Test Equipment Anonymous

I have finally got myself an ultrasonic cleaner that should be ideal for most circuit boards that I'm likely to find myself working on. It has a 6 litre capacity tank that is 30cm x 15cm x 15cm it is not something that I expect to get used a lot, but it should be worth its weight in gold. When I think back to the struggle I had in resolving the high impedance input section of my Black Star 4503 bench meter to get it back into a working condition, with having to continually wash by hand that board when I could have just popped it into a decent sized washer once.

More on this once it arrives.

This is my ultrasonic cleaner which I've bought in 2020. Price was 384,- Euro (incl. VAT and shipping.

https://www.voelkner.de/products/47614/ ... 0W-4l.html

Mine is only costing £50 plus postage, very similar with a drain tap as well, but mine obviously second-hand, only been used once according to the seller and is most unusual, he doesn't even want me to pay anything until it's been delivered, and I'm happy with it, what a gentleman.

Specmaster wrote: ↑Sun Nov 19, 2023 3:35 pm Mine is only costing £50 plus postage, very similar with a drain tap as well, but mine obviously second-hand, only been used once according to the seller and is most unusual, he doesn't even want me to pay anything until it's been delivered, and I'm happy with it, what a gentleman.

That is very unusual indeed. I really hope it isn't a case of "if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is" and it hope that it works out for you. I guess if you haven't paid up front you're not out anything if it doesn't work out. Let us know how it goes.

25 CPS wrote: ↑Sun Nov 19, 2023 8:04 pm

Specmaster wrote: ↑Sun Nov 19, 2023 3:35 pm Mine is only costing £50 plus postage, very similar with a drain tap as well, but mine obviously second-hand, only been used once according to the seller and is most unusual, he doesn't even want me to pay anything until it's been delivered, and I'm happy with it, what a gentleman.

That is very unusual indeed. I really hope it isn't a case of "if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is" and it hope that it works out for you. I guess if you haven't paid up front you're not out anything if it doesn't work out. Let us know how it goes.

The seller has sent me photos of it being packed ready for posting, all in its original packing still, so looks legit. I offered to pay the PayPal fees so I had some protection against it not arriving etc. I guess now, if it does arrive and is actually working OK, that I only have to pay them as friends and family and save myself the extra premium.

I have already checked the PayPal address the seller gave me and it checks out OK, so it should be fine.

I hope and expect it will prove a bona fide sale and all goes well.

It's a story I'll follow with interest, as an ultrasonic cleaner is something I've toyed with the idea of buying for a time.

I came to the conclusion I'd need two. 6l is great and can handle a lot of things easily, but there are also small things to clean and a small, handy one about 600ml capacity would save having to drag out the big one, and there'd be less overhead in cleaning solution etc.

Zenith wrote: ↑Mon Nov 20, 2023 1:41 pm I hope and expect it will prove a bona fide sale and all goes well.

It's a story I'll follow with interest, as an ultrasonic cleaner is something I've toyed with the idea of buying for a time.

I came to the conclusion I'd need two. 6l is great and can handle a lot of things easily, but there are also small things to clean and a small, handy one about 600ml capacity would save having to drag out the big one, and there'd be less overhead in cleaning solution etc.

You can buy small cheap plastic ones from many places for only a few pounds each, I have one that I use for smaller jobs and things like glasses, watches etc.

Zenith wrote: ↑Mon Nov 20, 2023 1:41 pm I hope and expect it will prove a bona fide sale and all goes well.

It's a story I'll follow with interest, as an ultrasonic cleaner is something I've toyed with the idea of buying for a time.

I came to the conclusion I'd need two. 6l is great and can handle a lot of things easily, but there are also small things to clean and a small, handy one about 600ml capacity would save having to drag out the big one, and there'd be less overhead in cleaning solution etc.

If you get a big one and want to clean something small you just put water in the tank and put the small item in a smaller container (beaker, tub ziplock bag etc. I use a glass beaker or stainless steel cat food bowl) with cleaning solution sat or floating in the water.

Robert.

Update on this is that the one that I thought I was getting is not now taking place, despite the seller sending me two photos of it being packed up ready for sending

After a few attempts at getting a reply from the seller, he has finally come back to me and said that he has changed his mind and is now going to keep it after all.

At least I don't have to ask PayPal for a refund.

I hate being messed about like that.

Was the sale closed and a contract made? If so I'd look into a complaint to ebay.

I was half expecting it because the seller said that he would get it in the post by midday Sunday and send me the tracking number, when that never happened I did begin to wonder if I was going to be let down. When it got round to Monday and still no news so I messaged the seller and got zero response.

It was on FaceBook Marketplace so no contract or legal process involved, so I always use PayPal and I always work out what the seller's fee is going to be and pay that as well, so I'm protected against it being a scam, getting lost or damaged in transit etc by declaring that it is payment for goods or services rather than a friends and family payment.

I do wonder if I'm being told the truth though, as he did say that there was a lot of interest in the cleaner, so I'm kind of suspect that someone offered him a little more than he was asking as it was a excellent price and looked like it was new, which would have cost over £150.

Oh well, can't complain really, you do get lots of scammers and people with few or no scruples on that platform, but you also get really decent people, that where I was able to score that lovely HP11C as well, so it's swings and roundabouts, hence why I use PayPal and pay the extra to protect myself. Some sellers don't have PayPal and want a bank transfer, which I always decline.

That's crappy. I'm glad you're not out any money though. Still, it sucks.

Specmaster wrote: ↑Fri Nov 24, 2023 8:09 am I was half expecting it because the seller said that he would get it in the post by midday Sunday and send me the tracking number, when that never happened I did begin to wonder if I was going to be let down. When it got round to Monday and still no news so I messaged the seller and got zero response.

It was on FaceBook Marketplace ...

Daughter reckons that kind of crap is common on farcebook marketplace. I use farcebook once a week, and never the marketplace, so I have no opinion.

But farcebook is designed to encourage impulsive and transient posts, so perhaps it isn't surprising.

Facebook Marketplace isn't something I've taken much notice of. My impression is that it's much less organised and disciplined than ebay, so it's more or less an online version of the advertising bulletin boards in local shops, except it's not particularly local. I don't scan it regularly.

The last time I recall it mentioned on here was when Specmaster pointed out a load of Hitachi scopes. They advertised a grand job lot, a smaller job lot, and a few were offered individually. Judging by the damage and missing knobs, a few featured in each lot. It didn't seem like a very straightforward or businesslike way to go about things. God knows what the story would have been if you agreed to buy something and drove there. It was about a hundred miles away, so much too far to go to be messed about, which seemed likely.

I suppose if I saw something on there I wanted, which was within a few miles drive and not in a rough area, I might be tempted, but that cuts down the search criteria severely.

Sounds similar to CL then... I treat all listings I respond to as "an excuse to take a leisurely Sunday drive". I don't assume where I'm going even exists until I get there.

mnem
this spoo is not fresh.

The thing with Facebook Marketplace is that yes, there are a lot of idiots who don't have PayPal or have never heard of it, those who will not even consider posting things, and will only offer collection, even it is easy to pop into a mailbox. You get loads of stupid sellers, who list items and then never check their messages for days or weeks on end

But then you also get some real nice and genuine sellers who are the perfect sellers and will bend over backwards to accommodate the buyer and then there are those who have no idea of what they are selling or their value, often asking stupid money for crap, but every now, and then you do come across the real bargains on there, like the HP11C for £35 plus postage and the HP50G for £20 plus postage.

There are a number of sites I occasionally flick through to see if there is anything of interest, particularly if eBay is stupid in regard to what the sellers are asking for complete crap these days.