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Westinghouse's finds
Posted by: Westinghouse on 2017-01-16 21:26:16
I've been collecting for a few years now, but a recent find made me want to make a conquest post.

I recently acquired three great computers in one lot:

The first is a PowerBook Kanga. In great shape, and with a battery that still holds several hours of charge.

The second is a PowerBook 140. It came with a bad hard drive, but I was able to source a donor (broken case) PowerBook 520 from a local junk store ($10) to revive it.

The last was a Macintosh Plus. Very yellowed, and the floppy drive is flaky, and needs a cleaning, but it boots very well from an external drive or from a Floppy Emu.

All of this came my way for the low, low price of $Free!

This lot was listed on a local classifieds sir for $200, but I guess there were no takers - the lot price dropped to $100, and then to "free, but take all three”, which I was glad to do.

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Posted by: Byrd on 2017-01-17 01:18:52
Nice scores Westinghouse!  I have a soft spot for the 3400/Kanga - the sound output is impressive, as is the screen, and they handily run pretty much anything made for OS 8/9 really well.
Posted by: just.in.time on 2017-01-21 03:02:49
That's a good run!
Posted by: Juror22 on 2017-01-21 17:25:50
So nice!  Very nice saves.
Posted by: Westinghouse on 2017-03-13 18:13:07
I have never tried LetGo before; prompted by some discussion on here in the Craigslist thread, I hopped on and had a quick look.

What a great coincidence: I've been looking for a Macintosh Portable for years at a reasonable price, and there was a listing up (for a week!) with a Mac Portable for CAN$150.

The seller actually drove 20km to deliver this to me. Based on the info he had in the ad, I actually got more than I expected.

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It actually came with the case, which wasn't shown in any of the photos. It's in great shape, though one foot is missing.

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The plastic is crack-free, with minimal yellowing.

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Only the space key is yellowed. Very clean!

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Hard drive and original battery still there, along with a 1mb ram card.

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The 9v battery leads are severed, the battery compartment looks clean.

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Bottom case is a little dirty, but in otherwise good shape.

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The back is also in good shape.

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The power supply is really discolored, but it seems to be outputting the correct voltage.

So, I haven't tried to power this on yet - having wanted one for a while, I know a recap is mandatory, and that I'll need to recell or replace the main battery. That's going to have to wait a bit, but I'm really looking forward to it!

Bonus:

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Late last year, I picked up this working recharging tray from a local junk shop for $5 - I told myself I was going to sell it, but I never listed it anywhere because I suspected I'd regret it. Glad I didn't!
Posted by: Carboy7 on 2017-03-13 18:32:09
:O Nice find! That's a really good-looking portable.
Posted by: Westinghouse on 2017-05-20 20:16:41
Got an LC II + Macintosh Color Display today; it's been a while since anything vintage has come up locally for a reasonable price, and it seems like beige Apple monitors are getting hard to find around here, either alone or with a system.

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Posted by: Westinghouse on 2017-05-20 20:21:34
*Double post*
Posted by: trigf on 2017-06-29 14:33:45
I've been collecting for a few years now, but a recent find made me want to make a conquest post.

I recently acquired three great computers in one lot:

The first is a PowerBook Kanga. In great shape, and with a battery that still holds several hours of charge.

The second is a PowerBook 140. It came with a bad hard drive, but I was able to source a donor (broken case) PowerBook 520 from a local junk store ($10) to revive it.

The last was a Macintosh Plus. Very yellowed, and the floppy drive is flaky, and needs a cleaning, but it boots very well from an external drive or from a Floppy Emu.

All of this came my way for the low, low price of $Free!

This lot was listed on a local classifieds sir for $200, but I guess there were no takers - the lot price dropped to $100, and then to "free, but take all three”, which I was glad to do.
The 3400/Kanga G3 batteries are almost other-worldly with their longevity. I have a 3400 with the original battery that still goes for about two hours on a charge, almost 20 years later. 
Posted by: CC_333 on 2017-06-29 21:01:57
Lombard/Pismo batteries seem to be similar. I have an OEM one that still holds a charge., after being dead for about 8 years! It just decided to wake up and work one day, and at last check (4 years ago :| ), it ran for about two hours on a charge!

I also have an aftermarket battery that seems to run for about 1-1/2 hours, but it cuts off abruptly at the end of it's cycle (jumping from 10% down to 0), so it has seen better days.

But at least it works! And that one I tested more recently. Back in April or May, I think.

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