Blind and Visually Impaired Community
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More affordable Perkins braillers? (self.Blind)
submitted by sltylr
Hey everyone, reaching out to this community as a family friend of a blind student with special needs. Without getting into her medical history (honestly I'm not a doctor and its a bit above my head), her learning methods are a bit different than the average student. For example, she prefers the Perkins machines over the Braille Sense/smart machines. Her machine is loaned from the local public school. Occasionally the family would let me borrow it to braille letters to their daughter. I think the school figured this out and for whatever reasons requested the machine back for "maintenance" all of the sudden. Its been some time now and the school won't give an ETA on when the machine can be loaned out again. I miss being able to write her letters without being at the mercy of the school district. I looked into Perkins braillers online but they seem to start at $800 or higher! Being a family friend and not the student myself or direct family member, I'm struggling to find any loan programs that I'm eligible for. At the same time, I just don't have the money to invest a thousand dollars. Does this community know of any other resources that might make a machine like this more accessible to someone in my position?
BenandGracie 3 points 2y ago
Check Ebay. You might find a used one. The other option you have is to use a slate and stylus.
sltylr [OP] 1 points 2y ago
Just a quick update if anyone is interested...
Good news is I did spend some time looking on ebay. Found a decently priced unit and even contacted the seller asking about the operational status and explaining what I was looking for. Everything sounded great, they promised there were only cosmetic scuffs but all the keys and parts were in good condition.
The unit arrived today and although it was the same one based on the scuffs in the pictures, it was totally out of alignment, paper won't feed correctly and the space key isn't working. Can't use it at all.
Super disappointing.
Now I'm looking into the repair options with Perkins and if there's any recourse with ebay (doubt it).
Good news is I did spend some time looking on ebay. Found a decently priced unit and even contacted the seller asking about the operational status and explaining what I was looking for. Everything sounded great, they promised there were only cosmetic scuffs but all the keys and parts were in good condition.
The unit arrived today and although it was the same one based on the scuffs in the pictures, it was totally out of alignment, paper won't feed correctly and the space key isn't working. Can't use it at all.
Super disappointing.
Now I'm looking into the repair options with Perkins and if there's any recourse with ebay (doubt it).
sltylr [OP] 1 points 2y ago
I'll definitely start looking there, but I'll freely admit I would have no idea how to identify one that's in good condition or not... I never tried a slate and stylus though! I looked them up on Amazon and ordered one, those are definitely more affordable haha. I'm a little nervous at the idea of having to write backwards and I'll miss the speed of the Perkins but that's definitely a good short term option to try!
BenandGracie 3 points 2y ago
The good thing about braillers is they last forever. The slate will be a little slow at first, but if you keep at it, you should get quicker.
KillerLag 2 points 2y ago
Good braillers will last for a long time, but they do need maintenance. There was one guy in my city who did maintenance for them, but he retired Dec 2019, before COVID. The next closest guy we know who can do full maintenance (teardown, clean, repair, oil and everything) is in a different city, about an hour and a half drive away (and I'm not sure if he's retired yet not).
You can send a Perkins brailler back to Perkins for maintenance, but the shipping cost alone isn't cheap.
If you are interested, here is a video and link for Level one of Perkin Brailler maintenance.
https://brailler.perkins.org/pages/perkins-brailler-level-1-general-maintenance
Here is a link for getting more training on repair (up to level 3).
https://brailler.perkins.org/pages/repair-training-workshops
I have no idea what level 4 is, but I assume that is what Perkin staff must be trained in.
You can send a Perkins brailler back to Perkins for maintenance, but the shipping cost alone isn't cheap.
If you are interested, here is a video and link for Level one of Perkin Brailler maintenance.
https://brailler.perkins.org/pages/perkins-brailler-level-1-general-maintenance
Here is a link for getting more training on repair (up to level 3).
https://brailler.perkins.org/pages/repair-training-workshops
I have no idea what level 4 is, but I assume that is what Perkin staff must be trained in.
sltylr [OP] 1 points 2y ago
Thanks I'm definitely going to bookmark those links! Not gonna lie I would be nervous about attempting repairs on my own but good to know. I'm usually a firm believer of leave it to the experts. Maybe this a dumb question, but why would there be shipping costs? So far I've been able to mail all of my materials for free as long as I bring it to the post office unopened so they can verify the contents are for the blind.
je97 1 points 2y ago
Damn, if you were in Europe I'm selling a few of them cheap.
The only advice I can give is to try and look for an old perkins brailler. The newer plastic ones fall apart after a few years, my old ones are over 20 years old and still run fine.
The only advice I can give is to try and look for an old perkins brailler. The newer plastic ones fall apart after a few years, my old ones are over 20 years old and still run fine.
sltylr [OP] 1 points 2y ago
Oh wow yeah! Are there rules preventing sales from Europe to the US or is shipping costs the concern?
Totally agree on the old/metal style over the plastic ones. The one I was borrowing was the metal style, kind of reminds me of a typewriter and just seems like it would last forever with the right care.
Totally agree on the old/metal style over the plastic ones. The one I was borrowing was the metal style, kind of reminds me of a typewriter and just seems like it would last forever with the right care.
je97 1 points 2y ago
The shipping, I don't even know how much it would be. If you can work it out though it might still work out cheaper, add £100 to the cost of shipping and that's what I'm selling it for.
sltylr [OP] 1 points 2y ago
Going off the Perkins website that was posted here, sounds like $50-$150 shipping international. That's way more affordable than a new one! If you got one in good working condition, I would definitely be interested!!
je97 1 points 2y ago
If I can find that from one of the UK shipping firms, I'll see what I can do.
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