# Purchasing Used Equipment



## Mel Williams (Jun 7, 2018)

Hi all,

What are your thoughts on buying used equipment rather than brand new? What are some reliable places to buy used equipment?

Poor public high school here, and we are desperate.


----------



## JohnD (Jun 7, 2018)

First question, is your school allowed to buy used, most aren't and have to go to a bid process for equipment. Check on that first. Another option is to see if you are allowed "gifts in kind", then find a sponser to pick up the tab. The details should be checked but it should be possible for a company to take a tax deduction for the amount of the "gift". How about organizing a student and parents support group and "Hey kids, let's put on a show". Proceeds from say an annual show would go for upgrades for your space. How about something like* The Needing Green Vaudeville Company.* Spend the time sending out press releases for any company donations and other fundraisers. Best of luck to you.


----------



## cbrandt (Jun 7, 2018)

It is always worth a call around to your local rental shops. Most of us have those old backstock shelves full of lights we don't use anymore. More often than not, if you don't mind old stuff, you can score a pretty good deal that way. That is all predicated on being able to buy used gear, as JohnD mentions, many schools aren't allowed to do so.


----------



## josh88 (Jun 7, 2018)

Depends on the equipment you're looking for. 
Usedlighting.com is great. 4wall's old stock. I've used it a bunch. 
Reverb.com is great for mics and some sound gear
Solaris is another

I've had a lot of good luck with used stuff. You could get screwed but do your due diligence, take smart chances and be willing to wait to find the best deals.


----------



## derekleffew (Jun 7, 2018)

https://www.controlbooth.com/threads/sources-for-used-equipment.9401/


----------



## Colin (Jun 7, 2018)

I think used is great as long as whatever you're buying is something you can afford to do some degree of maintenance and part swaps on soon after purchase and without relying on a warranty, which might be short or nonexistent with used. I've bought a bunch of used S4s and S4 PARs and R40 strips locally (which I'd say is the first thing to try before usedlighting.com and such) and they're fine. A few cloudy reflectors needed replacing, and some general inspection and spiffing up was worth it for us (and probably if we had shopped elsewhere we could have paid a little more for fixtures in better condition). I've been pleased with used loudspeakers too, chosen in person, and some factory reconditioned tools. I think those sorts of things are lower stress to buy used because they're simple and relatively affordable to begin with compared to gear that's higher cost, higher maintenance, higher parts/repair cost. Movers and LEDs and consoles might be great for your particular situation too, or might be more risk than you can tolerate. If you're considering used because money is tight, then consider whether or not money will continue to be tight for the foreseeable future, and if staffing is also tight, and then weigh the immediate access to more/better equipment against the possibility that the equipment will need repair or replacement sooner than new and you'll be back to square one with a growing graveyard of broken equipment, trying to get funds, or trying to find time or expertise for maintenance and repair. There's plenty of gear out there that's simple/indestructible enough to be a no-brainer to buy used, and the rest can be fine if you know what you're getting into.


----------



## DavidJones (Jun 8, 2018)

Keep an eye on the "church production gear traders" facebook group. A lot of churches are very well funded, so when they sell their old gear they are not trying to make a ton of money on it; they just want to see it go to good use. Most conventional will be okay used. Maybe some bad reflectors an lamp sockets, but you can make good working fixtures out of them even if you have to hold off on buying the replacement parts later. Older LED's will usually be okay too, I have usually seen more failures in the first year of life(manufacturing or QC issues), once they make it past that they usually keep working okay.

I would avoid most older moving lights. There is a reason you don't see mac 2ks and 700's on shows anymore. Sometimes you can get old movers for almost free, so it could be worth it if you have room to keep a bunch of parts fixtures on the shelf, but it's still a lot of work and time if you need them to be working 100% every day.


----------



## mikefellh (Jun 8, 2018)

Check to see if your school board requires equipment to be specially electrically certified before using.

When I went to school any equipment that was to be used in an Ontario (Canada) school had to go through additional electrical certification...that included film projectors, TVs, VCRs (it was the olden days), plug-in radios, etc. I remember every piece of electrical equipment I handled had an additional blue sticker on it like the following (I can't remember if this was the exact one, but it looks familiar):




A teacher couldn't just bring in a plug-in radio from home. I remember when we ordered a new multi-track open reel and mixer for the school music studio we had to wait until it was tested and stickered before it was delivered to us.

p.s. I just remembered that part of this process included adding a ground connection to the plug if the device only had a two prong plug. I found it weird in those days that devices that would normally have a polarized line cord (like a consumer VCR) had a heavier duty 3-prong line cord.


----------



## cbrandt (Jun 8, 2018)

Just a heads up, Solaris is now operated by Usedlighting.com. The page is still active, but everything redirects over to usedlighting.

I wouldn't say don't use old movers. I would say that the older it is, the more skilled and proactive you ahve to be about maintenance. In addtion, decide what model you want, and reach out about particular maintenance problems and procedures.


----------



## manuallyfocused (Jun 18, 2018)

I, too have had decent luck with used equipment, with some occasional misses. Craigslist, Ebay, usedlighting, and PRG Proshop have all been good sources. I've also had good experience with getting refurbished or B-stock equipment, which is a good compromise between used a new (it usually comes with a warranty too). Usedlighting has B-stock lighting gear, Alto Music is great for refurbished audio gear, sometimes you can luck out with an open box item from Guitar Center/Musician's Friend but that's a bit more chancy.


----------



## NickVon (Jan 14, 2019)

I frequently buy used equipment. Even have purchased some decent stuff off "Storage Locker defaults" It allows me to generally buy better gear at a price point used that I'd by less great quality gear. I picked up older QSC K12 for instance for 450$ a peice and are in great working and cosmetic condition. That said most public schools will not allow the Purchase of "used" gear with out some sort of warranty commitment. School can sometimes swing used LX inventory from places like "UsedLighting.com" (4wall Entertainment) since it's "really reburbished" and comes with at least some warranty, from a known dealer and not just bob_smith. Sometimes Club Funds are not restricted by schools for buying used.


----------

