$150 for an as-is Macintosh Color Classic?

[PowerMac G4 MDD]

Hello all,

So I found a Mac Color Classic on Craigslist the other day. It's just the unit by itself (seems to be in pretty good condition). The thing is, it's untested and is being sold as-is ONLY. I do know that these go for several hundreds of dollars on eBay. The guy is asking $150 for it... I find that kinda steep, considering the fact that the unit is untested and it's jut the unit itself. What do you guys think?

 

[MacTech68]

Considering the potential failures in this model, I'd say no.

But opinions may vary.

 

[iamMacPerson]

Hello all,

So I found a Mac Color Classic on Craigslist the other day. It's just the unit by itself (seems to be in pretty good condition). The thing is, it's untested and is being sold as-is ONLY. I do know that these go for several hundreds of dollars on eBay. The guy is asking $150 for it... I find that kinda steep, considering the fact that the unit is untested and it's jut the unit itself. What do you guys think?

I'd offer $50. I can guarantee that board is going to need a re-cap, and to top it off the Color Classic was never a speed demon either, even when new. I have always wanted one though since it was the last compact Mac sold in the US and can be upgraded with another machines Logic Board. That is the only reason I'd pay $50.

Of course it is up to you how much you are willing to pay.

Good luck! I have always wanted a Color Classic.

 

[PowerMac G4 MDD]

I'd offer $50. I can guarantee that board is going to need a re-cap, and to top it off the Color Classic was never a speed demon either, even when new. I have always wanted one though since it was the last compact Mac sold in the US and can be upgraded with another machines Logic Board. That is the only reason I'd pay $50.

Of course it is up to you how much you are willing to pay.

Good luck! I have always wanted a Color Classic.

The guy refuses to test it and sounds stubborn... he said that I wouldn't be allowed to test it until I buy it. Maybe I could annoy him anyway and see what he will say if I drop the "firm" price lower xD

Thanks for your kind words though; I'll see what happens...

 

[MacTech68]

Even though it's likely to have leaking caps on the motherboard that MIGHT prevent it from powering up, here's a common "user problem" I ran into many times with these.

Powering them on is a two step process.

1. Flick the power switch ON at the back (next to the power inlet). This places the machine in "Standby".

2. Using an ADB keyboard, press the large power button (on the keyboard) to turn the machine on.

I had a lot of people think either one or the other turned the machine on, It's probably one of the few models that has "soft power-on" via the keyboard that ALSO has a mains power switch.



Sounds like they guy KNOWS it doesn't work. Beat him down.

 

[iamMacPerson]

The guy refuses to test it and sounds stubborn... he said that I wouldn't be allowed to test it until I buy it. Maybe I could annoy him anyway and see what he will say if I drop the "firm" price lower xD

Thanks for your kind words though; I'll see what happens...

If thats the case, $20. Seriously though, I wouldn't pay more then $50 for it since he won't let you test it. Use that as your leverage.

 

[flyinmac]

If thats the case, $20. Seriously though, I wouldn't pay more then $50 for it since he won't let you test it. Use that as your leverage.

Tell him that you'll take it for a mere $10... tell him you accept Cash only, and that it'll be cheaper than the disposal fee's he'll have to pay as it is considered hazardous waste.

 

[iamMacPerson]

Tell him that you'll take it for a mere $10... tell him you accept Cash only, and that it'll be cheaper than the disposal fee's he'll have to pay as it is considered hazardous waste.

Well in some states (like here in California) we pay the recycle fee upfront so when you turn the device back in the fee is already paid for. I have no idea how long this program has been going on, but ewaste recyclers have to take anything and everything thing, even if it's old. For instance I turned in an old LaserWriter that didn't work to the local Apple Store and they had no problem taking it. I got a few looks, and one of the senior walked by and reminisced about how they had one hooked up to their Quadra in the '90's, but they took it none the less and $0 in fees.

 

[flyinmac]

Well in some states (like here in California) we pay the recycle fee upfront so when you turn the device back in the fee is already paid for. I have no idea how long this program has been going on, but ewaste recyclers have to take anything and everything thing, even if it's old. For instance I turned in an old LaserWriter that didn't work to the local Apple Store and they had no problem taking it. I got a few looks, and one of the senior walked by and reminisced about how they had one hooked up to their Quadra in the '90's, but they took it none the less and $0 in fees.

Sounds like it might be cheaper to mail old junk to California for disposal then. Either send it to a relative to throw away, or just send it direct to whichever name pops up in the phone book first for electronics.

Or, I could always just put the postal service to work... Drop it in the outgoing package receptacle with insufficient postage and address it both to and from the postmaster. Let them figure out what to do with it.

 

[Anonymous Freak]

The guy refuses to test it and sounds stubborn... he said that I wouldn't be allowed to test it until I buy it.

Red flag! This means he *KNOWS* it doesn't work. I've never had anyone refuse to do *ANY* amount of testing. For all we know, it could be missing core internal components, like the logic board!

