12 Aug
1997
12 Aug
'97
2:44 p.m.
I have quite a few old radios from the 1920s and 30s, and the market has
recently been subjected to the same kind of wild increases, due to the
entrance of speculators into the field. Speculators don't care about old
radios, they just think that they can make a ton of money on them.
Most of the hype and hoarding has been with bakelite radios from the late
40s and 50s, but the
resultant high prices (easily with $1000 or $2000 minimum) have driven up
the prices of the really nice old sets from the 20s and 30s too.
My understanding of the interest in bakelite sets is that it is similar
to why there is more interest in micros rather than minis from a
computer collector standpoint- space.
An "all-american 5" bakelite set can sit on a shelf in a small apartment.
Compare that with the floor spare required for a nice console or even
a wooden table radio.
Recent discussions aside, there is the same perception in the
computer collecting field, that micro means small. (God bless those who
have the space for multiple 19" racks.
<<<John>>>