[WTB] [NS, CAN] Damaged/broken Agilent Frequency Counters / Signal Generators

[FuzzyOtter]

Hi all,

I know this is a long shot given the number of others on the forum doing the same thing, but I am looking for various damaged, old, or broken HP/Agilent equipment that I could attempt to repair or use as donor units to build up my lab a bit. It's also just an amazing feeling to bring a piece of useful test gear back to life! If you have anything lying around in the bin or collecting dust, please let me know what you have and what you're asking for it. Hoping to find something in Canada, I would also be willing to pay for shipping from the US/EU depending on what is available. Here are the units I am interested in, in no particular order:

53131A (or 53132A, 53181A) Frequency Counters
33120A (or 33220A, 33250A) Signal Generators


Thanks!

[Vgkid]

Are you willing to go with older , less reslolution/simpler counters. If soo look into the 5335 , 5334

[TheSteve]

Finding broken stuff here is likely a challenge, especially in Canada.
eBay is really the place to hunt down this stuff, a US address makes all the difference if you are able to use one

[FuzzyOtter]

Finding broken stuff here is likely a challenge, especially in Canada.

You're definitely right about that! I figured I'd throw this out here anyway, just on the off chance something comes up

eBay is really the place to hunt down this stuff, a US address makes all the difference if you are able to use one

Can you elaborate? Most of my test equipment has come from the US via eBay, and getting nailed from the "Global Shipping Program" really puts a damper on some of the "good deals" I've come across :<

[coromonadalix]

Good luck for your search,  buying from usa is sometime difficult beceause of the exchange rate  add 30% for Cad to Usd conversion   outch

But   i did make some good purchases in the past

[TheSteve]

Finding broken stuff here is likely a challenge, especially in Canada.

You're definitely right about that! I figured I'd throw this out here anyway, just on the off chance something comes up

eBay is really the place to hunt down this stuff, a US address makes all the difference if you are able to use one

Can you elaborate? Most of my test equipment has come from the US via eBay, and getting nailed from the "Global Shipping Program" really puts a damper on some of the "good deals" I've come across :<

I am quite close to the border in BC so I use a place called 247 parcel - http://247parcel.com/
90% of my lab bench is from ebay and was shipped to the US address.

edit - I should add that I use the US address as my default in ebay, without a US address you won't see many listings.

[Kosmic]

Finding broken stuff here is likely a challenge, especially in Canada.

You're definitely right about that! I figured I'd throw this out here anyway, just on the off chance something comes up

eBay is really the place to hunt down this stuff, a US address makes all the difference if you are able to use one

Can you elaborate? Most of my test equipment has come from the US via eBay, and getting nailed from the "Global Shipping Program" really puts a damper on some of the "good deals" I've come across :<

I am quite close to the border in BC so I use a place called 247 parcel - http://247parcel.com/
90% of my lab bench is from ebay and was shipped to the US address.

edit - I should add that I use the US address as my default in ebay, without a US address you won't see many listings.

So at the border they charge you the customs ? I could potentially do the same but GSP is working a lot better for me.

[bdunham7]

Hi all,

I know this is a long shot given the number of others on the forum doing the same thing, but I am looking for various damaged, old, or broken HP/Agilent equipment that I could attempt to repair or use as donor units to build up my lab a bit. It's also just an amazing feeling to bring a piece of useful test gear back to life! If you have anything lying around in the bin or collecting dust, please let me know what you have and what you're asking for it. Hoping to find something in Canada, I would also be willing to pay for shipping from the US/EU depending on what is available. Here are the units I am interested in, in no particular order:

53131A (or 53132A, 53181A) Frequency Counters
33120A (or 33220A, 33250A) Signal Generators

I'm doing something similar myself--getting back into a sort of hobby or profession, but not too seriously.  And I really like a cheap, cheap bargain on a repair project. The three things you can do to make this easier are first to be more flexible--let us know what specs you actually need and listen to some suggestions--, second to be patient--this stuff can take a long time to show up, especially if you want a bargain, and third, consider moving to SoCal or the SF Bay area.     

I originally intended to get re-equipped to do some repairs on older audio equipment and various junk as well as make a few new projects.  I haven't gotten too far--I've gotten sidetracked on my new hobby of repairing test equipment!

For your frequency counter, you've listed specific models.  Why those, may I ask?  I acquired a very nice HP 5316B--sold "as is for parts or repair" that has features well beyond what I would expect in a basic counter, for $15.  It works well up to 180 MHz, despite its lower rating. Seller was close enough to avoid shipping and the required repairs were to a) clean it b) flip the clock switch from EXT to INT and c) adjust the oscillator slightly.  Actually, for a while there, I was having trouble buying stuff that actually needed any serious repairs--it was all really minor stuff.  Do you need more MHz?

