Question about the Pair of CT-100's at ETM Auction

[old_tv_nut]

Originally Posted by etype2

Congratulations.

(Wayne, will you be posting the convention photos?)

I'm doing some editing now, will be posting later this week when I get back home.

[Chip Chester]

Originally Posted by fixmeplease

(snip)... the CT-100 with poor CRT sold for $500 and the one with the good for 4K. (snip)

Who says the world's not ready for 4K TV?

First one of these I'd been to -- nice to see the rare sets in-person.

[etype2]

Stating the obvious, if it has a raster, there is hope. Nice looking set.

[Robert Grant]

The one thing I noticed was that the auction prices were downright brutal on anyone selling a black-and-white. I thought the Melody-Tone was cute in its unadorned cabinet, but I really have enough B&W sets already.

I was seriously considering making a good bid on the black steel CTC-16, but with no description whatever on the condition of the set, it was truly a pig in a poke.

At last, I finally have a CRT tester/rejuvenator, which I've wanted for decades.

[fixmeplease]

That clear pic of them side by side really shows how much nicer looking the one on the right is. The cabinet and cloth look pretty good and are in much better shape than the other one, looks wise.

[SpaceAge]

If it had been me that forked over 4 grand for the set with the good CRT, I would have attempted to buy both and assemble one good presentable unit from the two. The leftover set would be useful as a parts donor to keep the better example running, and for practice purposes for things like setup and alignment procedures. That said, I am happy such an interesting set went to a member here so that we all get to read about it. If they're still doing these conventions in a few years I might finally be able to go in 2022 or 2023..

[Electronic M]

Originally Posted by SpaceAge

If it had been me that forked over 4 grand for the set with the good CRT, I would have attempted to buy both and assemble one good presentable unit from the two. The leftover set would be useful as a parts donor to keep the better example running, and for practice purposes for things like setup and alignment procedures. That said, I am happy such an interesting set went to a member here so that we all get to read about it. If they're still doing these conventions in a few years I might finally be able to go in 2022 or 2023..

Mine with the bad CRT was auctioned first. Whoever got the one with the good CRT would have had to find me after the auction and offer me enough to resell it... That also probably would not have been seen as a likely deal by anyone since I bid several other early color sets up to the 1-2k range before loosing....I could have also won the Admiral or Motorola if I had the guts to blow my whole TV budget.....Sad part was I was sure I had won the Admiral and the (apparently blind) auctioneer was looking at the guy behind me and ignoring me... I'm hoping for a smarter auctioneer next year.

[benman94]

Originally Posted by Electronic M

Mine with the bad CRT was auctioned first. Whoever got the one with the good CRT would have had to find me after the auction and offer me enough to resell it... That also probably would not have been seen as a likely deal by anyone since I bid several other early color sets up to the 1-2k range before loosing....I could have also won the Admiral or Motorola if I had the guts to blow my whole TV budget.....Sad part was I was sure I had won the Admiral and the (apparently blind) auctioneer was looking at the guy behind me and ignoring me... I'm hoping for a smarter auctioneer next year.

Dave Abramson did an excellent job as the auctioneer IMO. He, Darryl, Steve K, and David Roper were dealing the best they could with the new auction format, and folks crowding around them while they were down on the left and right sides, while trying to keep things on schedule. I think they did a fine job. If Dave missed seeing you bid, as well as Darryl, and David who were also looking, I would blame the layout and the people squeezed in too close.

[dtvmcdonald]

Originally Posted by benman94

Dave Abramson did an excellent job as the auctioneer IMO. He, Darryl, Steve K, and David Roper were dealing the best they could with the new auction format, and folks crowding around them while they were down on the left and right sides, while trying to keep things on schedule. I think they did a fine job. If Dave missed seeing you bid, as well as Darryl, and David who were also looking, I would blame the layout and the people squeezed in too close.

If you are not heard, blame yourself! I once was not heard ... so I stood up,
and started screaming. The ETF made a bundle on the resulting bidding battle.

This year, standing up would have made less difference, but a stentorion voice always will. "I bid 4 thousand six hundred dollars"

I suggest a rule that people keep at least 8 feet from the auctioneer, and don't block his view,
well enforced.

I was prepared for a bidding war on a really good 15GP22 ... but did not want another cabinet to take up space I don't have.

[matt.caputo]

I agree with several of the above posted comments, I wasn't able to attend this year, but I thought the museaum did a horrible job presenting these sets, as I watched the streaming feed online. What was even more aggravating for me was that I had emailed Steve McVoy 3 times confirming my absentee bid on the 21 inch Zenith color console with the horizontal line. Then I watched them sell the set for 50 bucks, completely ignoring my bid that was substantially higher. Steve did send me an email several minutes later apologizing for their incompetence, but refused to re run the item. Larry my substitute bidder was apparently "out to lunch" for that sale so as a result the seller and I both lost out. Whatever, I really believe there needs to be some changes in leadership if anything beneficial to the hobby is to come out of there in my lifetime.

