The PHILCO Phorum

I am new to these forums. I am trying to find the estimated value of my philco 40-515. I cannot find any information regarding it online or any for sale on eBay. The amp and radio work, however the record player does not work currently. I know the normal model came with 2 spindles to hold the records in standby, however mine has 3 spindles. I was told by a restore shop a few years ago that because of the 3 spindles mine is a rare version. I cannot confirm that anywhere online. Please help, and thank you for any information.

Hi

Wow, that is different...and very neat! I have never seen photos of a 40-515 before. Philco only made 1,801 of these, and who knows how many survived?

You can read a little bit more about this set here:

http://www.philcoradio.com/gallery/1940c.htm#l

May I have your permission to use pictures on the website in place of the poor quality illustration currently there, please?

Thanks!

Your more then welcome to use the photos. If you want better ones let me know.
Do you have any idea what it may be worth? I am trying to decide wether or not to sell it or hold onto it until I can have the the record players mechanics repaired. I am only the second owner for this player, the previous owner had passed away. I purchased it along with a large collection of 78's from their family, they were going to toss it all away. Thanks again.

 The value is literally what someone would be willing to offer you, even though they are not common I don't think that they are exactly in high demand either, almost every radio-phono combo unit is like that. The first thing to know, and what any interested party should know, is that the radio chassis uses rubber covered wire with with the rubber tends to dry up and flake off with age. One common flaw that most 1939-42 Philcos also have is deteriorating plastic parts, this set is no exception, the pushbuttons are starting to crack, warp, and fall apart. Like any old radio the chassis will likely need to be overhauled, all old capacitors, filter and paper, and many of the resistors will need to be replaced, so because of this and the rubber covered wires it's not a good idea to power it up for the time being.
 The two main shortcomings of radio-phono combo units are the amount of space the cabinets occupy, and the cost of mechanically restoring the record changers, rotted rubber parts like shock mounts and idler wheels, some changers also have pot metal that can warp and self destruct.  Another drawback is that most of the combo units from the 1940s tend to look the same, regardless of brand, sort of a false credenza-sideboard look. So in terms of potential buyers you would be looking at a local buyer, or someone who could pick it up in person, and likely someone who is a Philco or a an old 78 record enthusiast.
Regards
Arran

You probably can't tell from your radio, but the push buttons were once a red, semi transparent plastic. They were used in a good many 1939 and 1940 Philco radios, but now are almost never found intact. However, reproductions are readily available from several vendors. The dial light shines red through the push buttons as well as illuminating the dial. It's a nice effect.

If it's working, you might get away with playing it for a while without rewireing and recapping it, but I wouldn't count on it. Some of those wires with crumbling insulation carry 100 to 250 volts. The insulation flakes off, leaving the wires bare in places. If a bare part of the wire touches something it shouldn't, it could be a fire hazard, it could put high voltage on parts you can touch, and it might damage the power transformer or other internal parts.

I got away with playing a mostly original 41-280 until 2007 before I rewired and recapped it. I was lucky, but best not tempt fate like I did. Best not plug it in until it's had a good going over to replace wires, capacitors, and resistors that have seen better days. Here on the Phorum, we call that kind of work "fun."

Csustar001

I sincerely thank you, and I will contact you later via PM for details on more photos. I really appreciate it; it is always good to be able to document another Philco set!

As to what it is worth, I think Arran has summed it up pretty nicely. I would only add that rarity does not always equal high value. It's the old law of supply and demand. Let's take a Zenith Stratosphere 1000Z as an example. Those are huge console radios, lots of tubes, and the big black dial that is so popular among radio enthusiasts. Only 750 were made, and a fraction of that amount survive. The radio is highly sought after, and when one comes up for sale, it will command a huge price.

Now let's take the vast majority of console radio-phonographs. Few collectors want them, for the reasons Arran described. They're big, take up a lot of room, and have phonographs that must also be fixed along with the radio. That's usually more than the average collector wants to take on.

I happen to think your 40-515 is a beautiful set, but I would not offer more than $100 for the reasons Arran and I have given.

I wish I could offer that for your set, but three things prevent me:

1) I'm still out of work;
2) NY is a long drive from southern Indiana; and
3) I really don't have the room, although if you were closer and I were working, I would be tempted to try and make room for it.

Raleigh (John) also mentioned good advice worth keeping in mind. The insulation on the wires self-destructs over the decades, making your beautiful 40-515 a potential fire/electrical hazard.

And yes, we get our kicks by bringing a long-dead radio back to life again, even though it sometimes involves a lot of work. There's nothing quite like that thrill of hearing a long silent radio play again for the first time in years, or decades.

Thanks everyone for your responses. Even though this may not be a sought after unit I think I am going to keep holding on to it and in the near future get the electronics and mechanics restored. The fact that there may not be many of these floating around anymore has swayed me away from just pulling the amp and repurposing it.
Side note:
I took a look again at all the wires on the unit. They are all cloth wrapped insulated not rubber so that is a surprise.

Did you check the wires underneah the chasis, I think usually those are the rubber covered ones.

[attachment=5951]
Could that be the same Philco model that was used in the Chippendale 1940 Radiobar?
Keith

(11-25-2014, 06:31 AM)keith49vj3 Wrote: [ -> ]Could that be the same Philco model that was used in the Chippendale 1940 Radiobar?
Keith

I don't think it is. That one in the picture has several different physical features that are different from my model.

(11-14-2014, 02:26 PM)Warren Wrote: [ -> ]Did you check the wires underneah the chasis, I think usually those are the rubber covered ones.

I did take a look again at the wires on the back side of the unit. All the wires coming out of the amp to power the record player, speaker, radio, light, and other miscellaneous item are all cloth wrapped. I cannot however speak for the wires that are inside the tube amp housing itself, since I cannot see them.

(11-25-2014, 07:31 AM)Csustar001 Wrote: [ -> ]

(11-25-2014, 06:31 AM)keith49vj3 Wrote: [ -> ]Could that be the same Philco model that was used in the Chippendale 1940 Radiobar?
Keith

I don't think it is. That one in the picture has several different physical features that are different from my model.

The cabinets are completely different but do you see differences in the radio?

(11-25-2014, 01:13 PM)keith49vj3 Wrote: [ -> ]

(11-25-2014, 07:31 AM)Csustar001 Wrote: [ -> ]

(11-25-2014, 06:31 AM)keith49vj3 Wrote: [ -> ]Could that be the same Philco model that was used in the Chippendale 1940 Radiobar?
Keith

I don't think it is. That one in the picture has several different physical features that are different from my model.

The cabinets are completely different but do you see differences in the radio?

Took a close look through the different pictures of that model and it appears to be the exact same radio.

That's really a neat console. Nice cabinet in great condition.