deskthority

For a span of maybe a year in 2010 I owned the oldest model M in the world, its funny how it was only a 35.00 purchase back then. I looked at the pictures of HAL's board and I have it beat by 3 days his is from 13 of June and mines was from the 10th.

The pictures here are from the same geekhack post from 2010 but I am going to search as I know I have more.
The one I own now is from November 1985 and is a 102 key terminal just like this one and its bolt modded.

Thats an old M! I am keeping an eye out for my birthday M but its only about a year and a bit younger than that one.

I found an older one a while back. See this thread here. I don't know who owns it and it sold for quite a tidy sum.

viewtopic.php?t=16967



As far as the oldest Model M I'd imagine it being a tossup between #1 of this model, the Wheelwriter as introduced in 1984, extremely early Model M black badge industrial, or someone with one of those nifty Model M prototypes with hand melted rivets.

I actually found here on Deskthority one from May of 1985 im trying to find the post it came from the lot of terminal model m's that was sold and in that lot was this lowly May 1985 terminal 102 model m

Killerbee wrote: ↑

16 Jan 2020, 03:37

I actually found here on Deskthority one from May of 1985 im trying to find the post it came from the lot of terminal model m's that was sold and in that lot was this lowly May 1985 terminal 102 model m

I suspect what you mean is:
I actually found here on Deskthority one from May of 1985. I'm trying to find the post. It came from the lot of terminal model m's that was sold, and in that lot was this lowly May 1985 terminal 102 model m.

What a useful and insightful continuation of the discussion

zrrion wrote: ↑

16 Jan 2020, 18:32

What a useful and insightful continuation of the discussion

I had to read the post several times before I knew what it was about.
As a non-native English speaker, I found it irritating to have to disentangle things like "the post it came from".

But of course, adding your rant to mine helps the discussion even more

Killerbee wrote: ↑

15 Jan 2020, 05:00

For a span of maybe a year in 2010 I owned the oldest model M in the world

You didn't. We've seen at least one example from 1984.

E TwentyNine wrote: ↑

16 Jan 2020, 21:40

Killerbee wrote: ↑

15 Jan 2020, 05:00

For a span of maybe a year in 2010 I owned the oldest model M in the world

You didn't. We've seen at least one example from 1984.

But was that an actual production-grade keyboard, or a prototype?

I have a 1987. Is that old?

joebeazelman wrote: ↑

16 Jan 2020, 23:40

I have a 1987. Is that old?

33 years. So it's middle aged, not quite elderly.

joebeazelman wrote: ↑

16 Jan 2020, 23:40

I have a 1987. Is that old?

Old, but not old-old.


Silver square? Then don't worry, it's First Division.

Oops. Turns out I don't have a 1987 one, but a 1986 one with the detachable cable.
Turns out I have a two Lexmarks ones and a rare rubber dome one I found in the curbside garbage 20 years ago. I have a model F AT, but the date code is long gone. Now it's a blank sticker.

I just recently acquired a terminal Model M122 from Dec. of 1985, along with a silver badge M with lock lights from sometime in '86

depletedvespene wrote: ↑

16 Jan 2020, 23:36

E TwentyNine wrote: ↑

16 Jan 2020, 21:40

Killerbee wrote: ↑

15 Jan 2020, 05:00

For a span of maybe a year in 2010 I owned the oldest model M in the world

You didn't. We've seen at least one example from 1984.

But was that an actual production-grade keyboard, or a prototype?

Mine's a prototype. But you wouldn't know it from the outside, looks same as production.

I have a 1388032 Industrial M from 11DEC85. It's one of my best feeling Model M keyboards. I found it at the municipal recycler sitting on a pile several years ago. Best free keyboard ever!
It's a day older than @clickykeyboards's oldest 1388032:
https://clickykeyboards.com/product/198 ... 12-dec-85/

But, this page has a 1388032 from 18NOV85.
http://www.clickeykeyboards.com/model-m ... 01-1989-v/

Welp, my oldest M keyboards are all from 1986. My F122 is from 1985, though, so that softens the envy factor.

(not that I wouldn't jump if a 13 November 1985 keyboard should show up!)

I feel like I've seen Wheelwriter keyboards from 1984.

I am beyond incompetent with Model M, so we have seen the oldest known to us ones.
What is the theoretical oldest model M possible? For both Model M, and hybrid/typewriter ones,

SneakyRobb wrote: ↑

18 Jan 2020, 01:00

I am beyond incompetent with Model M, so we have seen the oldest known to us ones.
What is the theoretical oldest model M possible? For both Model M, and hybrid/typewriter ones,

The oldest Model M PART I've seen, which are from prototypes, are the controller boards; these are dated to very late '84. In the unlikely event they actually made the rest of the keyboard during that time as well, the oldest complete M should be from December '84. From what I have heard, prototypes didn't come with date labels, though.

depletedvespene wrote: ↑

17 Jan 2020, 15:45

Welp, my oldest M keyboards are all from 1986. My F122 is from 1985, though, so that softens the envy factor.

(not that I wouldn't jump if a 13 November 1985 keyboard should show up!)

FUNNY you say because I'm typing this on a black badge indy from nov 13 1985

Jacobalbertus1 wrote: ↑

23 Sep 2021, 04:34

depletedvespene wrote: ↑

17 Jan 2020, 15:45

Welp, my oldest M keyboards are all from 1986. My F122 is from 1985, though, so that softens the envy factor.

(not that I wouldn't jump if a 13 November 1985 keyboard should show up!)

FUNNY you say because I'm typing this on a black badge indy from nov 13 1985

GIB

I have a grandma and she is indeed pretty old, let me tell you

TNT wrote: ↑

23 Sep 2021, 10:46

I have a grandma and she is indeed pretty old, let me tell you

But is she the oldest? And what's her condition? Got a pic of her production sticker?

I had a couple who were produced before yours, but they're no longer in my possession…

Some additional photos of another 1985 early model M keyboard

1985 IBM model M (1386303) Made by IBM 26 SEP 85, serial#22551
link to additional photo library
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?van ... 1285681203

My oldest Model M is a terminal one from 1987, it has the same metal plate like yours with that zinc process! It's beautiful, I have to restore it, but the new beamsprings acquisitions threw that restoration away

But as a collector, it's very cool to have an early Model M in the collection.

clickykeyboards wrote: ↑

23 Sep 2021, 15:29

Some additional photos of another 1985 early model M keyboard

1985 IBM model M (1386303) Made by IBM 26 SEP 85, serial#22551

26-SEP-85-IBM-model-M.jpg

26-SEP-85-IBM-model-M-1.jpg

26-SEP-85-IBM-model-M-3.jpg

26-SEP-85-IBM-model-M-5.jpeg

26-SEP-85-IBM-model-M-6.jpg

link to additional photo library
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?van ... 1285681203

Congrats for yours!

Another one for the 85 club

karlmartin95 wrote: ↑

23 Sep 2021, 17:38

My oldest Model M is a terminal one from 1987, it has the same metal plate like yours with that zinc process!

Nitpick, but that's gold cad, not zinc! Sure is pretty though.

Gold cad? (Searching for it is yielding gold prices in Canadian.) Is that cadmium? Isn’t that stuff toxic?

Muirium wrote: ↑

24 Sep 2021, 10:06

Gold cad? (Searching for it is yielding gold prices in Canadian.) Is that cadmium? Isn’t that stuff toxic?

Yep, very bad stuff, mostly banned now. And on top of that, welding or heating cad plating can release arsenic, which was used as a catalyst in the plating process.