Multitech MicroProfessor
Author: Graham
EA Mini-Scamp
This Mini-Scamp board came from ARC colleague Andrew. It appears to have never been completed. Looks like a project.
Sinclair ZX80/81
Sharp PC-1500A
BBC Master 128
The BBC Master 128 is an evolution of the BBC micro and runs most of the software for that platform. The BBC ecosystem is like no other with its language and filing ROMs.
This machine was a gumtree purchase in about 2018. According to the seller, it was an ex-TAFE machine. It came with the Thompson monitor and a disk drive. After replacing the battery and reloading some parameters, it was good to go.
I added a modern mass storage solution Smart SPI which serves up more games than any person could ever hope to play.
The drive interface is just a normal shugart interface, so goteks play nicely as well.
386SX16
386DX40
This machine is as much a tool as it is a toy. I use it to run the Proteus EPROM programmer (thank you, Andrew) which is very handy for programming old school EPROMs with high programming voltages.
The machine is quick enough to operate well with Windows 3.1 as well as doing a good job with a lot of DOS games.
486DX100
Compaq Portable
The Compaq Portable was an excellent engineering effort that established Compaq as a major player. The build is a sight to behold with its beautiful alodined aluminium panels.
The video display is monochrome CGA, but the text mode is of the same quality as IBM MDA. Nice work.
This one was a FB marketplace purchase in Adelaide. The seller said that a neighbour had given it to him when he was a kid in the late eighties.
The existing multifunction card had been badly damaged by battery leakage, so it has been replaced with another (thank you, Andrew). I added another multifunction card for some more I/O, including a gameport, and an Etherlink II network port so it can hop on my network.
The keyboard needed to be refoamed. I made the pads myself from some 5mm foam, a first aid blanket, and a leather punch. The foam i used was probably a little to dense, so they need a good tap. Quite usable though.
NCR PC4i
The NCR PC4i was a rather ridiculous example of love at first sight, and i paid accordingly! I purchased it via gumtree and after calling the seller and convincing myself that he was legit, i had it shipped from Perth to Adelaide. i still think it is a beautifully crafted and technically excellent IBM PC compatible.
This machine has monochrome CGA graphics. The motherboard, together with the ISA cards, is in a cage that is removed from the rear. Considering the all-in-one package (like a compact mac) everything is remarkably accessible.
I maxed out the memory to 640k and added serial I/O, game port, an ethernet card, and an XTIDE board. It happily connects to my network and can be accessed via FTP.