SellMyRetro - Trading Site for Retro Electronic Equipment

This is what could be a unique working example left anywhere of the original Sinclair QL complete with KLUDGE (or Dongle) which attracted so much negative press when the Sinclair QL home computer was first launched to the press in 1984.

What is the Kludge and why do I remember it?

When the Sinclair QL was designed, the official story (since disputed by Tony Tebby, the ROM author), was that the QL was intended to have just 32K of ROM in two internal sockets.

However, the ROM actually required 48K of space, and so the Kludge (or Dongle) was born - basically a ROM cartridge which plugged into the QL's ROM expansion slot to hold the extra 16K of ROM.

According to Tony Tebby, this was more a marketing ploy, as at the launch the hardware was not finished, but Sir Clive Sinclair felt that it would be more acceptable to the press if the issue was down to the ROM having more features than had been originally intended. Looking at the QL and its ability to handle various combinations of ROMs and EPROMs, Tony Tebby's story sounds a lot more likely.

As it was, the QL was released with the operating system (QDOS) on 3 EPROM chips (to make it easier for Sinclair to upgrade them to a newer version of QDOS at a later stage). The two chips inside the computer hold the code 0000-3FFFh and 4000-7FFFh, whilst the external Kludge holds a further EPROM with the code 8000h-bFFFh.

With the negative press coverage of this model which did not appear to work very well, all of these QLs were returned to Sinclair in a mass recall and replaced with the newer version of the system (with two internal ROMs being fitted, or the EPROMs converted to work internally by piggybacking two of the chips).

It is interesting that since then Dongles have come to be much more widely used - back in the 80s, they caught on as a means of protecting your software from pirating - a hardware dongle containing part of the code, whilst in modern PCs the term is used to describe memory sticks, or WiFi connection modems. Maybe the QL was a leader in its field here - it could have been the appalling lack of design in the block of melted plastic which gave it the poor reputation at the time.

So why is this Sinclair QL so special?

In all the years since 1984 (and the many 100s of QLs which have passed through my hands), this is the first example I have ever come across which still has the Kludge and is unlikely to ever be seen again!

This model has been lovingly restored and fully tested, and contrary to the early press reports, I am actually impressed by this QL.

• This is an AH EPROM version of the Sinclair QL (serial number D07-008341) with 6 rubber feet on the base, which take all 3 plastic raisers (more common models only had 4 rubber gfeet, so you could only use 2 of the plastic raisers). The AH version of the operating system was the first official end user release, although is rare to find in its self, as most models were shipped with the improved JM version ROM, or the later JS / MG versions.
  
• The Sinclair QL has a rare issue 5 motherboard, which has the special chip (socketed) required to handle the EPROMs and KLUDGE (as well as internal jumpers).
• I have added a new keyboard membrane and fully serviced these very early versions of the QL microdrive units
• The computer uses a ceramic version of the 68008 chip rather than the later plastic cased versions.
• The microdrive units are shown to be very early versions, with straight edges, rather than the keyed edges provided on later versions.
• The microdrive units surprised me, bearing in mind the reputation of these early Sinclair QLs. Both drives format cartridges more quickly than on later machines (in around 20 seconds!) and yet still manage a respectable format ratio of around 210/212 sectors.
• The QL has all of its port covers intact and shows very little signs of use - there are a few minor scuffs on the case bottom.
  

 

So what else is included?

First of all, this is a boxed QL - complete with very good condition polystyrene inners, with no missing parts. The outer silver wrapper is also in very good condition, complete with handle (normally missing) and all flaps. There are some minor scuffs and marks on the outer silver wrapper, as you would expect with 25+ years of storage. Someone has also written directions to Sandy UK (an early QL supplier) on the inside of one of the flaps in neat handwriting (biro) ** (see below)

The contents of the box reflect the uniqueness of this QL and its value to collectors, with some extremely rare items also included.

Included in the box is:

• RARE v1.01 of the Psion suite (Quill: wordprocessor, Abacus: spreadsheet, Archive: programmable database, Easel: business graphics) - all tested and fully working and in original Sinclair wallet. The cartridges have their original black labels (the v2.00 software had silver labels). Psion had to bring out v2.00 of their software soon after the QL was released, due to the poor feedback on v1 which meant many people upgraded their software. v1 was actually developed on another computer before Psion had access to a QL, so it was written in C and compiled for the QL, making it rather slow compared to v2.
  
