Looking for a decent used 'scope for hobby use. I have access to scopes where I work but it is a pain to drag stuff in and use them during lunch hours or after hours.
My issue is buying off Ebay. I have not used the 'bay much and not sure I trust sellers of such equipment. Any recommendations out there ... stories from 'scope buyers off of the 'bay?
Am I being too cautious?
Scopes rarely show up on my local CL so, I think I'll have to buy before trying.
Thx,
Rob
My issue is buying off Ebay. I have not used the 'bay much and not sure I trust sellers of such equipment. Any recommendations out there ... stories from 'scope buyers off of the 'bay?
Am I being too cautious?
Scopes rarely show up on my local CL so, I think I'll have to buy before trying.
Thx,
Rob
I love the low cost Sencore SC61 series. lots of advanced features and typically $100-150. Built in meter for DC volts, Freq and V P-P the only down side is the associated scope probes are expensive so try and fine one that has at least one of the sencore scope probes with it. you can use any scope probe but the DC Volts function doesn't work. Mine has been running strong for 10 years now.
Buying any scope off eBay, make sure the seller knows how to properly pack the scope before shipping. foam peanuts should NEVER be used for anything large and heavy and far too often an eBay seller will just toss a large heavy item in a thin single wall box and fill it with peanuts and think its good.
Foam in place packaging is expensive but well well worth it! if a seller doesn't have access to that. Home Depot sells 1.5" thick 14" wide, 8' long sheets of Styrofoam for $3 each and it works wonderfully to line boxes with. you can cut it to fit around knobs and fragile bits.
Make sure the seller can pack the item well. also make sure the item is shipped fedex or UPS with a tracking number. I recommend Fedex as they seem to be faster, cheaper and gentler with the packages...ups shows up and a once square box looks like a round mashed ball!
If you ask to require a direct signature. this avoids the item just being left on the doorstep and allows you the opportunity to refuse shipment should the box show up and have obvious signs of damage.
just my .02 cents
Buying any scope off eBay, make sure the seller knows how to properly pack the scope before shipping. foam peanuts should NEVER be used for anything large and heavy and far too often an eBay seller will just toss a large heavy item in a thin single wall box and fill it with peanuts and think its good.
Foam in place packaging is expensive but well well worth it! if a seller doesn't have access to that. Home Depot sells 1.5" thick 14" wide, 8' long sheets of Styrofoam for $3 each and it works wonderfully to line boxes with. you can cut it to fit around knobs and fragile bits.
Make sure the seller can pack the item well. also make sure the item is shipped fedex or UPS with a tracking number. I recommend Fedex as they seem to be faster, cheaper and gentler with the packages...ups shows up and a once square box looks like a round mashed ball!
If you ask to require a direct signature. this avoids the item just being left on the doorstep and allows you the opportunity to refuse shipment should the box show up and have obvious signs of damage.
just my .02 cents
I purchased a very nice Tek 2245 (100MHz MPU controlled analog 4 CH scope) on eBay something like 5yrs ago, and no problems to date.
The key I think is to look very closely at the feedback rating (and read some of the more recent comments at least) and length of time in business. Buying from a very highly rated broker (power seller) should be pretty safe. Look at terms and shipping details as well.
The key I think is to look very closely at the feedback rating (and read some of the more recent comments at least) and length of time in business. Buying from a very highly rated broker (power seller) should be pretty safe. Look at terms and shipping details as well.
that SC61 looks interesting ... hmmm. thx for the tips guys.
I'd be happy with a basic 2-ch scope, BW of 50MHz or greater. I am just concerned over shipping damage and reliability of Ebay sellers. My one electronics Ebay experience was buying a stereo amp from someone, advertised as 100% working, no issues.
It arrived with panel bulbs all burned out and one channel dead. I was able to fix it without issue but, it shows that some people just plain lie. I don't want to deal with this with a scope ... too many things to go wrong.
Rob
I'd be happy with a basic 2-ch scope, BW of 50MHz or greater. I am just concerned over shipping damage and reliability of Ebay sellers. My one electronics Ebay experience was buying a stereo amp from someone, advertised as 100% working, no issues.
It arrived with panel bulbs all burned out and one channel dead. I was able to fix it without issue but, it shows that some people just plain lie. I don't want to deal with this with a scope ... too many things to go wrong.
Rob
Look, it's a crap shoot. First, do your research on various scope models. There are some scopes that are very nice when working, but you discover they have proprietary modules and ICs that are unobtainable if they fail. Don't pay a lot for those scopes, not matter how wonderful they seem on the surface. Remember that a lot of what we look at is several decades old and age does take its toll. Plastics harden and crack. High voltage insulation breaks down. Lubricants turn into epoxy. Some scopes just have a reputation for problems. Any scope has a bunch of stuff that can go wrong and you can safely assume that a large percentage of what's on eBay is defective in some way. Maybe minor and fixable, but often not. The trick is to find decent sellers that can do more than turn on the power switch and can guarantee condition. There are a fair number of those out there and you can often discern who's who by reading their text. Contact them, ask questions and don't jump on any "once in a lifetime" deal, because they'll be more of those next week or next month.
FWIW I started buying equipment for my home lab because I didn't want to drag things into work, plus I don't think it makes a good impression. It's the first step in an equipment addiction that risks filling every nook and cranny of your house with boat anchors, antiques and projects waiting to be fixed!
