Boy... I've tried to buy all sorts of neat stuff lately but the sellers have been really failing me. I normally don't have too many problems but in the last two weeks I've had:

1. A listing with a couple of unobtainium items (one never pictured before on the internet) which the seller simply has not shipped after 10+ days and has only replied to a single message. Probably never going to get these. After I get my refund the seller will probably randomly relist the lot without saying a word to me and it'll sell and ship to someone else with no problem. It has happened before...

2. A small lot of parts sold as good condition, not as scrap. Before purchasing, I specifically asked if they'd sell one card in the lot... seller said they wanted to keep them together but offered to sell the lot for a lower price, so I bought it. It arrived today with NO PACKAGING in an oversized box, so the parts spent several days bouncing around and smashing each other... the one item I wanted has at least half a dozen SMD components broken off the back now.

3. Saw a nice item in a scrap lot, asked the seller if they'd sell it separately for a fair price. No reply. Many hours later I see they took down the listing because there was an error. I figured they looked up the item I wanted and decided to try to sell it for a better price... which is totally within their rights to do, so that's fine. I checked their sold listings the next day and I see that 12 hours after I sent my message they listed and sold that item for the price I offered them without ever even replying to me. 😵

4. Not retro PC related, but I bought a used music CD that is very hard to find (because I like to own physical media). It was listed as good condition, no skipping. It arrives and the CD has gouges in the disc surface that are so bad I can actually feel them with my finger.

Bleh. This stuff is taking the joy out of collecting. People just seem to be getting dumber and more careless by the day...

On a more positive note, I picked up another lot for a very low price and ended up with:

FIC SD11 Slot A board, seemingly intact
Tyan S2466 Dual Socket A board, mostly intact
Intel DX58SO with bent pins, but maybe repairable
Asrock B560M-C, probably dead since it's only a few years old and was in a scrap lot, but looks intact
Assorted cards, including a couple of Netgear gigabit ethernet PCI cards, which I don't think I had any of before

The latest project arrived today. A huge gamble for me since the listing (from a US seller) was vaguer than vague. And as someone who prefers to choose each part and build from scratch, a proprietary NEC beast is very intimidating.

It came with the keyboard, manuals, and boot / demo disks at least. Awaiting RGB monitor from Japan. I’m excited but very nervous to peer inside but the exterior is in great shape so I’ll optimistically take that as a good sign.

sunkindly wrote on 2025-10-01, 06:27:

The latest project arrived today. A huge gamble for me since the listing (from a US seller) was vaguer than vague. And as someone who prefers to choose each part and build from scratch, a proprietary NEC beast is very intimidating.

It came with the keyboard, manuals, and boot / demo disks at least. Awaiting RGB monitor from Japan. I’m excited but very nervous to peer inside but the exterior is in great shape so I’ll optimistically take that as a good sign.

The attachment IMG_7112.jpeg is no longer available

The type of pc I started with: dual 5.25.
Nostalgia 😀

Ozzuneoj wrote on 2025-10-01, 03:18:

Boy... I've tried to buy all sorts of neat stuff lately but the sellers have been really failing me. I normally don't have too many problems but in the last two weeks I've had:

Quite the opposite for me, sellers not listing stuff and offering it as is for laughable prices, turning out to be 100% working.

sunkindly wrote on 2025-10-01, 06:27:

The latest project arrived today. A huge gamble for me since the listing (from a US seller) was vaguer than vague. And as someone who prefers to choose each part and build from scratch, a proprietary NEC beast is very intimidating.

It came with the keyboard, manuals, and boot / demo disks at least. Awaiting RGB monitor from Japan. I’m excited but very nervous to peer inside but the exterior is in great shape so I’ll optimistically take that as a good sign.

The attachment IMG_7112.jpeg is no longer available

BEAUTIFUL !

sunkindly wrote on 2025-10-01, 06:27:

The latest project arrived today.

GOSH, that looks AMAZING!

I got them from the local surplus store for really cheap. Both pair of speakers were a quarter each. For 50 cents this was really a good haul and the altec lansing set even has working audio and a power cable. However I was not able to get a 12 V DC power cable for the Creative speakers.

