I've had good luck selling small stockpiles of "vintage" laptops on eBay (recently, around ten circa 2009 models).
Prepping for sale can help. There seems to be a category of buyers who not only want something clean, but that's had the original software restored, or something like that. For "vintage" PCs, this means putting on a vintage version of Windows, maybe not the one that came with it, but XP or something that people really liked and will run old software they have. For non-PCs, like 8-bits, I'm just guessing there are also buyers who want a good out-of-box experience, to play with for nostalgia, without having it be a restoration project for them.
Also, specs do help for even "vintage" PCs, even ones that don't matter much, and aren't collectible. The larger the SSD you retrofit into it, it seems the more people are willing to pay, like someone is thinking of a Windows XP box as a daily driver for a video collection in 2024. Maybe people just like the idea of a Windows XP dream computer, and big specs help. People also seem to pay more for very minor CPU boost, even if the only difference is a 10% clock rate difference, same cache, and even if the CPU is socketed and they could upgrade it themselves. (It's easier to understand people wanting, say, the slightly faster variant of an 8-bit.)
Condition and cleanliness also helps. Keyboards tend to show wear and accumulate grime you'll never fully get clean, and a $20 replacement keyboard, combined with wiping down the chassis with isopropyl 70% prep pads, can elevate condition of a laptop from gross to great. Older desktop keyboards, you can disassemble them to clean, and this works surprisingly well for some of them, so you're pretty much only cleaning big plastic parts under the faucet.
But -- I implore you -- don't spray an eBay item with Febreeze or a scented duster. In the last couple years, most of the electronics I buy on eBay have had this done to them. Like, there must've been a TikTok, or something, that told people this was a best practice. The VOCs are nasty, and can persist on/in the item for weeks or longer.
I agree 100% with this advice about not spraying them with fragrances. It's an issue for me because that stuff really lingers and is unpleasant. I am experiencing this issue with Amazon deliveries in Canada. When covid happened, they started using fragranced air fresheners in their warehouse. What this means is that all items now arrive reeking. For items that are shrink wrapped or boxed well it's not that bad because you can just quickly remove the covering to the trash and the interior is ok, but items that intentionally have a hole in the plastic bag to prevent humidity, etc. from building up, the inside fills up with the fragrance and your cables, etc. will reek. Some materials will absorb it more than others.. steel is not porous and you can wipe it with alcohol or soapy water but something like plastic, it will cling tenaciously. You shouldn't have to wash a new item though..
I did try to raise this as a complaint with Amazon. The rep agreed this is an issue, and then nothing ever came of it.
It's too bad too because if you look at the cannisters, they have warning labels with the toxic symbol on them warning that exposure to them can sensitize people and cause reactions so their employees are experiencing the brunt of that.
I have 1000s of 60-80s computers and I did plan to open up a museum but it’s probably not going to happen. So I might make art with them. I like them a lot more than modern stuff; the way they look outside and inside, I can repair them and they all work and make lovely sounds. If I would sell them; eBay or specific sites for that specific computer. I traded tons on msx.org and the prices are not the highest but good. Also there is a store in Japan that pays a lot for some types of msx ; I showed my collection of turbo-rs and I could’ve bought a house where I live with the end result. Of course I kept them.
What about donating pieces to already existing computer museums if you have too many items? Depending on the country, you probably would get a tax credit receipt. There is a list of museums here at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_computer_museums
If you want to make money, there's no place like eBay to move vintage hardware. If you're more concerned about it going to a good home, show up to any sort of vintage hardware meetup (KansasFest, VCF, etc) and someone will take it off your hands. Generally speaking, most vintage hardware is something that someone else wants, with the notable exception of generic Intel/AMD clone hardware, and even that stuff is gaining traction in the community.
The entire trajectory of my life was changed when I was plopped down in front of a SparcStation 5 with no CLI experience other than getting games to run in DOS and told to "figure it out".
I don't sell vintage computers but I do buy a lot and occasionally sell some very obscure bordering on vintage electronics
If it's not very obscure just sell at the prices they go for on ebay; would strongly suggest selling as "for parts" and clarify they're not fully tested because it's wild how often ebay buyers seem to encounter issues with used items and require a partial refund (they rarely want to return the item). The cut on selling price by listing for parts will not be that significant most of the time with older tech in my experience.
If it is quite obscure you'll probably have to accept that it might be a long time before you even get an offer and the price can be incredibly hard to pin down. I've bought things for close to zero that I've also seen go for hundreds just because someone wanted rid of them, I've had offers around 25% of the listed price being accepted but I suspect those same listings were skipped over by people who would've paid more.
Prices can vary dramatically depending on whether the few people who might want a thing are actively looking for it.
Readit News
Prepping for sale can help. There seems to be a category of buyers who not only want something clean, but that's had the original software restored, or something like that. For "vintage" PCs, this means putting on a vintage version of Windows, maybe not the one that came with it, but XP or something that people really liked and will run old software they have. For non-PCs, like 8-bits, I'm just guessing there are also buyers who want a good out-of-box experience, to play with for nostalgia, without having it be a restoration project for them.
Also, specs do help for even "vintage" PCs, even ones that don't matter much, and aren't collectible. The larger the SSD you retrofit into it, it seems the more people are willing to pay, like someone is thinking of a Windows XP box as a daily driver for a video collection in 2024. Maybe people just like the idea of a Windows XP dream computer, and big specs help. People also seem to pay more for very minor CPU boost, even if the only difference is a 10% clock rate difference, same cache, and even if the CPU is socketed and they could upgrade it themselves. (It's easier to understand people wanting, say, the slightly faster variant of an 8-bit.)
Condition and cleanliness also helps. Keyboards tend to show wear and accumulate grime you'll never fully get clean, and a $20 replacement keyboard, combined with wiping down the chassis with isopropyl 70% prep pads, can elevate condition of a laptop from gross to great. Older desktop keyboards, you can disassemble them to clean, and this works surprisingly well for some of them, so you're pretty much only cleaning big plastic parts under the faucet.
But -- I implore you -- don't spray an eBay item with Febreeze or a scented duster. In the last couple years, most of the electronics I buy on eBay have had this done to them. Like, there must've been a TikTok, or something, that told people this was a best practice. The VOCs are nasty, and can persist on/in the item for weeks or longer.
I did try to raise this as a complaint with Amazon. The rep agreed this is an issue, and then nothing ever came of it.
It's too bad too because if you look at the cannisters, they have warning labels with the toxic symbol on them warning that exposure to them can sensitize people and cause reactions so their employees are experiencing the brunt of that.
RR Auctions is the only auction house I know that does computers
https://www.rrauction.com/
Then there are vintage computer festivals all over the country now and they have sales and markets. Find one close to you and sell it there.
https://vcfed.org/events/
This thread may push me to try again.
The entire trajectory of my life was changed when I was plopped down in front of a SparcStation 5 with no CLI experience other than getting games to run in DOS and told to "figure it out".
Alas, I am in the US.
If it's not very obscure just sell at the prices they go for on ebay; would strongly suggest selling as "for parts" and clarify they're not fully tested because it's wild how often ebay buyers seem to encounter issues with used items and require a partial refund (they rarely want to return the item). The cut on selling price by listing for parts will not be that significant most of the time with older tech in my experience.
If it is quite obscure you'll probably have to accept that it might be a long time before you even get an offer and the price can be incredibly hard to pin down. I've bought things for close to zero that I've also seen go for hundreds just because someone wanted rid of them, I've had offers around 25% of the listed price being accepted but I suspect those same listings were skipped over by people who would've paid more. Prices can vary dramatically depending on whether the few people who might want a thing are actively looking for it.