The Oscilloscope Store

IMPORTANT  INFORMATION FOR BIDDERS AND BUYERS

PLEASE READ

SEE BELOW FOR WARRANTY INFORMATION

I love opening a listing and finding two lines describing the item, followed by seven pages of instructions, clauses and caveates. I wonder if I am buying a part, a business, or marrying his sister. Well, no BS here. Just the straight goods. Because before I ever sold thing one on eBay, I was a buyer, and I understand what buying on eBay is like.

I am not only a buyer and a seller, but I am a user of Tektronix oscilloscopes and related equipment. I believe I am in somewhat of a unique position to judge the pros and cons of the various genres available from Tektronix over the years. On my bench I have a choice of most models of older tube scopes, plus 400 and 2000 series such as a 465, a 2336YA, and a 2246. And I can roll over a 555 or two to help out, if I warn Hydo first!

This store is in no way connected to Tektronix Corporation. All names, labels and logos used are the property of Tektronix Corporation.

 THESE TIMES COULD BE MADE LONGER BY DELAYS CLEARING CUSTOMS IN YOUR COUNTRY.

PLEASE DO NOT BLAME ME. IT IS A COMBINATION OF POOR CHOICES ON EbAY AND CARRIER UNKNOWNS.

SOME LISTING INDICATE INSURANCE "NOT OFFERED." THIS IS BECAUSE ALL MY ITEMS
 ARE AUTOMATICALLY INSURED FOR THEIR FULL VALUE.
YOU NEVER HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT LOSS OR SHIPPING DAMAGE.

MY FEEDBACK

I was surprised to see the number of potential customers who checked my feedback page, So I guess I should add a few notes about my feedback. I have 1469 instances of + feedback (12/21/2006) for a rating of 1080. I think that shows that I make a real effort to be both a good buyer and a good seller. I have screwed up a few times, and in all cases, I refunded everything including shipping. Anytime the customer was wrong, I assumed he was right! I will do the same for you.

I know we all like to look at other people's negatives, and after many years on here, I did get a negative. But it was a good negative, well worth it. It was from a seller who was obviously annoyed that I wanted him to ship an item on my UPS account, rather than mail it. He sent a 44 pound, 10 dollar item by UPS Express, their most expensive service. The collect air freight charge was $289, which I refused to pay. He didn't even discuss the matter with me, he simply left me negative feedback and began to spam me. If he had contacted me, I might have paid part of the bill. But he chose to do it his way. He got stuck with the entire bill, and I got a negative. I think it was his loss. All my feedback as a seller is +.

But because the shipper is always responsible in the end for the charges, I only ship items PREPAID.

As important as feedback are those customers who purchased an oscilloscope from us who could have bought a new unit. These include LKC Technologies, Inc., the worldwide leader in the visual electrophysiology, Warner Bros., the Department 0f Radiology at the University of Florida, the University of Oregon, the University of Boston, the Neurosurgery Department at the University of Seoul, South Korea, and Okanagan College. Scopes in the field include two 547s two 321As, 503, 647A, 2445B, 2465s, 2245, 2246, 2252, 422, 453, 2213s, 2215, and a 556.

A word about buying.

A buyers's responsibility, in my opinion, is very simple. Pay promptly. If that had been done, the buyer's job is over and he can sit back, crack a cold one, and wait for UPS to ring his doorbell. The seller, on the other hand, has a lot to do. The item must be packed carefully, shipped promptly, and any follow-up must be taken care of. Things such as customer concerns about delivery, condition of item, and shipping charged may cause concern for the customer, and the seller must address these issues if he is doing his job. Some sellers are better than others, and some are downright awful.

Recently I bought 3 crts on auction. The seller stuffed a big box with newspaper and stuffed the three tubes into it. The middle one arrived broken. My email to the seller went unanswered. No big deal to him? No more business from me. Vote with your feet, as they say!

INTERNATIONAL BIDDERS:

An "international bidder" to me is someone outside of Canada and the U.S. which I consider one nation, else why would we be disagreeing with everything each other does? LOL

Make no mistake, I will ship anything anywhere. The only exceptions are countries which are forbidden US technology. You probably aren't in one of those countries. If you are, you know you are and please don't ask to bid on my items.

