Posts: 1,792
Threads: 62
Joined: Jan 2005
Hello, Andreas --
Quote:
And since this is a new day and I haven't said it yet today, 'eBay sellers rock... I love it when they take us for a ride ...' Andreas
I sympathize with your difficulties pertaining to your halfnut 41CX, but it should be noted that many eBay sellers don't really know much about the HP calculators they offer. They may not even be aware of problems they should divulge. A seller's expertise can usually be deduced reasonably well from the auction description. Failure or refusal to answer questions gives even more insight. Some sellers do know about their product, and are also very upstanding. You can expect to pay more to win their auctions, because other buyers recognize it.
My personal experience buying two fullnut 41's through eBay has worked out fairly well, all things considered.
- The first was a cosmetically- and mechanically-excellent 1984 41CX that sometimes worked, but frequently malfunctioned after I received it via US airmail. Since the calc was described in the auction as fully functional, I offered the seller a choice of letting me keep it for for a substantial refund (I really didn't need or want a "parts machine"), or taking it back a nearly-full refund. The seller let me keep it at a very low price, but eight months went by before I discovered Randy's business at "www.fixthatcalc.com". Ultrasonic cleaning and some resoldering made it function perfectly, for a very reasonable price. I was so pleased with the outcome, I then sent supplemental payments to the eBay seller amounting to the $150 eBay auction selling price, less repair costs, in order to pay him what the CX proved to be worth.
- The second was an 1980 41C that had seen heavy use in a lab -- very dusty in the auction pictures, and with velcro pads on the back for wall mounting. It sold for around $50, due to the poor cosmetics. It also malfunctioned upon arrival as the CX did, but had not been described as functionally perfect, so I did not complain. I sent it to Randy, and he performed the same cleaning/resoldering service, inside and out. Now, it's a virtually-perfect unit -- a fine example of the improved 2nd-year US-made HP-41, with no hard-to-read "tall keys" or bugs, a solid feel, and the most legible display.
The moral here is "caveat emptor" -- let the buyer beware (and assume some risk of additional expense if things aren't quite perfect).
Regards,
-- KS
Edited: 20 Mar 2006, 1:32 a.m.