Friday, September 29, 2006

9/29/06 Auctions of Note

Auctions of note for September 29th, 2006:

TANDY TSR-80 {Commodore} Home Computer System

Okay I wasn't going to do an update tonight, but this one was just too funny I couldn't help it. :)

RADIO SHACK TRS-80 COLOR MOUSE NEW IN BOX L@@K

A apparently new in box Color Mouse. If you're needing one...

And that's about it. :) There's a good CoCo 3 and some playable paks listed in the TRS-80 Forum. Worth bidding on if you're in the market.

Angel's Luck,
Capt

Wednesday, September 27, 2006

9/27/06 - Update and dis-belief....

As I write this, this auction:

Tandy TRS-80 Color Computer 2 with Disk Drives and more

Is going for the, IMO, insane price os $214.62. The only unique part of this auction is a custom dual disk drive system, which looks like two older style model I, III and IV type ss/dd full height drives (like a copy of the AppleII's). Jeez, if this CoCo2 auction goes for this price, I have to wonder what my repack would sell for (yeah... like that's gonna happen). Auctions like this blow me away as there is really nothing special about it. The special ones went last week with CM-8's, software, etc...

Now this is more like it and should go for a reasonable price...

Tandy color computer 3 with 5 1/4 in. drive

A CoCo3 , FD-502, deluxe joystick and manuals (see rant below on this). Though he obviously has NO sense of weight, a CoCo3 weighting 10lbs??? While not in collectible condition, heeeeeeeeere's repack material!!! Working with my CoCo III repack, I'm getting all kinds of repack ideas. Would anyone object to a CoCo3 in an X-Box case??? Or maybe an aluminum briefcase with an LCD mounted on the outside and all internals, well, internal, using a rollup AT keyboard that could be stored inside, hmmmm... must..focus....

TANDY TRS 80 RD 500 DISK DRIVE W/CABLE AND INTERFACE

No idea if this is in a box, but it looks to be in at least fair condition and possibly even usable. Good buy if the price is right.

RADIO SHACK TANDY TRS 80 COLOR COMPUTER

Here's a nice looking white CoCo from the same seller as above. What don't about these auctions is he is also selling the CoCo Basic manual in a separate auction. Cheesey, man, just cheesey.

Captains Challenge:

Hey CaptCPU (or anyone else), here's a project for you. Do a repack with this:

Radio Shack TRS 80 TRS-80 Vintage Computer NO RESERVE!!

Basically a Model III dumb terminal (no floppies). If you can pick it up for $15-20, the $15.00 shipping is a steal. I just paid $30 each for a MIII and two M4's (of course all I paid was shipping... :D ) You could probably sell it's guts on eBay and make your money back...

Cris mentioned the HD63C09EP processors. Still researching trying to find them for a reasonable price. Getting itchy to try that swap myself...

Till next... (B)

Tuesday, September 26, 2006

9/26/06 Auctions of Note

Auctions of note for September 26th, 2006:

Two NEW (Old Stock) Hitachi 6309E CPUs (HD63B09EP)

There's been some chatter around :) about aquiring some of these. Wouldn't mind one myself, but when 68B09Es can be had for about $3.00 a pop... well, it does the job. A Hitachi 63B09EP sold last week for almost $30.00!!! Here's two. (This is a replacement chip for the Motorola 68B09EP. It runs cooler than the Motorola part and has extra intructions. Can apparently be run at a higher clock rate as well.) Considering how rare these are, and difficult (expensive) to get hold of, it probably qualifies as a collectible now-a-days.

Okay, here's a freakin' super collectible:


TRS-80 Videotex Terminal & Owner's Manual Excellent!


This is a Video Text terminal WITH manual. Nice and rare. Look familiar? Well, the CoCo wasn't the only thing put in that gray box. This thing was an online data service that served up stock quotes, weather, crop reports and other stuff. Way before the Internet! You could turn the CoCo into one of these with the Videotext pak and a modem, of course. This is a VERY nice looking specimen of a CoCo-like substance for the serious collector.

