Hi,
The HT-2000 is a workhorse machine. I have installed a few hundred of them over the years.
A 1992 machine would be one of the first production units built. They had few problems. You can still get parts for them, (The last one I repaired was this afternoon)
Look at the main contactor and pilot arc relays for worn out contacts. If so they need to be replaced before they damage the internal Chopper Modules or the torch.
The other problem is the quality of the hoses. Any gas leaks will degrade the LongLife properties of the torch.
The other thing to concider is the HT-2000 requires 3 Phase power. It will not run on single phase. Depending on the model number it will run on 208-575 Volts. At 480 Volts it uses 32 amps and at 208 it uses 100+ Amps.
As for the value, there are lots of HT-2000's around due to the HPR-260 introduction.You may find one for $2k-$4k ($USD).
We sell them for around $10kUS with all new cables, hoses and torch.
In my opinion reusing the old hoses and cables is a problem waiting to happen.
When they start to flex in diffrent positions they usually fail in a short time.
I hope this helps.
Good luck with your decision.
Alan Bradford
www.plasmatechnologies.com