Is the "collector" phase of ham radio winding down?

[N3DRB The Derb]

I wuz just looking at ebay and I come away with 2 observations: there are quite a few collectors divesting themselves of their stashes, most citing growing age and changing life situations as the reasons. I'm thinking the hams who wanted the gear when it was new but couldn't afford it then are starting to crap out and selling out the majority of their stuff as a result.

I'm also seeing a lot of softness in the prices unless the item is already in "mint" condition, ( whatever that means, I hate the term) and anything that hammy hambone got a hold of is going pretty cheap unless it's in the top tier like a 30 K 1, etc.  Prices are down from 5 years ago, I can tell you that for sure. Sellers are still asking sky high prices, but I dont think they are getting them.

LIke to know what others think of my observations. True or not, or somewhere in the middle?

[Ed/KB1HYS]

God I hope so... 
I missed the days of the Boatanchor era. Maybe they make a limited comeback???

[W4RON]

I think amateur radio collectibles are going more like other
collectible radios, the high end stuff goes really high and the
low to medium stuff stays there.
I've been an antique radio collector for about 38 years,
the avarage 1920s battery set is about the same price it was
20+ years ago. The really rare high ends sets are in the stratosphere
and going up all the time.
I saw a Collins 51J something at the Charlotte fest yesterday that was
$2.4K. Personally I wouldn't give $2.4K for a dozen of them, but then
that's not my thing.

Ron

[ka3zlr]

I'm with Ed.....

[WA3VJB]

Demographics.

The pre-war car collecting hobby has gone the same way. People who wanted those models are getting too old to enjoy them and are selling off the collections.

But younger buyers are instead looking at postwar models they can more closely relate to. So it's taking longer to sell the oldest cars, and/or prices among them are down except for the "already mint" examples.

It's not a pure division however, and this may translate to vacuum tube gear too.  There are some younger buyers with no direct connection who nonetheless are attracted to the older era and will pay beau coup dollars to obtain what they want.

[Todd, KA1KAQ]

That's true Paul, as well as the older gang who can now afford to buy the dream gear they couldn't afford as JNs. In the auto world, Muscle cars that you couldn't give away a few years back (gas hogs, poor handling, etc) seem to bring more money than most other types lately. Even custom street rods, at least during the Barrett-Jackson auctions. Same factors at play, methinks.

The biggest issue with epay is/was the early century feeding-frenzy as so many folks suddenly had access to online shopping. Very common Collins and other gear went through the roof for a while as people who wanted to get in on the action paid whatever it took to get their slice. Prices on the more common stuff has shown a huge correction over the last coupla years in the world of epay. Amusingly, some folks actually bought stuff back then as an investment to resell later.

Even some of the more desirable items have corrected. A good example is Fred K2DX's SX-115 listed in the For Sale forum for $1K. There was a time when ratty, modified examples were pulling $2K or more on epay, the highest going over $6K maybe 5 years back. Fred's sounds like it's in decent shape, I'd be surprised if he has it listed for long.

There will always be some demand for the higher ticket/scarce items by virtue of numbers and quality. But you just don't see round emblem KWM-2As brining $2K-$3K these days. OTOH, the days of the '70s $10 flea market R-390s are also the exception and no longer the rule.

[W1RKW]

It would be good to see more "emitters".

[k4kyv]

The pre-war car collecting hobby has gone the same way. People who wanted those models are getting too old to enjoy them and are selling off the collections.

Stock, restored pre-war cars are in very short supply to-day because so many were converted to scrap during the quest for metal for wartime production at a time when fuel was rationed and tires were practically unobtanium. I have heard many an old timer say they had seen perfectly good running Model A's and Model T's sold for scrap during the war.  A large number of the cars that did survive were converted to hot rods.  The body would be restored and painted bright red or blue, but the stock engine and wheels discarded and replaced with "high performance" components, and often the body was cut down and the running boards taken off.  For some reason, hot rodders tended to think it looked cool to remove the bumpers even though they served an important function.

But, alas, at least those cars were preserved in some form.  Otherwise most of them would have ended up entirely in scrap yards decades ago.  I suppose this is comparable to the vintage ham rigs we see at hamfests that have  been totally butchered, but in come cases, radio mods were expertly done to improve performance of the rigs, as opposed to typical hammy hambone modifications.

I would love to have a fully restored mid 30's sedan to go with some of my vintage radio stuff, but that would be a whole new (and very expensive) hobby that I don't care to get embark in.

[w3jn]

I see two areas of the "collecting" part of the hobby still going strong.

First, rare and top-of-the-line radios continue to command high prices.  I was watching a rare Racal military receiver and I figured it would go for $500 or so.  It ended at almost a thousand dollars.

Second, the bottom barrel radios still command a lot - AT-1s, Amecos, Star Roamers, etc.  Seems like some guys still want to re-live their novice days.  Why, I cannot say.

The middle of the road radios are indeed sagging.  A fairly decent SX-28 that ended over the weekend barely broke $200.

