Need help finding an OLD case...

therealnickdanger

Senior member
Oct 26, 2005
987
2
0
The year was 1988 and our family got our first true PC. We had a few other objects that qualified as "computers" prior to this, but this was a beastly 386 along with the add-on i387 math coprocessor. It ran Geo-DOS and was powerful enough for me to enjoy Commander Keen, Star Trek 25th, and many more games until I upgraded some years later. You never forget your first... well, unless you do. Since it was a custom build through a local shop (defunct for at least 20 years), I can't remember any branding associated with it. Here's what I remember:

- Beige
- Heavy steel
- Large Desktop (not a tower)
- Pretty sure it was AT (not ATX)
- On the front middle/right were two buttons (Reset and Turbo) and a gigantic red flipper switch for ON/OFF that made a satisfying "ka-CHUNK" sound
- Two (maybe three) external 5.25" horizontal bays
- I just remembered that it also had a two-digit green LCD display on the front as well...

I want to find this case again (or something like it) and fit my gaming rig into it. Any help finding it or something similar would be great. Thanks!
 
Last edited:

BonzaiDuck

Lifer
Jun 30, 2004
16,889
2,208
126
The year was 1988 and our family got our first true PC. We had a few other objects that qualified as "computers" prior to this, but this was a beastly 386 along with the add-on i387 math coprocessor. It ran Geo-DOS and was powerful enough for me to enjoy Commander Keen, Star Trek 25th, and many more games until I upgraded some years later. You never forget your first... well, unless you do. Since it was a custom build through a local shop (defunct for at least 20 years), I can't remember any branding associated with it. Here's what I remember:

- Beige
- Heavy steel
- Large Desktop (not a tower)
- Pretty sure it was AT (not ATX)
- On the front middle/right were two buttons (Reset and Turbo) and a gigantic red flipper switch for ON/OFF that made a satisfying "ka-CHUNK" sound
- Two (maybe three) external 5.25" horizontal bays

I want to find this case again (or something like it) and fit my gaming rig into it. Any help finding it or something similar would be great. Thanks!

Was it an NEC 386 model? That's the one I had.
 

Ramses

Platinum Member
Apr 26, 2000
2,871
4
81
I had one of those red flipper switch cases, it was AT, 386/486 era but it might have been a generation older, the flipper was recessed a bit.
If I had to guess it was an IBM something. We had to hack it up to fit a 486 board in it.

I got on my first BBS with that box. :)
 

piasabird

Lifer
Feb 6, 2002
17,168
60
91
There have been hundreds of thousands of case styles made through the years. Probably up to about a million. There are thousands of cases for sale right now that are brand new. It is like looking for a needle in a haystack. What good can it be to find a 20 + year old computer case?
 

Ramses

Platinum Member
Apr 26, 2000
2,871
4
81
Emotional attachment is a powerful force to a human being. Perfectly normal.
 

Annisman*

Golden Member
Aug 20, 2010
1,931
95
91
It's depressing learning what kind of 'high tech' things were coming out the year I was born lol.
 

ClockHound

Golden Member
Nov 27, 2007
1,111
219
106
Sure their were. UNIVAC came out into 1951. First Personal Computer. Except back in those days you had to share it - with the government. Supply side issues.

Now we just have to share our data with the government. And Google, M$, FB et al. That's progress!