New Amiga 3000! But leave the battery alone!

[TjLaZer]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Amiga-3000-drive-keyboard-software-mouse-New-in-original-Box-/190732166832?pt=US_Vintage_Computers_Mainframes&hash=item2c6885e6b0

Apparently some rich (and clueless IMHO) bidders do not want to know if their soon to be NEW A3000 has HazMat all over their nice and shiney new Amiga 3000 motherboard.

UNBELIEVABLE.

Hey guess what?  Here is what is inside the case!
http://geir.mork.no/images/a3000full.jpg

[TjLaZer]

Wow!!!

[TjLaZer]

How do know what is inside the case?  Where did you get that pic, from the seller?
No way is that pic from that computer in the auction.  If the A3000 was boxed and
wrapped in plastic, it not used then there is no way there would be that much dust on
the other parts of the motherboard..sorry but no way!

Rich

That pic is not from that A3000.  But lets be real here, almost ALL A2000/3000/4000 computers have had the NiCad battery LEAK by 2012.  (key word Almost)  But who would take a risk for 2 grand?  Not me.

[TjLaZer]

Well every single Amiga 2/3/4000 I have ever touched the last several years has had some leakage.  Some were pretty minor, others really bad.  My old A3000T MB I had, had a very slight leak.  I thought, Oh good I got lucky!  Only a little bit of fuzz on the battery, MB seemed untouched. WRONG.  There was some leakage and it ate traces.  Ruined the board.

My recent local Amiga find, a FREE A3000D, also had some minor leakage, luckily it did not spread too far and I was able to clean it up. I hope it stays working!

My point was, knowing all this, who would pay that much for a big box Amiga without atleast checking to see if the battery leaked.  Not a smart move unless you just want mint parts and a dead motherboard...

edit - here is some relevant reading if anyone has some spare time.

http://www.amiga.org/forums/showthread.php?t=62944

[TjLaZer]

I'm amazed how many people are missing the point with this item. You do not buy a brand new vintage computer to use. If you want one to use, you buy a $50 second hand one. People buy NOS computers of this age as collectables. I would bet good money that this A3000 will never be taken out of its bags. The second you turn on/test an unused vintage computer, its value drops 70%.

I am an Amiga enthusiast but I also collect brand new vintage games consoles, and there is serious demand for them. A brand new, unused SNES is worth around $500, where as a second hand one is worth about $40. So there most definitely is a market for these, and I actually think the price was very fair. I would have paid that for it if they would ship to the UK.

I'm sorry but you would have to be a COMPLETE MORON to buy a NOS computer with NiCad battery leakage all over the system board!  Just to say it is BRAND NEW and never used or opened up.

I think the fact that it has an original NiCad battery in it and it is ~22 years old, it could/should not hold it's value very much!  But there are lots of morons with lots of $$ to throw away it seems so whatever...

Now I do know that NOS vintage gear will fetch alot, and I should know as I am a collector myself and have some mint systems.  The point is, with leaky batteries, it will devalue the item.  And I was just pointing it out that's all.

If you are in the know you know, and you can see where the value is.  If you ever find one, look at a NOS Atari Falcon 030 computer or TT030 sold on eBay or other sites and see what it will fetch.  (those don't have NiCard batteries in them.)

[TjLaZer]

Sorry mate, but you need to look at it from the other side. I understand that as an Amiga enthusiast to you it may seem crazy to buy something that might not work and/or be damaged, but collectors want to buy things that are new and untouched. Take classic cars for example - collectors don't snub original, low mileage cars just because the tyres and hoses will have perished over time. A collector wants something to be original, and an enthusiast wants it to be in good working order. 2 completely different things, neither make anybody a moron.

Yeah I am sure a NOS 1957 Chevy with a rotting corroded engine bay from the battery would sell well at auction!

[TjLaZer]

Google 'barn find' you will find all kinds of people queuing up to pay premium prices for untouched original cars. The same applies as I sais before - some people want a working/maintained example, and some people want an original unused example. Both are perfectly acceptable. I sell a lot of brand new games consoles on eBay, and the two questions I get asked most are "has it ever been removed from the packaging" and "are you sure it's never been turned on or tested."

Well I am sure classic cars vs vintage computers are not the best to compare but a leaking battery in a NOS computer can surely kill a deal.  And this is the part alot of those bidding on such items on eBay probably do not know.  If they knew that there is a timebomb in ut (that most likely has already went off or in the process of) they might not bid so high on it.  I'd say only a select few die hard Amigans know about the NiCad battery issues of A2000/3000/4000/500+ computers.

But still I can see the value of a boxed mint A3000 complete and un touched, EVEN with a heavily corroded motherboard in it.  I can then simply swap out my non damaged MB in it and have a pristine new A3000D !