IBM Model M with gold square badge?

[Aran.E99]

Hi everyone, I finally got hold of a first gen model M (1390136) and noticed the badge was gold rather than silver. I assume this is because of discoloration/yellowing of the plastic/resin on top but I can't seem to find any other examples like it. Opinions?

badge.jpg (1.17 MiB) Viewed 10389 times

[AJM]

I think there might be still a protective sticker on it, which has yellowed.
Should you try to peel it off, check very carefully, if some of the IBM lettering gets off too. Maybe it would be good to warm up the sticker with a hair dryer beforehand.

[Aran.E99]

I thought the film might still be on it but it doesn't feel like it wants to come off. I might just leave it as it is although it would be very nice to show off the badge. I didn't think of using a hair dryer - if I decide to remove it, I will try that. Thanks!

[Fkazim]

I had the protective film still on one of my IBM Model M's. I just pulled mine off with no heat and had no issues.

[AJM]

I had no issues with 3 protective films, either. All the more I was surprised to see that at the forth a little bit of the legend stayed on the film.
So I just wanted to mention it: Better safe than sorry.

[Fkazim]

True you can never be too careful with vintage stuff also something that might be worth mentioning is that I pulled my film off when I was washing the case of the keyboard. Maybe because mine was wet it made removing the label easier and reduced the chances of taking the logo off with it.

[Weezer]

Is the badge bulging up or is that an illusion?

[wobbled]

Never remove that sticker if it is indeed original.

[Howard81]

As above, it's the original protective film that has yellowed and is a total pain in the backside to remove - they go brittle and will take hours to pick off in tiny bits!

[nelamvr6]

That doesn't look like it's just the badge with yellowed protective film to me, it looks like a domed badge of a different color.

There may be a protective cover on there, but I think that's actually a gold tone badge. I found very few threads about part number 1390136 keyboards, and very few pics. But one link I found did have some pics:

https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=39786.0

It's not very easy to see, but in some of those pics the badge looks domed like yours also.

If there is protective film on there I'd recommend leaving it alone.

[Weezer]

That doesn't look like it's just the badge with yellowed protective film to me, it looks like a domed badge of a different color.

There may be a protective cover on there, but I think that's actually a gold tone badge. I found very few threads about part number 1390136 keyboards, and very few pics. But one link I found did have some pics:

https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=39786.0

It's not very easy to see, but in some of those pics the badge looks domed like yours also.

If there is protective film on there I'd recommend leaving it alone.

I agree that it looks like a gold tone badge but it's hard to be sure without more pictures. The first thing I thought of was that it looked like the badges used on the prototype for the 4704 model Fs. They look domed in the same way, but again it could be poor image quality.

[nelamvr6]

That doesn't look like it's just the badge with yellowed protective film to me, it looks like a domed badge of a different color.

There may be a protective cover on there, but I think that's actually a gold tone badge. I found very few threads about part number 1390136 keyboards, and very few pics. But one link I found did have some pics:

https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=39786.0

It's not very easy to see, but in some of those pics the badge looks domed like yours also.

If there is protective film on there I'd recommend leaving it alone.

I agree that it looks like a gold tone badge but it's hard to be sure without more pictures. The first thing I thought of was that it looked like the badges used on the prototype for the 4704 model Fs. They look domed in the same way, but again it could be poor image quality.

Those keyboards do look like they have domed badges.

Very interesting...

[Aran.E99]

Thanks for all the replies! I will post some more pictures later when I have better lighting. If someone could post some high res photos of a regular square badge, that might help. One thing I noticed is that the badge does look gold around the edge (the small gap between the badge and the case) but it could be the lighting. It doesn't feel like there is a film on the badge and I cant get anything to come up around the edges albeit with a small amount of force.

[AJM]

The picture you posted is already very good. And I admit, that in the lower two corners I can't see any hints of a sticker, but on the top two corners I'm quite sure to see the edges of a sticker.
But I don't want to push you into trying to remove it. If it sits so well and evenly, it's quite ok as it is.

[Aran.E99]

Here are a few more images:

2k-close.jpg (1.19 MiB) Viewed 10052 times

top.jpg (1.71 MiB) Viewed 10052 times

side.jpg (944.37 KiB) Viewed 10052 times

I tried to get a good shot of the side but it is hard to tell if it is domed. You can see slight warping in the lettering which indicates the badge might not be flat.

[nelamvr6]

Yeah that is definitely a domed badge. Here are a couple of pics of my badge, which is on a Model F, but which is pretty much the way the standard flat badges look:

[Aran.E99]

That badge definitely looks similar to mine especially the faint vertical lines (not sure if that's on all square M badges). I'm guessing there was some overlap in the timeline of production but I'm still unsure how uncommon my badge is and more importantly what the history behind it is. Once I get the 5.5mm socket driver in the mail, I can hopefully find out more.

[Fkazim]

Also have a IBM Model M part no. 1390136 with a domed badge first picture shows that. It also originally had its plastic wrap on it but I removed it as it was very yellowed.

IMG_20190920_163950.jpg (1.8 MiB) Viewed 9920 times

2nd picture is my IBM Model M XT part no. 1389969 this one still has its plastic peel on it too.

15689963089286375749446803986814.jpg (1.81 MiB) Viewed 9920 times

3rd picture is my IBM Model F AT part no. 6450222 it's badge also still has its plastic wrap.

156899655669934263863301184874.jpg (1.89 MiB) Viewed 9919 times

My Model M's with the domed badges are all UK models. So I think we can assume this is how they did the badges at the Greenock plant in the UK at least for a period of time.

Hope that helps.

[JP!]

I think there needs to be a custom gold badge now. Black Model F + gold badge I think would be lovely.

[Fkazim]

I think there needs to be a custom gold badge now. Black Model F + gold badge I think would be lovely.

For sure

[Aran.E99]

I think it's safe to say that it is just a protective film (which will stay on ;D ). Thanks for confirming that other UK made M's have domed badges.

I'd totally buy a custom gold badge but I think I'd need to own a black model F firsthand...

[JP!]

I think it's safe to say that it is just a protective film (which will stay on ;D ). Thanks for confirming that other UK made M's have domed badges.

I'd totally buy a custom gold badge but I think I'd need to own a black model F firsthand...

Step 1. Get Model F
Step 2. Paint black and apply gold badge
Step 3. Profit

[Aran.E99]

I think it's safe to say that it is just a protective film (which will stay on ;D ). Thanks for confirming that other UK made M's have domed badges.

I'd totally buy a custom gold badge but I think I'd need to own a black model F firsthand...

Step 1. Get Model F
Step 2. Paint black and apply gold badge
Step 3. Profit

You know what - I've been needing to put a can of black spray enamel to use

[nelamvr6]

I am definitely NOT taking the protective film off my Model F's badge. It's been there at least 35 years, if I have my way it'll be there for 35 more...

[Fkazim]

I am definitely NOT taking the protective film off my Model F's badge. It's been there at least 35 years, if I have my way it'll be there for 35 more...

haha same here with my Model F AT