My dad is an old time member of the Classic Car Club of America.  The term "Classic" is rather misused with regard to collector cars; in this case the CCCA is very strict about what constitutes a "classic car".  Most Packards, Rolls-Royces, Auburns, Duesenbergs, Lincolns, Marmons, most Cadillacs, custoim-bodied cars, etc from 1925-1947 are classics.  Fords, Studebakers, most Chryslers, etc., are NOT.  In any event the cost of admission has always been rather high compared to other areas of the collector car hobby.  Even in 1960 it cost a hell of a lot more to restore and drive a '34 Packard V-12 than a Model A.  But these days you can get a full 99 point classic for well under $60K.  Try that with a muscle car. 

My dad's generation, who grew up with and appreciated these cars, are indeed dying off.  I believe the youngest guy in his CCCA chapter is 47 - my age.  Wasn't true back in the 60s when most of those guys were in their 30s.  I fully expect that, with the exception of a few of us that have ALWAYS appreciated anything classic - radios, cars, houses, etc., the popularity of boatanchors will generally wane.

[N3DRB The Derb]

When I was driving my 1962 Mercury around full time ( yes it was my regular car ) I had a Johnson whiteface CB in it mounted under the dash. I looked around for some mobile ham stuff but I never found any complete rigs. it was always just the tx no PS, or just the PS, or just the RX and whatever i found was like a 2 on a a scale of 10.

I just bugged truckers with it. Here's a almost exact clone of it but this is a 63:



with this under the dash but with the metal mic:


some of youse guys remember them thar days, no? Going home from the Timonium fester with 800 pounds of iron in the trunk. 

[k7yoo]

I can only speak for myself, but I have been methodically getting rid of high end gear for some time now, and am continually weeding out items that sit too long. Lately this even includes parts. I admit I still have a huge pile but it IS getting smaller!. I think a good philosophy to take would be a "use it or lose it" approach. If it sits for several years, will never be practical to use and you don't get "a round tuit", it's time to move it out.

getting rid of stuff can be quite liberating

[k4kyv]

continually weeding out items that sit too long. Lately this even includes parts. I admit I still have a huge pile but it IS getting smaller!. I think a good philosophy to take would be a "use it or lose it" approach. If it sits for several years, will never be practical to use and you don't get "a round tuit", it's time to move it out.

That's not necessarily true.  I have a pretty good parts collection, enough to keep most of my stuff going indefinitely, plus I still do homebrew projects.  "Classic" parts are so hard to come by these days that it's impossible to find much of what you need to build or repair something unless you already have it on hand stashed away somewhere.

Countless times, I have finally built something I had kept the parts stored away for, for 15 years or more, and I very often use stuff that I remember picking up decades ago.

About the only stuff I get rid of is stuff that I know I won't ever use, or something I have that I think someone else needs worse than I.  I usually don't attempt to thin down my collection until I need the space. Even then, very often when I part with something, two weeks don't pass before I have a need for it.

The only way I can keep my station going and have the material I need for projects I want to work on is to maintain my own private radio warehouse.  I couldn't go to Radio Shack to-day and pick up a bakelite wafer tube socket if my life depended on it.

To-morrow I plan to drive to Nashville to pick up a pair of 400 mfd 2500 volt oil-filled (probably PCB) capacitors. I don't have an immediate need for them but the present owner has made me an offer I couldn't turn down.

"It's better to have it and not need it, than to need it and not have it."
-John Mohn, W5MEU (SK)

[w3jn]

Corrollary:  As soon as you pitch it, you'll have a critical need for it.

[The Slab Bacon]

Corrollary:  As soon as you pitch it, you'll have a critical need for it.

Isnt that always the case!! And, er, furthermore, you also will have to pay a top dollar price to replace it!!

[KB2WIG]

Or, the classic, " Why didn't you tell me?? Ive been looking for one....."

klc

[Todd, KA1KAQ]

Well, parts vs rigs - different issues. Especially if you've picked up a lot of gear in recent years when prices were higher. Many of us who have been into old gear since long before it was fashionable have still been culling the herd for the last few years through sales, trades, or just passing something on to a buddy who will use and appreciate it. It just makes sense. Continually moving something around that you're really not excited about gets old.

Parts to keep your rigs going, spare iron and so on, are pretty much a requirement going forward. OTOH, if you have a lot more stuff than you can realistically use and can make enough money selling the stuff off to easily afford the odd bit you might need later, why not? Of course, finding it when you need it is always the trick - even if you already own one!

The amusing part is watching the "speculators" (as they like to be seen) who loaded up on common Collins S-Line, National, and other similar gear in recent years, now expecting to get 1999-2004 prices.

Bottom line: if you're in it for the fun and not the money, you won't be hurt by future values, perceived or otherwise. If you're hoping to retire on the money you expect to make selling your priceless collection, better start now and hope for the best. Claiming you'll only accept Top Dollar doesn't mean you'll get what you paid 5 years ago. Reality being what it is, you takes whatcha can gets, or ya keeps it.   

[Pete, WA2CWA]

If you can't get your price, part it out. You might make out better and make more people happy.

[k4kyv]

Corrollary:  As soon as you pitch it, you'll have a critical need for it.

Isnt that always the case!! And, er, furthermore, you also will have to pay a top dollar price to replace it!!

Or you won't be able to find a satisfactory replacement anywhere for any price.