Hank,
I bought a used camera from a videographer a while back. The reason he was selling his gear was because his brother decided to partner with him, and invested a good chunk of money so they could upgrade to HD. I bought that camera not quite a year ago, and even being used on a weekly basis, it’s working just as well as my other gear. I’ve only cleaned the head once, and it wasn’t because it needed it, but rather because that was when I do all my cameras, and I wanted to get it on the same maintenance cycle as the rest of them.
The local pro video shop owner gets cameras back all the time. Apparently quite a few folks try to get into videography, but realize it’s too much financial obligation and sell their stuff almost new. He’s got some "used" cameras that may as well be new.
But in general, I agree. There are very few good reasons to trust a used prosumer camera, ESPECIALLY if it’s at a super low price.
