Collectors Cash-In With Vintage Radios

Collectors Cash-In With Vintage Radios FARM HOME Miscellaneous If you or someone you know spent $15 on the Patriot a red white and blue radio at the 1939 World’s Fair in Chicago hopefully you still have it If it’s in decent condition it’s worth about $1 000 Today’s plastic radios may not be worth much when they quit working but collectors appreciate the first plastic radios made during the 1930’s through the 1950’s whether they work or not It’s all about the color including marbling and Art Deco style and designs used to make the cases in the exciting new medium of plastic Plastic eventually made radios a lot cheaper because the molded cases could be mass-produced instead of being hand-built out of wood says Phil Bausch The retired radio broadcast journalist started collecting radios in the late 1990’s Initially he bought anything he liked but soon developed a greater interest in table models which don’t take up as much room as big floor models “I like the colorful plastic radios especially the Catalin models that are so unique with their swirled colors Radios all do the same thing but their designs can be so different ” he says He explains that various formulas were used to make plastic cases Bakelite came first made with carbon-based ingredients such as phenol and formaldehyde mixed with resin Bakelite only came in brown black and dark maroon In 1933 the formula to make Plaskon radios added white beige and other more colorful options Radios got the biggest color upgrade when beautiful translucent Catalin cases were introduced in 1937 They were more expensive than other plastics because they were labor-intensive The cases were hand-trimmed and polished before the electronics were installed Because of their color and style people often saved the radios even when they quit working and collectors started taking notice of them in the 1980’s Like any collectible rarity and condition determine values Common radios can be found on eBay in the $50 range but rarer ones sell in the $400 to $3 000 range Private sales and auctions can often find the rarest radios selling for tens of thousands of dollars “Condition is extremely important You want a perfect case with no cracks ” Bausch says Typically Catalin radios are the most valuable but some early radios are even more expensive For example Air King “Skyscrapers” from the 1930’s can sell for $40 000 to $50 000 in certain colors of Plaskon For FARM SHOW readers who may have a vintage radio check out the completed sale prices of radios sold on eBay The website www decophobia com has good information and sells and buys high-end radios Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Phil Bausch Eugene Ore philbausch@gmail com; www radiospast com

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