Steve, et al,
Yes, it does well to be an informed shopper and ask the right questions, request pics, etc. but there is still the issue of the integrity of the seller. That is, if the seller is not honest you might not get honest answers. More than one auction and online seller has used pictures of mint gear when selling basket cases. Even with an honest seller, there is a limit as to how much risk reduction can be accomplished, and it isn't 99%, and attempting to do so can be problematic. When selling off my Collins gear, some of the questions posed to me were... "Can you guarantee that the equipment was never in a smoking environment?" "Can you guarantee that no modifications were ever made to the receiver?" "Can assure me that no parts were ever replaced?" "If parts were replaced, can you guarantee they were Collins approved parts?" "Can you tell me which Collins field upgrades were done and which were not? For those that were done, were they done by a Collins authorized service center?" And a few questions about where specific components were in particular locations/orientations. A good percentage of vintage, collectable equipment, has had multiple owners and generally there is little or no documentation as to the history of the equipment. Answering the above questions is virtually impossible, that is, for honest answers. I've been cheated on equipment that was "working perfectly" according to the seller. After purchase, I addressed the many issues and the seller merely said, "Well, that's what the fellow said that sold it to me. I never plugged it in." Unless one inspects and tests a piece of equipment before purchase, there is always some chance that some work will be required to get it into the advertised condition. Hence, price negotiations should keep this in mind. Too, I and others have observed that the HF swap nets afford gear that is priced well below auction prices, with integrity of the sellers typically well above many of the online auction and ad sellers. In contrast, net participants are often well known and a poor reputation spreads quickly. However, trends are that people don't want to wait until a piece of equipment becomes available on the nets and are more than willing to spend top dollar on risky online auctions or purchases. In my first 25 years as a ham I never heard of a deal gone sour. Today, well, times are a changing... Enjoy that Drake gear. 73, Evan, K9SQG -----Original Message----- From: Steve Wedge <[email protected]> To: captcurt <[email protected]> Cc: drakelist <[email protected]> Sent: Tue, Sep 6, 2011 8:33 am Subject: Re: [Drakelist] What would you do? Thanks to all for the comments. Most of you are more or less validating what I had already arrived at. I am thinking, at this point, of giving it a decent cleaning and alignment and selling it as it is - sort of like a Model A Ford with a manifold heater and an electric wiper. It wasn't really my intent to get to a museum piece anyway. The "B" that I intend to keep (the one I just bought Saturday) has its blemishes (a new email forthcoming...) but is basically un-messed-with. My concern is in getting all or most of my money back on the modified one. It is interesting in its own right, but my shack has limited space and so I'm not considering the changes made to the modified "B" to be significant enough to me to merit keeping it. One thing I will say about the modded "B" is that the previous owner did check the tubes in it and kept them the rig in good repair in that regard. I plan on hitting the underneath with plenty of Charlie's Soap in an attempt at drawing out some of the oils left in the wafers. Yes, both R-4B's and the "new" T-4X will be going to the kitchen sink and oven eventually. We've had that debate before ;-) 73, Steve, W1ES -----Original Message----- >From: Curt Nixon <[email protected]> >Sent: Sep 6, 2011 8:49 AM >To: Steve Wedge <[email protected]> >Cc: [email protected] >Subject: Re: [Drakelist] What would you do? > >Hi Steve: > >I pretty much go along the lines Don laid out. I think there are very >few original 10/10 radios out there and they are not obtainable by me. >There are some that are "restored" to claimed 10/10 but that is an >endless debate. Just like classic cars. > >I have a half a room full of Drake, Yaesu, Swan, etc. rigs that I can >say EVERY one except my original A line came to me non-working...and >they now all work fine and get used all the time. But they are in >differeing conditions. On a real historically significant radio, like >my R390A, I could easily erase or cover up all of its use wear and >tear...but I kind of appreciate the wear on the knobs and the worn paint >around the most used controls, etc. It is a sign that someone before me >spent hours coaxing some clandestine signals from that wonderful rig. > >I surely don't appreciate having someone give me less than the full >disclosure on a radio--although, I am certain I have purchased some from >folks that never knew the difference. But I have little tolerance for >those that would intentionally misslead. > >So, I would add the R4B experience to your list of questions to ask >regarding mods and condition, hope for the best, and decide how to make >it fit into your personal collection goal. I find the Collins Collector >group condition rating scale to be very helpful BTW. > >My guiding premise #1: A museum quality, 10/10 radio will come out of a >sealed original box. All others, including perfect restorations, are >somewhere down the scale. > >Just some thoughts for the "soup" > >Curt (the other Curt) >KU8L > > > > >Steve Wedge wrote: >> Fellow Drakesters - >> >> I bought an R-4B a few weeks ago, sort of sight-unseen, on the >> assurance that it was an "8" (I assumed out of 10, but I won't go >> there right now...) >> >> The receiver works very well and pulls in the signals as good as >> anything ever made. It transceives well with both my T-4X's. The >> audio sounds like some component values were tweaked, as it has a rich >> sound with more lows than I'm used to hearing. >> >> Here's the ugly part, and I know there are some of us who are more >> "purists" than others. I've been tending toward looking for rigs that >> haven't had a heavy hand taken to them - which this one has. The >> previous owner moved the INJ jack over to one of the SPARE locations >> (why? Don't know!) - shortening the shielded cable to the jack i the >> process. He drilled through the "target" that the factory provided on >> the front panel where the headphone jack used to be and put a pot with >> a Drake knob. This pot is used to vary that AGC delay. There is no >> longer a headphone jack on the side. He replaced all the RCA jacks >> with high-quality jacks. Unfortunately, it appears he used some sort >> of "tuner cleaner" on the bandswitch, but nothing seems to be broken. >> There are other changes that will be easier to undo - such as going >> back to the factory panel and cabinet screws. >> >> I'm looking for consensus from our ranks: would you try to put things >> back, leave it but clean it up, or leave it as is? I'm leaning toward >> selling it, as I found a better one at the hamfest. >> >> Moral of the story: when buying these on the ham websites - demand >> pictures of front, back and interior as a minimum, unless it's either >> ridiculously cheap or you know the seller! >> >> 73, >> >> Steve Wedge, W1ES/4 >> >> "I can't complain, but sometimes I still do." >> - Joe Walsh >> >> If the above message appears, it came from Steve's Son of Laptop! >> ------------------------------------------------------------------------ >> >> _______________________________________________ >> Drakelist mailing list >> [email protected] >> http://mailman.zerobeat.net/mailman/listinfo/drakelist >> > _______________________________________________ Drakelist mailing list [email protected] http://mailman.zerobeat.net/mailman/listinfo/drakelist
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