[NewVista]

How much did the 17" metal cabinet Predicta go for?

Also how much the early 50s RCA metal cabinet B&W?

I would personally like to find a 50s Admiral color roundie, but so would many others as that one at auction got bid to over $1,000!!

[Tim]

The auction results are posted on the ETF site.

http://www.earlytelevision.org/2018_...n_results.html

[Kamakiri]

Well, let me give you *my* take on things......

First, the fact that there was no silent auction didn't have any affect on the prices but drive them up from where they would have been had most of the stuff been in the silent auction. The problem was that there were too many sets of the same type, and many of the "heavy hitters" that would have bid on the premium stuff weren't there to do so.

Anyone who took a bath on a set could've set a reserve. I'm in that category, I lost my ass on two that I had in the auction. But I made up for that in what I bought.

We had so many sets come in at the last minute that things got really stupid, and Darryl, Steve, and I did our best to keep up with everything piling in.

After the auction, I heard there was some sort of rumor circulating that the CT-100 with the restored chassis was a real hack job, and that it was basically a train wreck with a raster....which probably dropped the bidders out and pushed the other set high. Don't know, I would have had the seller address the comments if I heard it before the gavel.

Dave A did a great job as the auctioneer. Honestly? The problem was that there were not enough people and people with big vans in the parking lot to handle all of the stuff coming up for bid.

Everyone including myself watched everything that went up on the block live go for top dollar last year, so everyone took that opportunity to bring stuff in.

The only way things would have gone for normal prices or above is if people would've brought less to sell. As memory serves, there were something like 160 lots and maybe 60 guys watching the auction. Pure mathematics drove the price down, not the procedure.

[benman94]

Originally Posted by Kamakiri

...Pure mathematics drove the price down, not the procedure...

I know more than a few mathematicians that would disagree with you. The procedure can and does materially alter realized prices.

There is an anomaly in auction result prices, that has been observed time and time again, in that when substantially similar items are auctioned in sequence, the first will realize the highest price, and the last will realize the lowest. This was in play on Saturday morning. I bought the first RCA 630TS for more than the second.

Also look at the Elli Buk auction, the first Clifton realized the highest price, the final was a relative bargain.

It has also been observed, at least in auction houses like Bonhams and Christies, that prices tend to decline as the day wears on. There is a small but vocal minority that seems to discount this effect, but a substantial amount of research does seem to support this idea. If this is the case, which it appears to be, then auctioning the items of most value first would help maximize realized prices, and thus maximize the amount of profit enjoyed by the museum.

I personally don't care one way or another, and in fact I suspect I was able to do so well on that Remington because the auction was nearing the end. The last private sale I know for a Remington-Rembrandt set was closer to the $1K mark.

In any case, my comment wasn't intended to offend. It just struck me as extremely odd, as someone who attends plenty of classic car auctions, antique auctions, and just about every major Northern Soul and Motown auction, that the highest valued items were auctioned right in the middle. The almost universal practice is to open with the big ticket stuff, in descending order of estimated value.

If a simple tweak has the ability to realize even slightly higher prices, why wouldn't it be implemented? I think the auction went very well, and I liked the elimination of the silent auction. I also think I speak for everyone when I say I appreciate the efforts of you Tim, Darryl, David, Dave A. and Steve K. But like anything else in life, it isn't perfect and there are very small changes that could be made to tangibly improve it.

[bgadow]

I've been to a number of MAARC radio meets & have both bought & sold at the auctions. (It's been quite long time since I actually attended the auction, though). Typically, the room is stuffed to overflowing with sets & more being brought in right up to the last minute. The last time I went I think there were enough things being sold that everyone in attendance could have taken at least 3-4 things home, maybe a lot more. Who was the audience in those chairs? 1) Sellers. 2) Bystanders with nothing else to do that afternoon but watch. 3) Folks who haven't bought a set in a decade because they already have more than they want, but they might just bid on the right "quality" piece if it strikes them just right. 4) Bargain hunters. 5) Serious bidders, ready to spend thousands. Re-read what Tim wrote: "The problem was that there were not enough people and people with big vans in the parking lot to handle all of the stuff coming up for bid."

Now, on the radio side there is a very serious glut, and it's sad to watch. It's a lot better on the TV side but, still, there are only so many folks bidding. I'd really like to do another ETF convention (I think the one I did was '04) but 2 full days on the road is a bit of a commitment. If I still had my big old van I really think I'd have done it this year. Thing is, that van would have brought still more to sell, with the intention of bringing back very little. I would say, with my 20/20 hindsight, that I'd have driven up the price of that CTC-100 by at least a couple hundred dollars!