Are the components in this old CompuPro worth anything to anyone? - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: larryq
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: April 28, 2015, 03:03:38 am
content: I helped my dad move recently and under his desk for the past 20 years has been a 1983 CompuPro, both the CPU and disk drive case. I don't know if it still works or fires up (worked fine when it went under the desk) but the components in it seem pretty beefy, very large capacitors and interesting spindle motors. Would anyone be able to use them, do you think, or is it scrap heap time?I've attached some pics and a couple of quick walkthrough videos. Thanks for your opinions:http://1drv.ms/1b8c23C

author: JBaughb
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: April 28, 2015, 03:27:39 am
content: The capacitors are Nichicon so those are good quality, I'd take them out. Then I always salvage motors from anything I can find, and its looks like theres some beefy ones in thereHave fun. Tearing stuff apart is therapeutic.I don't really know the details of that computer, but it might be worth something if its working, maybe even if its not.http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2050601.m570.l1313.TR6.TRC2.A0.H0.XCompuPro.TRS0&_nkw=CompuPro&_sacat=0

author: SL4P
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 28, 2015, 04:49:21 am
content: LarryQ... I have no idea where you are (no profile flag), but I'd love top go back to my twenties with S-100 !!!PM if you are in Australia - I may buy it if you want to sell !

author: larryq
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: April 29, 2015, 04:57:06 am
content: Thanks for your replies. I guess the consensus is, there really isn't one, other than there's something worthwhile in the boxI'll list it on the local craigslist for a few weeks, see what nibbles come up. The eBay prices you linked are really out there! What they actually go for is a different story of course.Unfortunately SL4P, I'm in the SF Bay Area, so shipping to Oz is probably a non-starter...sorry about that.

author: JBaughb
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: April 29, 2015, 05:33:40 am
content: Well, if you'll get a bite at all, SFBay CL is where it would happen. Good luck

author: SL4P
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 29, 2015, 06:15:18 am
content: As ageneralrule - please don't sell it to anyone underabout25 years old...They'll probably lack the patience and focus to get it running between their facebook sessions!It would be a pity to see it stripped or abandoned as a piece of enthusiast clutter !I'm not being mean or ageist - just saying it's not an iWatch or PS4- it's only worth something to a person that wants exactly what itis.Cheers

author: ronwoch
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: April 29, 2015, 06:23:09 am
content: Not at all true - I started collecting IBM pc's (5150's, 60's, etc) when I was about 9 years old. Early home computers have been a life long passion and hobby for me, and fixing/maintaining my collection is what got me into the broader hobby of electronics in the first place. I'll be the first to admit that I am definitely NOT the 'average' for my age, or any other. But still. That's where the 'general rule' part comes in.That said, I live in WA state, and would be interested in the compupro myself. I will send a pm, see if we can work something out.

author: miguelvp
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 29, 2015, 06:25:21 am
content: Quote from: wilfred on April 29, 2015, 06:18:36 amI don't know, I gave a bunch of floppies and old manuals to a coworker that wants to play with an original IBM PC, not sure about his age but he has to be on his mid 20sYoung adults dig the retro stuff, more so than we old farts. (Because we know better of course)

author: SL4P
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 29, 2015, 06:31:12 am
content: There are certainly exceptions - but this CompuPro is not an IBM PC or even vaguely similar.Go for it ronwoch - you probably have a chance!

author: codeboy2k
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 29, 2015, 09:06:39 am
content: Some of the old S-100 stuff goes for $3500 or more.I have an Altair 8800b that I got when I was 12 years old, plus a mix of S-100 boards that I added to it. It's been a long, long time since I fired it up, and right now the front panel is dead on mine. I know that from the last time I tried to turn it on. The front panel EPROMS are all erased and contain 0xFF at every address. I left it open on my bench for about 1 year and the sun shining through the window wiped it out. So I have a project waiting for me, to get those EPROMS written again and see if I can make it blink.Lesson learned... cover your EPROM windows when you don't have time to get to a project.

author: ronwoch
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: May 04, 2015, 07:58:43 pm
content: Just for anyone interested:There is a VERY active email group related to this page:http://www.s100computers.com/A few members of it (not me, I just enjoy reading and occasionally drooling) design new S100 cards, which are frequently ordered as group buys. If you hang around the email list long enough, you can actually order yourself enough cards to build a full working system. All assembled by you, of course. They also have a LOT of very knowledgeable folks that have experience with getting CP/M up and running, etc. Really worth a look if you are into such things. I bought a couple of the compact flash/IDE boards to eventually put into my Zenith Z100, but alas, I have not yet gotten around to that project, just yet.

author: amyk
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 05, 2015, 02:29:41 am
content: Also worth looking at for this and other old computer stuff:http://www.vintage-computer.com/vcforum/forum.php