Need a beam spring for cheap

MECHGAMER · 12 Jul 2015, 20:25

How did the beam spring owners on deskthority get their beam springs? I've heard a lot of good things about these keyboards. I really want to try one.

Muirium · 12 Jul 2015, 20:53

By paying good money.

They are quite rare, very old, and every bit as heavy. They do not come for cheap.

MECHGAMER · 12 Jul 2015, 21:17

I meant cheap as in sub $200. I saw one on eBay in a horrible condition for $200 plus $60 shipping.

MECHGAMER · 12 Jul 2015, 21:38

I also found this, proof that beam springs can be cheap. http://m.ebay.com/itm/250849037341

Muirium · 12 Jul 2015, 21:51

I saw one go for $75 or thereabouts once. Alas, America, and I had no proxy at the time. Couldn't do a thing about it.

Good to see <$200 classified as "cheap". Usually when people say that magic word they've just lost their minds and mean something like €30 or less!

dorkvader · 13 Jul 2015, 00:21

Muirium wrote: ↑I saw one go for $75 or thereabouts once. Alas, America, and I had no proxy at the time. Couldn't do a thing about it.

Good to see <$200 classified as "cheap". Usually when people say that magic word they've just lost their minds and mean something like €30 or less!

My first one was $35, second $75

On the first it didn't say "IBM" or "keyboard" in the title or description and *still* another person found it and didn't bid against me at my request. The second was in horrible condition. It works but its currently in pieces awaiting sanding / painting the plate.

The problem is the the best deals were had from parts resellers, and most of those have been filtered out from Cindy and other people buying them up for us.

I suspect the most "available" source (other than the rumoured 130 find that probably wont pan out) might be e-waste in Asia.

Honestly, it is likely better to just make a modern interpretation of it, like the alps plate spring of the mid '80s.

Sayso · 13 Jul 2015, 00:27

this one was listed today... for 3minutes

http://www.ebay.com/itm/VINTAGE-IBM-KEY ... 7675.l2557

dzhoou · 13 Jul 2015, 00:29

Sayso wrote: ↑this one was listed today... for 3minutes
http://www.ebay.com/itm/VINTAGE-IBM-KEY ... 7675.l2557

I saw this too and watched it gone. Some people need to have better spending etiquettes

modology · 13 Jul 2015, 02:33

beamspring is quite rare and you would normally pay more than $200 for a good condition (and if better with already USB controller modded). I've bought mine from DT fellow and has been using it daily. Now I want to get rid of all of my MX and Topre collection, buy more beamspring and retire from the scenes altogether. It's the ultimate keyboard IMHO.

MECHGAMER · 13 Jul 2015, 08:54

I was actually looking for one without any restoration done to it so I could restore it myself. How much would one in a bad condition sell for?

seebart · 13 Jul 2015, 08:58

Need a beam spring for cheap

OH YEAH me too.

MECHGAMER wrote: ↑How much would one in a bad condition sell for?

about 200-300.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Vintage-IBM-5 ... 5d59efbfde

andrewjoy · 13 Jul 2015, 10:14

Sayso wrote: ↑this one was listed today... for 3minutes
http://www.ebay.com/itm/VINTAGE-IBM-KEY ... 7675.l2557

gah thats the model i have already wanted

i should not be greedy i have is big brother, without the cool extra buttons

Muirium · 13 Jul 2015, 10:21

Everyone in their right mind wants that model. The buyer was correct to ask the seller if they wanted to cheat eBay out of a cut. That's business. Dirty and effective.

kbdfr · 13 Jul 2015, 11:12

Muirium wrote: ↑Everyone in their right mind wants that model. The buyer was correct to ask the seller if they wanted to cheat eBay out of a cut. That's business. Dirty and effective.

If you are referring to the one which allegedly was listed for just 3 minutes, you are all mistaking.
It was (resorting to German time and eBay.de as eBay.com isn't cooperative there)
- listed at 16:38:05 with a Buy-It-Now price of $250
- sold at 18:22:49 for that Buy-It-Now price of $250
i.e it was listed for 1 hour 44 minutes and 44 seconds before someone bought it in an absolutely legit way.

: IBM listed (DE).jpg (17.38 KiB) Viewed 6885 times

: IBM sold (DE).jpg (25.14 KiB) Viewed 6885 times

Muirium · 13 Jul 2015, 11:18

All the better then. I assumed otherwise because of the grousing a few posts earlier. Buy it now or forever hold your peace!

modology · 13 Jul 2015, 11:33

You should just buy this before anyone go for that.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Vintage-Huge- ... 5d59efc649

Sayso · 13 Jul 2015, 12:03

Thank you Kbdfr for this clarification

I just saw it for a few minutes, probably my browser cache.

seebart · 13 Jul 2015, 12:10

modology wrote: ↑You should just buy this before anyone go for that.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Vintage-Huge- ... 5d59efc649

Yeah but that gnarly shipping cost...

