[R-390] my first Hamfest - found a 390A, not sure what to do about it

[2002tii]

Roger wrote:

>Never, never, never,never walk past an R390 or R390/A.
>No such thing as two high a price.

You've gotta be kidding.  Almost all the prices I see for 390s and 
390As these days are too high.

Don't get me wrong -- I love these receivers, and I value knowing how 
to get good results with them "just like our forbears did."  It's 
like shooting a flintlock or a WW I battle rifle with original 
sights, or "walking" a telescope to the nebula you want to see, or 
determining your position with celestial navigation aids -- it gives 
you a sense of accomplishment and an appreciation of how folks before 
us did things.

But most of us don't necessarily want to dwell in nostalgia-land all 
the time.  So we put scopes on our modern rifles, let computerized 
"go-to" telescopes find our nebulae, use GPS receivers to find our 
position -- and use modern radios for much of our listening to make 
it easier and more efficient to find and listen to the signals we 
seek.  So the prices of boatanchors must be compared to the prices of 
modern radios that will do things better and more efficiently.  By 
this standard, $650 for a 390A is -- in my opinion -- WAY more than 
it is worth.  Collectors will disagree, but who cares about 
them?  I'm talking about radiomen (and women) -- people who are going 
to use them for what they were designed to do.  Sometimes users have 
to compete with collectors -- if you want to shoot a Winchester 1886 
or a Colt Woodsman Match Target, you can't avoid paying more than it 
is worth as a shooter because collectors have driven the prices 
up.  But there is no need do do that with 390s and 390As.  Pass up 
collector-priced radios.  Be patient, learn where to look, and decent 
ones are available for much less.

Best regards,

Don 
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