Vintage Radio Advice

[BeerCan]

I just came from the brother of a business friend. He is selling his radio collection and I was wondering if I should buy some.

First let me say I know little about radios, but I would love to get into restoring them.

He literally had a house full of old radios. Desktops, floorstanders etc etc. There must have been a 100. I am going back staurday to "pick" the ones I want. What I am doing in the meantime is trying to research what I should "pick".

So tell me what should I be on the lookout for? These range in age from the 20's to the 50's and are in varing degrees of completedness. He said he hardly ever powers them up and estimates about 50% will work right away. Some don't have batteries so I can't test those and the otheres I would be hesitant to just plug them in given their history.

Any tips, tricks and or advice for a beginer collector/restorer?

Thanks

[Chad Hauris]

Many of these old sets will have bad capacitors, etc. so they should be evaluated for problems and fixed before plugging in, this can eliminate damage to the set due to shorted wiring or caps. Just like with old cars, you should not just turn them on without preparing them so that no damage is done.

I guess it all depends on the style of set you like, that is what you should get...most all of them are solid enough to be worth the while in restoring them. even the old 20's sets will work well if you make a power supply for them and provide them with a speaker.

Personally I like old AM/FM or AM/shortwave radios the best as there's hardly anything good to listen to on AM only anymore.

[Sandy G]

I like the ones that "talk" to me...Unfortunately, most all of 'em do. Generally, on a console, the more tubes they have, the better a set they'll be-but more repair headaches are in order. One of the cutest sets I have is a 1938 Arvin 2-tube model-Arvin made TONS of cheap 3, 4, & 5 tube sets in the thirties when lotsa folks could afford little else. Because they were cheap, not all that many have survived in good shape. On the old battery sets of the '20s, try to get all the tubes w/it-the old "balloon" tubes are sometimes worth more than the radio.-Sandy G.

[BeerCan]

Are there any brands/models that are "must haves"? I have already decided I am going to stay away from the ones that are not complete (missing knobs or speakers etc). I also think I am going to bypass the majority of the floor standing models because of storage issues even though I was tempted to buy everything.

[Fisherdude]

Hooo, boy!

You're in a pickle. Unfortunately, you need several days to study current price guides, make notes on which models are the most desireable/valuable, see what he's got, make decisions, etc., etc.

There are radios that are worth thousands of dollars. I'm not nearly enough of an expert to be able to give you anything approaching advice, but I'll try to give some basic pointers.

As Sandy said, just like all vintage electronics, the heavier, the more knobs, the more tubes, generally, the more expensive it was when new, and the most valuable today.

One of the most desireable brands was E. H. Scott. Huge, expensive, gorgeous.

Look for radios with colored mirrors as part of the design. Sparton made one called the "Bluebird" that has a round, blue mirror. There are several others. If the mirror is still in perfect condition, could be very valuable.

You may have heard of a type of plastic called "catalin". It was popular for a very short period of time. Usually in very bright, vivid colors, frequently with swirled patters. The right radio, in the right condition, $5,000+++.

Wooden cathedral-shaped or tombstone-shaped radios are very popular, but there are literally hundreds of makes and models, and values range from $25 to as high as you want to go. Certain Philcos, Zeniths, (look for a black dial face) can be valuable. The floor models tended to be the fanciest and most expensive then and now. As you mentioned, they take up a lot of room!

If you want solid advice, the AK of antique radios is www.antiqueradios.com. They'll be happy to give you great advice, but they'll want to know what makes, model numbers, condition, etc. Otherwise we're all just guessing.

Let us know what you find out!!

Clay

[Sandy G]

Clay's tellin' you a story, them old chrome-chassis Scotts are JUNQUE !! In fact, I'll be more than happy to dispose of any you find....I'll even pay the freight here for you. Ain't I a generous guy ?!? Seriously, if you do luck up & run across a 48-tube Scott Quaranta,or a 25-tube Zenith Stratosphere, you kid's college will about be paid for. He's right, too-I've been fooling w/old radios for about 10 years now, & I'm only getting to the point I don't feel COMPLETELY like a neophyte. 95% of the ones you'll seemingly run across will be "All-American Fives"-a basic 5-tube circuit that dominated from the late 1930's til the '60s, when transistors finally took over. AA5s are common as pig tracks, & not a whole lot more valuable-they were made by the millions- but people think since they have Tubes, they're automatically Old & Valuable.-Sandy G.

