So I finished soldering this week on my latest Mimeo board. This one is a pre-NTI board Mimeo. We are calling this one the “Museum Mimeo” since it’s like a high-end “Museum Store” Rembrandt replica. For the novice they wouldn’t be able to tell the difference, but any one with decent knowledge could tell right away but still appreciate the artistic work that went into the copy.
For those who want to replicate what I have done, be aware I did have to manufacture some of the really hard parts to find. I used my auto restoration skills and similar parts from the same manufactures. For example this morning I just swapped out the painted black screws on my LM323K with screws I acid-etched/Oxidized to better match the visual appearance of the screws used on the pre-NTI Apple-1.
Many of the parts on this board have been re-logo’d and dated, however when I did change an actual date code or part number I altered them slightly or made the logo slightly smaller or bigger than the original parts. I am just finishing up a document that will be shared about what is different with this Mimeo compared to a real one.
For the un-initiated, the first easy telltale sign is that Mike Willegal does put his logo and URL on the lower back corner with a smiley face so that is one easy way to tell… But just incase in the future someone with some skill removes it, trust me there are other documented discrepancies.
Without further delay… The Museum Mimeo. BTW: I am kidding about not stuffing it. I have started locating many Fairchild parts with the correct date codes and different part numbers (i.e. 9N series parts instead of 74xx)
Corey, where could you buy the MR500 and the sockets?? They are of the same type as original!! I would like to stock some..
Well the MR500 are actually a14f diodes. The Apple I used both depending on when it was built. As for the sockets, the 16 pin are un-obtainium, you can't get them any more, most vendors will say they have the correct ones until you get them and they are the open frame version as TI changed the part but not the number. The 8 and 14 pin are around with the same open frame substitution problem, but who ever has them wants an arm and a leg. The 40 and 24 are around at a few surplus suppliers.
BTW: These are not the greatest sockets, I just had one that caused me a bit of a headache after stuffing the board where some solder got caught between the Mylar backing and the board due to gravity and my moving the pin as I was soldering so it slipped past. Not an easy thing to track down. I guess this didn't happen when they wave soldered the original board because gravity pulled the solder the other way, when you hand solder the board it's upside down. I learned my lesson on soldering these things to be careful not to move the pin when soldering as the hole is pretty big in the board for the pins. Then again if you want authenticity, you have no choice and out of 42 16 pin sockets I only had one bad solder joint...
Cheers,
Corey
could you tell me how should I called the design of the Apple 1 socket? Try to see if I can get from China source.
As for A14F, what can I get them?
Thanks, Michael