The scarcity of Commodore 64s in the wild

[treismac]

Is it just my neck of the woods or are C64s hard as hell to find in the wild these days? Not at the flea market, not at garage sales, not on Craigslist, and not at a local retro video game store do I EVER find the Commodore 64. I really dislike purchasing systems/computers online with rolling the dice on if it works or not on top of a hefty shipping and handling charge, but maybe it is time to throw in the towel.

What say you?

[Gameguy]

It is much harder now than it used to be to find these computers, but they're still out there. I didn't find the computer but I found several Vic-20 games a few weeks ago at a yard sale, I was told I missed out on the system as it sold earlier that day. For whatever reason they missed the games, I dug around in boxes to find them.

It could be your area too, but they are getting harder to find.

[Tokimemofan]

I see them a few times a year but most are beat to hell. The Amigas are far worse.

[Wookie]

They pop up once or twice a month on Seattle craigslist but rarely anywhere else. But then I don't see much other vintage computer or gaming stuff in the wild anymore either.

[AdamAnt316]

I definitely see more Commodore 64s than any other vintage computers. Not too long ago, while attending a hamfest, I found several boxes containing three Commodore 64s, two 1541s, and a whole bunch of accessories and software for $20. As others have said, vintage computers in general aren't as plentiful 'in the wild' as they once were, but of the ones still out there, most of them are probably Commodore 64s (makes sense, since something like 21 million of them were made).
-Adam

[bb_hood]

I often see them on craigslist, but most of the time people want too much for them. If you are gonna actually spend a good amount on one, get a commodore 128 instead of a C64.

Just did a quick search, maybe I should buy this?
http://providence.craigslist.org/sys/4624187770.html

[Wookie]

I often see them on craigslist, but most of the time people want too much for them. If you are gonna actually spend a good amount on one, get a commodore 128 instead of a C64.

Just did a quick search, maybe I should buy this?
http://providence.craigslist.org/sys/4624187770.html

Looks like a decent deal if it works.

[Atarileaf]

There's a local charity called "Computers for Kids" that take donations of money and old tech so they can build free older pc's for underprivileged youth. Every two weeks they have an indoor yardsale to raise money and every once in a while an old interesting computer or video games show up.

In the last 3 or 4 months I've found 3 C64's, one boxed, two disk drives, one boxed, a 1702 monitor, tape drives, books, manuals, software by the tray, and never paid more than $10 or $20 for these lots. Got some nice Tandy color computer lots in years past but nothing aside from C64 has shown up in years. Used to be apple II's, Amiga's, Atari 400/800/ST's, Tandy, TI/99, C64, Vic, some others.

As I mentioned, sometimes video games show up there too - buddy I was with just this past Saturday grabbed loose SMB2, SMB3 and Tetris and got them all for $5 and a bare 360 for $10, which did end up working just fine.

[Niku-Sama]

your not the only one not finding the 64s.

I always find vic-20s and ti 99/4a's, oddly enough I found like 3 ti 99/4a's in a dumpster all of them complete and working. not w whole lot of love for them aside from being cool looking..
I still have 2 I cant get rid of, one I gave away to some one I knew who would like it

[Atarileaf]

the ti/99's have some surprisingly good arcade ports

[Steve W]

I almost never see C64s around here. I read someplace that one guy at a flea market was buying them all up because he had read that there was a tiny amount of gold on the motherboard, so he bought up several to rip apart and get the gold out of it.

I rarely saw any old '80s era computers around here other than TRS-80s and TI-99/4As, mainly because both companies were headquartered in this area. It was really rare to see anything else.

[danny_galaga]

I happened to find a C64C on the side of the road about a month ago. Took it to a friends to test and it worked (",)

When it came to finding a good power supply though, now THEY are getting rare! I ended up making my own (http://dannygalaga.com/c64.html), which gives me piece of mind since it turns out the originals are rare because they keep dying and taking out your computer while they're at it!

[Tanooki]

I haven't seen one since like the school days of the 80s. I have no idea why but between large flea markets, antique/vintage shops, garage sales and so on I've yet to see a single C64 in at least a decade or more as I really can't remember the last. I haven't seen them on craigslist, but I also don't check the computer area just the games, toys(for antique/vintage) and the free area.