As for the AWG, those HP units may be nice, but they go for a fortune and I have not seen any deals on those.  I have a 120 MHz Siglent arriving tomorrow and I'll see how it goes.  If it is all OK, it will be much better for my RF work on FM tuners because I'll be able to set up all the modulation and everything right in the unit.  My previous plan was to revive an old RF generator, which I did-- I now have a huge old HP 8656A, for $75 + a few parts, that's good for a GHz.

So, let us know what you plan on doing with this stuff.  The items you listed may be a bit difficult to wangle a really good deal on.  The HP AWGs seem like an especially poor bang-for-buck proposition unless they do stuff I don't know about.

[TheSteve]

Finding broken stuff here is likely a challenge, especially in Canada.

You're definitely right about that! I figured I'd throw this out here anyway, just on the off chance something comes up

eBay is really the place to hunt down this stuff, a US address makes all the difference if you are able to use one

Can you elaborate? Most of my test equipment has come from the US via eBay, and getting nailed from the "Global Shipping Program" really puts a damper on some of the "good deals" I've come across :<

I am quite close to the border in BC so I use a place called 247 parcel - http://247parcel.com/
90% of my lab bench is from ebay and was shipped to the US address.

edit - I should add that I use the US address as my default in ebay, without a US address you won't see many listings.

So at the border they charge you the customs ? I could potentially do the same but GSP is working a lot better for me.

They will if the value is over the 300-500 dollar range.

[TheSteve]

Hi all,

I know this is a long shot given the number of others on the forum doing the same thing, but I am looking for various damaged, old, or broken HP/Agilent equipment that I could attempt to repair or use as donor units to build up my lab a bit. It's also just an amazing feeling to bring a piece of useful test gear back to life! If you have anything lying around in the bin or collecting dust, please let me know what you have and what you're asking for it. Hoping to find something in Canada, I would also be willing to pay for shipping from the US/EU depending on what is available. Here are the units I am interested in, in no particular order:

53131A (or 53132A, 53181A) Frequency Counters
33120A (or 33220A, 33250A) Signal Generators

I'm doing something similar myself--getting back into a sort of hobby or profession, but not too seriously.  And I really like a cheap, cheap bargain on a repair project. The three things you can do to make this easier are first to be more flexible--let us know what specs you actually need and listen to some suggestions--, second to be patient--this stuff can take a long time to show up, especially if you want a bargain, and third, consider moving to SoCal or the SF Bay area.     

I originally intended to get re-equipped to do some repairs on older audio equipment and various junk as well as make a few new projects.  I haven't gotten too far--I've gotten sidetracked on my new hobby of repairing test equipment!

For your frequency counter, you've listed specific models.  Why those, may I ask?  I acquired a very nice HP 5316B--sold "as is for parts or repair" that has features well beyond what I would expect in a basic counter, for $15.  It works well up to 180 MHz, despite its lower rating. Seller was close enough to avoid shipping and the required repairs were to a) clean it b) flip the clock switch from EXT to INT and c) adjust the oscillator slightly.  Actually, for a while there, I was having trouble buying stuff that actually needed any serious repairs--it was all really minor stuff.  Do you need more MHz?

As for the AWG, those HP units may be nice, but they go for a fortune and I have not seen any deals on those.  I have a 120 MHz Siglent arriving tomorrow and I'll see how it goes.  If it is all OK, it will be much better for my RF work on FM tuners because I'll be able to set up all the modulation and everything right in the unit.  My previous plan was to revive an old RF generator, which I did-- I now have a huge old HP 8656A, for $75 + a few parts, that's good for a GHz.

So, let us know what you plan on doing with this stuff.  The items you listed may be a bit difficult to wangle a really good deal on.  The HP AWGs seem like an especially poor bang-for-buck proposition unless they do stuff I don't know about.

The 33120a user interface is terrible but they have a very good THD spec. They also have one feature which should never be overlooked - the output is floating. There is no common ground issue to worry about. This feature is what separates the premium equipment from the rather average. That isn't to say there isn't some great value with other gear.
The 33120a does generally make a nice repair project. You can get schematics for it and there is a nice service manual. There was a nice looking one today listed for $160 + shipping. Which I think is very reasonable.

[Kosmic]

So at the border they charge you the customs ? I could potentially do the same but GSP is working a lot better for me.

They will if the value is over the 300-500 dollar range.

Good to know, thanks.