Ah the memories are flooding back… I used this very model at work back in the day. I played Populous on it after hours with my boss/friend using a serial connection between computers. These computers were very expensive at the time and since I couldn’t afford one I built a similar system from parts to save a bit of money. It still cost me close to 5k CND so these Compaqs were in the 6k range. Anyway, that’s how I got into this hobby.
This was my first PC as a Kid in 1996. Before that I had a Commodore 64. The Deskpro hat 8MB RAM, and a 387 Coprocessor. I put a CD-ROM Drive in, and ran Windows 95 on it. It was very slow, but worked. :)
One thing I've found that's good at removing adhesive and marks off the case is oven cleaner. Make sure to not leave it on for very long and isolate to just the worst areas on the case. If you want to preserve the factory labels and Compaq emblem on the front, make sure to remove the front face (or tape it off) because it will eat through the paint on the emblem. Going this route can remove some of the paint on the case so I would only leave it for a max of 3-5 minutes before scrubbing the affected areas and rinsing. This has eaten through all the old melted rubber on all cases I've tried so far and left the case looking very clean. If you prefer to use a non-caustic approach and an adhesive remover like Goo-gone isn’t strong enough, 3M makes an excellent product in aerosol can form. I’ve found it much stronger than Goo-gone but is still as safe.
I've painted a few cases as well and found that Kyrlon Pebble is a little bit closer to the original beige color for Compaq machines. Maybe try that on the other metal top and see which one you like better. As for your ending, a cliff hanger! C'mon part two already LOL!
Pebble was one of the colors I tried but it’s really more of a gray color on the metal so nothing quite matches. Haha I didn’t want a cliffhanger but I was looking at the timeline and I saw I had so much more to get through so I made the call. Part two will be next week instead of two weeks like usual.
I got a Compaq Deskpro 386s (looks very similar to your system) from Computer Reset! Mine actually works... minus the floppy drive(s); it didn't come with a hard drive. It was gross though. Covered in some type of black sludge (melted rubber?) that I had to clean. The motherboard was also coated in a layer of dust! I used 99% IPA to clean the board and a mix of cleaners/magic erasers to clean the case.
You deserve much more subscriber's. Your channel it's awesome!!! Just my opinion, but you should swap the Retro octet with period correct computer or at least cases, even clones, and CRT if you can find enough good CRT's.
I also picked up a 386/25e from Computer Reset about 8 months ago. I can’t believe how well it cleaned up despite cooking in that warehouse for so long. All That’s left is to replace that Dallas 1287 clock battery. A gorgeous machine. Did you find the keyboard at CR too? I wasn’t able to locate a period correct model when I went.
As with most words I learned I was mispronouncing it. It is Spudger with an uh sounds. Like ugh. They say it in an ifixit tear down and they are the people who make the tool so I trust them.
@@JeremysRetroBar That’s correct, I’ve never heard anyone say “spoodger” before 🤣 I’m not making fun of the way you said it, I love it and I’m going to use it!
Great video. One of my favorite computer models. You did well!
It has a really nice look and I love the front switch.
Ah the memories are flooding back… I used this very model at work back in the day. I played Populous on it after hours with my boss/friend using a serial connection between computers. These computers were very expensive at the time and since I couldn’t afford one I built a similar system from parts to save a bit of money. It still cost me close to 5k CND so these Compaqs were in the 6k range. Anyway, that’s how I got into this hobby.
That’s really awesome! I love stories like this.
Great stuff! I love these kinds of in depth refurb videos.
Great video, I live for this stuff !
This was my first PC as a Kid in 1996. Before that I had a Commodore 64. The Deskpro hat 8MB RAM, and a 387 Coprocessor. I put a CD-ROM Drive in, and ran Windows 95 on it. It was very slow, but worked. :)
One thing I've found that's good at removing adhesive and marks off the case is oven cleaner. Make sure to not leave it on for very long and isolate to just the worst areas on the case. If you want to preserve the factory labels and Compaq emblem on the front, make sure to remove the front face (or tape it off) because it will eat through the paint on the emblem. Going this route can remove some of the paint on the case so I would only leave it for a max of 3-5 minutes before scrubbing the affected areas and rinsing. This has eaten through all the old melted rubber on all cases I've tried so far and left the case looking very clean. If you prefer to use a non-caustic approach and an adhesive remover like Goo-gone isn’t strong enough, 3M makes an excellent product in aerosol can form. I’ve found it much stronger than Goo-gone but is still as safe.
I've painted a few cases as well and found that Kyrlon Pebble is a little bit closer to the original beige color for Compaq machines. Maybe try that on the other metal top and see which one you like better. As for your ending, a cliff hanger! C'mon part two already LOL!
Pebble was one of the colors I tried but it’s really more of a gray color on the metal so nothing quite matches. Haha I didn’t want a cliffhanger but I was looking at the timeline and I saw I had so much more to get through so I made the call. Part two will be next week instead of two weeks like usual.
I got a Compaq Deskpro 386s (looks very similar to your system) from Computer Reset! Mine actually works... minus the floppy drive(s); it didn't come with a hard drive. It was gross though. Covered in some type of black sludge (melted rubber?) that I had to clean. The motherboard was also coated in a layer of dust! I used 99% IPA to clean the board and a mix of cleaners/magic erasers to clean the case.
You deserve much more subscriber's. Your channel it's awesome!!! Just my opinion, but you should swap the Retro octet with period correct computer or at least cases, even clones, and CRT if you can find enough good CRT's.
I’ve already started the process. Thanks for your vote.
@@JeremysRetroBar yes, I have seen the videos ❤️❤️❤️.
I also picked up a 386/25e from Computer Reset about 8 months ago. I can’t believe how well it cleaned up despite cooking in that warehouse for so long. All That’s left is to replace that Dallas 1287 clock battery. A gorgeous machine. Did you find the keyboard at CR too? I wasn’t able to locate a period correct model when I went.
Yeah. I got matching keyboards for most of the CR systems I picked up. Or at least I tried to.
“Spoodger” is my new favourite word 🤣
As with most words I learned I was mispronouncing it. It is Spudger with an uh sounds. Like ugh. They say it in an ifixit tear down and they are the people who make the tool so I trust them.
@@JeremysRetroBar That’s correct, I’ve never heard anyone say “spoodger” before 🤣
I’m not making fun of the way you said it, I love it and I’m going to use it!
I dont really remember those deskpros being much brighter in color than the ones you have. may not have really needed retro brighting.