Why Aren't 12" B&W Sets Collectible?

[compucat]

Of all the types of sets that are sought after in the collector world, I have noticed that the typical '70s and '80s 12" black and white sets are passed over almost all the time. I know many of them are low end and certainly not rare but they generally aren't made any more. They often go unbid on Ebay are even passed over in thrift stores. I used to be able to get a quick $25 dollars for one but today they have absolutely no resale value.

Do any of you collect them and will they ever catch the eye of the collector market as a whole? They don't take up much room and they are easy to obtain and repair. I would think they would have occupied a collector niche by now. Any thoughts?

I dunno... for me, those 12" B&Ws don't particularly interest me. Depends on what is special about it. If it has tubes in it, I'll definately take it.
I have 3 12"s right now. One is a late 60s Panasonic Speed-o-Vision. One is a late 70's JCPenny (RCA), but I kept that one as I like the woodgrain finish with the big dials, has a removable screen shield, headphone jack, and AC/DC power. The latest one I own is a 1982 Zenith 12", but it is the one with the digital tuner.
I have one of those mid 70s 9" Zeniths you always see on Ebay as well. It seems rather well built.

[Kamakiri]

The next one I find in the trash I vow to plug it in and turn it on at work, and leave it.....just to see how long the damn thing lasts. It's the eternal question, right behind the how many licks to the center of a Tootsie roll pop......

[Chad Hauris]

I really don't get into "collectibles" but I have observed trends about the things that people consider such...it seems like most of the old TV's, appliances, and even cars that are collectibles are those which have a lot of decorator/style value and that represent what was "cool" or "trendy" at the time, such as the Philco predicta, JVC Videosphere sets, "muscle cars" and so on.

The 12" B/w sets really had no fantasy value, they were purely utilitarian, so only the few of us who appreciate TV technology/history really have any interest. Back when a new B/W set was 99.00 and a new color portable in the 200-300$ range you could sell a 12" b/w portable for $25 as a utilitarian item but I think it is the advent of, say, 13" color TV's for 49.95 at Wal-mart that did in that market.

[andy]

I lost all interest in 12" B/W sets when I couldn't get $5 for a clean working one (about 13 years ago). I was glad when I no longer had to use a 12" B/W for anything and I never want to see one again. I remember these sets as fondly as 2 head VCRs and AM only radios.

[wa2ise]

I have a 12.6 incher (visible screen measured diagionally) from 1950 that I think is "collectable".

[bgadow]

If someone wanted to they could build a huge collection of these very cheap and with little space. But there are only a few that most would give a second look. There was the RCA mini-console, some of those "mod" designs, the red/white/blue GE, some of those Motorolas with the handle on the end are kinda neat. I seem to recall a Zenith covered in cowhide & didn't someone make a denim covered set? None of them were real exciting, though. I have a few, because I just have a hard time throwing something away when it's perfectly good. I did have a grungy GE from about 74, mostly tube, that I parted out. It had hv problems & was so poorly/cheaply made that I just couldn't see putting any time into it. I have an older version of the same set which is clean so it stays. (a little note: the older set lists the Syracuse address on back & has a GE crt with GE EIA #; the newer one was stamped Portsmouth & had a GE crt with an EIA for Clinton out of Chicago, IIRC. I did save the crt, for what reason I don't know)

[kx250rider]

In reading (and agreeing with most content) in the previous answers, I proclaim that their time just isn't here yet.

But take warning, those who MIGHT want to collect these later... It wasn't long ago at all when the alleys were LINED with 21" round color TVs. The era of placing collector value on the cheap plastic series-filament 12" B&W TVs will be here at some time in the foreseeable future!

Just like the Cadillac Diesel cars of the late 70s and early 80s... A couple years ago you could get Pick-A-Part to take one. A Seville Diesel recently went on eBay for $12,000, and why? Because they're now all gone and now somebody wants one!

Charles

[Carmine]

My family had one of those 12" Zenith sets from about 1975, the cabinet is black/white plastic and looks like the typical "spacey" 70s Zenith. I think they always turn up on EBay in green and pink, usually from people who think they're "one of the first TVs", with starting bids around $100.

I send the auction links to my mom (who still has it in the laundry room) for laughs.

[Carmine]

OMG, swear to God I didn't read this link

http://audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?t=61637

Until AFTER I made the above post! But yes, that's the set I meant and starting bid is $99!

[Adam]

I have 4 of these. A 67 Magnavox, 68 Emerson, 70 RCA, and 74 GE. The Magnavox is a great set, I have it on my desk at home and watch it alot, it gets in a good channel 56, which is hard to get in and it is about the only channel I ever watch. The Emerson and RCA (it's one of those Canadian RCAs) are rather cheaply built sets, while they work, they don't work all that well and I never use them. The GE is one of those mostly Compactron on circuit-board sets (with I think a soild state audio section). I've heard alot about these falling apart, but this one still has all the original tubes and works great (it looks as if it was used very little). I too, pick these up if they are tube sets, but tend to pass them by if they are solid state.

[compucat]

I generally avoid any tube sets built on pc boards. My mid 60s Zenith 12" is hand wired. I can run it all day and not worry about heat damage. The solid state sets seemed to be well made through about 1976. I have a 1978 Quasar (Matsushita made) that is a bit on the cheaper side. The worst of these sets I ever found was the early 1980s Samsungs. They had a great picture but the flybacks would fail after about a year or two and the cabinet screws holding the back on would strip the plastic case after the first time they were removed. When I used to work on these, I hated returning a set to a customer on which I could not even tighten the cabinet screws.

Although I like these sets to use and collect, I am rather selective about each acquisition. I hate cheap junk, even if it's vintage.

[truetone36]

I have 2 of these sets, a 9" Zenith from '77 and a RCA from '73. The Zenith needs a new flyback but the RCA works great. It's the t.v. I use daily in my workroom.


Dumont-First with the finest in television.

[drh4683]

My TV collection started out with the 12" b/w sets I could easily bring home! I had quite a few at one time, but many got sold on ebay, back when you could make some good $ selling stuff (around 1998-2000).
I still take the little 12 inchers when I run across a nice one. Two weeks ago I found a '73 RCA 12" portable at an estate sale. Mint condition and worked! With instant on, the CRT was still good (was never plugged in!)
My favorite 12" portable b/w sets are zeniths from 1965-70. Nicely styled cabinets and built as well as any other set they made. There were no exceptions with zenith, everything was well built. My 12" b/w TV line up:

1965 zenith M1210U
1966 zenith N1210U
1966 zenith solid state (very first solid state b/w for zenith)
1974 zenith hybrid
1973 rca

The pics are my 2 favorites , both '66 zeniths. One on left is a 100% solid state set, super rare and expensive when new. The one on right is the more common tube type set.

[compucat]

The set used in my avatar is one of those mid '60s Zeniths and the build quality is tremendous. You're right about Zenith. They put quality into every model no matter what the price point. I also like those mid '70s solid state GE sets with the one rounded corner in the upper left of the screen. They were labelled "Performance Television". The cabinets are made of very thick plastic and they hold up really well. There is one on Ebay right now that I may bid on, yellow case in excellent condition.