Best Craigslist/etc buys...

[iomegaman]

Ok I will admit to being a cheapskate and looking for bargains all the time...so I was looking for an extra pcb vise on craigslist and found a kinatechnics vice (very much like a Panavise very sturdy) that the guy wanted $20.00 for and he also had a PAce desoldering unit with the iron, extra tips foot switch etc...for $70.00 he had just rebuilt it so I was like "score!"

Another really cheap (and by cheap I mean poorly made barely functioning) was a Mastech Ms8910 SMD  on Amazon for $18.79...at first I thought, this thing can't possibly work at that price, but hey if it works a little <20.00 is not a bad tool...it actually does a pretty good job, it's a really quick way to measure diodes, capacitors, resistors etc, and even does some of it "in circuit" I was pleasantly surprised and keep it near for a really quick read without fumbling for my main MM...

http://www.amazon.com/Mastech-Ms8910-Resistance-Capacitance-Warranty/dp/B0032JOAWA/ref=sr_1_23?srs=2596185011&ie=UTF8&qid=1443926608&sr=8-23

I also picked up a Tektronix analog scope with all the probes still unwrapped, used to be owned by the Euro head of R/D for IBM...$75.00 came in a nice walnut box his son-in-law had made for it...

OF course all of these required me driving...and risking on craigslist...but hey...so far so good...

How about you guys any cheapo's like me always looking for bargains? What did you score?

 

[PRR]

> What did you score?

We just had an extended power outage. Electric stove. I really missed my coffee!!

If it had gone on longer, I would have tried something stupid with the plumber's propane torch.

Next day we scored a Coleman gasoline stove. With gas! Five Bucks!

I used these many-many years ago. There is a whole ritual of turning and pumping, interrupted by fuel floods and flame-ups. Bad enough on a 3-burner stove, but this cute little 1-burner is narrow and tipsy. I'm a little afraid to try to start it. As I recall, they needed a lot of maintenance, which may be why it was offered so cheap. So we'll see if this is the buy of the month or toxic trash.

 

[JohnRoberts]

> What did you score?

We just had an extended power outage. Electric stove. I really missed my coffee!!

If it had gone on longer, I would have tried something stupid with the plumber's propane torch.

Next day we scored a Coleman gasoline stove. With gas! Five Bucks!

I used these many-many years ago. There is a whole ritual of turning and pumping, interrupted by fuel floods and flame-ups. Bad enough on a 3-burner stove, but this cute little 1-burner is narrow and tipsy. I'm a little afraid to try to start it. As I recall, they needed a lot of maintenance, which may be why it was offered so cheap. So we'll see if this is the buy of the month or toxic trash.

I don't camp outdoors (since being in the army), but I have a (modern?) butane camp stove and used it to make coffee and heat food, after Hurricane Katrina knocked out power for several days. I haven't fired it up since then but it was simple and easy.. Just attach the butane canister and light it.

If power was out longer I'd have more work roasting a batch of green coffee, but we knew the storm was coming so I roasted extra coffee and make extra ice to keep my beer cold in a cooler. Priorities... 8)

JR

 

[Bowie]

Though I avoid CL these days, I have found some great deals om there.  AKG C414 stereo pair for $300.  Roland RE-201 Space Eco for $200.  Almost untouched 88' Ibanez Jem for $500 (a collector on a forum offered me over $2,500 the night I took it home but I kept it).  The best find was not on CL, it was when I was behind Guitar Center, looking for a box to ship a guitar in.  There was a partially working Roland D-drum set in the bin.  I parted it out for $1,200.  Yea, it was dumpster diving but, hey...

 

[critterkllr]

I don't find any good deals on CL anymore, but used to find them often.

The best deal I found was a mint 1967 Fender Vibrolux Reverb posted for $300 in the antiques section. The owner was a kid that received it from his grandpa. He took the amp out and started to convert it into a subwoofer cabinet for his car. Luckily nothing was damaged and was easily put back. The ad read like "old fender amp come get it tonight or I'm making it a sub", but with worse grammar. The kid had a major attitude and acted like I was an idiot for wanting the old amp.

 

[Bowie]

The kid had a major attitude and acted like I was an idiot for wanting the old amp.

I'm happy to get a good deal off of those types.  It's the ones who are coveting some crusty thing that no one else wants but me and they won't bend on price that bother me.  Given enough time they usually send the "You still interested?" email though.

I've encountered several people who didn't know what they had and I morally just had to give them a little extra so that I could feel ok with myself.  Granted, I've had a couple times when I've done that and ended up finding serious issues with the item later on (both were on several hundred dollar transactions) but that's the way she goes...

