[Hallicrafters] Re: ID this Hallicrafters RX?

[Jim Brannigan]

When I buy a new or old radio I consider it an expense, not an asset.
If the whole shack disappeared tomorrow, I would mourn the loss of utility, 
not the money.

Anyone who views a "collectable" with a thin market as a potential 
investment or future source of emergency funds should re-think their 
financial strategy.

Jim

>> I was merely saying, if you don't look at
>>it as an investment,  it's not an issue. If you look at it as something
>>you enjoy, an old radio  that's fun to restore and use, and the bottom
>>falls out of the  micromarket of classic radio gear tomorrow, you've
>>lost nothing because  you still get out of it what you intended:
>>enjoyment, satisfaction. Hard  to put a price on that. The only
>>protection needed is more time to enjoy  the stuff.
>
>
> With all due respect let's probe that a little to find out  if this is 
> really
> true. Have you ever negotiated for a lower price on a  piece of equipment 
> for
> sale somewhere you wanted? Haven't we all? Isn't the  financial side of
> buying and selling really important to all of us then whether  we are 
> willing to
> admit it or not? If you bring something to sell what guides  your selling 
> price
> decision? Current actual selling price history? 1964 selling  prices? Off 
> the
> cuff or whether you like the potential buyer or not? What  if I decided to
> sell you my all original 1932 National AGS Airport receiver  setup in the
> original rack with original exposed cone speaker, coils in the  coil racks 
> and GRDPU
> power supply for $500 because I thought you would be a good  owner for it 
> who
> would appreciate the history of it and honor what it was? What  I would 
> want
> of course would be for you to honor the special  arrangement I extended to 
> you
> by finding another appreciative  prospective owner and offering similar
> arrangements when the time came for  you to sell but how could I know for 
> sure you
> would do that? What if you  decided to sell for $10K because that is what 
> the
> market currently happens to be  for a complete setup like this? What kind 
> of a
> statement would that make about  me and wouldn't I be risking being made a
> fool but I guess, who would care?
>
> It is commendable to be in a position to love old radios without regard 
> to
> the financial aspects of buying and selling but I am not in that group 
> yet. I
> still work a Monday through Friday job and would like to be able to retire
> comfortably someday so I have to keep an eye on values and whether the 
> prices I
> decide to buy at or sell for are wise or not. I want my finances in order
> and trying to retire while still having old debt and a home  mortgage is 
> not a
> wise plan. I try to keep current of market values  for everything I have 
> and I
> usually know current values for stuff that  I am interested in because I 
> have
> to be careful about the choices I make or my  plans might not work out. No 
> one
> knows what the future will bring and I might  find myself having to sell
> radios someday, who knows, but I sure don't want to  be in a position that 
> these
> things have put me in a hole I cannot get out of. If  I retired in a tent
> someday with old radios stacked up around my ears would they  say I did it 
> for the
> love of the hobby or would they say I sure was stupid?  Maybe it doesn't
> matter to everyone but it matters to me.
>
> 73, Greg