posted on February 20, 2005 11:38:58 AM new
I've come across a large collection of TUBES in their ORIGINAL BOXES, but I have NO way of testing them
Each has no sound when I rock back & forth gently, & eack box has a hand-written "OK" on it -- BUT:
EACH & EVERY ONE has a BLACK MARK on the inside of the glass! Is this indicative of -- JUNK?
Ralphie & I would really appreciate some HELP...please!
"Who could have possibly envisioned an erection — an election in Iraq at this point in history?" Prez.Jim Beam, at the White House, Washington, D.C., Jan. 10, 2005
posted on February 20, 2005 11:48:06 AM new
Ignore the black mark inheritant action of tubes.
Most likely used tubes that have been tested good and placed in the box of the tube that replaced them. Somebody paid for something they didn't need!! Power Amplifier & Pre Amp tubes, especially matched pairs, are the money!
posted on February 20, 2005 11:53:29 AM newTHANK YOU!
Ah, er...any suggestion as to how to tell?
Do the model numbers correspond to TYPE?
My old man worked for PHILCO for 40 years, & you'd think I'd know sumptin but I don't!
"Who could have possibly envisioned an erection — an election in Iraq at this point in history?" Prez.Jim Beam, at the White House, Washington, D.C., Jan. 10, 2005
posted on February 20, 2005 12:07:42 PM new
Tom...Your best bet is to pack them up and put them in a closet until such time as you can beg, borrow or steal a good quality tube tester from someone and verify the condition for yourself. If they are used tubes, you'll want to put the condition, along with the make & model of the tester in the descriptions. You can make a simple fill in the blank type template and list a bunch of them in a short period of time. Some of them can be quite hard to find and bring very high prices. Make a list of the tube types and see what some of them are selling for and it'll give you an idea of what you can expect when you list them. Pay attention to which categories the best selling types are listed in. There are at least half a dozen different categories that are appropriate for vacuum tubes, depending on what they are designed for.
A $75.00 solid state device will always blow first to protect a 25 cent fuse ~ Murphy's Law
posted on February 20, 2005 12:14:01 PM new
I agree with sparkz. I "bulk listed" two boxes of misc tubes a year or so ago. Didn't get too much, but really just wanted to berid myself of them. I'm sure someone with the right equipment made money, but that was OK with me at the time.
posted on February 20, 2005 12:14:25 PM newSparky!
THANKS! I'm pretty sure these are mainly RADIO tubes, as I've also come into a HUGE collection of 40's & 50's RADIOS from the same source, including some pretty strange ones .
This one may not be rare or valuable, but my favorite is a ??50's "MOTEL RADIO" -- ya stick a QUARTER in the top for 1 HOUR of Hank Williams!
BRAND NAME = CORADO & is a REAL beast!
"Who could have possibly envisioned an erection — an election in Iraq at this point in history?" Prez.Jim Beam, at the White House, Washington, D.C., Jan. 10, 2005
posted on February 20, 2005 01:13:41 PM new
The party you got the tubes and radios from would be a good place to start looking for a tube tester. Also, they turn up occasionally at swap meets. Don't be afraid to fork over a few bucks for a good one. You'll get it all back when you're through with it. Those things sell like hotcakes on Ebay and bring good prices. I bought 6 at an estate sale, and I only have one left which I'm keeping for myself. Ironically, you'll need a few of those tubes to test the tester. There's a whole subculture out there that collects vintage radios. You might have a real treasure on your hands. A quick way to approximate the age is by looking at the front dial. Radios built between 1953 and 1963 will have a civil defense emblem on the 640 and 1240 kc marks to denote the old Conelrad system. If you are going to try to restore them, see if you can find a copy of a tube substitution manual. Radio Shack used to carry them, but I don't know it they are still being published. It's the one thing that's indispebsable for anyone working with tube equipment. And you always want to remember, some of the older "AC-DC" radios as they were called, can have a hot chassis if the plug is plugged into an outlet the wrong way. Don't ever touch the chassis and a ground, such as a water pipe at the same time when it is plugged in.
A $75.00 solid state device will always blow first to protect a 25 cent fuse ~ Murphy's Law
posted on February 20, 2005 01:23:19 PM newThanks, SPARKY!
NONE have the CD markings, and we're talking around 150-200 gorgeous RADIOS, mostly BAKELITE!
So far, I cannot find ANY coin-operated MOTEL radios anywhere on the entire NET, except for ONE on feeBay with a $275 asking price...
Also have a VERY NICE selection (I'm running ragged here) of 1950's 5cent LADIES-ROOM KOTEX DISPENSERS -- interested?
"Who could have possibly envisioned an erection — an election in Iraq at this point in history?" Prez.Tax-THE-poor-to-SUPPORT-KennyBoy-Lay-And-Other-Assorted-GOP-SCUMBAGS, at the White House, Washington, D.C., Jan. 10, 2005
posted on February 20, 2005 01:56:03 PM new
Glad you mentioned the Bakelite, Tom. I forgot to suggest testing the cases, but I assume that would be the first thing a person would check for if they've been reading the Ebay Outlook for more than a week or two. That will be one of your most important keywords. Without the 640-1240 markers, I would assume they are pre-1953. Time to start prowling around searching for patent numbers. With an assortment that large, there are bound to be at least a couple of sleepers in there that could bring some big league bucks. I would get ready to do some serious research on them. As far as the Kotex dispensers go, I couldn't even begin to tell you what to do with them. You might try listing them over in business and industrial and see what happens. Be sure to check the coin boxes for any overlooked nickels before you ship them, though
A $75.00 solid state device will always blow first to protect a 25 cent fuse ~ Murphy's Law
posted on February 20, 2005 02:13:51 PM new
Tom; Could that radio be a Coronado? I had one when I was a teenager back on the farm in Iowa. Used to lay in bed & listen to it. On Sunday night @ 10 I would listen to WWL New Oeleans to Guy Lombardo from the "Top of the Roosevelt Hotel" That was 60+ yrs ago.