 

[iomegaman]

About 4 months ago I scored a  an original Supro Thunderbolt chasis with new transformers and all new caps that a guy doing EDM was gettign rid of, he had gotten it from a freind and found another guy to rework it but never finished it...$60.00  I had to drive an hour into the mountains to get it he didnt have a car...the transformers alone cost $140.00...I bought tubes and am looking for a cabinet (found one on evilbay for 369 with original Jensen in it, still thinking)...craigslist...

 

[okgb]

" Though I avoid CL these days, I have found some great deals om there.  AKG C414 stereo pair for $300.  Roland RE-201 Space Eco for $200.  Almost untouched 88' Ibanez Jem for $500 (a collector on a forum offered me over $2,500 the night I took it home but I kept it).  The best find was not on CL, it was when I was behind Guitar Center, looking for a box to ship a guitar in.  There was a partially working Roland D-drum set in the bin.  I parted it out for $1,200.  Yea, it was dumpster diving but, hey...
"

Wow , I find Kijiji here anything old must be valuable , see almost no deals , especially in the pawn shops where they go to ebay if they don't recognize something,  just grateful to find a reasonable price if it's something I want .
though it is a bit of a numbers game if you live in a higher population area .

 

[dmp]

I bought a Farfisa Compact Organ last week for $100. Re- cap and bringing it back to life has been fun.

 

[tchgtr]

CL has been a lot of fun for me, probably because I'm in the Los Angeles area, and lots of folks get rid of all kinds of stuff. It's nowhere near as good as it used to be just a few years ago.
Never had a really bad experience, and for the most part, have lost very little money on stuff that didn't work or was damaged beyond repair.
Here's a few of the things that I've picked up:

DDA S series Mixer for $150. Some loose transistors in the PS made its voltages unstable. They just needed to be bolted down a bit more. Have since re-capped and love it.
Orban 418A stereo limiter. $80 Fully functional.
Yamaha PM 1000 Channel strip, nicely racked by someone other than myself. $100.
Symetrix 525, CL150 and 522, all with Valley People VCAs. Package deal of $180 for all 3.
Just recently got a fully working M Audio Sputnik for $25 that had no 7-pin cable or shock mount.
Working Beyer M500 for $140.
Two original CAD e100s for $80. Only needed a bit of work. Great Mics.
CAD e200 for $100. Slight dent in casing, but fully functional.
Dbx 166 $25 original version that needed a bit of TLC.
Just got a 2nd in almost perfect condition for $40.
Three Mackie HR824s for $200. Just needed the switches blown out or cleaned.

I don't contact folks unless the price is right, and if they are decent, I don't quibble unless something is just not right. If they seem odd or argumentative over the phone, I thank them and decline to do business. Sometimes it's a long drive, which needs to be considered into the price.

My favorite non-CL finds were a pair of NS-10s at a Tujunga thrift store for $22, and a B&O Stereo ribbon at a yard sale. The girls at the sale insisted I take it and an old Atlas triangle-base mic stand for free, as they didn't want to carry it down a hill.
They were disappointed that I didn't also want a spinet piano.

 

[Winetree]

I bought a flawless Fender Vista Venus ( sea foam green ) 6 months ago for $200.00 with the original Fender gig bag and Docs.
It was purchased new and hung on the wall of an antique store, that closed down. It was  never played. The owner said it was the last guitar he sold, one of many, because it matched the color of his 1957 Chevy. It's still in my collection.
( not the actual guitar )

 

[Rocinante]

Just today i picked up a non working Mindprint Envoice. I'm betting (hoping) it's a burnt resistor in the power supplyas that seems to be the common problem. Haven't lifted the hood yet. I paid a whopping $0. Dude was moving. Best deal I've gotten all year. Very nice guy too.

 

[mushy]

A few years back, I scored an Otari MX-5050 1/4" machine with stand for FREE.  An amateur recordist had scored it from a college radio station that was throwing it a way in the 90s and eventually his wife got sick of looking at it.

His only request was that it be used. 

I did put it to use for a while but I must admit it is gathering dust now.  At some point I'll wipe it down and give it away again.

 

[Seeker]

I've found a few very nice deals here and there, but I picked up an old martin d-28 kit guitar recently on Craigslist... It needed a new nut, saddle, and some fret leveling, but I have all the tools... So, just some time on my part. 

The neck set is kinda low, but It plays great, has a very balanced sound, & records very well.  It set me back a whopping $75, and easily compares with guitars more than 10x  the cost.

 

[Rocinante]

Got the Mindprint working.  Ya know, these things were actually made pretty nice. Theyre not starved plate from what i can tell. Needs balls though. Changing the tube made a little difference.
I'll play around with it for a bit.

 

[dmp]

And since the Farfisa was so much fun to bring back to life, I just bought a Rhodes 73 for $200. Needs a lot of work...