Bay Area: IBM 4341 and HP3000

I don't know if that is true. The question is if the seller has something collectable for sale. If you have a beat up, rusted, gutted item buried under junk then it really has no collectable value. It is junk and yes the junk dealer will pay more for it. However, if you have a nicely cared for system that is just being disconnected from service (properly disconnected not just cutting wires because it is easier) in working condition a collector will definitely pay more than the junk dealers. This is true across all collectable items - comics, baseball cards, cars, whatever. No one will pay top dollar for a bunch of moldy, water damages, torn up comics - why should computers be any different? Problem is that most sellers are selling junk but want collectable prices.