• 4 x blank microdrive cartridges (reused, but in good condition), complete with full sheet of Sinclair lables, one of the small Sinclair notebooks and a "care for your microdrives" sheet, all in original blank wallet
• Extremely RARE 1st Edition user manual in ring binder. 99% of QL owners had the 2nd edition manual which was dated on each page 10/84. The only first edition manual we have seen before then was dated 6/84. This is still marked "First Edition", but must pre-date the other one, as it is completely undated. It is in good condition - although the first page is crinkled as you can see in the photo.
  
• Rare yellow Sinclair Guarantee card showing the date of purchase of the computer as 1st October 1984 (which seems late for this model!).
• Complete blue guarantee registration card which includes the tear off record card for keeping a record of when a Sinclair product is returned for repair, and the tear-off repairs information card.
• Original letter (undated) from Sinclair Research Limited, Stanhope Road, Camberley, enclosing a 10 page summary of QL hardware and software suppliers (ranging from joysticks for £12 to a Winchester Drive from Quest International for £1,149). Some items are marked as "coming soon" - others never made it to the market, so far as we know! This is a very rare letter and summary - we have never seen it before.  We have now also found the last page of this letter which had become detached and is unfortunately rather creased.
  
• Original letter (undated) from Sinclair Research Limited, Stanhope Road, Camberley, marked "TO ALL CLUB MEMBERS" talking about the QL User Guide and QLUB Newsletter which would be sent out within the next two months.
• Extremely rare original letter (DATE AS POSTMARK) from Sinclair Research Limited, Stanhope Road, Camberley which sent out the original voucher for the internal refit of the ROM on the QL - sent to users with the DONGLE.
• An undated disclaimer from Sinclair Research Limited explaining the disclaimer as to liability for loss contained in the QL User Guide and QL Programs Wallet is not applicable to sales other than to persons purchasing in the course of business. This is extremely rare and we have never seen this before. It is an interesting disclaimer explanation, presumably to take account of liability under consumer law, but an odd thing to include when the Sinclair QL was aimed squarely at the business market!
• A rare A4 sheet explaining how to make backup copies of the Psion software and again talking about new releases of the Psion software being made available to QLUB members.
• Extremely rare A4 sheet of errata in the QL User Guide. This appears to have an ink mark in the top right hand corner.
• Rare QL User Special Launch Issue sadly undated which is only in fair condition (front cover is badly damaged and some dirt / coffee staining to pages). This contains a rare QL adventure listing in SuperBASIC (Quest), as well as interviews with the software team at Psion. It also includes a detailed picture of one of the very first QLs (as can be seen on the pictures), from which we have been able to re-create this rare QL and ensure it has been restored to original condition.
• EXTREMELY RARE QL PM EPROM Chip (8000h) - this is out of a very early KLUDGE - unfortunately, the other two EPROMs and/or the code stored on them have not been found. This is the PM version of QDOS - the earliest release version of QDOS we know of which escaped the doors of Sinclair Research was the later FB EPROM, which contained at least one oddity - the AT command was AT column,line (instead of AT line,column) which forced Psion to write a boot file for their programs which would swap between the two variants depending on your ROM version! It shows how rare the FB ROM was that no-one else had to bother!
  
• TV lead
• 3 feet for tilting the QL
• Unused original Sinclair QL Power Supply (UK version)
  

Any questions - please ask. We have been using QLs since 1984 and know how to test them fully. The additional sheets of paper are in various states, as you would expect from single sheets lying around since 1984.

 

General Details about the Sinclair QL Home Computer

The standard Sinclair QL home computer has the following features:

• RGB-TTL output
• TV (RF) output
• Motorola 32 bit 68008 Processor (with 8 it bus)
• 4 and 8 colour graphics modes (in 512x256 and 256x256 pixels respectively)
• 128K RAM
• Twin Sinclair microdrive units for storage of data and loading programs
• ROM port (although this is occupied by the KLUDGE and not available for anything else)
  
• Expansion port - ideal for connecting a disk interface or extra memory
• 2 x Joystick ports (BT style ports)
• 2 x RS232 serial ports (BT style ports)

More details about the Sinclair QL and its software and hardware can be found on the QL Wiki

The QL will be shipped using a parcel courier, fully insured and well packaged to protect both the box and its contents.

-- Buy with confidence from RWAP Software, suppprting the Sinclair QL since 1986 --

 

** Since writing this, a former employee of Sandy (UK) has identified the writing on the inside flap cover as that of Arnie Gardner, the designer of the SuperQBoard amongst other Sandy products.

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
•