Estes Auction
Burbank, Ohio -- August 16, 2003

Reported by Ray and Edith Chase

Web Edition

The Estes auction in August was another large sale with a good variety of radios and equipment. The sale was heavy in Detrola, Philco and Zenith radios, as well as many transistor radios and tube lots. As in the July auction, in order to handle the number of transistor radios, parts lots, test equipment, and tube box lots, a second auctioneer was employed off to the side of the hall. Again, my wife Edith recorded the transistor radio sales as best she could; however, she could not manage the parts, test equipment, and box lots of tubes. The result was that most of these sales went unrecorded.

As usual, there were many bargains to be had, and several times I found myself running back and forth from one auction to the other to try to snag an item that piqued my interest. Usually my efforts went unrewarded, so I stuck mainly to the general auction.

The top-dollar items were a British World War I aircraft set selling at $1,500, and a very nice Collins S-Line station at $1,800. Most of the battery sets were fitted with tubes, and, strangely, there were quite a few empty cathedral and tombstone cabinets that were in very good condition. One wonders what happened to their innards.

If you were prepared to take on a lot of restoration work, there was a complete Zenith Windcharger set that sold for only $50. There was also a selection of nice consoles and the Zeniths drew moderate to good prices, but some of the others did not get that much interest and sold quite low. Auctioneer Bob Dobush interspersed over 100 better tube sales throughout the main auction.

I stopped recording at 4:00 p.m. and the auction probably lasted for another hour, so not all lots were recorded. However, all the better items had been sold by this time. The total sale netted over $46,000, not counting the 5 percent buyer's premium, which is not included in this listing of sale prices. (See print version for complete auction listing.)

e=excellent, vg=very good, g=good, f=fair, p=poor, gf=good fil, N.I.B.=new in box, N.O.S.=new old stock, BB=brass-based, TT=tipped, PB=push buttons, wk=works, nwk=not working

(Ray Chase, 1350 Marlborough Ave., Plainfield, NJ 07060; Estes Auctions, 7404 Ryan Rd., Medina, OH 44256; (330) 469-4992; estesauctions@aol.com)

Some early radios. Left to right: a 4-tube home brew with plenty of knobs to turn, selling at $175; a DeForest D-12 at $400; and an RCA Radiola VI at $325.

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.

What is an auction without breadboards? These Atwater Kent Model 10 sets brought $1,150 and $1,100.

This nice Magnavox Model 1AR horn and amplifier sold for $475.

This 4-piece Collins S-line, consisting of (upper right) a 75S-3B receiver, and (lower left to right) a 312B-3 speaker, a 32S-3 transmitter, and a 30L-1 linear amplifier, brought $1,800 in the auction.

This eclectic grouping includes a Federal Jr. crystal set, microphones, a horn speaker, and an assortment of AC/DC sets.