Ozzuneoj wrote on 2025-10-01, 03:18:

4. Not retro PC related, but I bought a used music CD that is very hard to find (because I like to own physical media). It was listed as good condition, no skipping. It arrives and the CD has gouges in the disc surface that are so bad I can actually feel them with my finger.

I used to think CD-ROM caddies were stupid until I started buying used CDs. When a disc isn't in the player it should be in the jewel case. Not placed on a sandstone table. Not inserted into a book of sandpaper samples. To think it was once an audiophile medium.

Ozzuneoj wrote on 2025-10-01, 03:18:

2. A small lot of parts sold as good condition, not as scrap. Before purchasing, I specifically asked if they'd sell one card in the lot... seller said they wanted to keep them together but offered to sell the lot for a lower price, so I bought it. It arrived today with NO PACKAGING in an oversized box, so the parts spent several days bouncing around and smashing each other... the one item I wanted has at least half a dozen SMD components broken off the back now.

Aww man that sucks, I've had scrap and parts or repair lots come better packed than that sounds.

Big Pink wrote on 2025-10-01, 20:20:

Ozzuneoj wrote on 2025-10-01, 03:18:

4. Not retro PC related, but I bought a used music CD that is very hard to find (because I like to own physical media). It was listed as good condition, no skipping. It arrives and the CD has gouges in the disc surface that are so bad I can actually feel them with my finger.

I used to think CD-ROM caddies were stupid until I started buying used CDs. When a disc isn't in the player it should be in the jewel case. Not placed on a sandstone table. Not inserted into a book of sandpaper samples. To think it was once an audiophile medium.

If you still have them and want to read them:
Hairspray.
Seriously.
1 Wash with soap.
2 Dry.
3 Hold flat.
4 Spray an even coat.
5 If coat is imperfect goto step 1

Hair spray is cheap, has near enough the same refractive index as the plastic, washes off easily if it doesn't turn out and is additive rather than destructive like polishing.

myne wrote on 2025-10-01, 23:45:

If you still have them and want to read them: Hairspray. Seriously. 1 Wash with soap. 2 Dry. 3 Hold flat. 4 Spray an even c […]
Show full quote

Big Pink wrote on 2025-10-01, 20:20:

Ozzuneoj wrote on 2025-10-01, 03:18:

4. Not retro PC related, but I bought a used music CD that is very hard to find (because I like to own physical media). It was listed as good condition, no skipping. It arrives and the CD has gouges in the disc surface that are so bad I can actually feel them with my finger.

I used to think CD-ROM caddies were stupid until I started buying used CDs. When a disc isn't in the player it should be in the jewel case. Not placed on a sandstone table. Not inserted into a book of sandpaper samples. To think it was once an audiophile medium.

If you still have them and want to read them:
Hairspray.
Seriously.
1 Wash with soap.
2 Dry.
3 Hold flat.
4 Spray an even coat.
5 If coat is imperfect goto step 1

Hair spray is cheap, has near enough the same refractive index as the plastic, washes off easily if it doesn't turn out and is additive rather than destructive like polishing.

So hairspray saves the day not only for coating drawings.
This one is getting a try on a few discs I have.
👍

Ozzuneoj wrote on 2025-10-01, 03:18:

Boy... I've tried to buy all sorts of neat stuff lately but the sellers have been really failing me. I normally don't have too many problems but in the last two weeks I've had:

Thanks for kicking my blood pressure up the Moon. Gotta lie down for a minute. 😁

Hans Tork wrote on 2025-10-01, 19:21:

The attachment IMG_2875.jpg is no longer available

I got them from the local surplus store for really cheap. Both pair of speakers were a quarter each. For 50 cents this was really a good haul and the altec lansing set even has working audio and a power cable. However I was not able to get a 12 V DC power cable for the Creative speakers.

Great find 🙂, they are very clean too. So why you couldn't use the 12V adapter?

dominusprog wrote on Yesterday, 16:50:

Hans Tork wrote on 2025-10-01, 19:21:

The attachment IMG_2875.jpg is no longer available

I got them from the local surplus store for really cheap. Both pair of speakers were a quarter each. For 50 cents this was really a good haul and the altec lansing set even has working audio and a power cable. However I was not able to get a 12 V DC power cable for the Creative speakers.

