The Keyboard Chronicles!
I've been helping a friend haul furniture around in preparation for a garage sale. While making a path through her crowded storage unit, I stumbled across something wonderful ...
There, amongst the stacks of ancient computer hardware, was a vintage IBM Model M keyboard, circa 1987!
The holy grail of keyboards! The pinnacle of typing perfection! It was in surprisingly good condition, considering the state of the storage unit, and I negotiated it as my payment for the day! =D
The left ALT keycap is missing, obviously, but that's a minor detail. The spacebar was also funky, which may explain why it was in storage, but a quick reseating of the metal bracket fixed that problem.
The only real problem is, well, it doesn't work, haha. I suspect my motherboard's PS/2 legacy support isn't quite legacy enough. This beast requires something like 120 milliamps, over 100 times what a modern keyboard would draw. With that in mind, I've ordered a good PS/2-USB converter which should take care of it. It's also possible that the interior cable is loose, but I can't get inside just yet. The rear panel is secured with four socket screws that require a rather odd 7/32" socket wrench. Kind of threw me for a loop, but hey, these things were built to LAST. Ordinary screws could easily be stripped and rendered useless, but not these. So, along with the adapter, I've also ordered a 7/32" socket wrench, hurr. =B
Hopefully they'll both arrive sometime next week, and I can disassemble the thing and give it a good thorough cleaning. Like I said, it's really not that dirty, but you can tell it's been in a dusty storage room for the past couple of decades.
SO YES! This is my new project, to get this thing cleaned up and in perfect working condition by its 22nd birthday! I'll post pictures whenever I can of the disassembly and cleaning progress!
There, amongst the stacks of ancient computer hardware, was a vintage IBM Model M keyboard, circa 1987!
The holy grail of keyboards! The pinnacle of typing perfection! It was in surprisingly good condition, considering the state of the storage unit, and I negotiated it as my payment for the day! =D
The left ALT keycap is missing, obviously, but that's a minor detail. The spacebar was also funky, which may explain why it was in storage, but a quick reseating of the metal bracket fixed that problem.
The only real problem is, well, it doesn't work, haha. I suspect my motherboard's PS/2 legacy support isn't quite legacy enough. This beast requires something like 120 milliamps, over 100 times what a modern keyboard would draw. With that in mind, I've ordered a good PS/2-USB converter which should take care of it. It's also possible that the interior cable is loose, but I can't get inside just yet. The rear panel is secured with four socket screws that require a rather odd 7/32" socket wrench. Kind of threw me for a loop, but hey, these things were built to LAST. Ordinary screws could easily be stripped and rendered useless, but not these. So, along with the adapter, I've also ordered a 7/32" socket wrench, hurr. =B
Hopefully they'll both arrive sometime next week, and I can disassemble the thing and give it a good thorough cleaning. Like I said, it's really not that dirty, but you can tell it's been in a dusty storage room for the past couple of decades.
SO YES! This is my new project, to get this thing cleaned up and in perfect working condition by its 22nd birthday! I'll post pictures whenever I can of the disassembly and cleaning progress!