Radio Shack TRS-80 Color Computer Diagnostic Cartridge

From the photo appears to be very fine. This is rare as well, particularly in this condition. Nifty pak for basic CoCo checking. Course, don't help much if the CoCo won't fire. And if something is busted on the CoCo, it usually won't fire... :) Judging from the picture, though not sealed, this is a put it away as a treasure copy.

Off Topic collectible:

Radio Shack TRS 80 Micro Computer ~May Be New Old Stock

The reason why I keep my credit cards locked up. :D This is pretty freakin' amazing. A Very Fine Model I with most of the trimmings still in the box. Should be fun to see how high it'll go.

TANDY COLOR COMPUTER 2 W/ box MINT!!

Not mint. But definately collectible quality. In the Very Good to Fine range I'd say, at least. If you look close, I believe that's the original plastic bag the CoCo was wrapped in up underneath the machine. Though could also be the dust cover. :) As always, ask before bidding: Cat No? ECB? Memory? Box condition? Serial numbers match?

Tandy Color Computer TRS-80 software on floppy and pak

Appears to contain original copies of CoCoMax, Iron Forest, VIP Calc, and an unknown to me called Mine Rescue. Alas no pak for the CoCo Max and no light gun for Iron Forest. I'd say these are in the collectible category just because of how freakin' rare they are. :)


Vintage 32k extended TRS-80 Color Computer CoCo 1 WORKS


Extrememly early, perhaps first run, CoCo up for grabs. Includes lots of paks and the manuals and original box. Upgraded to 32K and ECB. Appears to be in beautiful condition. If you like early CoCos, and can stomach the shipping, have a look. As far as Color Computers go, this is definately one of the collectibles.

Some collectible stuff in there, but mostly it's been good, solid CoCo stuff for using lately. Great time to fill in the pak collection, take a shot at some magazines, pick up a joystick, or a CoCo 2 or two. The CoCo 3 is also hot right now and the price for just the computer has been rising steadily for about two months. I'm suspecting this is just the warm up for a hot Fall season. ;)

Angel's Luck,
Capt.

Sunday, September 17, 2006

9/17/07 Auctions of Note

Lest anyone think I'm not posting... heh... I am, I just haven't been inspired to do so by the listings available the last week. Not that there hasn't been buyable stuff, just not stuff to make me go Wow! I like wow.

Mainly, I've been in the Evil Lab butchering a poor CoCo 3 to death. It's going well so far. If by well we mean killing it. In consultations now to resesitate the poor guy, but we'll see. It's a fun project though. See the "Pimp My CoCo" posts over on the CoCo Hut blog for more on this impending disaster.

Anyhow, here we go with a nice round up. Some of these will be pretty short on time, so jump on in if you're of a mind to bid.

RAINBOW MAGAZINE MAG FOR COCO COLOR COMPUTER 1988

Here's a nice set of 1988 Rainbows from levona1 (frequent seller of CoCo stuff). The run actually doesn't come very often, so might be worth a look.

Tandy color computer books for basic and OS-9


Here's a lot of CoCo (and BASIC) books that appear to be in Good quality. Not collectible perhaps, but certainly usable. And you should have two copies on hand anyway. :) And it's for a good cause. The seller is trying to save his '63 Nova. Personally, I'd have gone with the CoCo, but...

Tandy color computer 1/2 OS-9 software plus

Same seller. A complete set of OS/9 for the CoCo 1/2. The seller is including a patched disk, so that it'll run properly on the CoCo3 as well. Be sure to look closely at the second picture for a few extra rarities. :)

Tandy color computer 3 system with OS-9 software

And the same seller's CoCo 3 system. The starting bid may seem a little high, but it's quite reasonable for this system. Looks good too. Includes OS-9 Level 2, Duel FD-502s, CM-8 and some extras. (You can also make out the Nova in the background.)

TRS-80 Floppy Drive Controller FD-502 Tandy Radio Shack

FD-502 contoller if you need it (see below). Never hurts to have a spare.

TRS-80 Color Computer MINI DISK Drive Cat. 26-3023
TRS-80 Color Computer MINI DISK Drive Cat. 26-3022

Couple of older silver vertical drives. Sold seperately, no cables and no controller. But fun if you're old schooling it with a gray.

