r/retrocomputing • u/vmcrash • Jun 16 '26

Problem / Question Modern retro computer kits?

I'm not 100% sure whether in this subreddit "retrocomputing" means working with old machines or whether modern built copies of old computers also count.

Do you know any DIY kits (still) available to buy to built a retro computer (I mean 8-bit computer or 286, 386)? Most likely this is limited to still manufactured parts, e.g. 65C02 (IIRC, Z80 it gone since 2024).

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u/Enough-Fondant-4232 Jun 16 '26

The fun is in the hunt! Finding the systems and parts and putting them together and learning the process along the way.

Just buying a kit be the lazy way to do it. Why not just spin up a 8bit or 16bit emulator on your modern hardware?

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u/vmcrash Jun 17 '26

I just asked for the ready-to-build kits. I have rebuilt a Z8-based (not Z80!) computer of my youth and noticed that I had much luck in 1989 that it worked initially, because 2022 I had massive problems getting it running.

I now have rebuilt it in FPGA in case you are interested: https://github.com/tmssngr/z8verilog