Which used model to buy?

[gps10]

I have a small project.  x = 150mm  y=100mm  z=50mm  I have plenty of space to mount the robot.  I want to buy a used scara or cartesian to perform a solvent application.  Process time is 3.0 or less seconds for about 18 inches of movement.  Simple, don't need great speed or accuracy.  I want a highly reliable used robot - tried and true model to look for.  Any suggestions are appreciated.  Will perform 600,000 cycles annually. So, which used model and what year?   

Thanks. 

[Ztek]

What you should not buy:
Adept 550
AdeptOne
Anything that have a MC or old MV controller.

Not becourse it is bad robots, they still do an excelent work, but it is almost impossible to find some of the spareparts for those robots and controllers, and if you find, they are very expensive.

The conclusion from this is that you shold look for in the first hand a Adept Cobra 600S or 800S with a SmartController, or secound,  the a bit older Cobra without the "S" with a AWC controller.

Robots built from Adept Linar modules (Pyton etc) are usualy built for some special application, and can be hard to adapt to a new task. There have also been a lot of problems with those modules.

An other possibility is to look for a Adept Quattro or ABB IRB340. Both are parallell kinematics robots, wery well suited for pick and place applications. At least IRB340 should be easy to find used in good condition.

[TygerDawg]

There are quite a number of arms which can do this, in addition to Adept.  Yamaha, Denso, Epson, Staubli, Kuka all pop into my mind.  Yamaha would be my choice.

For 600K cycles per year, it is not wise engineering or smart economics to design your production system around a used robot.  For a few thousand more than auction prices, you get a new one, with warranty, parts, and service.

[gps10]

Thank you for the replies. 

I understand the benefits of buying new.  However I can only justify this project if I keep a very tight lid on the cost.  Therefore, I must buy used.  Thanks for your reply TygerDawg. 

Ztek, thanks also for the reply.  I have been looking at the Adept 600 and 800.  What price range should I look for to buy one of these? There are some I have seen now for around $10,000 to $14000.  Are spare parts widely available? If I can, should I buy 2 identical models, one for spare parts?  If spare parts are available, I don't want to spend the extra $, but if I have a machine go down, then TygerDawg advise will play out. 

I have integrated Kuka robots in the past.  Will the adept 600 or 800 be along the same lines to get up and running?

Thanks.