[Boatanchors] Reality Comes Knocking.

[David Stinson]

For those who've watched too much "Antique Road Show,"
those who think selling their boatanchors are going to
save their finances, those trying to sell common
Heathkit/Johnson/Milradio etc. on Ebay for big bucks
(and relisting them for months), etc. etc., please
take note of this from a Hamcation attendee.
These stories are becoming commonplace.
Father Time is merciless to collectables, folks.

"Update from Hamcation.
So there was one seller in the field today who was
offering a boatload of VERY nice boat anchors of
various types. RCA, Johnson, etc. Beautiful receivers
and transmitters, all said to be working, mostly going
for $200 to $350 each. More than a dozen at bargain prices.
Evidently he had no, or few, takers. By mid-afternoon he was
offering the lot for $900. Methinks the boat anchor era
really may be ending. My other thought about Hamcation,
as I stood in the ticket line at 0830 this morning:
"Jees, all these guys are OLD."
(He said, the day after he turned 72.)"

To which was commented:

"Greying out. We’re on the shady side of the nostalgia bell-curve."
"I think most of the boatanchor enthusiasm was driven by
Boomer hams remembering the radios they longed for
but could not afford as kids. As this (my) generation dies off,
I except the market for all old radios, to continually decline."

Advice from one who once sold estates: What one *thinks*
it's worth means nothing. It's "worth" what a buyer and seller
agree at that moment, and that's all.

Also- If one cannot sell an item, be it radios, rubies or radishes,
there is always and forever *one* reason- the price is too high.
If the price is right for the buyer at that moment,
you can sell fire to the Devil.  Being stubborn about "getting
my price or die!" is just "cutting off your nose to spite your face."
Get what you can so you can stop leaking value away
(time-value of money).  Deploy those assets elsewhere
and move on, while you still can.


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