 

[PowerMac G4 MDD]

Red flag! This means he *KNOWS* it doesn't work. I've never had anyone refuse to do *ANY* amount of testing. For all we know, it could be missing core internal components, like the logic board!

Well, it could mean that he knows there is something wrong with it, but most of the time it means that he doesn't want to find out that something is wrong with it. Generally that is the case... if someone suspects that there is a better chance of it not working than working, they won't test it. I don't want to deal with this guy anyway; he sounds stubborn about it. I don't call anyone a good seller who says they don't have he power cord... it's a universal cord that almost all desktop computers use. If one does not want to test their computer due to not being able to get their hands on something so common, or is afraid that it may not work, isn't someone who should be selling a classic Mac, let alone own one. (only exception for not having the power cord is if one is selling a quad-core PowerMac G5 xD)

 

[PowerMac G4 MDD]

If thats the case, $20. Seriously though, I wouldn't pay more then $50 for it since he won't let you test it. Use that as your leverage.

xD I bet that would set him off; I should do that... he probably won't want to sell it to me after this, but I am giving him a piece of my mind. I usually play dumb and act like I know nothing about an old Mac if I go to buy one, but time to lay down the knowledge... BTW, I am in California as well. I hope this guy doesn't recycle it for cash, not having to pay a fee.

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If thats the case, $20. Seriously though, I wouldn't pay more then $50 for it since he won't let you test it. Use that as your leverage.

Just sent this message to him Standing by to see what he says...

"The thing is, keeping it untested can mean that you don't want to find it that it doesn't work, and don't wan to have to sell it as "broken". Well, I am certain it doesn't work, which, in this case, it would only be worth about $25. These things are known to have various issues regarding motherboard capacitors, etc. There is almost no chance that it could be working. Collectors such as myself wouldn't pay that much unless it functioned and came with more than just the unit. You would get even less money by bringing it to a recycling center. I'd buy it for its "broken price" just to have it as a piece in my collection, but not for a price that would be associated with a tested and working machine."

 

[Intell]

Just be prepared for any aftershocks in sending him(?) that.

 

[BJonson]

It's all about the beige plastic. If its not yellowed its worth more than $150. If its totally yellow, worthless. Retrobrite is a dead end. Only costs $75 to have it recapped plus you can put a better monitor in it and stick a mac mini in there run it like a new system.

 

[pietrov]

It's all about the beige plastic. If its not yellowed its worth more than $150. If its totally yellow, worthless. Retrobrite is a dead end. Only costs $75 to have it recapped plus you can put a better monitor in it and stick a mac mini in there run it like a new system.

Why do you say that retrobright is a dead end? I've used it on several macs and the result is quite impressive...

 

[PowerMac G4 MDD]

Why do you say that retrobright is a dead end? I've used it on several macs and the result is quite impressive...

IDK about Retr0bright, but I have used hydrogen peroxide hair care products, under a black light, and it worked flawlessly... but then the yellowing came back later. There is an article about a guy who used Retr0bright and the same thing happened. IDK whether or not he had some home-made Retr0bright solution, but it's a complete kill-joy that that has been evidently happening. Not all of my products, but most of my products have gone back to being yellow.

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Just be prepared for any aftershocks in sending him(?) that.

He didn't respond... that guy is never gonna sell that thing with this attitude. I hope he doesn't get frustrated and bring it to the recycling center for a quick few bucks.

 

[Anonymous Freak]

I haven't used Retr0bright, but a few years ago I did bleach one of my Apple IIcs. A 50/50 water diluted mix, applied with a rag as a light coat (just enough to get it damp,) then scrubbed off with the rag. Repeat a day later.

Came out looking brand new, with only very slight fading of the screen-printed text. Still looks good, five/six years later. Not appreciably brittle compared to the uncleaned ones.

 

[keysersoze]

Any of that stuff (Retrobrite, Hydrogen Peroxide, Bleach) only works on the outer layer of the plastic... the ABS is yellow throughout though. Initially a good retrobrite can look really good. If you keep the computer out of sunlight it lasts longer, but again, it's only as good as that outer layer lasts.

 

[HereBeMonsters]

I quite like the yellowing. Shows it's old!

 

[BJonson]

Why do you say that retrobright is a dead end? I've used it on several macs and the result is quite impressive...

The problem with retrobright is it leaves weird ultra white streakes. I did several items, a sony monitor, apple keyboards, powermac 8600 and every single one had streaks. Who knows, maybe I did it wrong. I tried the regular peroxide, then tried the extra strength stuff from Sally's Beauty supply so not sure about it.

 

[pietrov]

The problem with retrobright is it leaves weird ultra white streakes. I did several items, a sony monitor, apple keyboards, powermac 8600 and every single one had streaks. Who knows, maybe I did it wrong. I tried the regular peroxide, then tried the extra strength stuff from Sally's Beauty supply so not sure about it.

BJonson: I've used on a keyboard I've bought on ebay. The pics were nice but it was totally yellow... never seen such an ugly thing. Now it is white back again. I hope it won't turn back yellow again...