LCII & SE FDHD

[luckybob]

Local computer recycler put these two machines (and others) on ebay. They charge a MINT for shipping so their auctions tend to end up very low. Thankfully I live ~ 15 minutes away so I like to snag any deals.

First was a Macintsoh SE FDHD. It was giving a ? disk error so I got it REAL cheap - $10.

This little box has seen some better days. Its not damaged, just significantly yellowed and "well-used". I opened the case, hoping that I won the lotto and there was an accelerator card inside. I also wanted to drop in a hard drive to see if it would boot. Turns out, there was no card, but the reason the hard drive wasn't working was because it wasn't plugged in. So I put it back together and turned her on and she came to life like they should.

It has been a while since the last time I used a REAL early hard drive. The ones with the loud stepper motors. I'm glad hard drive technology has progressed! The stock 20mb drive in this little machine works FLAWLESS. I found "Where in America's past is Carmen Sandiego" on the hard drive.



Acquisition #2 is a LCII. I'm not a huge fan of the 1 & 2, but for $10, and I was already going to get the SE, i figured, why not save it from being scrapped. Honestly when I got it, I was amazed. Completely stock. This thing is CLEAN. I mean right out of the box clean. Its like someone turned it on ONCE installed quicken and put it back in the box. I had a nostalgia-gasm with this little box. One thing on the factory fresh install was the "Macintosh Basics" program. I had completely forgotten this existed and I burned a good hour learning how to use the mouse again. :lol:



links to the ebay auctions ( also the other items I won but arent macs)

http://www.ebay.com/itm/321107223520

http://www.ebay.com/itm/321110370669

http://www.ebay.com/itm/321107259093

http://www.ebay.com/itm/321110485922

http://www.ebay.com/itm/310654120101

 

[LCGuy]

Some very nice hauls there. That LC II is immaculate. (apart from the pen markings above the ports - what are they?)

On that topic - I notice the LC II is a Singapore unit - I would've thought that all American Macs would've been from either Fremont or Sacramento?

 

[maceffects]

Nice find! I'm amazed the SE hard drive worked, everyone I see is froze up. And very clean LCIII. Also should be noted you found some nice grabs on the PC stuff too!

 

[TheMacGuy]

I notice the LC II is a Singapore unit - I would've thought that all American Macs would've been from either Fremont or Sacramento?

Most but not all. The Performa 200 is a Singapore unit. I have to double check, but I believe my Quadra 650 is also a Singapore unit.

 

[luckybob]

Some very nice hauls there. That LC II is immaculate. (apart from the pen markings above the ports - what are they?)
On that topic - I notice the LC II is a Singapore unit - I would've thought that all American Macs would've been from either Fremont or Sacramento?

I think the original user wanted to mark what cables went where. I used a alcohol soaked cotton swab and it came right off.

Also, Singapore unit, What does that mean? Should I be happy or something?

2 of the 3 808X portables I got worked. The HP one needs some sort of special power supply. Supposedly, it has ZORK built into rom!

 

[LCGuy]

Singapore unit = it was built in Singapore, as seen by the "SG" at the beginning of the serial number. The serial number would start with F if it were built in Fremont, CA, or XA or XB if it were built in Sacramento, CA. (for those of you playing along in Europe/UK, Macs with serial numbers starting with CK were built in Cork, Ireland)

Does it matter? Does the factory it came from make a Mac any rarer or more valuable? Not really. Just something I noticed, since I would've thought American Macs would've been built locally.

 

[Scott Baret]

You'd be surprised what winds up in America. I know a lot of the lower-cost Macs were assembled overseas--pretty sure all of the Mac Classics (I and II) were Singapore and Ireland. I don't have any LCs with me to verify with--were any even made in Fremont?

Looking at a IIvx system I have in my closet at the moment, I see the computer was made in Fremont (USA) and the monitor in Japan (not really a surprise since it's a Macintosh Color Display with a Sony Trinitron).

Sometimes, parts will be made in many different locations. The square ADB mouse was known to have been produced in the USA, Taiwan, and Malaysia (I'm not sure but I think they made them in Cork, Ireland too). There are even subtle differences between the countries. The USA mice have a distinct clicker which feels more like the old serial mouse. A similar clicker is used on the Malaysia mouse, but it has a different feel--a bit lighter. The Taiwan mouse uses a black ball and a different retaining ring (the others use a grayish-tannish ball) and the clicker is much different--light and hard.

Even inside the Macs, parts can come from almost anywhere. I have seen pizza box LCs with 40MB Quantum ProDrive LPS or Conner 40MB drives, for example. Same Macs, different drives.