So you may know that I have a soft spot for the Color Classic -- it's my favorite desktop Mac. And while I own two of them, the original Color Classic wasn't the only model that came in the form factor. I've always wanted a Color Classic II, for no other reason, really, than for the sake of my collection. Imagine my surprise when I found half a dozen CC-form-factor machines show up for sale on Yahoo Auctions Japan not long ago. And among them were some CC IIs, as well as Performa 275s.
You can probably guess what happened next. This was clearly going to be a big gamble, as these machines are almost 30 years old and we all know how well beige plastic of that age tends to hold up. But these models aren't ones that I'd be able to find here in the US, so the opportunity was worth the risk.
$180 in express international shipping from FedEx later...
Yep -- it survived. Not a single crack, scratch, chip or blemish, at least other than the ones the machine already had prior to making it to me. Clearly it needs a retrobrite treatment, and the motherboard needs a recap (the original battery was still in it, but hadn't leaked!), but it's such a relief that it is indeed still possible to ship a beige Mac without condemning it to a death sentence.
Here's how:
I used Buyee as a proxy shipper for the auction, and paid an extra 1500 yen for them to repackage the machine. They wrapped the 275 in two layers of bubble wrap (including a piece of cardboard covering the front of the CRT), then used expanding foam packs in the outer carton. This kept the machine very secure inside the box and well-padded. I'm very impressed with (though not surprised by) the care they took, and absolutely justifies the packaging fee. I'm keeping that box just in case.
As for the machine itself? Cost me all of $80 US -- I couldn't believe that it went for so cheap. All of the other machines that were listed at the same time sold for about that much too. The only catch is that its hard drive has been removed, which is probably no big deal as I'd likely throw a BlueSCSI into it anyway.
Normally I don't spoil my acquisitions like this, I prefer to wait until I get a video put together about it. But I have so many items in my backlog as it is, it'll likely be a while before I get around to working on this one.
You can probably guess what happened next. This was clearly going to be a big gamble, as these machines are almost 30 years old and we all know how well beige plastic of that age tends to hold up. But these models aren't ones that I'd be able to find here in the US, so the opportunity was worth the risk.
$180 in express international shipping from FedEx later...
Yep -- it survived. Not a single crack, scratch, chip or blemish, at least other than the ones the machine already had prior to making it to me. Clearly it needs a retrobrite treatment, and the motherboard needs a recap (the original battery was still in it, but hadn't leaked!), but it's such a relief that it is indeed still possible to ship a beige Mac without condemning it to a death sentence.
Here's how:
I used Buyee as a proxy shipper for the auction, and paid an extra 1500 yen for them to repackage the machine. They wrapped the 275 in two layers of bubble wrap (including a piece of cardboard covering the front of the CRT), then used expanding foam packs in the outer carton. This kept the machine very secure inside the box and well-padded. I'm very impressed with (though not surprised by) the care they took, and absolutely justifies the packaging fee. I'm keeping that box just in case.
As for the machine itself? Cost me all of $80 US -- I couldn't believe that it went for so cheap. All of the other machines that were listed at the same time sold for about that much too. The only catch is that its hard drive has been removed, which is probably no big deal as I'd likely throw a BlueSCSI into it anyway.
Normally I don't spoil my acquisitions like this, I prefer to wait until I get a video put together about it. But I have so many items in my backlog as it is, it'll likely be a while before I get around to working on this one.
