[RitchieMars]

Yep, that's actually a very nice-looking 1955 Zenith. I wished mine had worked that good when I found it! But certainly, do try and avoid turning it on and running it for very long. It must have been maintained well to work as good as it does, but who knows how long ago that was! Well, actually your mom might know, of course! In any case, it's a really fine example of this make and model and seems to have been handled with care.

Appraising a vintage television isn't like appraising some other antiques and collectables. There aren't that many people who collect them, as say, baseball cards, vinyl records, little trinkets. They take up some space and can be downright dangerous if not repaired properly. That said, the prices can vary greatly and the condition does help those figures considerably. A "working" television is very encouraging, but it doesn't mean there's no work to be done.

There's really no "price guide" to speak of, but if I ran across a set like this on Craigslist and assuming it looked as good in person as it does in the photos, I would consider $75 to $100 to be fairly reasonable. I'd probably pay more, but I've grown a little shy with my investments based on some past experiences. But, that's just me. I prefer 1950's televisions and I trust the Zenith brand name. But, when priced well-above that range, they quickly become unattractive and risky. Some people out there are hoarding antiques and thinking they'll make a killing by selling to a "collector." They don't realize that most of the true collectors are actually quite thrifty, and prefer diverting their hard-earned money towards projects that require much more attention than it takes to review an over-priced listing on Ebay.

Just my 2 cents, so to speak...