Inherited this old 520ST and not sure what to do with it

[TKLane11]

Hi all, I just made an account here so I could ask this community about my issue. So my mother in law just dumped this old Atari on me when cleaning out her basement. I have no idea what to do with it. I hate to throw it out, but some casual googling says I could only get anywhere from 80 to 300 bucks for this, which just isn't worth the hassle to me, I'm way too busy. I don't want to mess with setting up the listing, finding a buyer, having people flake out / no show, exchanging payment yada yada. Last time I sold a shop vac on EBay some guy said it didn't work, when I tested it before hand and it worked fine. He was just lying to try to get a refund. But I'd also hate to just toss this in the trash if it has any historical worth to anyone. Can I get some advice on what's a quick and easy way to unload this thing that doesn't cost too much of my time? Would Goodwill even take it as a donation seeing as how it's so old? It's not like kids today and clamoring to play an Atari from the 1980s. It comes with a color monitor, CPU, two disk drives, two games, and a ton of documentation/manuals/cables. Anyways I'd love to get your opinion 1) does this thing have any value that's not monetary (as I said before, googling shows it has very little monetary value). 2) What could I do with it besides chuck it in the bin that's not too much hassle? 

[IGS GUY]

Where are you located?  If you were close enough I'd like the monitor and a external floppy drive.   I'd buy the whole package just for that.  I'm sure some retro collector would snatch this up quick.

 

[Tillek]

Yeah, depending on where you're located, I'm sure someone would gladly come get it.

 

I certainly would if you're local to my area (NE Ohio/Akron/Cleveland)

 

I've been looking for one to send to a friend for working on a project.

 

[oracle_jedi]

As you've already worked out - you didn't hit the jackpot.

 

The 520ST is a nice system, and yours is a very nice example, but the whole set is worth a few hundred at most.

 

The monitor you have is the SC1224 JVC edition.  That is the best of the ST color monitors, and prized by some collectors for its vivid colors and true black.  Someone will pay for that, although shipping monitors is a dicey proposition, even with the original packing carton like you have.

 

Please don't bin it.  If you're not interested in selling it, at least consider listing it on your local Craiglist or Offer Up or equivalent for free.  With luck a collector will grab it.  At worst a trader will pick it up and resell it.  At least it wont end up in a landfill, and hopefully someone will get some enjoyment from such a well preserved example.

 

And if you're in the Seattle area let me know.

 

Good luck!

 

[oky2000]

Over here in the UK nothing interesting ends up in a landfill, the workers there pick out anything unusual worth more than a few bucks (after checking ebay on their phones) and take them home and sell them anyway. 

[7bits]

I would glady purchase the whole kit as-is. Looks like a nice example of Atari's first ST. Goodwill usually will take them and throw them up on the auction to sell nation wide.

 

You have all the original boxes it looks like so you could pretty much ship as is. Would just insure for a few hundred. 

Edited January 4, 2023 by 7bits

[TKLane11]

Thanks for all your advice. I listed it cheap on Facebook marketplace and someone came and got it. Glad it went to a good home and not the trash bin. 

[Guest]

On 1/1/2023 at 2:51 PM, oracle_jedi said:

you've already worked out - you didn't hit the jackpot.

I would’ve loved to get my hands on this! The 520 ST was my first 16bit pc with a GUI. If only for nostalgia purposes. But I’m so glad I went to a good home.