Mini-Groupbuy: IBM Model F "Bigfoots" [shipped]

Muirium · 13 May 2016, 16:42

Halvar wrote: Mu, you had a very nice mapping for the numpad part of your IBM XT, but I can't find it any more. Do you have an idea what to search for? Maybe a link would be interesting, because this is the same basic layout.

Some Mu-fu in the search dialog and I found it:

post118083.html#p118083

That post includes my matching Soarer config. I improved it later, to feature a layer lock. But you get the idea.

My XT was actually my trainer for the HHKB layout. A couple of years later, when I finally got my own HHKB, it was already second nature!

Halvar · 13 May 2016, 17:57

Ah yes, you used that HHKB layout. I remembered that you had the XT board early, but the layout I remembered was probably from your AT board.

Dra · 13 May 2016, 18:25

Alright, I'm in, managed to scrape the money together

Muirium · 13 May 2016, 21:01

Ah, my TKL modded AT. Well, that takes some extra caps and opening up the plates to move springs around.

Halvar · 16 May 2016, 19:15

Pictures!

https://imgur.com/a/CjiKk

I updated the OP accordingly.

I will send a PM with the payment data to all participants in a few minutes.

alh84001 · 16 May 2016, 19:20

Do I count 10 of them?

Crossfire · 16 May 2016, 19:21

Beauties! Can we pick?

Halvar · 16 May 2016, 20:04

Crossfire wrote: Beauties! Can we pick?

Ha, let me guess, you want the one in the front row that the seller obviously cleaned?

@alh84001: we'll only get nine of them, sorry.

Crossfire · 16 May 2016, 20:10

Halvar wrote:
Crossfire wrote: Beauties! Can we pick?
Ha, let me guess, you want the one in the front row that the seller obviously cleaned?

@alh84001: we'll only get nine of them, sorry.

Nah, I'm fine with dirt really, cleaning and making her pretty again is all I ask for, it's the journey not the goal for me

How are you gonna pick them for us? I vote for good old raffle

Halvar · 16 May 2016, 20:36

Sounds good, I'll have to think of a way to make a transparent raffle.

Halvar · 16 May 2016, 22:00

Because of some things said in the thread and by PM, I feel like I need to make it really super clear once more, and I hope that everyone understands, that these come strictly as-is. I have not tested and will not open and test the keyboards and I don't know their history.

Judging from the cut cables I even expect them to not come from some forgotten university or bank storage room, but rather from some kind of recycler who saved them from imminent death in the grinder. I don't know how they were stored or handled during 30 years.

From the outside, they don't look too bad to me on the photos, and my experience with IBM beamsprings, Models F or M has been that they are seldom FUBAR, but note that I can't make sure that they're not in bad shape in some way or the other. 30 year are a long time. If the price doesn't seem to be worth that risk to you, please refrain from buying, I can fully understand that.

hypkx · 17 May 2016, 10:12

btw I have in near future, some replacement parts for this type of keyboards for sale, including a uncut cable, if someone needs one.

pcaro · 17 May 2016, 11:18

Why did not I see this thread so far? Halvar, add me to the waiting list please

Halvar · 17 May 2016, 13:26

Done, updated OP

alh84001 · 17 May 2016, 15:06

Well, it will turn out this is one of the more elusive boards for me. This is the 2nd or 3rd time I missed out on one

I tried searching for some pictures of the inner assembly, but I can't find them anywhere. Can someone confirm whether the inner assembly is the same (or different) as the XT? I have one XT assembly (minus springs) collecting dust, so if someone just got this for springs, and if it fits, I might be interested in the case.

Halvar · 17 May 2016, 15:59

I can try this out in the next days. The inner assembly is not completely the same because in a bigfoot, the controller is on the same PCB as the sensing pads, while in an XT keyboard the controller is on a separate PCB. It might fit anyway if the size of the inner metal backplate is the same. I'll have to test that.

andrewjoy · 17 May 2016, 16:37

Halvar wrote: I can try this out in the next days. The inner assembly is not completely the same because in a bigfoot, the controller is on the same PCB as the sensing pads, while in an XT keyboard the controller is on a separate PCB. It might fit anyway if the size of the inner metal backplate is the same. I'll have to test that.