FWIW I started buying equipment for my home lab because I didn't want to drag things into work, plus I don't think it makes a good impression. It's the first step in an equipment addiction that risks filling every nook and cranny of your house with boat anchors, antiques and projects waiting to be fixed!
Check out Wolfgang's DPScope (DPScope - A Low-Cost PC-Based Oscilloscope). For $100 you get a well working 8-bit storage scope for you PC. E
cheap chinese scopes
What do you guys think about these cheap Hong Kong scopes:
2 Channel PC Computer USB Digital Storage Oscilloscope - eBay (item 180538140405 end time Aug-01-10 23:10:49 PDT)
Has anyone had experience with them?
-Nikolay
What do you guys think about these cheap Hong Kong scopes:
2 Channel PC Computer USB Digital Storage Oscilloscope - eBay (item 180538140405 end time Aug-01-10 23:10:49 PDT)
Has anyone had experience with them?
-Nikolay
We have bought two originally VERY expensive scopes off eBay recently. An HP182 in unused condition for $150 and a big 5000 series TEK with 50uV pluhgins (no typo) for $100. Both arrived looking like new and have worked perfectly ever since.
They came from professional labs who had them as backups, never used them, and now they have switched to digital scopes. Our win.
Regards, Allen
They came from professional labs who had them as backups, never used them, and now they have switched to digital scopes. Our win.
Regards, Allen
I agree and FWIW I think if you stick to the last generation of Tek CRT scopes you will find one on eBay in good working order with plenty of life left. Models in the 22XX and 24XX families come to mind. Buy from someone who sells lots of test equipment and has a long history of positive feedback and you should be ok. I have bought quite a bit of test equipment on eBay and the only defective item I ever bought was an analog HP scope. (HP scopes in general should be avoided in the used market unless you want a challenge or are sure the unit question is in perfect working order and low hours..)
Why this blanket statement? From one bad experience?
I have a resonably new dud TEK scope here I was given, and 465 that failed. Never had an HP scope go bad on me, except my old 182 that had just been used into the ground, and the tube was finally so dull you couldn't see a trace with any lights on. Which was an honerable death, IMO. but all the switches worked, all the controls worked. And the plug-ins are still perfect, and work just fine in the "new" 182 mainframe. They must be 40 years old now.
Regards, Allen
My experience in buying electronic test gear on Ebay is it goes up for sale when something doesn't work/gets unreliable. The seller will describe & show pix of the working functions & you should expect some repairs will be needed. In buying 20 year old B&K gear I find that the issues are often in the power supplies & commonly related to end-of-life electrolytic capacitors.
So in general you want to pay low bucks ($25 to $40 for a scope, bench DMM, signal generator, etc.) & expect to spend some hours & $10 to $30 for parts to address issues. When you're done you have solid lab grade equipment for around $50 per piece and your troubleshooting & repair skills get better with each item. Learn as you go is the way to go!!
So in general you want to pay low bucks ($25 to $40 for a scope, bench DMM, signal generator, etc.) & expect to spend some hours & $10 to $30 for parts to address issues. When you're done you have solid lab grade equipment for around $50 per piece and your troubleshooting & repair skills get better with each item. Learn as you go is the way to go!!
Instead of finding one on Ebay, you could try asking at local universities or colleges that might have the equipment. I'm not sure whether things would be different in America, but that's how I got my 'scope (a Tek 2213A 60MHz) for absolutely free . Plus, if you get it from a college or university, they will know how to test it and if you wanted to, you could see it working. As my dad works at the university, he got my 'scope for free, but don't be surprised if you have to pay a little to get yours. Although you may have to pay, university 'scopes are usually some of the best around and are generally well looked after. They often have lots of spare equipment that is just kept as backup in case a piece of equipment should fail, and should be happy to sell it off to you.
. Plus, if you get it from a college or university, they will know how to test it and if you wanted to, you could see it working. As my dad works at the university, he got my 'scope for free, but don't be surprised if you have to pay a little to get yours. Although you may have to pay, university 'scopes are usually some of the best around and are generally well looked after. They often have lots of spare equipment that is just kept as backup in case a piece of equipment should fail, and should be happy to sell it off to you.
I've had several that I purchased on eBay that were DOA on arrival (search my older threads for model #) and in the many R&D labs where I worked there always seemed to be a much smaller pool of HP scopes than TEK and percentage wise there were always more broken HP scopes than TEK.. Several of my friends collect HP scopes as museum pieces and have also commented on the relatively low number of working scopes when purchased. All very anecdotal I'll admit, and I'll also admit to being very taken with some of their digital sampling scopes 54xxx series particularly - so I am not totally anti-HP. Their successor Agilent still makes a lot of very nice test equipment. The general perception around here (generalization) is that TEK makes great scopes and for spectrum/network analyzers you go to HP/Agilent..
Ebay isnt too bad, you can send it back if it doesnt work (at your cost).
I bought a scope cheap off ebay because it had one channel off and it has lasted three years so far.
OK, I get your point. I used to work for HP back in the 70's and formed a great affinity for their 180 series of analog scopes, and of course I'd have no trouble servicing them if they did break. We have both TEK & HP scopes in our place, and we find the HP are built to far higher standards than TEK, although the TEKs work just fine. We even had a 180 in for service once, it had been run over by a TRUCK - and still worked. Just needed some epoxy on the diecast rear structure so it didn't all fall out on the street.
regards, Allen
I never said they weren't nicely built! I'd definitely agree on that score, and I love the design/feel/construction quality of their test equipment.. I'd still like a 339A, and a 3582A, and a....
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