- 2025
- May
- 14
Crap from eBay #2 - “High cost, high value”
Here’s a Heathkit C-2 “Condenser Analyzer” for sale. It’s listed at $100 with almost $44 in shipping.
For some reason, capacitor analyzers of this nature have become the hot thing. It’s in part due to the glowing green magic eye tube that these used as their primary output display indicator, but also (I’ve been told) people use these and their high-voltage outputs to “reform” old capacitors for reuse. Why? I guess because the Internet told them that old=good, new=garbage.
You’ll notice this thing is in fairly poor condition. It has a pile of parts included with it. Some of them obviously came from the device. Some did not. All of them had to be cut out of circuit in order to be in this pile. It looks like someone just grabbed a handful of things nearby and added them to the image.
These devices were a very simplistic variant of the capacitor checker, and had a small chassis at the top that contained the power and eye tube circuitry. It appears to still be there by the screws in the panel, but that’s about it. The eye tube is missing. Two of the three controls are missing (are they in the pile?) The leakage lamp is gone, and the panel is, overall, in poor condition. We can’t see the chassis itself anywhere so there’s no guarantees that anything other than the metal is still there. Even that is suspect!
The front panel is in poor condition, but the case is in just as bad of condition. It’s intact, but rusty. The handle is still there, which is good, but that’s about it. No power cord is present, so it’s probably been cut off for some reason.
If I were to see this at a hamfest, it would probably be in the dollar box, or even the “free” box. I’d take it for a buck to get the aluminum handle and knob and dump the rest in the trash on the way out. This, in my opinion, is certainly not $144.00 worth of anything.
The good part is the description:
There’s our images again. You can plainly see they aren’t showing a chassis here, even though all of the screws are missing and it would be easy to do so. Why not? Why show the pile of parts close up but not the chassis?
But as stated, the description is pure gold.
“Acquired from a reliable source.” What’s that supposed to mean?
A “High end hobbyist private lab.” If this is the case, then this was in their junk bin.
“No means to test.” No kidding. Really? The exploded view is laying on the bench, exploded.
“High cost, high value equipment for a fraction of the new/replacement price.” Again, what is this supposed to mean? I can get a brand new device that does everything but leakage for $25, with the added bonus of testing every other common part as well.
(Leakage is not necessarily as useful as it seems. These devices were designed to test paper, mica, and electrolytics of the 1940s-1960s. Chances are, all of those old paper and electrolytics are bad and will get replaced regardless, so who cares if they leak? They need to be replaced.)
Much of this listing is boilerplate from the seller, and they use it in all listings. But some of it, in my opinion, is deliberately playing on a potential buyer’s desire to own one of these, even if they don’t fully understand the device. While I have no problem with selling this device itself (I used to sell used and parts-only things on eBay years ago) this device is (again, my opinion only!) being deliberately puffed up in order to make it appear it’s something it’s not. I don’t know if this is malicious or if it’s just the seller’s lack of knowledge - but with the other things seller has listed I think I’d be well within rights to assume they have some knowledge of this device.
Of course, it’s buyer beware on eBay, but still. Treat your customers with a little respect here. You got junk, sell it at a junk price!
If you do want one of these, there are several examples of the better C-3 device available, for substantially less than this one. Many of those are demonstrated working.
This one is here because the seller seems to be playing on the desire for this kind of device, even though the example they have will probably never be operational again.
Buyer beware!