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Comment by johnklos | Hacker News Reader

I feel this. As someone who owns a forty-plus year old car that has more than 770,000 miles on it, I care much more about function than appearance. I don't want original - I want better. When something goes wrong, I see what, I see why, and I try to fix it so it's better and stronger than before.

Likewise, I don't strive for authentic and original when fixing up old VAXen, Amigas, or Macs. I want functional, and I want new caps that're better than original.

It's nice to know there's an appreciation for not original, but better.

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Speaking of old Macs, I use a 1993 Apple M1242 Adjustable Keyboard (via USB Wombat) as my daily driver※.

When I first learned of Kintsugi a few years ago, my keyboard was the first thing I thought of. The original keyboard had about half of the keys non-functional or working incorrectly (double/triple letters). So I got a second keyboard and ended up testing all keys on both, keeping the working ones on the original, and desoldering/resoldering the working ones from the donor to the original. This took a few months on and off since I'd keep discovering new keys that were slightly broken or intermittent.

I also modified the keyboard to remove a couple of plastic tabs, to make the top covers easier to remove (since I had to do it so many times). The ribbon cable connecting both halves is also prone to failure, so I sanded down some of the plastic around it to ensure it wouldn't get snagged or compressed (and ordered a spare cable from a parts keyboard as well). I also did a bit of Retrobrite to restore it to its original colour.

Anyway, you really have to love something a lot to put that much effort into it (and probably wouldn't have bothered/had time if I had a baby when I got it a few years ago).

※ - Photo here: https://flic.kr/p/2myqXVR

I actually have quite the opposite feeling for my 35-year-old car - I've tried to keep it as stock as possible. It's still got the period-accurate radar detector (police probably use bands outside of what it can pick up), tape deck (I've never once played a tape in it), _car phone_ (AMPS was dead before I bought the car)... But I get a sense of enjoyment out of keeping it the way it was originally intended.

That said, I have had to make some concessions to the future. It was next to impossible to find stock lamps - they're just inches off the ground, and not made of laminated glass. They'll shatter easily due to road debris. I can buy old, foggy replacements for $200. But I actually ended up buying one-off plastic lamps for $30. At least this way, they'll not only look better, but last longer.

>a forty-plus year old car that has more than 770,000 miles on it

I would love to hear more about this car!

That is impressive mileage. I've heard mention that classic car owners are especially excited to keep their show vehicles running indefinitely with new 3D printed parts.

What is it? Old Mercedes diesel?

Diesel Chevette with Isuzu 4FB1 engine and five speed. It's an engine meant for generators, forklifts and other industrial applications. It's incredibly robust.

The rest of the car is another matter ;)

Mine turned 50 this year. Mileage is over 500k but hard to see since odometer has only 5 digits. But most of the powertrain has been rebuilt and upgraded, as have many other parts, so it's a bit of a Ship of Theseus situation.

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