TANDY CoCo Multi Pak Interface Connect up to 4 Carts!

A rather nice looking gray MPI. Even sans box and manual, this one looks pretty good from the pictures. Again, if you're going truely retro, this behemoth looks great plugged in to a gray. With the drives, though, make sure you've got vast desk real estate.

TRS 80 VINTAGE COLOR COMPUTER 2 WITH 4 GAMES AND BOOKS

Relisted on this one. (Did this already sell or am I imagining things? It's the exact same pictures and listing, unless I'm going nuts, and both parties already left postitive feedback for each other. Weird. I'd definately inquire before bidding... hmm...) The main treasures here are the paks, though, that appear in at least Very Good condition. Panic Button and Tenis are rare.

DUAL HARD DRIVE FOR TRS 80 COLOR COMPUTER FD 500

Floppies, not hard drives. But a nice retro 35-track system if you're in the mood. Controller pak looks a bit ate up, no label.

Vintage Tandy Color Computer 1 w/ manuals & Joysticks

Here's a decent looking 26-3001. Good machine. Probably an E-Board. With the 1.0 ROM and 4K for the truely manly CoCoists. Grunt, grunt, grunt. :)

Radio Shack TRS-80 Color Computer Games Vintage

Not particularly collectible here, but a nice big fat lot of CoCo 1/2 paks for playing with. Some real gems in there like Skiing, Downland, Gomoku/Renju, Castle Guard, Doubleback, Slay the Nares and others.

Tandy color computer 3 service manual

The always handy CoCo 3 Service Manual. Particularly if you're like me and fudge up your CoCo in an alarmingly regular manner. Ahem. Hopefully you're not like me, but this is still useful. :) Be aware though that it's not a cure all. It assumes a lot and skips over quite a bit. Still, what's there is worth having and makes a nice basic quick reference, particularly with the fold out schematics.

TRS 80 COLOR COMPUTER X-PAD (DRAWING TABLET)

This is interesting not because it's particularly collectible (or perhaps even usuable), but because the seller is throwing in a copy of an article he wrote for The Rainbow about how to interface this thing. Neat add-on. :)


For the CoCoist Down Under:


TANDY TRS-80 Color Computer II Vintage retro rare box


Here's a rather sharp looking 2 with plenty of fixin's for the Autralian CoCoist. Also includes some software I haven't seen before. hmmm...

Mislisted:

Vintage TANDY Disk Drive FD-502 for Color Computer

A single drive FD-502. No controller pak, but luckily there's one listed elsewhere (see above). :)

Vintage TANDY Color Computer 3 128K

And from the same seller, a 128K CoCo 3. Appears to be in nice shape. No manuals, alas. (Note: This same seller listed a CM-5 as a CoCo monitor. He's corrected the listing somewhat, but not the title as of this writing. Be aware that the CM-5 WILL NOT work with the CoCo. Nope. Not gonna happen.)


TRS 80 COLOR COMPUTER TWO DISK DRIVE (0 AND 1 DRIVES)


Horriblly mislisted, but a nice vertical gray drive set up with cables and contollers. Shipping might seem high, but it's probably pretty accurate. These suckers are heavy!


Like I said, just a few of particular note. Mainly stuff that's very usable and worth having, but nothing anyone is going to jump out of their skin over. These are, however, the stuff I watch closely becuase this is exactly the sort of items that can have an impact on the Price Guide. Another update coming soon. Tune in and stay tuned...

Angel's Luck,
Capt.

Wednesday, September 13, 2006

Quick update my my earlier complaint...

About the Orchestra 90 auction

The seller of this auction came through. And I gotta tell ya, this thing is immaculate. The box is near perfect, the cartridge is still wrapped and the manual has never been opened. Can't wait to hook this thing up and input 'Wanted Dead or Alive' in it and see how it sounds...

Turns out his personal issues were legit. And he explained to me what happed with the neg feedback he got on the other O-90 cart. Fact is, he came through in the end and I commend him for that. He says he still has like 15 of these. I may buy another for collectors purposes. Damn this thing is HOT!!!