Madhias · 13 Jul 2015, 15:36

MECHGAMER wrote: ↑How did the beam spring owners on deskthority get their beam springs? I've heard a lot of good things about these keyboards. I really want to try one.

Bought from Cindy, but I was just lucky at 3AM in the morning. Those are some heavy and loud bastards! You definitely should try one. Maybe you like it and need one then, or it could also be that you think it is too big and heavy for daily use. Unfortunately they are too heavy to make a beamspring tour and send them around Europe! But we don't know were you live yet.

I've made some video - excuse the bad quality, I am not a film guy - to show how the solenoid driver can kick in (in the second part of the video)! It is more like a machine gun then...

dzhoou · 13 Jul 2015, 16:28

Muirium wrote: ↑Everyone in their right mind wants that model. The buyer was correct to ask the seller if they wanted to cheat eBay out of a cut. That's business. Dirty and effective.

FeeBay is dirty as is. Not like it is entitled to that money anyway... I think all the better if the seller can reach an agreement with the buyer privately and avoid fees. Win-win!

andrewjoy · 13 Jul 2015, 16:50

Madhias wrote: ↑
MECHGAMER wrote: ↑How did the beam spring owners on deskthority get their beam springs? I've heard a lot of good things about these keyboards. I really want to try one.
Bought from Cindy, but I was just lucky at 3AM in the morning. Those are some heavy and loud bastards! You definitely should try one. Maybe you like it and need one then, or it could also be that you think it is too big and heavy for daily use. Unfortunately they are too heavy to make a beamspring tour and send them around Europe! But we don't know were you live yet.

I've made some video - excuse the bad quality, I am not a film guy - to show how the solenoid driver can kick in (in the second part of the video)! It is more like a machine gun then...

Ha thats your video ? Just commented on it

What happened to your case ?

kbdfr · 13 Jul 2015, 16:54

dzhoou wrote: ↑[…] I think all the better if the seller can reach an agreement with the buyer privately and avoid fees. Win-win!

On the other hand, making use of but eluding payment for the services offered by eBay seems… err… not quite honest

Basically, it cannot be left to the individual to choose which rules apply and which not.

Muirium · 13 Jul 2015, 16:55

Shouldn't, perhaps. Can't, well, that happens very frequently!

andrewjoy · 13 Jul 2015, 16:56

I think the good thing in your situation is that eBay is a buyers platform not a sellers platform. They do everything they can to protect the buyer , so that fee you are paying ( indirectly as the seller will put the cost to cover) is you paying for protection.

As a seller you would prefer to do it outside of eBay i think as eBay is not your friend.

dzhoou · 13 Jul 2015, 17:37

Doesn't paypal already offer protection? it's inclined to buyers in the same way (and run by ebay for a long time, too).

In the end ebay also runs on ads, and when direct bank transfer/local pickup is available it can't tap into sales money anyways.

seebart · 13 Jul 2015, 17:46

Yes if you paid via PayPal its "insured".

andrewjoy · 13 Jul 2015, 17:48

do ebay no longer run paypal ?

bhtooefr · 13 Jul 2015, 17:52

eBay just sold PayPal, and it's all over PayPal every time you log in that they're becoming separate from eBay.

Muirium · 13 Jul 2015, 17:58

They announced the split in a real hurry after Apple Pay was unveiled. What a coincidence!

http://www.mondaynote.com/2014/10/05/eb ... ent-again/

eBay remains a powerful monopoly. It's where all the auctions are at, you're stupid to go anywhere else. (Sadly.) But PayPal's related field is getting invaded fast by bigger players than eBay can handle. Time to ditch that acquisition. So they did. PayPal will fail in a few years from now. Sell sell sell!

bhtooefr · 13 Jul 2015, 19:41

The nasty thing if PayPal goes away, however, is that the US doesn't have a functional equivalent to SEPA, and we use PayPal to do that instead.

Here, when you tell the average American to make a wire transfer, the first thing they think of is Nigerian scammers. If they can think past that and go to the bank to make one, they'll get a $15-30 bill for the transfer (I once intended to do a wire transfer, and found that the PayPal fees on a huge transfer were quite a bit cheaper).

Without PayPal as a wire transfer substitute, most likely, people will have to resort to sending paper checks through the mail, which is what you did when you won an eBay auction before PayPal was a thing.