Would you buy a used total station off eBay ?

My my, it's a different world now than 25 yrs ago.

I used to calibrate all the instruments myself. Double center them. And, test them.

Sending them in for anything but parts, was out of the question, and most of the time, we'd replace stuff ourselves.

Everything has batteries now a days. Everything has computers.

So, all I'll do is add a few thoughts, (No advice).

Maybe if it's a good deal, and everything is right, pick it up in person. Bring money. Meet somewhere. Put it through it's paces. Shoot a dist to a point 10' away, and check it w box tape. Shoot it out at some great distance. And double a few angles. Set it on a tripod, and level it. And, make a pencil outline on the tripod head, and then pick up the inst, and rotate it 1/3 turn, relevel it, and see if the plummet hits the same place.
The RS-232 port can be burnt up, and everything else is fine. Batteries can need recelled.

You have many things to check. Bluetooth. Look for signs that it is water compromised. Look for signs of it being crashed. Or carried wrong.

It may need a new keypad membrane. Find out if parts can be had.

I'm worried about the profession. When a nice brass transit can be had off ebay for 120$, and they are just for the mantle shelf!

Say, isn't this alot like asking how to get a good wife?

🙂

Nate

I've done it before.. been succesful and been burned. You can tell a lot going in by the quality of auction. If it's a single photo and crummy description avoid it.

With that said, I've got a couple 5600's I'm looking to sell.. what are you in the market for?

😛

I have several Sokkia CX 105's that come complete with the prism, prism pole, tripod, and related accessories for sell. These units are cleaned and calibrated by a Sokkia dealer and priced to sell at $3,395.00 USD.

No.

Right or Wrong; I've done it.

I try to buy from surveyor's or surveying companies. Just ask a few simple questions and you'll find out right away.

Most surveyor's (I said most) are good ethical people and will be honest about the gun's condition and previous treatment.

Just remember that Ebay is a "Buyer, beware" marketplace.

If I saw an instrument I liked; I wouldn't hesitate...of course, I'd rather buy from someone on this board. (done that before too).

Am out nearly $17,000 from the experience

Got seriously burned on ebay with a Leica TCRA1102 robotic total station in 2008. Got the serial numbers and had FLT Geosystems run them through both the police database, and the manufacturers data base. Came up clean.

Due diligence right?

Well, that's what I thought.

But, the stupid surveyor in Gwinnett County Georgia, filed a false report with the Gwinnett County Police Department, GAVE THEM FALSE SERIAL NUMBERS, AND FALSELY CLAIMED THE STOLEN INSTRUMENT WAS A TCRP1202 (a scam to collect a large payday from the insurance company???...you be the judge)!!!

So...guess what? There was no way any possible search could have saved me from harm.

Long-story-short, I was sued by the insurance company after an Atlanta police detective gave the insurance company my name. The Judge made me turn over the instrument (even though I did not have the instrument described in the lawsuit...yes that's right, I made them sue me before I would surrender the instrument), and I am now out $10,800 for the instrument and $6,000 to my attorney. My attorney told me, 'tough luck'.

It took 3 years for the case to be concluded. They finally got a correct description of the instrument, and amended the suit to correctly describe the property I had actually received. For years all my attorney did was deny I had the property (that is...I denied I had the property they said they had lost, and that was truthfully the truth).

I know. CONFUSING. Makes my head hurt trying to remember some of the twists and turns.

Moral of the story: be careful with ebay.

I have purchased four TS on EBAY from other surveyors and all were cleaned and calibrated within 6mos of purchase.

My total purchases on EBAY is around 200 items.

Mostly good deals and a half dozen were absolute junk (counterfeit data storage cards and thumb drives).

All the survey equipment purchased from another surveyor arrived in great condition.

Some of the stuff from dealers was worth the cheap of what I paid and got me by until I could afford the real deal.

Communicate with the seller before purchase and checked their other items and other buyers response.

Use PAYPAL only for payment.

😉

I bought a Topcon GTS-303 several years ago from the "dealer" in Florida people were talking about recently. I was looking for a backup to the GTS-303 I bought new in 1993.

The one on ebay looked OK for about $2200, was advertised as "calibrated" and "field-ready".

The one I got was not the one pictured - it was a very early model, even older than mine. It was laughably miscalibrated - I think he entered the temperature as the system constant or something similar.

After spending another $1500 to have my local dealer clean, repair & adjust, I ended up with a more-or-less usable instrument, but it had terribly fogged optics even the dealer couldn't fix.

I decided then that equipment my livelihood depends upon will be bought only from the dealer, and the upfront cost doesn't matter (mostly!). That has worked out well for me when I finally upgraded to a robot. Total stations in particular are too important and valuable to buy off ebay. Get a used one if you must, but I would only buy from a local dealer, or maybe someone you already know.

NEVER

:good:

I have bought and sold total stations on eBay.

Like others stated, just be careful, research the seller, etc.

The most important thing in here is to find out the exact condition of a total station your are buying. If it is calibrated then there should be no problems. Check the serial number as somebody has stated above. Collect the instrument in person if it is possible . I would stay away from some incredible deals you can find on the internet – especially those from Asian sellers located in Indonesia, Singapore and Malaysia. It is really hard to get your money back in case something does go wrong (we had some really awful experiences in the past ).
I would recommend buying a total station from European seller / company since you are located in Belgium. You can have a look at our inventory, we have used Leica TS15 in stock right now.

