Got a line on an RCA 621...Price question?

[miniman82]

So I had to take one of my parrots to the vet the other day because it was having an issue with its left eye, and on my way out of the parking lot I saw a pawn shop. I never drive by them without going in, on the off chance they might have something I want. Usually doesn't amount to anything, but this time I might have scored.



Sitting on the shelf was a 621TS, he wanted $1,200 for it. Knowing that was too much without knowing the condition of the chassis and tube, I asked the owner if there was any wiggle room on the price. He shot back $900, so I went back home to grab the CR-70/variac/meter. 7DP4 tests good, and actually came up pretty fast. Not sure if I was using the universal adapter the right way, but it did need the bias switch set to -36 in order to get decent cutoff. Need input on that, not sure if it's normal.

Anyhow, the cabinet needs refinished but there's no peeling veneer that I could see. Top is cracked in half, but could easily be repaired. No back, but they make repops. Put the variac on it and after reconnecting the wires to the horizontal coil in the cage which had been cut off for some reason, HV started to spool up so I know horizontal is good. Plenty of hum from the speaker, so obviously the caps need replaced.

So the question becomes: is $900 too much for a 621TS in need of cabinet love, but having a good CRT and restorable chassis? Need to move on this if so, before someone grabs it.