That's about all I have. There are two CoCo3 auctions that are HOT as can be right now, but, Cris has already covered them. Until next time....(B)

Sunday, September 10, 2006

9/10/06 Auctions of Note

Auctions of Note for September 10th, 2006:

Wow! Four days since the last update. Yow. Just haven't seen enough to get me on here and posting, but looks like there's enough now to do a decent round up.

Tandy 64k color computer 2

Here's a good lookin' 26-3127B CoCo 2 with manuals. Nice solid CoCo 2 to play with (have I mentioned a few times it's the one I use? I yeah, I have. heh!).

Vintage Tandy Color Computer 3 with accesories

An absolutely gorgeous CoCo 3 with FD-502. All the manuals, packing and boxes appear present. Appears to be in collectible condition. Nice selection of games and apps to go with it. One of the games listed is King's Quest 3, so I wonder if this machine is upgraded to 512K. Auction doesn't say.

Huge Lot - Tandy Color Computer 3, Monitor & extras

Nice, big fat CoCo 3 lot with CM-8. You would need to add a drive and a tape deck. Still, it would be a great start to a system for using, particularly for retro-use.


RADIO SHACK TRS-80 COLOR COMPUTER CONTROLLER


Not particularly collectible, but if you need a disk controller...

Data tape: TRS80 Color Computer Home Controller Program

Not exactly sure what this is, but here's one. :) Maybe goes with a light/appliance module, but I seem to remember that thing had a program pak that went with it? Hmmm...

Kings Quest 3 for the TRS-80 Color Computer 3

Nice copy of KQ3. Good game. Requires 512K.

NEW Sports Statistics Football Software forTRS-80 Color

Ah ha! Now here's a super rare item from Sugar Software! If you coach a team, this might actually still be useful as well. Regardless, definately in the collectible range.

lot of 6 Vintage Tandy Games

Here's a mislisted pak collection (pretty used) that includes the rather rare Cyrus World Class Chess pak.


TRS-80 Multi-Pak Interface Service Manual


Here's a nice MPI service manual. This one's for the 26-3124 MPI.

And that's a bout it. And some of those are stretches as to whether they're "of note." But hey, some days we take what we can get. :)

Angel's Luck,
Capt.

Wednesday, September 06, 2006

9/6/06 Auctions of Note

Auctions of note for September 6th, 2006:

There is at least some action in the TRS-80 forums and the CoCo is carrying a goodly portion of it. It's just that there isn't a lot of super rare stuff. Still some nice collectibles coming up the last couple of days.

These three lots, from the same seller, look promising:


VINTAGE TRS-80 King's Quest 3/Microscopic Mis./Rogue NR


VINTAGE TRS-80 DALLAS QUEST/INTERBANK INCIDENT/DYNACALC

VINTAGE TRS-80 CARMEN SANDIEGO/SUB-BATTLE/FL SIMUL. NR

Apparently very nice looking sealed in the box variety. The serious collector/archivist should have a good look at these. Inquire about shipping, of course.

Mislisted:

Airball by MicroDeal - Dragon 32/64 & Tandy TRS-80 32K

Here's a nice Airball cassette from Microdeal. Have I mentioned enough times that I love these cassettes? Oh.

Tandy Color Computer 3 128K

Here's a CoCo 3 if you need one, or need an extra. Price is about right.

Some new listings from bird-cage:

Zaxxon TANDY TRS-80 Sega / Datasoft complete

Ultrapede DRAGON 32 / TANDY TRS-80 Softek

Time Love's Cricket TANDY TRS-80 Peaksoft complete

Rommel's Revenge DRAGON 32 / TANDY TRS-80 Design Design


These are some more UK tapes. Gotta love it!

Not a CoCo, Dept:

RADIO SHACK TRS-80 PT-210 PORTABLE DATA TERMINAL COMPUT


Fun looking collectible device. What a beast! :)

As said, a few items to get nice and excited about. But there's plenty more in there for those looking to get usable equipment/software, or folks just starting out. These are "good days" to be a CoCo collector, so jump on in there!

Angel's Luck,
Capt.