[Soviet Conscript]

When I lived in the Pittsburgh area a few years ago I came across C64's all the time mostly at local flea markets or via freecycle usually they were cheap enough I picked them up. I had so many at one point I was giving them away to friends. Since I moved to Phoenix I haven't seen any in the wild but I do see them pop up on Craigslist regularly but usually at very inflated prices.

[nildem]

Sadly, most of the thrifts near me either no longer accept or "recycle" all of the older computers they receive. Most of the ones that aren't accepted probably end up trashed by the owner, I'd imagine. I do still see Commodore stuff sporadically at garage sales and swap meets and the like, but I used to see them all the time 10-15 years ago.

[bobotech]

I used to trip over c64s about 10 years ago. They seem to be everywhere. The last big c64 score I got was about 4 years ago when a neighbor said "come over and haul this trunk away before I toss it" and it had 3 c64s, a fast load card, and a few games, and a couple of drives. Ironically the c64 is one system that I don't care at all about, I never had one growing up, I was an Atari 8 bit guy. So in my storage unit, I have at least 15 or more c64s in various states of repair and maybe 8 floppy drives. I don't have many carts for it, probably only about 15 carts. It was one system that I never actively collected for but just kept falling in my lap until a few years ago with that last trunk score. Someday I'm going to pull all the commie stuff I have and start selling it but that is a ways off.

Always had a hard time finding the Atari 8 bit stuff that I wanted.

[wizardofwor1975]

Always had a hard time finding the Atari 8 bit stuff that I wanted.

Agreed, I've been very tempted to buy an Atari XEGS or an Atari 800 for our gameroom. But many of the Atari 800's carts are so uncommon or rare. Ork Attack and Into the Eagle's Nest come to mind.

[o.pwuaioc]

I used to trip over c64s about 10 years ago. They seem to be everywhere. The last big c64 score I got was about 4 years ago when a neighbor said "come over and haul this trunk away before I toss it" and it had 3 c64s, a fast load card, and a few games, and a couple of drives. Ironically the c64 is one system that I don't care at all about, I never had one growing up, I was an Atari 8 bit guy. So in my storage unit, I have at least 15 or more c64s in various states of repair and maybe 8 floppy drives. I don't have many carts for it, probably only about 15 carts. It was one system that I never actively collected for but just kept falling in my lap until a few years ago with that last trunk score. Someday I'm going to pull all the commie stuff I have and start selling it but that is a ways off.

Always had a hard time finding the Atari 8 bit stuff that I wanted.

Ever thought about sharing the wealth? :)

[MeTmKnice]

I think I still have a few C64's and maybe a couple of C128's in my collection. To my knowledge they all still work. Have a few disc drives and such as well. Also have a couple TI-99 Home Computers with Voice synth as well.

[Steve W]

Agreed, I've been very tempted to buy an Atari XEGS or an Atari 800 for our gameroom. But many of the Atari 800's carts are so uncommon or rare. Ork Attack and Into the Eagle's Nest come to mind.
That was always my problem, Atari 8-bit games are so damn hard to find around here. Years back I found a bunch of good games including a lot of third-party cartridges, and I excitedly posted about it online, only to have people basically say "so?" To them it was no big deal, finding Atari XE carts must be easy where they're from. Around my area it's next to impossible. That bunch of games I ended up getting around maybe 2005 or 2006, I only found more third-party cartridges about a month or so ago. Usually on the off-chance I ever find 8-bit carts, they're usually BASIC or Pac-Man or something dirt common. I would totally love to get a good selection of XEGS games, they just aren't out there in the wild. Or at least my area.

[wizardofwor1975]

That was always my problem, Atari 8-bit games are so damn hard to find around here. Years back I found a bunch of good games including a lot of third-party cartridges, and I excitedly posted about it online, only to have people basically say "so?" To them it was no big deal, finding Atari XE carts must be easy where they're from. Around my area it's next to impossible. That bunch of games I ended up getting around maybe 2005 or 2006, I only found more third-party cartridges about a month or so ago. Usually on the off-chance I ever find 8-bit carts, they're usually BASIC or Pac-Man or something dirt common. I would totally love to get a good selection of XEGS games, they just aren't out there in the wild. Or at least my area.

