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Pacific Northwest WTB: VT-100 or ADM-3a (ideally working and complete)

Covers: Oregon and Washington
nerdhouse

nerdhouse

Member
Joined
May 11, 2022
Messages
40
Location
WA
Hey all. I've been on a years long hunt for one (or both?) of these two terminals and haven't had much luck. I'm willing to pay a good price for either one if anyone has one they no longer want. Happy to pay shipping if you aren't close by.
 
Would a VT-102 work? I have a couple Wyse units, not sure if they work, been years since I tested them. I know its a 2nd generation VT-100.
 
probably should have added that i'm looking for an original DEC VT-100, or LSI ADM-3A, not just something compatible. thank you tho. :)

pretty sure these are two of the most popular terminals for collectors tho, so i'm sure i'm not going to have an easy time finding them, and will have to pay quite a bit when i do :(
 
thanks! i appreciate it. i've had a few saved searches for a while, but they hardly ever come up. there is a VT-102 on ebay right now for like $1500 which is silly.

i'm not exactly a collector of vintage hardware, so i don't know if there are other useful places to keep an eye out, aside from ebay and here. maybe conventions? are there any good sites to watch for estate sale stuff?
 
Amibay might work out for you as well, not sure if they enabled new signups again or not though...
 
An ADM-3a comes up on ebay about every 3-6 months. Expect to pay $300-$800 + shipping depending on the condition. Terminals in general are getting expensive, it's uncommon to find a complete working one for under $150 shipped.

I see there is a TeleVideo 910 currently for sale but it probably needs repairs.
 
thanks for the info Plasma. it's hard to get an idea of what stuff is selling for since ebay deletes old listings.

do most people just have a worthpoint account? it's so expensive. i guess if you are constantly watching sales you don't need it...
 
I don't have a worthpoint account. I only know the ADM-3a price range because I had a saved search for the past couple years. One recently sold for $300 but was in real bad shape. Looks like there was mold inside the CRT or something. There was another one about 6 months ago, it was working but I think the bidding ended up around $700 which was more than I wanted to pay.

In the end I decided to get a Zenith Z19 for a much more reasonable price. Although the keyboard does need some work...
 
i was actually watching that auction. seemed like too much money for the amount of work it needed.

I don't think it was mold though.

i believe it was what people call "crt cataracts." before crts used "safety glass," people were worried about them blowing up and impaling them with lots of glass shards. they would laminate the glass to prevent it from shattering as catastrophically. these days the lamination is often peeling off and it looks like that. it's possible to repair and there are lots of videos about it on youtube. (i've never done it tho, and im kinda terrified of the high voltage.)

luckily they eventually started using glass that doesn't require the lamination, but an enormous number of crts from the right era have this same issue.

see here: https://hackaday.com/2017/08/11/crt-cataract-surgery/

edit: i'll check out amibay too. thanks twolazy. :) i missed your message at first ;;
 
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nerdhouse said:
what keyswitches are in this btw? i don't see much info about it online.
Click to expand...
The Zenith Z19 is basically just a rebranded Heathkit H19 after Zenith bought Heathkit. I think the keyboard has stackpole switches but I haven't taken it apart yet.
 
i ended up going for a heathkit h19! i'm not sure how to mark this as closed, but i am no longer looking for a terminal. i appreciate everyone's advice <3
 
nerdhouse said:
thanks! i appreciate it. i've had a few saved searches for a while, but they hardly ever come up. there is a VT-102 on ebay right now for like $1500 which is silly.

i'm not exactly a collector of vintage hardware, so i don't know if there are other useful places to keep an eye out, aside from ebay and here. maybe conventions? are there any good sites to watch for estate sale stuff?
Click to expand...
Don’t underestimate what a collector will pay for a real DEC VT-100…. I’m also looking for two of them, to go with my 11/44. I’d be willing to pay “silly” money for them in good shape :)
 
nerdhouse said:
thanks! i appreciate it. i've had a few saved searches for a while, but they hardly ever come up. there is a VT-102 on ebay right now for like $1500 which is silly.

i'm not exactly a collector of vintage hardware, so i don't know if there are other useful places to keep an eye out, aside from ebay and here. maybe conventions? are there any good sites to watch for estate sale stuff?
Click to expand...
Always try submitting a best offer or communicate with the seller… today, I bought a really nice VT-102 that was on eBay for an offer price of $175….
 
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