IBM 3277 Beam Spring Keyboard

[emdude]

I finished cleaning up one of the 3277 keyboards that I got a few weeks ago and I think I took enough photos of it to warrant a new thread.

Full album: http://imgur.com/a/62Omu

Disclaimer: I am rather inexperienced when it comes to photography (and I also borrowed a friend's DSLR), sorry if I burn out your retinas with my piss-poor photos!

















EDIT: Short edit to note that all of these pictures are in the public domain.

[cookie]

Very nice!

What I am always asking myself, do you guys actually use those keyboards or do you just collect them?

[emdude]

Well, I would use mine, but I am actually not sure if an xwhatsit would actually work with my 3277 (without some work, anyway), it uses an entirely different connector it appears. Certainly nothing like the one below:

[seebart]

Impressive! Great work emdude. Quite a PCB. Even though completely different internals there are similarities to my IBM 3277 66-key Micro Switch version like shape of the bottom case. Your pics would be great for our wiki if you don't mind.

keyboards-f2/micro-switch-sw-10591-t943 ... o%20switch

Very nice!

What I am always asking myself, do you guys actually use those keyboards or do you just collect them?

Quite a few people here use theirs, the conversion is not as simple as plugging a HHKB into the USB port!

photos-f62/it-s-alive-post-your-xwhatsi ... 7s%20alive

[snuci]

Love the pics. Looks like it cleaned up pretty nicely. Maybe I'm weird but I actually like cleaning keyboards. I guess it's the transformation from grungy to pristine that I like best. Thanks for sharing!

[Chyros]

Beautiful . All these beam springs being posted makes me want one of my own xD .

[seebart]

Beautiful . All these beam springs being posted makes me want one of my own xD .

I'm sure you'll eventually pick one up for 3 pence from your friendly recycler whilst swearing like a sailor.

[Muirium]

Post a picture of the connector, Emdude. Xwhatsit made a DisplayWriter specific controller (or was it just an adapter? I forget) as well as the regular 3276 etc. version many of us use.

[Ratfink]

The Displaywriter controller has the same connector, but a different pinout for its matrix. It looks like the controller on this board is on the same PCB as the pads, which would make using an Xwhatsit controller very difficult.

[Chyros]

Beautiful . All these beam springs being posted makes me want one of my own xD .

I'm sure you'll eventually pick one up for 3 pence from your friendly recycler whilst swearing like a sailor.

I can only hope! xD REALLY old stuff I don't tend to find at the recycling centre, though - late 80s at best, but not that often.

[emdude]

Thanks everyone! It really was fun cleaning this up; fortunately, there was not much of any rust at all.

Impressive! Great work emdude. Quite a PCB. Even though completely different internals there are similarities to my IBM 3277 66-key Micro Switch version like shape of the bottom case. Your pics would be great for our wiki if you don't mind.

Yeah, there some interesting similarities between the metal back plates. And sure, I can definitely help out with the wiki. I added a stub for the IBM 3277 model 2 and a photo to the beam spring keyboards page. Feel free to use any other photos too.

Post a picture of the connector, Emdude. Xwhatsit made a DisplayWriter specific controller (or was it just an adapter? I forget) as well as the regular 3276 etc. version many of us use.

This is the connector, from the fifth photo, upper-left:

[Parak]

My rusted miniature beam spring is one of the compact versions of this, and the the pcb is constructed in the same manner. Basically, one would have to either try and convert the parallel protocol output (abandon hope ye who enter here), or make a new pcb that connects to a modern capsense controller.

[terrycherry]

Nice share.
Can't count how many cable on that socket.
And what is the small PCB use for?

[snuci]

Can't count how many cable on that socket.
And what is the small PCB use for?

Looks to be a 24 pin socket so there's almost 24 individual wires there (minus one or two). The PCB is used as a way to solder the wires to the socket and stiffen the socket so that it can be easily plugged in and removed. Old IBM equipment uses this technique a lot.

[seebart]

The PCB is used as a way to solder the wires to the socket and stiffen the socket so that it can be easily plugged in and removed. Old IBM equipment uses this technique a lot.

Thats a nice example of "proper" manufacturing without cost-cutting. God knows what these terminals cost back in the day.

[y11971alex]

The PCB is used as a way to solder the wires to the socket and stiffen the socket so that it can be easily plugged in and removed. Old IBM equipment uses this technique a lot.

Thats a nice example of "proper" manufacturing without cost-cutting. God knows what these terminals cost back in the day.

$280,000 for a 2250 with controller.