That's definitely been my hesitation with pulling the trigger on an XEGS. I love the games on the A8/XEGS but the availability of reasonably priced carts is kinda disappointing. If you just want Donkey Kong, Missile Command, Star Raiders, Pole Position, and Congo Bongo your golden but if your looking for games like H.E.R.O., Karateka, Choplifter!, or Pitfall II be prepared to spend some cash. Even Orc Attack is going for nearly fifty bucks not including shipping. I love Orc Attack but not for $50 bucks.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/ATARI-Orc-Attack-Cartridge-Boxed-TMI-400-800-800XL-130XE-65XE-XL-XE-8bit-/171517470662?pt=Video_Games_Games&hash=item27ef3ce7c6

On the upside Blue Max & Star Trek SOS are going for less than $20 though. Until I pick up a reasonably priced XEGS I guess I'll go on collecting C64 carts. Recently I added Choplifter and Buck Rogers to my 64 cart collection.

[Gamevet]

I happened to find a C64C on the side of the road about a month ago. Took it to a friends to test and it worked (",)

When it came to finding a good power supply though, now THEY are getting rare! I ended up making my own (http://dannygalaga.com/c64.html), which gives me piece of mind since it turns out the originals are rare because they keep dying and taking out your computer while they're at it!

I had 2 C-64s just freeze up and die on me back in the late 80s'. I ended up buying an aftermarket power supply from a local C64 dealer in Phoenix @ 1988. I still have the power supply and my 3rd C-64 is still going strong. I have a boxed C-64c that I'd bought from Rick Stillwell on this site. It works, but I have a feeling that it has a capacitor, or 2, that are going bad.


I've seen VIC-20 and C-64 carts being sold at Half-Price-Books in Dallas. The last cart I'd bought from them was Radar Rat Race, which isn't really that great of a game. I already had a copy of that game on floppy, but I bought it anyways.

[wizardofwor1975]

I've seen VIC-20 and C-64 carts being sold at Half-Price-Books in Dallas. The last cart I'd bought from them was Radar Rat Race, which isn't really that great of a game. I already had a copy of that game on floppy, but I bought it anyways.

Radar Rat Race was the 1st game I played on the Vic-20 back in the day. A decent Rally-X clone but like you said not great. For Nostalgia's sake I bought the cart for my 64.

[Atarileaf]

That's definitely been my hesitation with pulling the trigger on an XEGS. I love the games on the A8/XEGS but the availability of reasonably priced carts is kinda disappointing. If you just want Donkey Kong, Missile Command, Star Raiders, Pole Position, and Congo Bongo your golden but if your looking for games like H.E.R.O., Karateka, Choplifter!, or Pitfall II be prepared to spend some cash. Even Orc Attack is going for nearly fifty bucks not including shipping. I love Orc Attack but not for $50 bucks.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/ATARI-Orc-Attack-Cartridge-Boxed-TMI-400-800-800XL-130XE-65XE-XL-XE-8bit-/171517470662?pt=Video_Games_Games&hash=item27ef3ce7c6

On the upside Blue Max & Star Trek SOS are going for less than $20 though. Until I pick up a reasonably priced XEGS I guess I'll go on collecting C64 carts. Recently I added Choplifter and Buck Rogers to my 64 cart collection.

Try posting a wanted ad on Atariage for 8-bit carts. I've purchased a few through users there over the years. Ebay can still net good deals. I recently got 8 carts for $34 plus shipping. I bought it mainly for 3 - beamrider, dreadnaught factor, and bc quest for tires. Each of those games are worth around $15 so it wasn't a bad deal.

[wizardofwor1975]

Try posting a wanted ad on Atariage for 8-bit carts. I've purchased a few through users there over the years. Ebay can still net good deals. I recently got 8 carts for $34 plus shipping. I bought it mainly for 3 - beamrider, dreadnaught factor, and bc quest for tires. Each of those games are worth around $15 so it wasn't a bad deal.

Thanks for the suggestion. I'll give Atariage a shot. BTW nice pickup for $34 bucks. BC's quest for tires is a real gem.

[ProjectCamaro]

Screw the C64, I'm still trying to find an Amiga CD32. Now that's a hard console to find.

[wizardofwor1975]

Screw the C64, I'm still trying to find an Amiga CD32. Now that's a hard console to find.

I haven't seen an Amiga CD32 console for sale in quite a while. Have you tried posting on Lemon Amiga in their supermarket. I've gotten some really good deals from them in the past and I've seen CD32 stuff every now and again. Makes me really glad I hung onto my Amiga 500. Another rare Commodore is the Commodore 64GS (Games System). I don't recall ever seeing one in the wild.

http://www.lemonamiga.com/

http://www.zzap64.co.uk/zzap66/thec64gs.html

[Wraith Storm]

Around the Tulsa area C64s are almost impossible to find anywhere other than craigslist.

