Military Radio equipment has a large following among WWII
and later re-enactors, historic vehicle and aircraft restorers
and vintage ham radio fans.  Here are some tips for
successful listing of your Army, Navy, Marine or Coast Guard
collectible radio equipment.

1. Clear, well, lighted, close and detailed photos are key.

Take plenty of good photos, detailing interesting
information about your item. 
"Cheaping out" on photos will cost you.
Throw away the $19 kiddie camera with the fixed focus
and invest in a good digital- mine cost less than $150
and works great.  Learn how to use it.  It will pay off.
Bad photos are worse than no photos;  no photos tells
a collector: "clueless newbie," and he might feel sympathy.
Bad photos raise suspicion: "What's he trying to hide?"


Bad Photo:
Far away, washed out, bad lighting, background clutter.


Good Photo:
Close, clear, well lighted, fills frame, shows details,
no background distractions.

If you can take a photo of the inside of the item
without doing damage, this will be valuable information
to a collector and can increase your sale price.

2. Make, Model, Serial Number and Date all matter.

These details can mean tens or hundreds of dollars
more for your item, since radios that may look
the same are not necessarily the same. 
Clear, close photos of these plates
are essential to a successful milradio listing:



Not all tags include all this information,
but all nomenclature tags are important.
You don't need every tag over every knob;
just the ones containing the above information.

3. Interesting details and markings.

Stamped markings, interesting depot tags and
other things that make your set stand out from
the other listings mean better bids and will
save you answering emails about "what's
stamped on the back (top, side) of the set?"

4. Condition, condition, condition!

As with any collectable, the condition of your item
is very important.  Rust, battery corrosion,
missing parts etc. are all important and you should
be clear about them.  Don't try to "fudge" on this;
MilRadio collectors know their stuff.
One condition issue stands out: "Has it been modified?"
Back in the 1940s to 1960s, many of these sets
were plentiful and hacked-up by hobbyists.
Unmodified sets bring a premium, but
modified sets can still bring good bids, so don't despair.
This is important:  If you are unfamiliar with
a set and don't know for certain if it's been modified,
please don't guess!  Just say so; let your photos
tell the story.  Collectors will not hold it against you
if you say "I don't know; please see the photos."
They will, however, take a very dim view of someone
claiming "unmodified" when there is an obvious drill hole
in the middle of the front or hacksaw marks where one
end has been sawn off (and yes; I've seen listings like
that many times).  Claiming "unmodified" when you don't
actually know is a quick way to be labeled either
"clueless" or "shifty."  If you don't know, leave it
to the photos.  The buyer should be smart enough to
look and judge for himself.

5.  Do Some Research Before Pricing.

Please- forget what Uncle Ernie said about how
the government paid a zillion bucks for that radio,
and forget what the "Antique Show" said about
anything over 20 years old being your ticket
to an early retirement.  Ebay "Completed Items"
searches are your friends.  Just because it's old
doesn't mean it's going to pay off the mortgage.
As with any collectible: some are worth hundreds.
A very few are worth thousands. 
The vast majority are less; some much less. 
When a person lists a common milradio item that
normally sells for $30-$100 and opens the auction
at $900, going on about how "rare" it is and how
"valuable," it aggravates people who could be his
customers and makes him look foolish.  I could tell
you some sad stories of people who stubbornly
insisted that their $5 vacuum tube was a
"rare and valuable antique!  I'll keep it on my shelf
before I take less than $150!  I paid more than that!"
Such attitudes- not to mention lack of research
before he acquired the thing or tried to sell it-
 are just sad.  Be wiser than this man, saving yourself
embarrassment and wasted listing fees.
Check "completed" prices for items similar to yours,
or ask successful bidders; you'll find the majority of
them are honest and helpful.

Thank you for taking time to read my guide to selling
collectible military radios.  Happy listings!

73 DE Dave AB5S
         "arc5"