18 Sep
2025
18 Sep
'25
1:29 a.m.
VCFMW in Chicago was this past weekend!
Flew up with 2 bags, came back with 4 ! Funny thing is, my wife said she
was surprised I didn't come back with anything extra - well, I shipped
those extra 2 bags and they haven't shown up yet. Gives me one day to come
up with a cover story! :)
There is so much going on at the Chicago VCF - I don't think any
individual can cover the whole thing. Instead of a blog, this time I'm
trying a "video photo album" to cover some of the highlights that I was
able to see.
Search
Xiphod's Photo Album of Vintage Computer Fest (no commentary) - VCF Chicago
2025
or
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ld1CXUTusDI
or
https://rumble.com/v6z4aia-xiphods-photo-album-of-vintage-computer-fest-no-…
Mainly my goal was to pick up a POLY-88 that folks have been helping to
restore off-and-on over the past 18 months. They got it going, so that was
one of the shipments back. The other was an Apple TAM at too good a price
to pass up. (and yes, wife already knows they are coming)
If it's any indicator: come Sunday afternoon, merchants were fairly eager
to sell at any offer (some announcing that anything unsold would go
straight to scrap - maybe that's a ploy, but there were some under $10
bargains to be had, a kind of "everything must go" vibe).
- Steve
18 Sep
18 Sep
5:10 a.m.
Thank you Steve for the photos. I wish I could have been there.
Tom
On Thu, Sep 18, 2025 at 4:46 PM Steve Lewis via cctalk <
cctalk(a)classiccmp.org> wrote:
VCFMW in Chicago was this past weekend!
Flew up with 2 bags, came back with 4 ! Funny thing is, my wife said she
was surprised I didn't come back with anything extra - well, I shipped
those extra 2 bags and they haven't shown up yet. Gives me one day to come
up with a cover story! :)
There is so much going on at the Chicago VCF - I don't think any
individual can cover the whole thing. Instead of a blog, this time I'm
trying a "video photo album" to cover some of the highlights that I was
able to see.
Search
Xiphod's Photo Album of Vintage Computer Fest (no commentary) - VCF Chicago
2025
or
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ld1CXUTusDI
or
https://rumble.com/v6z4aia-xiphods-photo-album-of-vintage-computer-fest-no-…
Mainly my goal was to pick up a POLY-88 that folks have been helping to
restore off-and-on over the past 18 months. They got it going, so that was
one of the shipments back. The other was an Apple TAM at too good a price
to pass up. (and yes, wife already knows they are coming)
If it's any indicator: come Sunday afternoon, merchants were fairly eager
to sell at any offer (some announcing that anything unsold would go
straight to scrap - maybe that's a ploy, but there were some under $10
bargains to be had, a kind of "everything must go" vibe).
- Steve
9:06 a.m.
On 9/18/2025 3:29 AM, Steve Lewis via cctalk wrote:
VCFMW in Chicago was this past weekend!
Flew up with 2 bags, came back with 4 ! Funny thing is, my wife said she
was surprised I didn't come back with anything extra - well, I shipped
those extra 2 bags and they haven't shown up yet. Gives me one day to come
up with a cover story! :)
It's a "disease" that happens every time I
go :-)
There is so much going on at the Chicago VCF - I don't think any
individual can cover the whole thing.
I mentioned that in another thread. Last
year was the first time it was
large enough that I felt I could not visit or remember all of the
exhibits and vendors. In previous years, I'd be able to direct folks
from my table to other booths if I didn't have what they needed/wanted.
If it's any indicator: come Sunday afternoon,
merchants were fairly eager
to sell at any offer (some announcing that anything unsold would go
straight to scrap - maybe that's a ploy, but there were some under $10
bargains to be had, a kind of "everything must go" vibe).
As an exhibitor/vendor, can confirm the eagerness, but I do hope the
"goes to scrap" was a ploy, though I could see the e-cycle vendors on
the outside wall saying and meaning that (at least that it would go to
ecycling if not sold). I did put a few things that did not sell Saturday
on the free pile Sunday morning, which is pretty standard.
It appears my "Commodore 1541 Tower of Drive Power" made it to various
social media outlets. I was eager to make deals on those Sunday, as I
did not want to haul them home.
Jim
--
Jim Brain
brain(a)jbrain.com
www.jbrain.com
19 Sep
19 Sep
6:48 a.m.
<snip>
It appears my "Commodore 1541 Tower of Drive Power" made it to various
social media outlets. I was eager to make deals on those Sunday, as I
did not want to haul them home.
Jim
Jim,
What was the average selling unit price of the drives from that tower?
Just curious. I am not selling nor buying drives btw. but I did notice
your tower and I noticed it was nearly gone by lunchtime on Sunday.
BIll
3:43 p.m.
On 9/19/2025 8:48 AM, Bill Degnan via cctalk wrote:
For the working 1541's, about $45.00, though I started at $50.00, which
is about average for eBay but maybe a bit low (I saw examples from $75
down to $35 for working drives).
The 1571s went right at $75, which was low compared to eBay but I'm
happy they found good homes.
Of the broken 1541s, ~$20.00 on average, which was a steal, since you
could cherry pick and no doubt get a working drive for $40.00 and parts
to resell. I tested all of them and noted the issue. Just pick one with
a read error and another with a ROM issue, and swap the mechs for an
easy win. Probably both drives were fixable as is...
In general to the list, the offer's still on the table, but I really
don't want to ship them. I'll be at Tandy Assembly in a week, and WoC
in December, and I wouldn't have reservations meeting someone in Dixon
or Rochelle (or Peoria or other ~2hr drives from my house) for a batch
of drives. I sent the remaining broken ones home with someone else to
get fixed, but about 14 working drives came home with me and I really
don't need them (No one worried enough about it to ask, but this was not
my sole stash of drives. I have some boxed units and a couple sets of
unboxed drives here in various configs).
Jim
--
Jim Brain
brain(a)jbrain.com
www.jbrain.com
<snip>
It appears my "Commodore 1541 Tower of Drive Power" made it to various
social media outlets. I was eager to make deals on those Sunday, as I
did not want to haul them home.
Jim
Jim,
What was the average selling unit price of the drives from that tower?
Just curious. I am not selling nor buying drives btw. but I did notice
your tower and I noticed it was nearly gone by lunchtime on Sunday.
BIll
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4 comments
4 participants
participants (4)
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Bill Degnan -
Jim Brain -
Steve Lewis -
Tom Hunter