The reason some of us here in the U.S. are saying to PASS on it is that these are high theft items and as it is missing some of the critical components for operating it may be stolen but ALSO look these things are used and sometimes (frequently) abused and unless you buy it from a dealer that has serviced it and has provided you with at least a minimum of assurance that it operates you risk buying a lemon.........Caveat Emptor.
Thank you Steven, yes I believe there are theft concerns in the UK as well - it is a very steal'able item after all. Very fair point about the parts missing, thank you.
I have bought many used items from reputable surveyors and engineers all across America and other countries thru EBay and have been pleased to do business with them.
We also communicated before the purchases and was able to review videos of some items in action.
I stay away from other vendors and pawn shops that do business there unless I can justify the loss if I get a boat anchor.
Having a any TS that works perfectly is worth more to me than the hope for something more that needs twice that amount of extra gear to be up and running.
If the unit is close for you, go and see it in action and take your data collector or whatever and see if it will work with what you have.
good luck
Thank you for that A Harris, very much appreciated.
I think so far I'm going to give it a miss, though I'm still tempted to at least visit the seller and see what true condition it's in and even test it.
You won't need a 360 degree prism to test it out, a regular one would work but you would need a data collector that would work with it and a way for it to communicate with the data collector.?ÿ?ÿ We recently purchased a Trimble S5 that I would describe as lightly used but came with everything we need to operate it, including prism pole, all new batteries, and a nice tripod, and it cost around 25k.?ÿ If my phone app is correct on converting pounds to dollars, what you are looking at cost a little less than 4k US dollars.?ÿ I would add that we paid 25k for our system but I would estimate all the other items that came with it at about $7k to $8k in US money.?ÿ Most of that being in the data collector and 360 prism.?ÿ Good luck on your search.
It's been a while since I read you other post; so forgive me if this has already been discussed.
I locate most of the improvements on my surveys with my reflectorless total station. You won't need a 360 prism or radios. I use a data collector, but the onboard data collection might be fine for you.
Thank you David for commenting, very much appreciated. That's very good information there and a good perspective regarding costs, it is a 10+ year old unit so I would hope the price was proportionate to that. Of course saying that, and as others have said - it's old and could become a paper weight at any moment. Thank you for the luck, I'll need it I think.
I spoke to a local builder about my consideration for getting a total station, he said he would have more than enough work for me...which is nice, just a shame about the equipment cost, though it's completely justified of course.
Hello Kevin, many thanks for viewing this topic and?ÿcompletely understand it's been a while since my previous post.
That's nice to know about the prism / reflectorless TS. There's still a 5% chance I at least go and see it, if it had some sort of onboard data collection that would be great. I have registered with topcon and downloaded the manual...think I'll have a bedtime read.
EVERYONE, YOU'RE ALL INVALUABLE, THANK YOU SO MUCH.
Have you thought about getting a non-robotic total station??ÿ You could probably get into a complete setup, data collector and all for maybe $10k.?ÿ Not state of the art but you can still do good work with it.?ÿ You just would normally have to have a helper.?ÿ Like someone said, you can get prismless also.?ÿ
Hello Kevin, many thanks for viewing this topic and?ÿcompletely understand it's been a while since my previous post.
That's nice to know about the prism / reflectorless TS. There's still a 5% chance I at least go and see it, if it had some sort of onboard data collection that would be great. I have registered with topcon and downloaded the manual...think I'll have a bedtime read.
EVERYONE, YOU'RE ALL INVALUABLE, THANK YOU SO MUCH.
Onboard data collection is no use if you are trying to do a robotic survey. You need a compatible data collector and radio.?ÿ
I would advise spending ?2-3000 on a decent reflectorless total station (2nd hand) and doing a but of "back and forth" where necessary.
OR min ?8000 for a "full robotic kit" (2nd hand) eg Leica TCRP1205 with controller.
Any robot cheaper than that is very likely to be a false economy. There's a reason why some instruments are being sold cheaply, they're no longer fit for purpose and will have you tearing your hair out.
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Hello Kevin, many thanks for viewing this topic and?ÿcompletely understand it's been a while since my previous post.
That's nice to know about the prism / reflectorless TS. There's still a 5% chance I at least go and see it, if it had some sort of onboard data collection that would be great. I have registered with topcon and downloaded the manual...think I'll have a bedtime read.
EVERYONE, YOU'RE ALL INVALUABLE, THANK YOU SO MUCH.
Onboard data collection is no use if you are trying to do a robotic survey. You need a compatible data collector and radio.?ÿ
I would advise spending ?2-3000 on a decent reflectorless total station (2nd hand) and doing a but of "back and forth" where necessary.
OR min ?8000 for a "full robotic kit" (2nd hand) eg Leica TCRP1205 with controller.
Any robot cheaper than that is very likely to be a false economy. There's a reason why some instruments are being sold cheaply, they're no longer fit for purpose and will have you tearing your hair out.
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Hi David, ideally I would get a non-robotic one, but sadly I'm self-employed and would find difficulty in getting good short notice labour. It's because of this it would be better for me to do it solo.
Hi Squowse, thank you for that - like you say (and many others), a cheap robot is likely to do the job properly, which then means there's no point doing the job at all.
CURRENT CONCLUSION:
I'm taking all of your advice, not even going to have a look at it.
Instead, I'm going to save up my pennies and at least spend circa. ?8k on a second hand but good Robotic Total Station. It just seems like the sensible choice.
Thank you again all, immensely, no doubt you saved me from a waste of money and time.
All the very best.
CURRENT CONCLUSION:
I'm taking all of your advice, not even going to have a look at it.
Instead, I'm going to save up my pennies and at least spend circa. ?8k on a second hand but good Robotic Total Station. It just seems like the sensible choice.
Thank you again all, immensely, no doubt you saved me from a waste of money and time.
All the very best.
Click the link in my signature line if you feel like sending Wendell a little thank you $ note. ?ÿCheers mate!
Donation made Brad, thank you again all! ????ÿ