Beckman SP-353s on eBay -- WARNING !!

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Jon D.

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Mar 1, 2024, 11:40:42 AM3/1/24
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CAUTION !!  Buyer BEWARE !!!

From this eBay auction: Beckman SP-353 Gas Discharge 3 Digits 7-segment Display

Photo of back of all 4 shows glass nipples ALL broken off (i.e. no neon inside).

"Sold as is."  I wonder why ???  (photo attached)

He's offering these to me for $37.52 each (25% off of $49.88) !!  What a deal....

Jon J.

SP-353s all with broken glass nipples (no neon)_2024-03-01_9-35-25.jpg

J Forbes

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Mar 1, 2024, 11:47:45 AM3/1/24
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are you sure they're not sealed? I have one NOS and it has the same appearance...but if you look down into the hole, you see the seal.
sp.jpg

Michail Wilson

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Mar 1, 2024, 11:50:57 AM3/1/24
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Hello,

 

I have about 50 units myself.  They all look the same as in the photo.

 

Michail Wilson

206-920-6312

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Nicholas Stock

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Mar 1, 2024, 12:01:35 PM3/1/24
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Jon, that's how they are.... it is not a sign of them having been broken. The displays I have here are just like this and work fine. I have bought from this seller before and they've been fine (a few years ago now).

However, that price is a bit steep! Even with the discount...

Jeff Walton

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Mar 1, 2024, 12:06:06 PM3/1/24
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Hi Jon, 

Actually, if you have worked with panaplex, you will recognize that these nipples are normal.  The glass seal is actually sucked into the stem that you are seeing.  I've bought from this seller and they are used but worked fine.  I paid less than the listing price. 

Jeff 

-------- Original message --------
From: "Jon D." <jond...@gmail.com>
Date: 3/1/24 9:40 AM (GMT-07:00)
To: neonixie-l <neoni...@googlegroups.com>
Subject: [neonixie-l] Beckman SP-353s on eBay -- WARNING !!

Jon D.

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Mar 1, 2024, 12:10:31 PM3/1/24
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Well, my bad then.  I actually have a few of these somewhere that I know work, but I never noticed them looking like these.  My apologies to the group.  And thanks for all of the quick feedback !!

Nicholas Stock

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Mar 1, 2024, 12:14:29 PM3/1/24
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No need to apologize Jon, I thought the very same thing when I first saw these types of devices back in the day, we all make mistakes!

Cheers,

Nick

Jeff Walton

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Mar 1, 2024, 12:19:52 PM3/1/24
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Here's some friendly advice:  don't ever use the end of a paper clip to test whether there is a glass seal inside that nipple.  The little pop you hear is the sound of magic gas escaping.  It's fragile... 

Michail Wilson

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Mar 1, 2024, 12:23:31 PM3/1/24
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Heh

 

Michail Wilson

206-920-6312

liam bartosiewicz

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Mar 1, 2024, 5:20:08 PM3/1/24
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I had an intrusive thought one time, and decided it wouldn’t be a bad idea to flick the evacuation nipple on a VFD; it didn’t work out all that well, although it did make a pretty cool noise lol.

On Mar 1, 2024, at 9:19 AM, Jeff Walton <jwalt...@gmail.com> wrote:


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