Date   : Thu, 20 Dec 2012 15:37:42 +0000 (GMT)
From   : kim@... (Kim Faulkner)
Subject: Surplus BBC model B machines

Dear All,

I spent many years in the 80's and 90's repairing and upgrading Acorn
computers and Microvitec and Philips monitors. I worked mainly for a
nearby Acorn dealer but I had a contract with a college also and the
continual repair of all their monitors kept me busy for a few more years.
During the early 90's, all their BBC model B's and Microvitec monitors
went into store whilst I continued to repair the monitors and power
supplies used in their 100+ operational Elonex PC's which replaced them.

When the college moved buildings due to redevelopment, I was involved in
the relocation of all the PC's. When the BBC's were found in a store room,
I was able to save them all from being put in the skip. I ended up with
about 30 machines and about 15 Microvitec monitors. They were brought to
my home/workshop and that is where they still are today. As an aside,
I also saved over 100 8088 PC's, keyboards and monitors which all went
to Eastern Europe via a charity.

When they all came home, I singled out 3 Microvitec monitors which have
been in semi-retirement and see occasional use on one of my test benches.
The rest got moved to a garden shed where they remain to this day.
I asked on this list about a year or so ago if anybody wanted them and
two respondents came forward. However, due to distances, nothing was
arranged regarding their collection. I shall look up those e-mails
in due course and see if I can encourage any progress. For the moment,
though, they are out-of-sight, out-of-mind, and so not on my highest
priority list.

What is now important, however, is the destiny of 23 BBC model B machines
which have been sitting on top of a cabinet in my dining room for about
twenty years, which I have now decided must now go to a good home. These
machines have all had a very hard life. All are mostly complete but many
of the cases are yellowed and most are branded with the college details
and postcode etc. Some are known to be unserviceable whilst others could
be brought back to life with little effort. One machine has a totally
rusty mainboard where it must have been at the bottom of the pile in the
storeroom and there must have been a leaky pipe at one point. Some have
no screws where they were obviously used as parts donors in the past.
All power supplies are present and I think that just one has a missing
keyboard.

I did single out about 4 of them which had good-looking cases and these
were kept and used elsewhere. What is now for reloction is the remainder.

I did make an inventory a few years ago and discovered that one of them
has a B+128 model number. When I opened it up, the mainboard was a regular
model B type and I then systematically opened then all up to see if the
B+128 mainboard was in one of the others, but it wasn't. Therefore, I might
be on the look out for a serviceable B+128 mainboard to restore this one
with and if so, the number of available computers will reduce to 22.

What I am now seeking is some ideas for their destiny which will not
involve them all being discarded. I would welcome any reader of this
list to forward proposals or ideas that are not-for-profit. I am able
to restore them myself and sell them on eBay and so will not give them
away for this purpose. I know that the Bletchley Park museum have an
eighties computer classroom but I have not had any dealings with them.
I have however, donated many elderly USA-made computers to the museum
in Haverhill, shortly to be moving to Cambridge. I would gladly give
them to them but I thought that I would jest mention it on this list
first.

I will gladly spend some more time cataloging the features of each
machine and presenting that information here, perhaps in the new year,
when we have the space to remove them all from the high cabinet and
on to a workbench.

Thank you for reading,
Kim Faulkner, Dartford, Kent.
kim@...