RETRO TECH
My Vintage-Computer Mission
I restore and modernize classics— Commodore 64/128, Atari 800XL/130XE, and the ever-elegant Apple IIGS. If you’ve got a Commodore of any stripe (working or wheezing), I’ll buy it.
The Icons on My Bench
Commodore 64
The best-selling home computer of all time (≈17 million units), the C64 put real sound and color graphics in reach of kids, hobbyists, and game studios alike. Today it’s still the backbone of the demo scene, and with modern SD-card drives it doubles as an inexpensive 8-bit dev kit.
Commodore 128
Commodore’s swan-song 8-bitter ran C64 software and CP/M, spoke 80-column text natively, and shipped with BASIC 7.0—all in one slim case. Modern users prize it for its “three-in-one” personality: C64 mode for fun, native mode for productivity, CP/M mode for retro business software.
Atari 800XL
With its ANTIC/GTIA video chips and built-in BASIC, the 800XL was Atari’s answer to the C64. It excelled at smooth scrolling and color-rich arcade ports. Today it remains the go-to Atari 8-bit for solid build quality, easy 64 kB RAM upgrades, and a huge back catalog of games.
Atari 130XE
An 800XL in new clothes but with 128 kB RAM, bank-switching tricks, and a lower price. In the ’80s it gave Atari owners a cheap “memory turbo.” In 2025 it’s beloved by modders—that extra RAM lets us run beefier DOSes and RAMdisks without soldering.
Apple IIGS
Apple’s 16-bit bridge between the Apple II and the Mac: crisp 640×200 graphics, Ensoniq wavetable sound, and a mouse-driven GUI—while staying 95 % backward-compatible with IIe software. Today it’s a cult music workstation and a living lesson in Apple’s transition years.
What I offer
WHAT I BUY
I’ll buy any Commodore or Atari computer or peripheral, working or not.
FREE REPAIRS
I’ll repair your vintage system for free—you cover parts and shipping. No monitors or laptops, please.
ASSEMBLY SERVICE
If there is a vintage project that you have or want assembled, contact me. I can put together any of the DIY projects you purchase for a small assembly fee. This includes EVO, Ultimate 64, CMD DIY kits, SixtyClones,
FAVORITE CHANNELS
https://www.youtube.com/@adriansdigitalbasement - You can learn a lot about electronics from this mastermind. Adrian Black hosts this YouTube channel and gets very technical with his repairs and evaluations of vintage tech. I have learned more about electronics watching Adrian than anywhere else.
https://www.youtube.com/@JanBeta - Jan Beta is another heavy hitter that knows a whole lot about vintage computers, particularly the Commodore 64. He goes in deep on repairs, testing new products, and getting creative with his soldering iron.
https://www.youtube.com/@8_Bit - I love Robin’s melodic voice. He focuses on showcasing vintage tech, especially Commodore related items. His focus on programming, especially machine language, is top notch.
https://www.youtube.com/@CommodoreSam - CommodoreSam is a staple for solid vintage tech advice. His focus, is of course Commodore. What else with a name like CommodoreSam? His channel has high quality content that brings a lot of value to anyone who appreciates retro tech.
https://www.youtube.com/@8BitResurgence - 8BitResurgence is the brainchild of Thomas Christoph. Thomas is an absolute genius and has a fascinating and detailed lineup of content. I appreciate his thought process, professionalism and thoroughness. Thomas is responsible for brining many previously unobtainable retro tech projects back to life including the CMD line of floppy and hard drives and more recently, the RAMLInk.
Favorite Links
Compute!’s Gazette
Returning after a 35-year break, the Iconic COMPUTE!’s Gazette magazine, available in digital and print, now focuses on the entire retro computing community. Check it out, you’ll probably see an article written by yours truly.
https://www.computesgazette.com/
🍋 Lemon64 (lemon64.com)
A passion project since 1998, founded by Kim Lemon to consolidate C64 gaming info and community resources. Today, it hosts over 8,500 game entries, user reviews, forums, SID music, and frequent updates (e.g., 50 new titles in June 2025). It’s powered by nostalgia and sustained through reader support—no intrusive ads or paywalls, just dedicated fan love.
🛠 Zimmers.net (zimmers.net)
An exhaustive FTP-style repository helmed by Bo Zimmerman. It offers detailed schematics, service manuals, disk images, and galleries covering nearly every Commodore model—including rare prototypes like the C65 and CBM-II series. Ideal for restorers and hardware historians.
🔧 CBMStuff (cbmstuff.com)
A go-to parts and accessory shop for Commodore restoration. From replacement keycaps in every color to USB drives and the WiModem ($54.95 Wi-Fi modem replacement), CBMStuff provides the components needed to bring vintage machines back to life.
