Restoring An Apple IIc - Part 1 - History, Testing, Cleaning

In this episode I take a look at what was going on when the Apple IIc was released. Then I test out an Apple IIc I found at an E-waste facility. Finally, I clean it up so it looks like new.
Chapters:
00:00 - Intro
01:41 - The Release Of The Apple IIc
10:38 - First Look
20:08 - Testing
27:00 - Cleaning
35:28 - Wrap Up And Next Steps
Part 2: kzbin.info/www/bejne/eKfLZJlmhrBoZpo
Part 3 - kzbin.info/www/bejne/Z6e7Z4eZrNOch5Y
SF Chronicle article about Apple II Forever 1984
www.sfchronicle.com/oursf/article/Apple-II-Forever-Found-photos-offer-early-11023531.php
Music used by permission:
“Fakebit World”, "Edison Glam", "Melodramatic", and "Contact" by Malmen
soundcloud.com/malmen
Support me on Patreon - www.patreon.com/retrohackshack
Website - retrohackshack.com
Instagram - retrohackshack
Twitter - retrohackshack
Tools I Use - retrohackshack.com/tools/
T-shirts, Books and more - retrohackshack.com/shop/

[@MarkMphonoman]

When the IBM jr. Was released in ‘84 I was a computer/software reviewer for magazines. I ripped Jr. a new one. It was more like a toy than anything else.

[@RetroHackShack]

Ha ha

[@MrKeebs]

Great video as always. Really lucky to find that machine in such a good working state. Also cleaned out really well. Looking forward to part 2!

[@Retrocatone]

Apple II theme remind me the the theme from a commodore ad from the same time period. Same vibes ha ha !

[@angrydove4067]

You beat me to making that observation! Is the Apple IIc keeping up with you?

[@johnglielmi6428]

I liked the Mac for Graphics, because that is what it was originally designed for anyway. I was designing all kinds of graphic overlays for Bell Telephone Laboratories. and I also used Unix based IBM PC for Circuit Board Design at Bell Labs as well.

[@JoelMcLaughlin]

Awesome stuff Aaron

[@mynameiskolia]

Dear Aaron, I want to say that I really enjoy watching your videos and thank you for sharing this one. Waiting for more and longer videos from you! Kind regards, Nikolai

[@RetroHackShack]

Thanks! I am always afraid they are too long. Glad you like them.

[@musclesmouse]

My uncle got us a //c. I wanted a ][e, but was happy with what I got. My //c also yellowed the same way. it was like all these beige computers did not fair well.

[@TheSulross]

that was a really nice project - kind of like the ideal scenario for a retro enthusisist

[@Skraboing649]

Hi Aaron! I'm a new subscriber and I really appreciate all the work you put into your videos. Keep up the good work and I'm looking forward to seeing more! And Penny Cam is always a welcome sight! 😀👍

[@RetroHackShack]

Thank you!

[@rager1969]

That long RCA cable was for the RF modulator. It was long because you may sit further back when using a TV. The monitor came with a shorter cable.

[@bjn714]

17:10 shows easily that it is definitely NOT the Alps keyboard. Alps KB had a metal backplate and no plastic anti-sag frame. The anti-sag frame was used on the Apple branded (but still sub-contracted) keyboard, which required it because it lacked the metal plate that the key switches mounted into in the Alps had.

[@Doug_in_NC]

Those composite connectors are a pain. I’ve just about finished restoring a 2c that was in much worse physical shape than yours, and I had to replace the RCA Jack. I have one of the later ones, and it has a conventional RCA Jack, not the one you have.

[@rager1969]

My poor mom, I talked her into parting ways with $1100 plus tax in December 1984 for an Apple //c, Monitor //c and Apple mouse. I should've saved her some money (and gotten a computer a year earlier) and went with a Commodore 64 or Atari 800.

[@BlaBla-pf8mf]

$1300 in 1984 for an 8 bit computer sounds very expensive when a C64 was a quarter of that. I never understood how Apple could ask for these kind of prices that were so much higher than the rest of the 8 bit market.

[@RetroHackShack]

This is one of the many reasons I never bought an Apple product. I refuse to pay the Apple premium. However, compared to a IIe with disk drive, monitor, and 80 col card at $2000, $1300 plus a monitor seems pretty good. IBM's portable at the time was $3000 and the PCjr was selling for $1269 and I think that was without any expansions. I had a Coco which was similar in price to the C64. I probably should have shown a price comparison in the history section. DOH!

[@maxxdahl6062]

With commodore what you saved on the computer itself, you'd eventually have to spend on stuff like a 1541, etc.

[@terosaarela4555]

That is an awesome e-waste find! Apple II series computers are pretty much comparable to unobtanium here.

[@RetroHackShack]

I see them quite a bit over here and on ebay. They seem to hold up pretty well, too unless the keyboard gets smashed.

[@terosaarela4555]

@@RetroHackShack I’ve gotten a IIGS from your side of the pond some years back. The shipping prices have gone pretty outrageous since then, and you have to calculate customs and taxes on top of that.

[@RetroHackShack]

Perhaps we should setup a trading site. We can send stuff like Apple iic over there and you can send back Amstrad 🙂

[@paullee9488]

Curious is you have the VDAP disk that goes with the fingerprint card? I’ve been searching high and low and cannot locate it.

[@cbmeeks]

I have two IIc's. Great little machines. One of them has a Mockingboard clone INSIDE! I also have an internal CP/M card with 512KiB. But I can't use both at the same time (not in the same machine). Anyway, what are you using to capture that video? Looks nice. Oh, BTW...if you're at the command prompt, you can type: PR#6 and that will load the disk.

[@RetroHackShack]

I have enjoyed using a iic over the past few years. It's a lot easier to test software on it than setting up one of my full size it's. I use a Startech usb3hdcap for capture. It is a little pricey, but it captures everything and works well with OBS.

[@SHUPIRATE1991]

My Apple 2 c that I just bought has a keyboard issue. The enter key works , I guess I need to do a cleaning

[@RetroHackShack]

Yes

[@enjoythepig]

It's very hard for me to imagine an IBM and an Apple anything competing aganist each other. But they were similarly priced and sold in the same stores. I think the Apple had to compete against Commodore, and Atari, while the IBM just competed against itself. IBM buyers were going to buy an IBM no matter what else you put in front of them.

[@RetroHackShack]

True

[@MarkMphonoman]

Do you do computer repairs? I am testing my Apple iic and may need you to bring it back to life. Thanks, Mark

[@RetroHackShack]

No. Not generally. I might consider an unusual or interesting system that can be featured on the channel, but I don't have time to do repair work.

[@tenminutetokyo2643]

Any tips for finding good ewaste places?

[@RetroHackShack]

Google search. Go visit. Bring donuts 😁

[@infinitecanadian]

Who would throw one of those away?