I have an old Tektronix Type 546 Oscilloscope that a friend gave me about 5 years ago. I attached a picture. Apparently the model is originally from 1964 (not sure when mine was assembled). It's definitely not in full working order, but I've used it for basic diagnostic work (it was actually my first oscilloscope). That said, it's not that useful for such purposes any more, so right now it's gathering dust in storage. I've been trying to decide what to do with it. Option A is for me to pass it on to another geek buddy of mine. He'll get a kick out of seeing the vacuum tubes inside like I did, but it'll ultimately end up in storage again. Option B is...Mailbag! Then, hopefully thousands of geeks can get a kick out of seeing the innards
Of course, the number one question immediately following was, "
How do I get this thing from Virginia to Australia?" The trouble is, it weighs about 72-73 pounds. Shipping that is already an expensive proposition, and to add insult to injury, USPS has a hard limit of 70 pounds on international shipments. I could try shipping the removable input preamp module separately, or use the likes of FedEx or DHL, but I can't find any way to get it there for less than $500 USD, and potentially much more.
I've been pondering this for a few days. I'd be willing to put $250 or even $300 toward getting it there, but no way can I do $500+. I thought about something like GoFundMe for the difference, but figured there would be little interest (but let me know if you disagree!). Alternatively, does anyone know of cheaper ways to ship something like this? Time isn't really a factor, of course, as long as it'll get there.
Finally, would there even be enough interest to make this worth pursuing? I find the vacuum tubes particularly fascinating, but maybe that's just because it's a completely foreign technology to me. Let me know!
P.S. If mailbag can't work out, does anyone have other ideas for what to do with it? Seems like a shame for it to just end up in another guy's attic again.