It irritates the hell outta me too. In the past 8 years I have bought 4 C64s locally and none of them work anymore. I tried and failed at soldering ic sockets and new ram chips on one of them and don't know whats wrong with the other 3. So i have 4 C64s in various states of working order. I cant repair them, but i hate to throw them away, and no one locally wants them.

I just wish i could find a GOOD RELIABLE WORKING C64. Are the 128s better built? Better chips and components or anything? Would they last longer or be more reliable than getting yet ANOTHER C64?

[wizardofwor1975]

Around the Tulsa area C64s are almost impossible to find anywhere other than craigslist.

It irritates the hell outta me too. In the past 8 years I have bought 4 C64s locally and none of them work anymore. I tried and failed at soldering ic sockets and new ram chips on one of them and don't know whats wrong with the other 3. So i have 4 C64s in various states of working order. I cant repair them, but i hate to throw them away, and no one locally wants them.

I just wish i could find a GOOD RELIABLE WORKING C64. Are the 128s better built? Better chips and components or anything? Would they last longer or be more reliable than getting yet ANOTHER C64?

Given your location you should try and track down the Tulsa Area Commodore Users Group (TACUG). I'm not sure if their still around but that would be a good place to start. Buying from a Commodore User Group in my experience has always worked out well whereas Ebay has been a hit & miss. Plus they are usually a vast source of knowledge especially when it comes to repairs.

In the mean time this website has been helpful to me in the past with repairs to my 64 & SX-64:

http://personalpages.tds.net/~rcarlsen/cbm.html

If your interested in having one or more of your 64's professionally repaired you should talk to Ray Carlsen.

http://personalpages.tds.net/~rcarlsen/

[Mayhem]

I haven't seen an Amiga CD32 console for sale in quite a while. Have you tried posting on Lemon Amiga in their supermarket. I've gotten some really good deals from them in the past and I've seen CD32 stuff every now and again. Makes me really glad I hung onto my Amiga 500. Another rare Commodore is the Commodore 64GS (Games System). I don't recall ever seeing one in the wild.
Don't think the C64GS was released in the US, it was UK, Germany, Australia, and Scandinavia only I believe. If not, then maybe a couple other European countries, it's PAL only.

[Wookie]

Around the Tulsa area C64s are almost impossible to find anywhere other than craigslist.

It irritates the hell outta me too. In the past 8 years I have bought 4 C64s locally and none of them work anymore. I tried and failed at soldering ic sockets and new ram chips on one of them and don't know whats wrong with the other 3. So i have 4 C64s in various states of working order. I cant repair them, but i hate to throw them away, and no one locally wants them.

I just wish i could find a GOOD RELIABLE WORKING C64. Are the 128s better built? Better chips and components or anything? Would they last longer or be more reliable than getting yet ANOTHER C64?

If you've had multiple 64s die on you, I'd suspect the power supply. They're notorious for going bad and taking out the computer with them. Check the output voltage under load and if the 5VDC line goes above 5.2V, throw it away. There are multiple possible solutions to the power supply problem (using a protective relay, find one of the more reliable supplies sold with the 1764 REU, convert a C128 supply, build a new one from scratch, etc).

The 128 is generally a more reliable machine than the 64, mainly due to its beefier and more stable power supply. The do tend to develop keyboard problems, though. I've also had better luck with the 64C model compared to the original. None of them were really well built, though, and all are more than 20 years old at this point.

[AdamAnt316]

The unfortunate thing about the C=64 power supply (apart from its tendency to fail) is that the vast majority of them are sealed in epoxy, so you can't work on them without cutting the shell apart. I've been lucky, though, in finding a number of power supplies that can be opened up, including one intended for use with Commodore's 17xx RAM Expander Units (basically a C=128 brick with the C=64 connector on the end). The most interesting of these is actually a third-party unit, the Phoenix CPS-10 (http://www.n8ie.com/c64er/pics/phoenix.jpg), apparently sold via the Jameco catalog at some point (and also made under the Estes name (http://www.n8ie.com/c64er/pics/estes.jpg), apparently). It's in a metal box (mine is white, not black like in the preceding images) with a power switch on the front, and has a pair of (switched?) accessory outlets on the back. I haven't tried it yet, due to the likely presence of 20+ year old electrolytic capacitors, but it seems like it should be reliable otherwise.
-Adam

[thegamezmaster]

Very rarely do I see any C64's. The only one lately was at a Mega Replay. But the price was too high. Plus already have a ton of Commodore stuff and systems I got when my Dad passed away. Even had a silver C64 that works. Did buy an Atari 800 like new in the box with the outer box, styrofoam, power supply, and RF switch. Looks like it got little use. No paper work though.

