Finding the Value of a Capehart Record Player

They are asking in the $225 range on eBay

I found some neat history about the company a while back. There are two links:

www.radiomuseum.org/dsp_hersteller_detail.cfm?company_id...

audiokarma.org/.../

Since 8 tracks did not come out until the early 1960s, yours could be anywhere from the mid 1960s to the 1970s when the name totally vanished from the electronics scene.

These are not big sellers in today's market (at least not in Pittsburgh and from eBay it appears no in many other places either.

I see people asking a lot, but I have seen very few actually sell. I have not seen your exact model either, but that is not unusual. Most sellers have no clue to list by a model number and just give vague info like Capehart console.

The last similar to yours console (in size and general style) I saw sell was on a private auction site I frequent. It was in fair shape and sold for $26 (USD).

These are hard to sell because it needs to be local pick up and it needs to be the right person at the right time at the right price. Hopefully you are in place where there is a huge demand and a low supply and you can fetch more for it than the one I saw.

That all said, there is a huge market for the parts if they work and can be proven tested.

Put Capehart parts into eBay sold search engine and on any given day you can find motors, knobs, name plates and such that are selling for decent money--making it worth much more for parts than as a whole.

This is because people who love them want to keep them going with original parts.

Just a thought.

I found what looks like an exact match for yours that sold for $40 on offer up in Tacoma Washington 3 years ago:

So the value hasn't changed much on these so that is probably what it is worth in Tacoma (and most other places) today.

offerup.com/.../

Now if you are in a place where the demand is high, you may fetch more for yours. I would start asking more, and take best offer.

Trying to sell it online will be a nightmare, so find a reliable vintage shop to take it on consignment or you could try Facebook marketplace if you don't mind people coming to your house. SAFETY FIRST WITH THIS ONE!

Something to think about, is sometimes these pieces do better selling when disassembled where you sell off all the parts vs. the whole.

Sometimes the turntable arm or motor will fetch more than $40 on its on. It would have to work in order for this to sell.

Post back what you decide! Neat find!!!

A similar one by the Emerson company sold for $40 on eBay

Hi,

I agree with the $40.00 price and I have seen several of these going for that price. You could, however, add some records with this, and possibly get a higher price.

Blessings,

---Robyn

In nice working condition, this type combo is bringing more money in my area (Florida) so don't price it too low.
Of course, the biggest criteria is - does everything work and what about the sound?

The tubes alone may be worth almost that much and some working parts can be sold on eBay (since that reaches a much larger audience).
Since you are already placing things up for sale I feel sure you know that it is always best to start higher and lower it if no one shows an interest.
If this is working, I would definitely start it at $100 and lower it in increments.

The link that Pghgirl shows may not be exactly like yours (the record player drawer looks larger?) but probably just another year model. Their description states there are problems with theirs and it is not in good working order so that may also have lowered the value.

I saw a similar one on eBay with an asking price of $280.

These are neat old pieces and where I am they have not held their value like some of the old stereos.

I can't find any sold on eBay or listed at the moment--that would be the ideal location to find a SOLD one there. That would be today's ACTUAL MARKET value.

There was one sold in 2015 at another online auction site (see link below). If this is an exact match to yours, which I think it is but my memory fails me and I can't read the numbers in the picture..I am going by look, and they give you the sold value that auction, I am willing to be the value will be almost the same today, as my understanding is there has been little if any appreciation in values for the pieces over the past 10 years (I am speaking for where I am so that may be different where you are).

wolfeauctionrealty.hibid.com/.../

That all said, remember, buying and selling cool collectibles is all about supply and demand, so if the supply is low and the demand is high, you may fetch much better price than when the supply is high and the demand low.

Please post back if the place shares the sold value!! I am curious to see if the trends I see in my town match other places!

Thanks for sharing!!

Probably a nice system but without pictures and a better description it will be difficult for anyone to help you with any real information or current value.
Pghgirl does have knowledge of some of these but she may be the only one.

• This sort of item is always interesting as doing research we find out a lot that is actually new to us and helps us answer questions if someone else (in the future) should ask questions along the same lines.
• Very few people who list items for sale have all of the model and serial numbers so research on value cannot go very far without pictures.
• Questions: Is your system the large console model? Does it have 8-Track? What name is on the turntable unit (they were many times another brand)? What type of wood - real wood/particle board/veneer? What type of stain - light/dark)? Does any or all of it work? How are the speakers? Needles?
• Provenance? Any information on age?
• Overall condition? Where (city) is it located as very few people would ever pay the high cost of shipping a unit like this.
• A lot of questions but this the information that a potential buyer would want to know and any good listing will have most of this information.
• From what I have read it is probably from the 60/70s and it seems that collectors do not think very highly of the 70 and later models as new owners had lowered the quality of the complete system and was relying on the previous good name for sales.
• Some comments:
• "Note that at one time Capehart was one of the premier radio manufacturers in the USA, building very expensive high-fidelity sets. This was in the thirties and forties. As so often happens, the product line cheapened over time and the name was bought and sold. By the seventies it was just a once-proud nameplate being used to peddle stereos that were good but not great."
• here is a link to a nice system that sold in 2015 for $26. That is not a good value but it does show what can happen in an auction.
• www.ebth.com/.../2535514-1970s-capehart-stereo-console
• Here is one that has been for sale a while (at a shop) and the asking price is $699 (1960s system). You might send your question to their email address for information about your set.
• www.facebook.com/.../
• Here is a system from 2015 that was listed on eBay and the seller kept reducing the price but did not sell even at $40.
• www.ebay.com/.../261859861999?nma=true&si=t2Ur5guS5SsywC7M7B...
• Here is another link that has an email address and they may answer your question.
• antiqueradio.org/contact.htm
• Sorry, I wish I had some idea as to what your system looks like or the components but maybe you can add/post pictures and information to your question.

these will go between $250 and $350, depending on the area

Here is a pretty detailed article about vintage Capehearts:myvintagetv.com/.../capehart.htm

This one is asking $165. www.ebay.com/.../173905276726?hash=item287d8fef36...

This one is asking $280. www.ebay.com/.../223070150000