📼 CSDb (csdb.dk)
The definitive Commodore 64 Scene Database, curated by enthusiasts since around 2001. It catalogs demos, tools, groups, events, and downloads—everything from classic titles to recent releases, with active forums and a goal of fully preserving the C64 scene.
💾 AmiKit (amikit.amiga.sk)
A polished “modern retro Amiga” environment that layers over emulators like WinUAE or Amiberry. It includes over 400 pre-configured Amiga apps and games, visuals like anti-aliased fonts and PNG icons, plus Rabbit-Hole integration to launch host applications directly. Works on Windows, macOS, Linux, or Raspberry Pi.
📚 Dev-Docs (docs.dev-docs.org)
A focused repository preserving official technical documentation—especially for Atari ST hardware. Fast search, indexed manuals, service references—all kept accessible and curated for hardware-level developers and retro enthusiasts.
Modern Retros
Commander X16
The Commander X16 is the brainchild of David “The 8‑Bit Guy” Murray—designed as a true-to-era nostalgic platform built with new-old-stock chips to ensure accessibility and longevity. It sports a Western Design Center 65C02 CPU clocked at 8 MHz, a PS/2 keyboard, SNES controller ports, IEC disk support, four expansion slots, and upgradable ROM and RAM (up to ~2 MB). It's a micro-ATX board meant for genuine expansion and software development, complete with Commodore-style BASIC and a monitor.
MEGA65
Dubbed a “21st-century realization of the C65,” the MEGA65 revives what Commodore never officially released. It runs FPGA-hybrid hardware, including a C65-style keyboard, HDMI/VGA video, dual SD card slots, Ethernet, extended RAM, and optional GEOS or BASIC10. It supports live flashing, 40x the speed of a C64, and maintains compatibility with C64/C65 software while adding network and storage convenience.
C256 Foenix
This is a bold attempt to create a new retro computer ecosystem. The C256 Foenix runs on the W65C816 at 14 MHz (or MC68030 in some variants), equipped with SRAM, advanced VICKY video chipsets, multiple audio options, and FPGA updates. It isn’t a mere replica—it’s a platform meant to inspire fresh software development and hardware exploration within a retro-contemporary vision.
PICO‑56 (aka HBC‑56 on Pi Pico)
This GitHub-born hobbyist project crams an entire 65C02-based system—including a VIA, TMS9918A VDP, dual AY-3-8910 PSGs—into a single RP2040 microcontroller. It delivers VGA output, PS/2 and NES-pad inputs, SD card storage, and BASIC via boot menu, and is available as a full PCB kit from Tindie. It won a PCBWay design award for its clever retro-on-modern implementation.
https://github.com/visrealm/pico-56
Retro Shops
American Retro
American Retro (based in Riverhead, NY) specializes in parts and tools to keep vintage computers alive—including firmware updates for retro-chip testers and a lively presence at collector events. They position themselves as both vendor and advocate, with firmware releases and event support, showing real engagement beyond transactions.
The Future Was 8-Bit (TFW8b)
UK-based TFW8b lives by the tagline “making 8‑bit things for koolkidz since before it was fashionable! They stock everything from SD2IEC units to C64 laptop cases, ship globally (VAT covered), and churn out home-grown kits with pride and community appreciation
Tindie (Vintage Computing Marketplace)
Tindie isn’t a single vendor—but a thriving indie marketplace where makers post niche creations like FPGA boards, ROM packs, Ethernet kits, and retro accessories. It’s the best place to discover emerging hardware from the retro scene—handmade, customizable, and direct from source.
Retro Rewind
Located in Kitchener, Ontario, Retro Rewind offers diagnostics tools, ROM kits, accelerators, and mod components for Commodore and Amiga systems. The company is formally registered and stands behind its products with clear return policies, indicating they’re in it for the long haul .
AmiBay
AmiBay is a long-running, non-profit Amiga trading forum—home to nearly 1 M posts and 24,000 members. It’s community-driven and fee-free, favored for fixed-price sales over auction sites, though its tone can be idiosyncratic.
iComp Wiki
The iComp Wiki (wiki.icomp.de) is the central hub for Individual Computers hardware documentation—covering accelerators, scan-doublers, C64 reloads, and more. It’s a trusted technical resource, referenced by their own support staff in forums.
Retro Lemon (UK)
Retro Lemon is a UK retailer focusing on expansions and upgrades—exclusively distributing Lotharek products and more. They’ve earned a 4.9 Trustpilot rating and come recommended for quality DIY kits like retro-chip testers.
Lotharek.pl
Poland’s Lotharek is a niche hardware innovator—producing FPGA interfaces, accelerators, replica displays, and board expansions for C64, Atari, and Spectrum systems . Their social posts highlight a commitment to precision and quality: “My mission is to deliver high quality devices in good prices.”
