Estes Auctions -- Three Estates
Burbank, Ohio -- October 22, 2005

REPORTED BY RAY CHASE

Web Edition

The October 22, 2005, auction at the Expo Auction center in Burbank, Ohio, was another regular monthly event conducted by Richard Estes. The auction consisted of a combination of three estates, plus additional consignments. There were several early items, including a Wireless Specialty SE-712 that went for $4,000. Some examiners claimed that it was not 100 percent authentic, but I could not discern any problems.

Many battery radios, 1930s wood sets, and plastics from the 1930s through the 1950s were offered. A large grouping of tubes was sold, along with quite a large quantity of paper and magazines. Some Ham equipment was also included. Most notably there was a large selection of good quality Zenith radios.

One of the prizes of the day was a Radiobar set with full glassware -- one of the best I have seen -- that sold for $1,400. I recorded about 616 lots for a total sale price of $53,318.50, not including the five percent buyer's premium charged at this location.

In the afternoon, there were several side auctions to dispose of bulk box lots and low value items that I did not record. Also many paper items and books were sold "choice," on which, for the most part, I was not able to collect information. I stopped recording at 4:15 p.m., and there were many tube lots yet to go, or about an hour's worth of the auction remaining.

e=excellent, vg=very good, g=good, f=fair, p=poor, unk=unknown condition, N.O.S.=new old stock, wk=working, nwk=not working, WT=with tubes, NT=no tubes, BB=brass-based, TT=tipped tube, gf=good filament, SW=shortwave, PS=power supply, PB=push buttons, wk=working, nwk=not working, WE=Western Electric. All prices have been rounded down to the dollar. Some low cost items and items in poor condition or with nonspecific descriptions are omitted. See print version of A.R.C. for complete auction listing.

Photos by Ray Chase.

(Ray Chase, 1350 Marlborough Ave., Plainfield, NJ 07060; Estes Auctions, 7404 Ryan Rd., Medina, OH 44256; (888) 769-4992; estesauctions@aol.com)

Ray Chase has been a radio enthusiast and a collector of many types of radios for years. Currently, he specializes in World War II electronics equipment, as well as early battery superheterodynes. He also has an extensive collection of radio documentation and ephemera.

A warning: Auction prices are not current values. Our selection of auction items is not necessarily complete. A listing such as this cannot adequately include the condition of cabinets, chassis, transformers, tubes, the operating status of the set, and the inclusion of incorrect, restored or replica components, etc. Auction prices are the result of the excitement of the auction process, the skill of the auctioneer and the specific interests of the participants. Nevertheless, auction prices serve as useful references and as another element in the value determining process. The possibility of error always exists, and if we are notified, corrections will be reported.

An Amrad combo in very good condition: a Model 3500-1 receiver and a Model 3475 amplifier (see print version). With tubes, this pair sold for $450. The rear view on the right (see print version) shows the factory flat wiring and the transformer (lower left,) both of which are often missing from these sets.

The Wireless Speciality SE-712, ca 1917, was the top dollar item in the auction. It sold for $4,000.

If you cannot remember ever seeing this radio before, you are right. This Motorola AC/DC set has been installed in a very nicely executed home-brew cabinet. It sold for $220.

Two "shutter-dial" Zenith consoles: the Model 12S265, at left, in very good to excellent condition, sold for $550; the Model 9S365, right, brought $200.