[Niku-Sama]

About an hour ago I picked up a complete c64 for 32 bucks. First time I ever saw one for sale in years.

I think it might be a pal one though. Is there any way too tell between pal and ntsc without turning it on?

Still undergoing physical hardware checks / cleaning

[Mayhem]

Yeah, open her up and look at the VIC chip (it will be underneath the metal plating area). NTSC is code 6567, PAL is code 6569.

Although if it's made in West Germany (look at the label on the bottom), it's probably going to be PAL. Where was it made?

[schnuth]

About an hour ago I picked up a complete c64 for 32 bucks. First time I ever saw one for sale in years.

I think it might be a pal one though. Is there any way too tell between pal and ntsc without turning it on?

Still undergoing physical hardware checks / cleaning

Nice score if it's a PAL machine. I paid way more than I wanted to for my PAL C64, but it's been more than worth it. So many good PAL only games.

[Niku-Sama]

I can't tell if it is or not.
It has a pal jumper behind the mitsumi rf box. Rev a board with 1983 dates on most stuff

[Mayhem]

As said you're going to have to unscrew the case and look instead to see if it's PAL or NTSC ;)

[Niku-Sama]

oh I missed that post on my phone mayhem, I already have it apart for cleaning i'll check it real quick

edit:

its a 6567 HOWEVER...
its a gold chip!
and while reading up on the best way to get the metal top off I found that the gold chips are some of the earliest.
if the sticker on the bottom edge of the board is a serial number then this is a pretty old one.

the number on the sticker is CS00053809

edit#2:

looks like I might have to do some digging into this. visually everything was ok.

powers on but no video over RF channels 3 and 4. not using a switch box just going directly RCA from the system to the coax to rca adaptor I got from radio shack that I use for the Atari stuff. the Atari stuff works, this still just gives static

EDIT#3:

never mind, apparently my 19 inch sony trinitron's tuner is not any good any more.

I took a rca cable and rca to coax adapter and plugged it into my brand new 40" hisense lcd "monitor" and it came up no problem on both channels 3 and 4 and new LCD TV's are really picky about the signal coming off of these sort of things so I am almost certain all the problems I had are solely that tv and the fact its tuner is going bad...which sucks because it was the perfect size and has excellent picture quality.
i might attempt a tv repair but i donno. good CRT tvs don't show up here, just a lot of cheap crap or really old unusable stuff with the middle gen stuff (i.e. no coax or rca hookups)

any way. getting minor interference that goes away when i touch the rca cable. possible ground/shielding problem but there is a 3/4 local channel that might be the cause aswell.

i'll look into making a scart cable (yes i have a scart tv that's NTSC) with a cable i found for some audio equipment at a goodwill.
its got the scart male end with rca females on the other side

[Mayhem]

Are the decals on the case silver or the standard rainbow? If they are silver (see first photo here http://www.mayhem64.co.uk/c64reva/c64reva.htm this is the one I own ), then you possibly have a Revision A C64 there, and its value jumps a bit heh.

[Niku-Sama]

Rainbow with raised lettering. Rev a board but doesn't seem like any thing else is rev a.

Also mine doesn't have that sticker in the middle on the bottom over the injection mold nipple thingy

[Mayhem]

I wasn't sure from the serial number... looks like you got half and half, the board is probably Rev A, but the decals are not, and some of the chips may be a bit later too. So made during the transition period.

[Niku-Sama]

either way, it works. it'll go well with the VIC-20 I got

[Mayhem]

Yeah, as long as it works, and you're happy heh. If it had been a full Rev A type edition, you could probably have sold it (especially if it's in box with matching serial number) for a decent amount and bought a new C64 for a portion of the sale price heh.

[Niku-Sama]

well considering what I people seem to be selling the version I have with all that I could still turn a profit