[Aage]

Zenith made a lot of great radios, and they seem to carry higher prices for similar models of other makes of their period. Their designs were often ahead of the competition, and some styles, such as the "shutter dial" models are satisfying sets to own and just look at, and even more fun to operate.

A shutter dial is hard to miss: round dial with a black background, and when you switch bands, the dial scales move like a camera shutter. Quite impressive.

Addison made a lot of catalin radios, but their wood and plastic models are often highly desireable too.

If you want to buy a selection from your local seller, might be good to decide now (if you can!) whether you want to specialize right away in some style or type of radio, or have a wider sampling of the many different types that were sold back then.

I agree with your comment on consoles (floor models): they eat space. I managed to get five into the house before I realized that the future of continuing in that direction would force me to start moving furniture out. Wife and I agreed that while they were lovely, it was necessary to be able to sit down.

Portables can be fun. Interesting styles, often more colourful. Many times they didn't get the use of a table radio, since they would only be taken out on holidays or vacations. They can be made to play on modern batteries without a lot of work. Plus, they're smaller...

I would be tempted to ask the seller what he would buy in your place. After all, who knows the collection better than him?

[Nolan Woodbury]

I'm new to collectable/antique radios too Beercan, but I don't worry about what to buy, or what to avoid. I have plenty of stress in my life, which is why I got into old radios to begin with. My last serious pass time (photography) turned into a full time gig, and that's a crappy thing to do to a perfectly good hobby.

My wife borrowed my truck one day and came home with this huge set of antique, stand-alone shelves; they look like someone pulled them out of an old plantation or something. After I refinished and installed them, we began thinking about what we could put inside all that space, and it hit me. That was three weeks ago, and I have five wood case and three bakelite radios resting there now, and more on the way. (Total expenditure: less than $300) Next, I'm thinking a cathedral radio would look great sitting next to all those handsome table-top radios.

Whatever you do, have fun and enjoy! (And don't pass up anything that says Zenith on it...)

[Fisherdude]

Any news?? We're dyin' here!

[BeerCan]

I am going to go saturday. Only day I could get the wife to go with me. I think I get one of the better floorstanders to put in my livingroom as a "conversation piece"

I'll keep everyone informed and post pics on saturday.

thanks

[BeerCan]

WOW prices went up. Anyway I took some pics Have a look I am going back monday.
http://www.oncologyplus.com/images/radio/

I am intersted in pics
3958 $75
3987 $250
3957 $200 (?)

[Kamakiri]

Of the prices you mentioned, this guy wants retail plus. I'd stay away.....he's probably watching eBay prices for mint units, which those ain't.....

[BeerCan]

Definatly not mint but I know he does not even know what a computer looks like.

I bought the emud 925 (pic 3972) a pioneer ct-f1000, sx-680 and hpm60's for $275. Will post pics later (I just liked the emud). Figured I could finace the whole purchase by selling the ct-f1000 and sx-680 on ebay
emud 925/926 radio/phono 10 tube amp (has legs also)




Btw I could probably talk him down on the items

[Sandy G]

Emud-W. German set, competitor to Grundig. Never had one, but those old W.German sets had a reputation for very good sound.Lots of the better ones had EL84s as audio output tubes. I'd say this one qualifies as "better one". Most I've seen have a "Magic eye" tuning indicator, which doesn't really do a damn thing but looks kewl as hell. Go thru it & replace the caps & check the tubes, you'll have a set that you can be VERY proud of. Looks like it has several SW bands on it-that's a trip in itself. I think you DONE GOOD !!-Sandy G.

[BeerCan]

I have the original papaerwoork, schematic and factory inspection paperwork with it. This one does hae el84 output tubes. Based on paperwork I figure its from 1959 or 1960