Great find 🙂, they are very clean too. So why you couldn't use the 12V adapter?

I tried a spare 12 V adapter but it seems that adapter is not able to power up the creative speakers. Either that or the speakers are dead. I am guessing the former as the connector did not seem to properly fit in the power port. I do not have another 12 V adapter right now but if I do manage to find another one I can test if the speakers are working or need some repair.

Got my hands on an Dell OEM variant of a GeForce 7800 GTX. 😀

In perfect working order it seems!

And the 3Dmark06 benchmark was right on target, comparing against benchmarks from 19 years ago. 😀

7800 GTX's with the reference cooler are true beauties. It really felt like a big step up from anything back then.

Alexraptor wrote on Yesterday, 18:10:

Got my hands on an Dell OEM variant of a GeForce 7800 GTX. :) […]
Show full quote

Got my hands on an Dell OEM variant of a GeForce 7800 GTX. 😀

The attachment G2RDWr-WAAASnTf.jpg is no longer available

In perfect working order it seems!

The attachment G2RetH2WIAA18Ux.jpg is no longer available

The attachment G2RetNCXgAAJxXs.jpg is no longer available

And the 3Dmark06 benchmark was right on target, comparing against benchmarks from 19 years ago. 😀

The attachment G2RetMDWcAAVK6p.jpg is no longer available

7800 gtx or even an older 6800 gtx were something that could turn your average XP rig to a gaming powerhouse. I could only dream of a 6200 card back then, forget a 7800 gtx. I think nearly all pre-Crysis era games can run at high resolutions with this card.

Hi all,

Got my hands on a beast of a motherboard, an Olivetti CP486. Probably the weirdest 486 motherboard ever, gigantic footprint, more Pal's than ttl's, DX + socket for Weitek FPU (this board only suports DX ... so why fpu???), EISA, proprietary psu plug, proprietary front panel console, and a socket for i860 risc cpu.

Xicor wrote on Yesterday, 21:48:

Hi all,

Got my hands on a beast of a motherboard, an Olivetti CP486. Probably the weirdest 486 motherboard ever, gigantic footprint, more Pal's than ttl's, DX + socket for Weitek FPU (this board only suports DX ... so why fpu???), EISA, proprietary psu plug, proprietary front panel console, and a socket for i860 risc cpu.

The attachment Olivetti_CP486.jpg is no longer available

Wow, that is really cool!

I wouldn't even know where to start to make full use of such a board.
Am I seeing correctly that it has PS/2 ports? That seems really unusual for an ISA\EISA board without PCI, VLB or MCA.

I found this thread which talks about these very systems and it's pretty fascinating how the i860 was intended to be used. I, admittedly, know nothing about the i860 so this is all new to me, but the idea of having basically an alternate CPU architecture onboard to run a totally different operating system is interesting. Like if there was an ARM based SOC on an Intel\AMD board just in case you wanted to run Android natively.

looks like eisa slots. that thing's a monster

Hans Tork wrote on Yesterday, 20:43:

Alexraptor wrote on Yesterday, 18:10:

Got my hands on an Dell OEM variant of a GeForce 7800 GTX. :) […]
Show full quote

Got my hands on an Dell OEM variant of a GeForce 7800 GTX. 😀

The attachment G2RDWr-WAAASnTf.jpg is no longer available

In perfect working order it seems!

The attachment G2RetH2WIAA18Ux.jpg is no longer available

The attachment G2RetNCXgAAJxXs.jpg is no longer available

And the 3Dmark06 benchmark was right on target, comparing against benchmarks from 19 years ago. 😀

The attachment G2RetMDWcAAVK6p.jpg is no longer available

7800 gtx or even an older 6800 gtx were something that could turn your average XP rig to a gaming powerhouse. I could only dream of a 6200 card back then, forget a 7800 gtx. I think nearly all pre-Crysis era games can run at high resolutions with this card.

Oh yeah, totally! I only got to enjoy the 7800 GS back in the day, due to my moms computer only having an AGP slot. 🤣