The XT controller is also connected to the sense pads , its the AT where it is separate .

Ray · 17 May 2016, 18:32

I don't know about XTs or ATs for sure, but the Bigfoot doesn't have an actual keyboard controller onboard. There's only the capacitive sensing going on and the raw keypresses (not XT/AT/ps2 or any other regular protocol) were sent through the cable to the terminal.
So technically, Soarer's is not working as a converter in this case, nor does it read the capacitive keyboard matrix.

As I think about it, I guess XTs and ATs might use XT and AT protocol respecively.

Halvar · 17 May 2016, 18:39

@andrewjoy: you're right, and I was confused. I will still try if the XT innards fit the Bigfoot case. I think they should fit.

@Ray: yes, it's not a full controller in the actual sense of the word in the Bigfoot, but only the capacitive sensing chips. Which is why you need Soarer's controller software on the Teensy, not Soarer's converter software.

kekstee · 18 May 2016, 12:10

Just replied to Halvar, but I'd like to point out that there is at least a chance I could quickly pass this on to the waiting list once my curiosity is satisfied. The keyboard footprint is pretty huge after all.

Halvar · 21 May 2016, 12:13

They're here!

I will do a raffle using RandomPicker.com at 14h today that will decide on who gets which one. (Note the numbers on the first picture).

: all_numbers.jpg (282.02 KiB) Viewed 6256 times

: Number 1, 2 and 3; 123.jpg (669.56 KiB) Viewed 6256 times

: Number 4 and 5; 45.jpg (402.47 KiB) Viewed 6256 times

: Number 6 and 7; 67.jpg (488.76 KiB) Viewed 6256 times

: Number 8 and 9; 89.jpg (496.59 KiB) Viewed 6256 times

Halvar · 21 May 2016, 14:15

The result is in!

Here is the drawing protocol from RandomPicker:
https://www.randompicker.com/Project/Pu ... 7341x53445

And here is the result:

Sayso Bigfoot #1
idollar Bigfoot #2
Crossfire Bigfoot #3
Halvar Bigfoot #4
Dra Bigfoot #5
Ray Bigfoot #6
kekstee Bigfoot #7
Alkhar Bigfoot #8
Nuum Bigfoot #9

Halvar · 28 May 2016, 20:41

I packed and shipped everything today. The keyboards are now with DHL and will leave town on monday, I'll pm everybody with your tracking numbers tomorrow.

: bigfoots.jpg (56.43 KiB) Viewed 6184 times

(7 because idollar got his one personally)

Crossfire · 28 May 2016, 21:02

Fantastic job!
Really appreciate all the work and effort you've put into this gb to make it possible for us Europeans to get our hands on this rare gem!

maxmalkav · 29 May 2016, 11:52

Thanks Seebart Halvar!

Halvar · 29 May 2016, 12:00

Did you get one from Seebart?

need · 29 May 2016, 12:20

Halvar = Seebart

Halvar · 29 May 2016, 12:53

maxmalkav was first on the waiting list but didn't get a go in the end. Maybe seebart sold him one.

maxmalkav · 29 May 2016, 17:21

Halvar wrote: maxmalkav was first on the waiting list but didn't get a go in the end. Maybe seebart sold him one.

Indeed.

It's funny, I have been quite busy lately and I have just realized I have overlooked quite some details about this buy.

Indeed I have bought one from Seebart (probably he saw this thread and PMed me). I assumed, because characteristics the the board, timing and price, that we were talking about the ones from this GB, now I see I was wrong

Muirium · 29 May 2016, 17:27

Those IKEA boxes… what's the story there? Are they hand halved versions of the big Jättene ones they sell?

I got a few of those recently for all the boards I need to ship out, too. But they're right big buggers.