One more thing,

By definition, an item listed as "used" on eBay must be fully functional. If the unit is not fully functional, the seller must define what sort of problems it has and list the item as "For parts or not working." A damaged unit can be a real bargain, but you must remember that a damaged unit may require expensive repairs. It is a good idea to determine the cost of these repairs before buying such a unit.

I bought mine from eBay. It was listed by a reputable seller with an excellent rating. This seller only sells survey equipment. The gun had been calibrated one month before I bought it, with the documentation to prove it. Also, batteries had been re-celled within a year of my purchase. I got a great deal, received the instrument and put it through the paces. I found it quite satisfactory. It's been a great instrument since then and I'm happy! But, as others have said, buyer beware! eBay can be a real nightmare!

I buy on eBay mostly not working Wild/Leica instruments for parts am surveying instruments tech. If you surveyor and need the instrument to use it ask the seller for serial # and the pic of display screen showing figures of distance measurement. You sure EDM works what is most important you'll not ended up spending mega $$$ for repair or with scrap. For repair EDM Leica's price can be easy double what you pay for the instrument and no guarantee can be fix. The service and calibration is not so expensive according what you pay for the instrument on eBay.

Are we talking Total Stations or Robotic Total Stations here? It is a big difference in my mind.

1st off: if the seller is a licensed surveyor, or a factory authorized dealer I would venture that there is no risk at all. My comments below do not apply to a used purchase from a licensed surveyor or a reputable dealer. Anyone else and I would assume that you are going to get (Wendell I need an icon for screwed here) hurt.

If TS: you can purchase a brand new gun, with a 1-year factory warranty (which you should extend to 2-years when you purchase), on a 24-month "same as cash" extended finance, from a reputable dealer, at a killer price. I guess if the ebay deal is a good deal, then it might be worth the chance. But I suspect that the difference in cost will be pretty small. If the difference between new is huge, then the ebay deal is stolen.

If RTS: no way. Again if the price is low, then it is stolen. If the price is just pretty good, you could do almost as well on new.

No one is stupid enough to get rid of a good gun for significantly less than it is worth. (Barring a widow whose surveyor husband died, and I would not want to take advantage of her.)

If you are just looking for a paperweight, then ebay is probably your go-to place.

Mark Silver, post: 329180, member: 1087 wrote: Are we talking Total Stations or Robotic Total Stations here? It is a big difference in my mind.

1st off: if the seller is a licensed surveyor, or a factory authorized dealer I would venture that there is no risk at all. My comments below do not apply to a used purchase from a licensed surveyor or a reputable dealer. Anyone else and I would assume that you are going to get (Wendell I need an icon for screwed here) hurt.

If TS: you can purchase a brand new gun, with a 1-year factory warranty (which you should extend to 2-years when you purchase), on a 24-month "same as cash" extended finance, from a reputable dealer, at a killer price. I guess if the ebay deal is a good deal, then it might be worth the chance. But I suspect that the difference in cost will be pretty small. If the difference between new is huge, then the ebay deal is stolen.

If RTS: no way. Again if the price is low, then it is stolen. If the price is just pretty good, you could do almost as well on new.

No one is stupid enough to get rid of a good gun for significantly less than it is worth. (Barring a widow whose surveyor husband died, and I would not want to take advantage of her.)

If you are just looking for a paperweight, then ebay is probably your go-to place.

Companies get rid of good guns all the time for less than they are worth. They want to upgrade to the latest stuff and don't want to be bothered trying to get top dollar for all their used equipment. I frequently buy these trade-ins in large lots, service and refurbish them and sell them on eBay or directly to surveyors in my network for a very fair price.

It's true that many of the robots sold on eBay have serious internal wear even if they are advertised as having been calibrated. I know from experience unfortunately. They can be quite costly to bring back to factory specs. Regular total stations aren't so bad. Many owners forget that robots have to be maintained like a car. If you don't change the oil you will get premature engine wear and loss of performance, same thing is true with a robot.

Buying a total station or a robot on eBay is certainly much more risky than buying GPS gear for obvious reasons, but that doesn't mean it can't work out well. As Mark says, just make sure you're dealing with a reputable seller. Ideally someone who is willing to actually talk to you on the phone and knows something about what they're selling.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

There is many thing to consider when buying on Ebay.

1- Read the description and understand what you are paying. This is the most important step, many buyers just press the BUY button without reading.
2- Contact the Seller, ask everything you need to know as possible. This is also a good track of record to keep if you receive a Not as described item.
3- Check the seller's store or item for sale. You want to deal with someone in the business not someone that bought the survey in a live auction or grass sale.

Hi Everybody,
The discussion above is extremely useful. Thank you very much for sharing your knowledge & exprience on the board. I am just thinking of buying a used Spectra Precision FOCUS 30 / 2" or 3" Robot from a Licensed Surveyor or a reputed dealer. The discussion gave me a kick.
Thank you everybody,

bevel, post: 315089, member: 9832 wrote: Hello everybody, I have seen many total stations sold on eBay and I am thinking of buying one. Just need to hear few opinions ‰ÛÒ what to do and what not to do. I know it is probably better idea to buy from your local supplier, but eBay prices are better and some kit comes calibrated.

Any comments on that ?

No