If you are patient, its likely a MicroVAX 3100 at a lower price will
eventually appear.
For disks I would suggest a SCSI2SD (now ZuluSCSI ?) or BlueSCSI
devices. You can partition one SD card into several drives. Using
industrial endurance SD cards is preferable, and slightly more
expensive, but in the sizes you are likely to need (~32 GB or less), it
shouldn't be too bad. SD card speed is not a factor.
Checking out the electrolytic capacitors at the onset is important. It
can be hard to diagnose and repair semiconductors in switching power
supplies damaged by a shorted capacitor.
Jerry
------ Original Message ------
From "Peter Ekstrom via cctalk" <[email protected]>
To "Wayne S" <[email protected]>
Cc "General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts"
<[email protected]>; "Peter Ekstrom" <[email protected]>
Date 11/30/2025 3:27:23 PM
Subject [cctalk] Re: VAX and OpenVMS
Ok, good things to keep in mind. And glad to hear I was right in thinking
it seemed a bit high.
Thank you,
- Peter
On Sun, Nov 30, 2025 at 4:19 PM Wayne S <[email protected]> wrote:
It depends on what the machine still has inside.
If you have to add disk and memory that will be expensive.
Also, if memory is missing, I’d be suspicious that the machine was faulty
from the beginning.
$550 seems like a lot for a machine, especially if it’s not running.
Just my opinion.
I got my 3100 about two years ago for $90. Just missing disc drives.
Sent from my iPhone
> On Nov 30, 2025, at 13:14, Peter Ekstrom via cctalk <
[email protected]> wrote:
>
> I have no problem replacing caps in PSUs so if that's the only problem
I'm
> good. Although the battery damage you mention can be quite a bit trickier
> (if at all possible) to fix.
> Unfortunately many of the sellers on eBay don't really know, so it is
part
> of the risk one takes. So I am trying to make sure I pay a low but fair
> price.
>
> - Peter
>
>> On Sun, Nov 30, 2025 at 3:54 PM Peter Coghlan via cctalk <
>> [email protected]> wrote:
>>
>>>>
>>> Very interesting thread. I was kinda thinking too that someone running
>> VMS
>>> on a machine for hobby use would be too small of a potato to go after.
>>> Incidentally, what would y'all value a MicroVAX 3100 at? I am looking
at
>>> one on eBay for $550 but am considering making a lower offer.
>>> I have no details about it so don't know the amount of memory and such.
>>>
>>
>> I have about five or six MicroVAX 3100s and a similar number of
Vaxstation
>> 3100s.
>> They were all given to me or rescued from being dumped so I didn't pay a
>> penny
>> for any of them. Almost all of them have had problems with electrolytic
>> capacitors in the power supplies leaking. The nicad battery packs would
>> also
>> have leaked if I hadn't removed them years ago.
>>
>> If you are thinking of paying money for a Microvax 3100, I suggest you
make
>> sure it hasn't already been damaged by leakage from capacitors or
batteries
>> and if you do aquire it, take immediate steps to make sure it doesn't
soon
>> get
>> damaged by same.
>>
>> Regards,
>> Peter Coghlan.
>>
