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1926CredenzaOwner
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Post by 1926CredenzaOwner »

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Last edited by 1926CredenzaOwner on Fri Mar 23, 2012 11:55 pm, edited 4 times in total.

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antique1973
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Re: What would you pay for this Amberola 30?

Post by antique1973 »

Amberola 30s are worth around $300 in good condition. If that came up on my local
market (since they hardly ever do) and I did not have one yet I would try to
get it for $150 myself. The paint is on the outside at least so you can probably
get it off without too much trouble.

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1926CredenzaOwner
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Re: What would you pay for this Amberola 30?

Post by 1926CredenzaOwner »

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Last edited by 1926CredenzaOwner on Fri Mar 23, 2012 11:50 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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antique1973
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Re: What would you pay for this Amberola 30?

Post by antique1973 »

1926CredenzaOwner wrote:Ooops. I replied to the seller, who also was selling several "spools," :roll: that I'd be willing to go about $50.00 on the machine. Oh well. If they call me, I'll adjust my price.

That's ok, does not hurt to try! Yeah, who knows how many cylinder's he/she has
to go with it. Since the grille is missing that is another issue. I did not
account for that originally, so in that case I would probably just go $100 tops
on the machine. Mention to the seller that those are expensive to replace, etc.

Of course the extra cylinders could change everything. I bought mine for $200 in very good condition and since there was around 200 cylinders to go with it I did not hesitate.

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1926CredenzaOwner
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Re: What would you pay for this Amberola 30?

Post by 1926CredenzaOwner »

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Last edited by 1926CredenzaOwner on Fri Mar 23, 2012 11:49 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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antique1973
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Re: What would you pay for this Amberola 30?

Post by antique1973 »

1926CredenzaOwner wrote:Here's what I sent the seller:

"Just some info on this machine for you. The Amberola 30 was made
between 1915 and 1929, and is the most common machine that the Edison
company made. They aren't at all rare. I'd be willing to go (sight
unseen) $50.00 on the machine and the cylinders. Without seeing it, I
can already tell it needs a lot of work... but I am interested in it.
It needs to be taken apart and re-greased, and the reproducer will
need a rebuild. Since it's been painted and there's no grille, it'll
need to be stripped and re-finished. I'll also have to track down a
grille and the cloth for the front of the phonograph.

Having said all of that, if you still want to call, we might be able
to work something out."

I do know that they have no idea what they are selling given the fact that they called the cylinders "spools," and when I asked for pictures of the mandrel in the initial message, I got the eMail equivalent of a blank stare. I figured $50.00 was a good starting point for a negotiation. I still don't want to go over $70.00 on it. Are they really worth $100.00 in that condition? If so, I guess I'll have to relax my grip on my wallet a bit. (BTW, I requested more pictures of it in the first eMail... and they have yet to send me anything.) They kind of strike me as the CL seller who thinks their worn-out machine is worth a mint.


I typically use a similar approach and try to come in between $50 to $75 for
more common fixer machines. I live in San Diego and very rarely do Amberolas
show up on CL and when they do they are ridiculously expensive. My package deal was listed for $300 but the owner took my first offer of $200. It was in near mint condition however. There are replica wood grilles on Ebay that are pretty reasonable:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Edison-Amberola-Pho ... ltDomain_0

You are right, the owner sounds pretty clueless. I usually wait about 48 hours to see if they respond, if not I may come back with a little higher offer to see if they will start to communicate. If they don't respond after the 2nd higher offer, I generally play the same game and ignore them. Sometimes after a few days or even a month they may come back and take your offer when they come to the reality that their price is too high.

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1926CredenzaOwner
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Re: What would you pay for this Amberola 30?

Post by 1926CredenzaOwner »

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Last edited by 1926CredenzaOwner on Fri Mar 23, 2012 11:51 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Jerry B.
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Re: What would you pay for this Amberola 30?

Post by Jerry B. »

I don't see why people rush to ebay for replacement parts? Wyatts Musical Americana and Ron Sitko are two dealers that offer good quality reproduction parts and George V. sells all kinds of original parts. The prices are reasonable and the service is great.

The grill on an Amberola 30 is metal and I don't believe they were sold with cloth behind the grill. A reproduction metal grill is really cheap.

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Re: What would you pay for this Amberola 30?

Post by SonnyPhono »

Here is my 2 cents. I would email again and ask if you can stop by for a look. It's tough to gauge a price for any phonograph without inspecting it in person. Also, it may benefit you greatly to check out the "scrolls" for two reasons. First, you need to know if they are moldy, scratched or even playable as well as whether or not they have boxes with original lids. Second, and just as important, who knows what titles may be included. There was a lady selling a group of "scrolls" on CL in my area awhile back with a price that was enticing. But rather than offer a lower price, I asked her if I could come have a look first. There were 30+ and all were in decent playable shape. But included in the group were two Roosevelt speeches. The Farmer and the Business Man, and The Right of the People to Rule. At that point the $100 asking price seemed much more fair so I didn't feel the need to try to get her to lower it. Paid full price and was more than happy.

So if it's close by, try to set up a time to go have a look.

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1926CredenzaOwner
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Re: What would you pay for this Amberola 30?

Post by 1926CredenzaOwner »

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Last edited by 1926CredenzaOwner on Fri Mar 23, 2012 11:52 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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