GRC 11/X3 (PDP 11/?? Clone?) in Brisbane

From: Phil Guerney <guerney_at_uq.net.au>
Date: Sun Aug 16 04:22:12 1998

I was surprised by an ad for a "PDP 11 plus plotter, monitors, disc units,
printer $20" and I did a half-hour drive across town to see it this morning.

What I found was a hotch-potch of branded components stacked inside a
garage, but nothing from Digital apart from the RT-11 and other software
manuals. The processor cage, or at least a separate "spare" cage, was badged
General Robotics Corp Microcomputer GRC 11/X3 and contained boards marked on
the tabs M8192, M7504 and two M8043 as well as others without marked tabs. I
guess this was a PDP clone? This computer is in the Comprehensive Computer
Catalog I last downloaded (Dec 97 date) on the "undated list".

The "in use" processor cage was mounted in the front of a steel cabinet
about 2-3' deep, about 3' high and 2' wide with a Cipher brand tape drive
(Magnetic Peripherals Inc) above it. Separately boxed was a Control Data
Drive CDC-CMD and to top it all off there was a BIG plotter, a Nicolet Zeta
3653sx (if I can read my scrawled notes correctly) about 4' wide and 18"
high. A Compaq brand monitor went with it. The folder of documentation
contained a manual for a F880 Magnetic Tape Transport but the present owner
said he sent a 5-6' high tape unit to the tip a year ago so that might have
been it. He also dumped a printer. Other documents referred to a M224X
Fujitsu 51/4" 31-86MB drive and a SRQ011 Winchester Drive Controller but I'm
not sure if they were there. There were certainly other boxes mounted in the
main cabinet.

There were two cardboard boxes full of manuals for SCO Xenix System V, LP1
Fortran, RT11 Fortran IV, RT11 Macro-11 and something called TSX-Plus V6.01,
the RT-11 User Guide and many other fat folders of RT-11 stuff.

There was heaps of irrelevant stuff stored on top and around these units so
it was difficult to see everything, and as I was not going to take it away
myself, I couldn't hang around keeping the owner away from what he was doing
any longer. He said it all came from a geophysical company office and was in
working order two years ago. All he had done is store it, but it appears to
have suffered some damage - some panels were hanging loose, and there was a
large old TV stored on the CDC drive causing the metal top to be bent in.

If any Australians (or others?) are interested in this gear, you can contact
me and I will put you in contact with the owner directly. He says he wants
the space cleared, but will keep the gear for a little while yet - he does
seem to want it to go to someone who can do something with it - and he is
not asking much money. But remember, to take it all away, you will need at
least a 1t truck!

It's out of my league to get this going - I really only collect micros! The
day wasn't wasted - I did pick up a CoCo3 128K system with a Tandy dual
floppy disk drive and Tandy monitor plus manuals, heaps of Rompacks,
magazines etc for $40, and all in perfect working order.

Phil Guerney
Brisbane - Australia.
guerney_at_uq.net.au
Received on Sun Aug 16 1998 - 04:22:12 BST