a few things
I dont think owon is worth money in any sense of the word. They are spec sheet monsters but are horrible to use. I still recommend the rigol 1054z as a much more usable scope.
What! That's what I have (an older discontinued OWAN (SDS7102V) I upgraded from a 1995 era Tektronics black and white LCD and LOVE it, it's go so many features that are useful. The menu's could be more intuitive but once you get used to them, amazing.
I have heard good things about the Rigol, but I"ve been super happy with my OWAN and the HUGE LCD is a beauty.
I see no point in recommending a logic probe if you are recommending an oscope. Those probes are junk and will send you down false paths.
agreed and disagree, agreed if you have an oscope, there's absolutely no reason to have a logic probe. The reason I recommend it is for people who want to get their feet wet but not spend 400+ dollars on an entry level oscope. I logic probe certainly will help you with certain faults and gets you started for a low price. I started with that same logic probe myself and made many fixes with it till I upgrade to a 90s model Tek oscope, which used for about 4 months before upgrading to the OWAN and have been using since.
I also don't recommend people get an ancient 1970s oscope from ebay etc. they are just too BIG and unfriendly to use. Got to get an LCD that you can easily put on your workbench and move around if you want to take it to your cabinet.
the TL866 is okay but the GQ-4X4 is a far better purchase since it actually supports more eproms that are commonly used than the 866 does.
Definitely, the beauty of the TL866A is the PAL/GAL etc programming and logic chip testing which the GQ-4X doesn't do, thats why I list it along with the GQ-4X. But for a EPROM programmer my first choice would be the inexpensive but amazing GQ-4X.
I think the xtronic iron is a sketchy buy. While I am confident it would work fine for most people. I still find he Hakko FX888D a better overall iron with easy to get tips. Plus I don't think most people should have access to a hot air gun as those tend to wreck boards if you don't know 100% what you are doing.
Works fine for me I had a Weller that I LOVED but it broke and I wasn't able to repair it, I got this one because it was inexpensive and had the hot air gun for surface mount work, overall I've been happy with it. Not my Weller, but oh well.
Overall, great list that should help some people get started.
Good comments, thanks for your feedback.
I should add everything on this list is on my workbench with the exception of the multimeter, for that I use a Fluke 117, but I cannot seriously recommend people drop $170 or whatever they are for that when there are so many better uses for the money.