[seebart]

The PCB is used as a way to solder the wires to the socket and stiffen the socket so that it can be easily plugged in and removed. Old IBM equipment uses this technique a lot.

Thats a nice example of "proper" manufacturing without cost-cutting. God knows what these terminals cost back in the day.

$280,000 for a 2250 with controller.

You sure you got that comma right? You mean $28,000?

[y11971alex]

You sure you got that comma right? You mean $28,000?

The IBM 2250 Graphics Display Unit was announced with System/360 in 1964.[1] A complete 2250 III system with controller cost around $280 000 in 1970, though up to 4 displays could share a single controller, reducing the cost per display by up to 40%.[2]

[E3E]

You sure you got that comma right? You mean $28,000?

The IBM 2250 Graphics Display Unit was announced with System/360 in 1964.[1] A complete 2250 III system with controller cost around $280 000 in 1970, though up to 4 displays could share a single controller, reducing the cost per display by up to 40%.[2]

Jesus Christ.

How does it feel to own a board that went to a $1,000,000 system in today's money if adjusted for inflation? Hahahaha.

...

That's insane!

[seebart]

OK I checked you're right, talk about outlandish expensive. No wonder no one could afford IBM. Insane.

[snuci]

But we are talking about an IBM 3277 terminal keyboard here, right? It's not from a 2250 Graphics Display or it would be in a museum.

[seebart]

Good point. No the whole IBM 2250 Graphics Display Unit was $280 000 in 1970 which is insane enough. No idea what keyboard that came with. At those prices I hope one could custom order, like my 3277 66-key Micro Switch keyboard vs. the "fussy" Beamspring.

Here you go:

http://www.columbia.edu/cu/computinghistory/2250.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IBM_2250

But this is the one I want:

IBM_2260_video_display_terminal.jpg (47.35 KiB) Viewed 12960 times

Can you get that for me please snuci?

[y11971alex]

Honestly, I don't think the 2260 (above) keyboard is detachable. If it were, it would make the tallest standalone keyboard ever, since it has that bulge that rests under the CRT. You may just have to swap out its guts and install a modern computer inside, with a new CRT replacing the monochrome tube, to use it. I don't know where you might start looking for a 2260 though, seems like they're even rarer than the later 3270s. Cindy!

And snuci pointed out my omission: I thought the 2250 must be a beam spring as well, but evidently IBM didn't use this technology until 1971. So the 2250/2260 keyboard must be something else, perhaps transplanted from a card punch? Looks suspiciously similar, with blue keys and white (?) legends.

[seebart]

Yes I remember someone here (possibly mr_a500) mentioning that IBM used the punch card like electronic keyboards prior to introducing Beamspring. With IBM I bet we could find out, their documentation is ample.

[y11971alex]

It seems one is currently available on eBay! And the keyboard does look *quite* similar to the 2260, with a similar shape and upper panel for the knobs that aren't there on the 2260.

[seebart]

This is what I mean, it's called the "The IBM 29 Card Punch":

(also called the 029 or Type 029 Key Punch or Keypunch), introduced about 1964 to coincide with the introduction of the IBM 360. Available in nine models with various combinations of keyboard (12-key numeric or 64-key alphanumeric), zero insertion, printing, and interpreting, and also as the IBM 59 Card Verifier (for verifying that cards punched on the 29 were correct).

4732059279_ae563fefed_b.jpg (393.75 KiB) Viewed 12907 times

http://www.columbia.edu/cu/computinghistory/029.html

http://www.masswerk.at/keypunch/manuals ... _Jun70.pdf

We had a thread on this I can't find it now.

[snuci]

I have an 029 about 30 feet away from me. It has levers like a typewriter and it does not have mechanical switches. There's a thread here somewhere that illustrates the mechanism, if I recall correctly.

[y11971alex]

I have an 029 about 30 feet away from me. It has levers like a typewriter and it does not have mechanical switches. There's a thread here somewhere that illustrates the mechanism, if I recall correctly.

But is it clicky?

[Halvar]

A keypress switches a relay that causes a magnet to loudly punch holes in a card and print a letter. So there's definitely a hefty feedback when typing. You can define that as a "click" I guess...

[pr0ximity]

A keypress switches a relay that causes a magnet to loudly punch holes in a card and print a letter. So there's definitely a hefty feedback when typing. You can define that as a "click" I guess...

Wow, sounds a bit like it could be the inspiration behind the beamspring solenoid, very similar sound! Though I've heard the real inspiration was the selectric.