Pricing machines like PDP-8s is a difficult task. Due to the small numbers that change hands in any given year, it is often hard to put a firm price on them. It is however important for us to put a value on our collect not least to ensure that we are adequately insured against any disaster that might befall our beloved machines.

The following are my estimate (and what I will generally pay) for a PDP-8 and are based on private sale prices and prices reached on auction sites such as E-bay:

Prices are in UK pounds. Last updated 11th April 2009

Definitions:

Availability – Score out of 5 for how easy these machines are to find. Bare in mind finding a PDP-8 is never easy!

Parts Availability – Score out of 5 for how easy spare parts are to find for a machine. Of course the great thing with a PDP-8 is that due to their simple nature, many individual components can usually be found or a subtitute identified.

Poor – Price for a poor conditioned but complete machine. This be in an unknown state of operation having probably languished for years in a less than ideal environment. Expect to have to fully rebuild this machine. For machines with missing parts deduct up-to 50% from this price and bare in mind the difficulty you may face locating a part.

Good – A machine in generally good condition. All parts will be there and the machine should be largely operational with only minor faults.

Excellent – A clean, fully working machine with no faults. The machine will be include at least a CPU, memory, some form of console and probably some controller cards.