Legal Size Scanner thread. 48 48

[mrmyst]

I've bought Microtek scanners on Ebay. The are workhorses.

[Dr. Love]

Get yourself a used Microtek V6UPL

[mrmyst]

yep

[Arkham]

Get yourself a used Microtek V6UPL

 

Typical result for me.. only results were from o/seas. Shipping more than the device itself.

[BlowUpTheMoon]

HP ScanJet 7400c

 

Easy to find inexpensively used.

 

[Cat-Man_America]

[font:Times New Roman]HP Scanjet 8300 (miles ahead of my old Epson scanner)...[/font]

 

 

 

 

[passion4comics]

Hands down the Epson GT 20000. I got one today. I was using the Hp Scanjet N6350 and auto stitching with Photoshop. The 6350 was just an extra step, but the GT20000 is one step.

 

Ummm, I do have a N6350 I’m not using anymore if anyone is interested.

 

I picked this up raw on EBay a month ago and just got it back.

 

 

[krighton]

Anyone use the A3 1200s Mustek scanner...seems to scan too light and I can't seem to find a contrast adjustment (though I know it's possible using another program after scanning). Maybe it just does a really crappy job scanning slabs.

 

 

 

Edited April 8, 2013 by krighton

[krighton]

color matching and the mustek 1200s is the devil ( so deselect that option if you're having darkness issues)....also sucks for slabs but I guess people already knew that.

[Dmac538]

HP ScanJet 7400c

 

Easy to find inexpensively used.

 

I totally agree, hands down the best full size scanner!

[zuckuss2003]

HP ScanJet 7400c

 

Easy to find inexpensively used.

 

 

What OS do you have? Will this scanner work with Windows 8?

[BlowUpTheMoon]

Windows XP Service Pack 2

[zuckuss2003]

Windows XP Service Pack 2

Oh, you know it is 2013, right?

 

[AndyBoBo]

HP ScanJet 7400c

 

Easy to find inexpensively used.

 

I totally agree, hands down the best full size scanner!

 

Just picked one up for $39.99 shipped; I'll try it out. Figure the place down the street hooks me up with $1 scans; but at $40 that pays for itself after one box of books.

[ChicksCosmiComics]

So I just bought a Brother all in one scanner i think its going back. It keeps on picking up glare from the slabs and does not have any real settings to change. Its hit or miss on the scans some books come out great while other look like garbage.

 

I want something that is easy to use and insufficiently_thoughtful_person proof my old POS HP does a better job than this thing. Is the HP scan jet 7400c worth getting? Please give me some feedback

 

Thanks

Greg

[Kenners]

I read all 39 pages of this thread, in one marathon read; and made a best offer of £45 shipped for a HP Scanjet 8300 Professional, seller-refurbished; Flatbed Scanner from eBay. The seller accepted my offer, so I should have it sometime next week.

 

Here's hoping that it doesn't get trashed by the courier on its way to me

[Dr. Love]

There is one problem with buying scanners off Ebay - and it's a problem that can't be fixed. It's the glass. Sometimes the glass has a scratch or some other defect that can't be fixed, as in cleaned. Sometimes you can't get at the glass, meaning the unit can't be disassembled. Always check for manuals on the unit you're thinking about buying beforehand, or goggle "model number clean glass" or something of the sort.

 

It's a roll of the dice. Even if you hold to reasonable BIN prices with free shipping and 14-30 day no question returns, on Ebay the cost of shipping back if desired will always be on you. The scanners are heavy and the boxes tend to end up being priced by dimensional weight through the Post Office, which is the heaviest method of computing shipping and kicks in when the box > 1 cubic ft (L X W X H > 1728).

 

So if you get the scanner for $25 it could cost you another $50 or more to ship it back. Still, $50 is way less than the same unit would have cost retail when new or what new legal size flatbeds are going for now. If you get a good one on your second try, it's still a win. If the second unit doesn't satisfy, it starts getting closer to a problem.

 

So what's the answer? No free lunch on this one - Ebay entails risk. Craigslist is a better option, where you can examine the unit . Bring a bright light to shine on the glass at different angles. Better yet, plug it in and scan both a white and a black piece of paper before you purchase, if you can. But of course you're very lucky if you can find the model you're looking for - legal size flatbeds are rare - on craigslist.

 

I'm ready to try the HP 7400c lottery myself. Those scans look awesome. My current setup is an old Epson Perfection 1200U for raw and an old Microtek Scanmaker V6UPL legal size for slabs, both of which I love. But I want a backup around just in case - the bulbs wear out over time and cannot be swapped out, at least not easily. And of course the scanner will go out on you just as you're preparing to close a deal and the final thing you need is to send a scan!

 

 

Edited April 13, 2013 by Dr. Love

[Kenners]

I got my 8300 today .. the easiest 10 minute install I've ever done! Scanner's perfect, well-worth the £30 I paid for it.

 

I've not messed with the settings, this is the first result it gave me ..

 

 

Sometimes, it's worth a gamble. Yes, I could've got burnt and ended up with an oversize paperweight, but .. nothing ventured: nothing gained

[Arkham]

Nice!!!

 

I'm having real issues trying to find a flatbed scanner in my region that scans legal-size documents.

 

I can get the HP pro printer/scanner that does fit it - but I didn't want to spend 500 bucks, given I never print anything. I was hoping to get away with a simple scanner only, for slabs, for 150-200 from the local office works or something.

 

So far.. no joy.

[Cat-Man_America]

I got my 8300 today .. the easiest 10 minute install I've ever done! Scanner's perfect, well-worth the £30 I paid for it.

 

I've not messed with the settings, this is the first result it gave me ..

 

 

Sometimes, it's worth a gamble. Yes, I could've got burnt and ended up with an oversize paperweight, but .. nothing ventured: nothing gained

 

[font:Times New Roman]I have an 8300 as well. You got a super good deal even with pound/dollar currency exchange differences. (thumbs u

 

Since you're still getting to know your HP scanner may I suggest something?

 

I'm sure that you've noticed that the image quality is much better in OUTPUT mode than in ORIGINAL, but without major fiddling your scanner will only upload in original mode which appears much duller than the output scan. There is an easy fix for this after it's uploaded to Photobucket.

 

After you upload the image to the desired library and have CROPPED the image in EDIT, before leaving the edit bar click the ENHANCE button and then click on the ENHANCE mode (left button), view the results and if you like them, save all changes.

 

See if that doesn't make your books look as sharp and bright as they normally do under good lighting.

 

Here is one of my 8300 scanned books using the Photobucket Enhance mode for comparison (a bit more tightly cropped and slightly smaller overall image, but I think you'll get the point): [/font]