Many of my auctions say "Ships to US, Canada." Please don't let that stop you. Email me and it is likely we can work something out for you. I will likely be able to modify my listing to accomodate your needs, so do not hesitate to ask. My only rule is I do not sell anything listed in my store outside of eBay. Again, please don't ask.

A word about customs. I send 3 copies of the ebay listing as an invoice. There are no other forms required, and when it arrives, UPS can clear it for you. Or you can arrange to do that yourself. Buying from Canada is no more complicated that buying locally, except for going through customs. There is no duty on items made in the U.S. of A., but there may be local taxes and brokerage charges at your end.

PAYMENT:

My auctions are all immediate payment by Paypal. Why is that? I am not just a seller, I have been a buyer on eBay for years. And until Paypal came along, there was no protection for the buyer. If the buyer didn't get the item, or if it was garbage, he was on his own. Paypal changed all that. I am willing to discuss special arrangements for payment in special circumstances. But if you are an eBay buyer, you need a Paypal account. My prices cover my Paypal fee.

And immediate payment? Well, do you go to stores and say "I will buy that but I won't pay you for a few days?" Or order from Amazon.com and say "The check is in the mail?" Nope. Not here either.

PACKING AND SHIPPING:

I am an ace packer. I got that way by seeing equipment destroyed. If a shipment arrives damaged because of my packing, I will refund all moneys, including shipping. It's as simple as that.

Shipping is tricky. The idea is to get it there safely, without wasting YOUR money. I only use two shippers. For many items, a trip to the post office is the best way to go. They are cheap, fairly fast, but offer no tracking OR INSURANCE and their version of "clearing customs" can take forever. Still, they are prefered because of cost for many shipments.

For larger items, I only use UPS. UPS offers outstanding value-added service. Real tracking that works. Guaranteed delivery dates, and refunds if those dates are not met. That means protection against loss for me, and money back for you if the shipment is late. And it's door-to-door, yours to mine. No standing in line at the Post Office for either of us.

Shipping outside the country is expensive. Hell, shipping INSIDE the country is expensive. I will promise that I will do my best to keep the shipping cost at an absolute minimum consistant with safe transport of your item. And I will combine items in any way I can to help make shipping more affordable. Just remember, don't shoot the messenger.

RETURNS:

Return of electronic equipment is tough. I have had equipment destroyed and then returned. I have had parts removed and bad ones substituted, and then returned. Still, I will allow the return of most of my items. Even oscilloscopes (with seals intact and in as-shipped condition) have a 30-day return priveledge. My prices are higher, but I give the most protection to the buyer that I can. I document all shipments with digital photos before, during and after packing, for my protection as well as yours.

Before I authorize a return, I will clearly tell you what your options are and how much will be refunded under each option. Variables in the equation are the cost of the item, shipping, eBay fee and any Paypal fees. Any or all of these may be refunded, or not, depending on the circumstances and condition of the purchase.

REFUNDS AND CREDITS

My listings usually say "store credit" but I will refund your money under most circumstances. Shipping refunds only are allowed if I screw something up, which I occasionally do. For instance, if I ship you the wrong item, fail to pack it correctly, or have seriously misdescribed it in the listing, then a comprehensive refund is in order.

My Guarantee

Note that provisions in the listing for an item supercedes what is said here.

Unless stated otherwise in the listings, my oscilloscopes adhere to the following:

- Complete mechanical and electronic restoration - meets factory specs for 72 hours. All tubes pass test. CRT produces bright trace and has no burns.

- Complete paint, new handles, sheet metal straightened.

- Proper filter, 3-prong grounded power plug or new power cord.

- Panel restored as best possible. There will always be minor imperfections in the front panel due to use.

Many of our items carry a guarantee. Here's how it works.

Items are guaranteed to be "as described." If we have made a gross error in our description, please contact us and we will be happy to work it out.

On non-functional items (parts, tubes, no line cord), you are entitled to a refund if they are not as described.

