Thordarson Chokes

[k7yoh]

Does anyone know the approximate value of Thordarson Series "19" chokes?  I have a few of them that will be going to the Hamfest in the spring, but I don't know what their worth.
The pics are of just one of them I pulled off the shelf at random.
Any help would be appreciated.

[Opcom]

The 19 series have many models with a wide range of prices and a single price can't be put on them. You can always go by the catalog price multiplied by some figure.

To someone who is building and does not care to represent a particular period, or is repairing and does not care if it looks original, the old stuff has lower value than recent stuff, because of its older insulation and decades of age.

To someone who is building and wants to represent a period in time, or is repairing or restoring a piece, they can have a little more value than a more modern item because of the appearance.

There are more persons of the former than the latter.

as for real value? maybe tends to go be the pound, and type of iron (choke, transformer, audio iron), and by ratings (VA for transformers or in case of inductors, volts and current), the technology (1930's vs Dahl).

If the T19C35 is the same as your picture, it's a $4.80 200mA choke, 5-20H, 130 DCR, 3KV insulation. I think $25 is fair for a known good one. That's what i meant, take the catalog price, which was a fair price at some past time, and multiply it by a figure to reflect a modern value. I found that price and spec in one of the "400" catalogs, many are online.

Why not spend a little time and go though your list using the online catalogs, and tag the iron with the spec and cat. price? I've been doing that lately and it may save time at some point and avoid me relying on emotion and guessing rather than on what it is really worth. Cataloging a few shelves of transformers can be a pleasant afternoon when the weather's bad.

[k7yoh]

Thanks I appreciate it.  However, I have yet to find an online catalog that covers the 19 series chokes.   I have a few that cover 20 series, and even the catalogs I have on my shelves havent yielded the information I am looking for. I will just have to keep looking until I find one.
Once I find the info, I intend to do pretty much what you described, spending an afternoon just tagging each choke or transformer with the specs and price.
Thanks again...I can see I still have some online digging to do.

[Opcom]

Maybe the T was added at some point, or was not always stamped on the unit. If the T19C35 is the 19C35, then these may help:

THORDARSON TRANSFORMER CATALOG 400FX, 1942
http://www.bunkerofdoom.com/xfm/THORDARSON_400FX_WEB/thordarson400FX.html

THORDARSON CATALOG 400C 1938
http://www.bunkerofdoom.com/xfm/THORDARSON_400C/thordarson400c.pdf

If it is not the same, sorry about that.

I didn't see any nnxnn designations in the catalogs I have here, only T-nnxnn  The model numbers seem to transition about 1935-1938 from a four digit numerical suffix to a two-one-two alphanumeric one.

[KM1H]

I have more major manufacturer iron with OEM numbers than catalog ones which makes it a guessing game. Undocumented ones arent worth the effort to drag them to a hamfest unless you plan to just leave them there for the scroungers

Carl

[k7yoh]

Very much appreciated, and I most definitely thank you for the links to the catalogs...they're 8 to 10 years older than ones I had found before.

[Opcom]

No problem. There is a decent transformer catalogs section there top-level on bunkerofdoom.com and many people have kindly sent me scans and catalogs for exactly this reason! Copy what you want from the site, even post it elsewhere, it's all free.

May as well check the inductance and DCR on them, that should indicate if the "T" mystery is solved. If some are not in catalogs, that info will still help sell them off.
At least it shows you cared enough to try to weed out blown parts and to show what you got, rather than just having a pile of unidentified junque they have to wonder about.

Maybe others want more info when looking to buy chokes, but I am OK with figures like inductance and DCR except for the big heavy stuff. I think I'm middle of the road in that respect.

Hauling transformers: I always chance it as a seller and I look at it as fun rather than just extra work. I don't mind taking 200 lbs of iron back home, it's only one 2-wheeler's worth.
I don't leave it for scroungers or waste them in the dumpster. But I never have to take it all home. Mostly it is small to medium size stuff, up to the size of that choke or so, so there is something for everyone on my table.

[k7yoh]

I understand about hauling stuff home...I think the only time I ever actually put anything in the dumpster was a box of old motorola FM manuals from the 40s & 50s I had marked as "FREE" all day, and no one wanted them.  I was moving from a 3 bdrm house to an RV, and just didnt have the room for them.  Even my storage unit was already too full.
Thanks again for the info, if I can get this all done in the next few weeks, I should be able to hit winterfest, and maybe the puyallup hamfest in march.