Life Is Too Short To Drink Bad Wine
[ edited by sanmar on Feb 20, 2005 02:14 PM ]
posted on February 20, 2005 02:18:53 PM new
Thanks, SANMAR --
Actually, I read the name WRONG!
It is a "Coradio", with the letter "i" in the shape of a radio tower!
Weighs around 4 tons & is so ugly it's CUTE -- kind of like Ralph & Stonecold??
"Who could have possibly envisioned an erection — an election in Iraq at this point in history?" Prez.Jim Beam, at the White House, Washington, D.C., Jan. 10, 2005
posted on February 20, 2005 02:21:28 PM new
Yes, Look for brightly colored bakelite(actually catalin) radios those are high end, don't bother to find out if they work, leave alone! If you have any old guitar amps they are valuable too, so too are their componets, hardware, nobs and speakers can fool you too, they have code dates. In addition, old HiFi Stereo Tube amps will fetch some nice prices.
[ edited by hillbillymo on Feb 20, 2005 02:27 PM ]
posted on February 20, 2005 02:57:13 PM new
THANK YOU, Mr. HillBilly!
BTW: vat is the difference? BAKELITE vs CATALIN???
"Who could have possibly envisioned an erection — an election in Iraq at this point in history?" Prez.Jim Beam, at the White House, Washington, D.C., Jan. 10, 2005
posted on February 20, 2005 03:14:52 PM new
Bakelite is usually brown, black, gray
or any combination of the previous, I think it is a trade name and molded in powdered form and catalin is molded in a liquid form.
Catalin is brightly colored green, yellow, red, blue and butterscotch and a few others. Once you see it you will recognize it from then on! Nice Examples are rare and bring $1000 and up depending on the color.
Colorful catalin jewelry is high dollar also!
[ edited by hillbillymo on Feb 20, 2005 03:16 PM ]
posted on February 20, 2005 03:59:23 PM new
Check a place called Grimmers, in Schenectady, NY to see if they can help you find tube tester, charts, etc.
GRIMMERS ELECTRONIC SUPPLY COR
41 N BRANDYWINE AVE
SCHENECTADY, NY 12307
(518) 374-8480
posted on February 20, 2005 04:00:54 PM newThanks be, to ONE & ALL!
"Who could have possibly envisioned an erection — an election in Iraq at this point in history?" Prez.Jim Beam, at the White House, Washington, D.C., Jan. 10, 2005
posted on February 20, 2005 05:08:02 PM new
Hi Tom -
Normally I just lurk around this site to read about some of the absurdities we experience as sellers and buyers. I decided to post this time to let you know that there are a couple of simple tests to determine if the radio cases are, in fact, bakelite.
1. Dip a Q-tip in 409 cleaner (that's real 409, not a generic substitute) and apply it to an inconspicuous area of the case. If it's really bakelite, the swab will turn yellow.
2. Rub an area of the case firmly with your thumb. The friction heats up the plastic. If it's bakelite you will smell the formaldehyde in it.
posted on February 20, 2005 05:11:41 PM new
THANKS, Jake, but I like the Simichrome Polish Test better
My schnozola stinks, so I usually ask Ralphie to help me with "sniffing" tests, but he's no help because he's of the canine persuasion
"Who could have possibly envisioned an erection — an election in Iraq at this point in history?" Prez.Jim Beam, at the White House, Washington, D.C., Jan. 10, 2005
posted on February 20, 2005 07:36:59 PM new
there is a radio company out of Lima Ohio that sells parts for all kinds of radio stuff. This may help you with pricing it out. I just cannot recall the name of them now. Good luck
posted on February 20, 2005 08:35:18 PM new
Leads...The compny in Lima Ohio is Fair Radio Sales. I've dealt with them many times over the years, and would recommend them highly. The main thing Tom is likely to encounter when he starts plugging them in (aside from bad tubes) will be a loud buzzing noise, called 60 cycle hum. The filter capacitors were originally designed for the standard power line voltages of the era which was 105 - 110 VAC. Today's voltages typically run 120 to as high as 125 volts, which will stretch those components to their maximum tolerance. prolonged use can cause them to fail, creatimg a loud hum in the speaker that can drown out the audio. It's nothing to worry about, and unless he is familiar with working on these things, I wouldn't recommend he try to repair them. Just describe it fully. The collector who would be interested in one of these will most likely be equipped to fix it himself. This is one of the few items in which some models will bring the same whether they are working or not.
A $75.00 solid state device will always blow first to protect a 25 cent fuse ~ Murphy's Law
posted on February 21, 2005 10:52:21 AM new
About a year ago I bought about a thousand tubes for $100. The man who sold them to me said there were two in the batch worth over $100 dollars each. I spent about three hours looking up tubes on Ebay. Very few of them sold for anything at all. A dollar here and and a couple of bucks there but I didn't think it was worth the time and effort to look them up or store them, so I sold them to a friend who refurbishes radios for $200.
I do know that radio tubes can be worth quite a bit but television tubes are worth a lot less.
posted on February 21, 2005 10:59:27 AM newTHANK YOU! g-a-l!
Fortunately, Ralphie's investment is all this "treasure" is ZERO!
He knows better than to waste his allowance on anything other than kibble & s-car-go!
"Who could have possibly envisioned an erection — an election in Iraq at this point in history?" Prez.Jim Beam, at the White House, Washington, D.C., Jan. 10, 2005
but I don't!