Sunday, September 03, 2006

9/3/06 Auctions of Note

Auctions of Note for September 3rd, 2006:

Just a few bits and pieces from the last few days (see Brian's post, below, for some more):


Radio Shack TRS-80 File Pak with 8 cassettes, some rare


Okay, odd title and I wouldn't stick these in your CCR, but... First the File-Pak is neat and doesn't come up too often. This is the big, heavy monster Radio Shack used to sell for storing your pak collection. Kind of a fun bonus there. Also, two Reactoid paks and the Tennis pak. Both are fairly rare and fun. Shipping may seem steep, but that File-Pak is pretty hefty.

TSR Radio Shack Color Computer cc Spiderside w/ Booklet

This lot has the pretty rare Spiderside pak with the slightly rarer manual. Good game, too.

RAINBOW MAGAZINE May 1993 Last ISSUE

Is there a fight on the horizon? heh! Glen has put up his run of the "newspaper" Rainbows, the last of the famous mag's run. When last seen, these went for some serious bucks. But with such a short auction run, will these fetch as much, or is an adjustment in the Price Guide coming. Let's watch... :)

CoCo 2 Color Computer Technical Reference Manual

This is just a photocopy, but it's a photocopy of a rare techref. Including the 26-3127B CoCo 2. Good CoCo. :)

DOUBLEBACK TRS 80 GAME USED ONLY

Rare. Very. Doubleback is a pretty neat pak, as well. I get asked for this pak, or leads on it, more than anything else. Well, there ya go... :)

Disk Drive Watch:

Tandy color computer disk drive FD 501

A mislisted FD-501. Good drive for retro disk spinning. 35-track Tandons, though, so not as useful for modern CoCoing. Difficult to tell if it's in collectible condition or not, but the controller and face plates look good.

That's about it at the moment. Tune in and stay tuned...

Angel's Luck,
Capt

9/3/06 Auctions and inane off topic ramblings...

First, right out of the box, I'm going to start with a buyer beware...

Vintage NOS Tandy Stereo Music Synthesizer Cat 26-3143

This is the third time around for this aprticular offering from this seller, bbbstl. I bought one when they were $14.95, via PayPal on August 1, and am working with eBay and PayPal to resolve the issue of either getting my money back, or actually getting the item sent to me. I have sent the seller 4 emails trying to address the issue and he reponded only to the first, and none of them were harshly worded. Was just asking for status updates. To make it worse, another eBayer left this fellow a neg for the SAME ITEM sold back in July. If you wish to have one, and are willing to risk it, give it a shot as these seem to be NOS. But again, buyer beware...

UPDATE - 9/8/06: Was notified by PayPal that a shipping label for the item had been purchased for Priority Mail delivery. If legit, it should be here Tuesday. We'll see. Even so, i still have major issues with the slow shipping and total lack of communication.... (B)

Now for the lighter side...

VINTAGE TANDY 128 K COLOR COMPUTER 3 MODEL 26-3334

This looks to be a very clean looking CoCo3 and the price and shipping are reasonable, being as it is in Canada. I'd probably bid on it, but I'm looking at an Atari auction right now. Yes, I'm a die hard CoCoNut, but I like the Atari ST's also... :)

TRS-80 64K Computer + Tandy reader + manuals+ joystick+

Here's a nice little CoCo2 starter system complete with what looks like a CCr-82A (don't quote me...), and a couple tapes and carts.

Cris has covered the rest of what I would call interesting. I would have to agree with Cris in that there seems to be an overall slowdown (now keep in mind everytime I've mentioned slow downs on CoCo related eBay auctions, they jumped right back up...). In fact, Glen over at the CocoLounge seems to be keeping us above 80 with all of his Rainbows he's put up. I'd sure like to get those, but, I can;t cough up the Canada Post shipping costs... OUCH!!!

Some non-CoCo related auctions worth mentioning...

TI-99/8 ( Armadillo ) Computer - Never Released!

WOW!!! With a little over an hour left, this litte gem i at $1825.00!!! I'd like to see what the unreleased CoCo4 would go for....

ATARI FALCON 030 COMPUTER W/MOUSE AND PWR CORD

There are actually two of these on eBay right now, and these are quite rare in their own right. This one will sell for >$400 and the other has a Buy-It now option for $499. Pretty cool for 20 year ols machines...