VOGONS

Search

Common searches

Most insane computer restoration I've come across

Topic actions

First post, by Shponglefan

Posted on 
User metadata
Rank l33t
Rank
l33t

Not sure if this has been posted here before, I but I stumbled across this restoration of an Atari 800 XL that is on another level.

The originally damaged Atari looked it had been crushed, with huge portions of the plastic case missing, bent metal, corrosion, missing parts, and more. The restored unit looks nothing short of remarkable.

The author does opine that they "could have done way better", but it's still amazing considering how epically damaged the original unit was.

It's inspiring to see what level of restoration is possible with these older machines.

https://retrohax.net/extreme-refurbishing-epi … 00-xl-part-one/
https://retrohax.net/extreme-refurbishing-epi … 00-xl-part-two/

Attachments

  • Atari 800 XL before.png
    Filename
    Atari 800 XL before.png
    File size
    309.42 KiB
    Views
    474 views
    File license
    Fair use/fair dealing exception
  • Atari 800 XL after.png
    Filename
    Atari 800 XL after.png
    File size
    268.01 KiB
    Views
    474 views
    File license
    Fair use/fair dealing exception

Pentium 4 Multi-OS Build
486 DX4-100 with 6 sound cards
486 DX-33 with 5 sound cards

Reply 1 of 5, by Horun

Posted on 
User metadata
Rank l33t++
Rank
l33t++

That is impressive ! Thanks !

Hate posting a reply and then have to edit it because it made no sense 😁 First computer was an IBM 3270 workstation with CGA monitor. Stuff: https://archive.org/details/@horun

Reply 2 of 5, by Deunan

Posted on 
User metadata
Rank Oldbie
Rank
Oldbie

I was already impressed with the level of attention that PCB got (getting it straight is one thing, but injecting the cracks with epoxy resin is quite new to me). And then I saw he didn't just swap the case but actually filled the gaps... I'm in awe. I doubt I could do that, I never got those plastic airplane models quite right no matter how hard I tried 😀

Reply 3 of 5, by Shponglefan

Posted on 
User metadata
Rank l33t
Rank
l33t
Deunan wrote on 2023-01-05, 12:42:

I was already impressed with the level of attention that PCB got (getting it straight is one thing, but injecting the cracks with epoxy resin is quite new to me). And then I saw he didn't just swap the case but actually filled the gaps... I'm in awe. I doubt I could do that, I never got those plastic airplane models quite right no matter how hard I tried 😀

That's what really impressed me about it. That they didn't just swap the case, but fully restored it using metal rods as rebar, silicone molds and poured resin.

Pentium 4 Multi-OS Build
486 DX4-100 with 6 sound cards
486 DX-33 with 5 sound cards

Reply 4 of 5, by gerry

Posted on 
User metadata
Rank Oldbie
Rank
Oldbie

i was impressed how the board got working without replacing nearly everything, meaning much of it was essentially functioning just awaiting these careful steps and a few choice replacements to restore to life

Reply 5 of 5, by Gmlb256

Posted on 
User metadata
Rank l33t
Rank
l33t

Very awesome and detailed way to restore hardware! It would be incredible for preservation!

VIA C3 Nehemiah 1.2A @ 1.46 GHz | ASUS P2-99 | 256 MB PC133 SDRAM | GeForce3 Ti 200 64 MB | Voodoo2 12 MB | SBLive! | AWE64 | SBPro2 | GUS

Go to top of page Go to top of page
Back to General Old Hardware
Close window
Close window