Value of DDEC Scanner

[jimshoen]

How much is a used DDEC Scanner with cable and card worth?

[stevet903]

Is it a Pro-Link or the early model Kent Moore tool for DDECI/II? I bought a Kent Moore on Ebay for $27. The Pro-Links are substantially more, a new DDEC cartridge is about $400, basic used Pro-Links without cartridges can be had for about $100, I've seen some used with various cartridges for between $200 and $600.

[Ray Davis]

Jim, is your bus DDEC3 or DDEC4? You can get the Pro-Links as specified earlier for DDEC3, but starting with 4 you need to get a multi-purpose card, and then the DDEC4 PCMIA card with the software. It gets kinda expensive then.

I have followed Ebay for quite some time, and getting a Pro-link for under $200 is a lucky buy. $27 is a phenomenal buy.

But, as indicated above, the software gets to be the expensive part, especially if you are up to DDEC4 or above.

They are great devices, and will show you a lot about your engine that you never realized!

Ray

[Jon Wehrenberg]

Everyone focuses on the cost of the device.

The irony is that this is the group that absolutely loses its collective mind when buying a bus, and then gets rational (or so they think) when buying accessories or related products.

If you really want to add a DDEC reader to your collection of tools (good idea actually) focus on what you would like, see what the best deal is and spend the money. Don't worry about trying to get the cheapest price. You've already lost the cost of the device today just based on the loss of earnings on the invested capital plus depreciation.

[Ray Davis]

I would respectfully submit that advising someone that a device might be a bit costly, is a long way from "collectively losing my mind".

At least being aware of costs of various devices doesn't seem to be an unreasonable thing to me. Not all of us are going to purchase every cool tool. Regardless of how useful they are, not all of us can afford every gadget we'd like to have.

Remember, the cost of these tools gets ADDED to the already hefty depreciation, as you've already mentioned.

[Jon Wehrenberg]

Ray,

None of us can justify buying our bus. That makes the purchase of a tool seem to make sense no matter what the cost. I do subscribe to trying to pay a reasonable price however.

Actually the tools seem to hold their value a little better than the buses do. And with the exception of a very limited few tools my "bus" tools also are used for all of my cars and boy toys like the Bobcats and dump truck.