On functional item (things you can plug in) there are two warranties.

On scopes and other equipment where specified in the listing, you may return the item within 30 days for a store credit. If you are returning the item because it needs repair, we will fix or exchange it in the first 30 days.

Any instrument purchase that you make from us entitles you to purchase parts from our stock. We normally carry a complete parts model for each of our units, and we can provide a limited quantity from this unit of used, tested satisfactory parts.

Due to the difficulty in sealing plugins, there is no return or warranty on any plugin. This does not apply to plugins sold with and shipped inside scopes. These will be considered a part of the scope and will be covered by both 30-day return and 1-yrear warranty.

Oscilloscope Warranty

THE 30-DAY RETURN PRIVELEDGE ON OSCILLOSCOPES AND MOST OTHER EQUIPMENT WILL BE IN FORCE.

AFTER 30 DAYS, THE OSCILLOSCOPE IS COVERED FOR ONE YEAR FROM DATE OF SHIPMENT. IF YOU WISH TO RETURN THE OSCILLOSCOPE, YOU MAY DO SO AT YOUR EXPENSE FOR A PRO-RATED CREDIT ON ANOTHER SCOPE IN OUR STORE. EACH MONTH THAT YOU HAVE REMAINING IN THE YEAR IS WORTH 1/12 OF THE PURCHASE PRICE, EXCLUSIVE OF SHIPPING SO IF YOUR SCOPE BREAKS AND YOU WISH TO RETURN IT AFTER 6 MONTHS, I WILL CREDIT YOU 1/2 OF THE PURCHASE PRICE TOWARDS ANOTHER ONE FROM MY STORE. SHIPPING FOR THE REPLACEMENT MAY BE FREE TO YOU, IT DEPENDS ON THE CIRCUMSTANCES.

I OFFER EXTENDED WARRANTY WHICH PROVIDES FOR REPLACEMENT OF THE SCOPE WITH ONE OF THE SAME OR GREATER VALUE, NOT NECESSARILY THE SAME MODEL, FIFTY DOLLARS FOR 1 YEAR, 100 DOLLARS FOR 2 YEARS.

EXCEPTIONS;

IF THE CRT IS BAD, I WILL REPLACE THE SCOPE WITHIN THE FIRST 3 MONTHS ONLY. 

THE HIGH VOLTAGE POWER SUPPLY IN THE 547 AND 647A IS NOT COVERED BY WARRANTY. THIS IS A FACTORY DEFECT THAT I CANNOT COVER. IF I SELL YOU A 547 OR 647A AND THE HV BREAKS, I CANNOT TAKE IT BACK NOR I CAN I SELL YOU ANOTHER 547. I CAN REPLACE THE 647A AS LONG AS MY STOCK LASTS

Conditions of Warranty:

The buyer must agree to let us install calibration seals. If the unit is opened, warranty is voided.

Our opinion is final in regard to tampering, abuse and overload.

The following actions will invalidate both the 30-day return warranty, the pro-rated warranty, and any purchased extended warranty:

- Removal of the instrument case, including side covers.

- Removal of the rear panel

- Dropping or other physical damage to the instrument.

- Application of excessive voltage to any input, including AC line.

- Any liquid applied, spilled or immersed.

- Any modifications, internal or external, including changing any internal adjustments.

- Operating the instrument with air inlets or oulets obstructed.

- Any fire.

- Physical damge or defacing of any panels including the front panel.

The warranty applies to units shipped to Canada and the US only. We normally do not ship scopes outside of North America, but if we do, no warranty or return priviedges are applicable.

The buyer is responsible for all shipping and border costs associated with return for refund, repair or replacement. I will usually deduct the fees (eBay and Paypal) from any refund as well.

IN ORDER TO ACTIVATE YOUR WARRANTY, YOU MUST LEAVE FEEDBACK AND VERIFY RECEIPT OF THE UNIT IN GOOD ORDER.

Thank you for listening. Happy bidding.

We try to offer copies of materials on which Tektronix has abandoned or released their copyrights.

Thomas F. Lenihan Chief Intellectual Property Counsel Tektronix, Inc (503) 627-7266