hard drive.
  • 1531 (C3N) tape drive - the black one with mini-DIN connector, used with the Commodore 16 and Plus/4.
  • 1551 disk drive (for Commodore 16 and Plus/4).
  • The Commodore black jet-style joystick with mini-DIN connector, used with the Commodore 16 and Plus/4.
  • ANY Commodore 16 or Plus/4 software (cartridge, tape or disk).
  • Commodore 64 software of all sorts, original or not.
  • Datel Action Replay VI for Commodore 64/128.
  • Wico joystick(s) for C64/128/Amiga.

Sinclair (YES, I WILL pay international shipping to get Spectrum hardware and software from Europe and Australasia):

  • A 16K or 48K "rubbery" Spectrum.
  • A Spectrum +2 or +3.
  • A Sam Coupe.
  • 5.25" floppy interface/snapshot unit.
  • Kempston joystick interface.
  • Tapes, tapes, tapes, tapes, tapes (original or not) :).
  • A ZX80. I will pay up to US$200 for one of the special display model ZX80s that has a clear perspex upper case. I will also pay a fair price for a regular ZX80; more if it has its manual and packaging, of course.
  • The white ZX80 3K RAM pack.

What I DON'T want

With VERY few exceptions, I regard IBM PC and PC-compatible machines, no matter how old or rare, as being obsolete junk rather than intriguing collectible vintage computers.

The only major exception to this rule that comes to mind immediately is the very cool Amstrad MegaPC (I think that is what it was called, but my memory could be at fault). It consisted of a 386SX PC in a low-profile desktop case with a sliding hatch on the front. Slide the hatch one way and you have access to a 3.5" floppy drive; you can use the machine as a normal PC. Slide the hatch the other way and you reveal a cartridge slot for an integral Sega Megadrive (Genesis). You could play Genesis games right on your PC's monitor.

Minor exceptions to this rule are PC-compatible machines made by the companies that made the machines I loved. Typically these PC compatibles were made during the company's death throes, when sales of its own proprietary technology were drying up. The best example of this is Sinclair's (Amstrad-made) XT-style machine in an Amiga 500-sized casing.

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