Retrospective Shop
Retrospective specializes in high-end C64 upgrades—selling EVO64 motherboards and deluxe expansion boards, in both kit and plug-and-play form . If you’re looking for top-tier modern enhancements that respect the classic form, this is it.
Bulletin Board Systems – BBS
Before the internet took over, there was the BBS.
A Bulletin Board System, or BBS, is a computer server you could dial into using a phone line and a modem. Once connected, you could read messages, post your own, play text-based games, transfer files, and chat with other users—all in glorious ASCII or PETSCII. Each BBS was its own little world, often run by hobbyists from a spare bedroom with a single phone line and a lot of passion.
Where it all started
BBSes began in the late 1970s. The first known system, CBBS (short for “Computerized Bulletin Board System”), went live in 1978 in Chicago. Built by Ward Christensen and Randy Suess, it set the model: one computer, one modem, one user at a time.
By the 1980s, BBSes exploded in popularity. As modem prices dropped and home computers like the Commodore 64, Atari 8-bit, and Apple II spread, thousands of BBSes sprang up across the globe. They became the original online communities—focused on everything from gaming to programming to politics. If you wanted to trade software, join a warez scene, or just talk about last night’s Star Trek episode, there was a BBS for that.
The golden age
From the mid-’80s to the mid-’90s, BBS culture flourished. Software like FidoNet let systems exchange messages across long distances. Doors (external programs) brought games, quizzes, and utilities into the mix. Local BBSes were the backbone of digital life for a whole generation of computer users—accessible with nothing but a terminal program and a dial tone.
Sysops (system operators) managed these boards, often customizing them deeply and enforcing their own rules. The best ones felt like digital clubs: intimate, quirky, and human.
Where they stand now
Most people moved on when the internet became widely available in the late ’90s. But BBSes never died. They just adapted.
Today’s boards run over Telnet instead of dial-up, which means you can connect from anywhere in the world without tying up a phone line. New boards are still being created. Old ones have been revived. Enthusiasts run them on original hardware, modern emulators, or hybrid setups that combine the two.
BBSes now serve as:
Living history – preserving the look, feel, and spirit of early online life
Niche communities – where retro computing fans, ANSI artists, and text game lovers gather
Learning tools – teaching networking, scripting, and system maintenance
Time machines – for anyone who remembers the thrill of a ringing modem and a blinking cursor
If you’ve never logged into a BBS before, now’s a perfect time. Fire up a terminal program, pick a system from the list, and enjoy the ride. The line may be digital now—but the connection is just as real.
TERMINAL PROGRAMS
To access a BBS, you need a terminal program—software that connects your computer to a remote system using Telnet or other legacy protocols. Back in the day, we used modems and phone lines. Today, we use internet connections—but the method is the same at heart: a text-based session between you and the board.
Terminal programs are essential because they:
Translate keystrokes and screen output between your computer and the BBS
Handle legacy character sets like PETSCII, ATASCII, and ANSI
Let you upload/download files and play text-based games (a.k.a. doors)
Below are some solid choices by platform:
Recommended Terminal Programs
Windows / Linux / macOS
SyncTERM
Supports ANSI, PETSCII, and ATASCII. Very BBS-friendly. Actively maintained.Use this if you're connecting to a variety of boards or want fullscreen experience.
NetRunner
Designed for BBS use. Great ANSI support. From the Mystic BBS team.
Windows only
CRT or AbsoluteTelnet
Older school but still used in sysop circles. Paid.
macOS (native options)
iTerm2
Modern replacement for Terminal with better control over display and encoding.Terminal.app + telnet
Basic, but works for boards that don’t require legacy graphics.
Web Browser
fTelnet
Telnet in the browser—no software needed. Great for quick access.
Commodore 64 (real or emulated)
CCGMS Future
Modern fork of the classic CCGMS terminal program. Works great with SD2IEC and fast loaders.
Atari 8-bit
BobTerm / Amodem
Classic 8-bit terminals—still functional if you’re using real hardware or emulation.
You only need one terminal to get started. Install it, connect to one of the BBSes listed below, and experience the online world the way it began—fast, friendly, and gloriously low-fi.
DIAL-IN DESTINATIONS
Retro Gold
Address:
rg1.retrogoldbbs.com : 6800
Hardware / Software:
PC / Mystic
Focus:
General chat, FidoNet, file mirrors
Retro Gold 64
Address:
rg64.retrogoldbbs.com : 6411
Hardware / Software:
C64 / Image BBS 3.0
Focus:
Commodore-only forums & warez
Retro Gold 2
Address:
rg2.retrogoldbbs.com : 8500
Hardware / Software:
Amiga 4000 / C-Net Pro
Focus:
Amiga demos, doors, mods
The Apple Bit-Bucket
Address:
abb.sytes.net : 8511
Hardware / Software:
Apple 2GS / GBBS Pro
Focus:
Apple II software & lore