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Value of a Band Organ
By Hal Davis

There is an axiom that says anything is worth what a willing seller and
a willing buyer agree upon.  As to band organs, the most recent one
that I obtained was at $34,000 plus $1,000 for the rolls that went with
it, total $35,000 and I drove nearly a thousand miles each way to get
it, load it up in my truck and bring it back here.  That one is a 146B.

The one before that is a North Tonawanda that was converted about 1922
to play Wurlitzer series 150 roll.  That one I obtained in 1980 for
$15,000 and drove about six hundred miles each way to go get it and
bring it back here.

Before that I had a Wurlitzer 146 late style in original condition that
had been "rained" on in the basement of a hotel when the fire sprinkler
system was triggered off.  I gave $850 for that one about 1968.  I cleaned
it up and put it in first class playing condition and within a few months
I sold it to a friend for $1,200.  He in turn sold it to someone for 
$8,000.

A model 105 that I got for $800 about 1967 was a decent price but after
I sold it for $1,000 the next owner for kept it for a couple of years
then sold it for $6,500 and the last I heard of it, it had been resold
for a reported $10,500.

A Seeburg style G that I bought for less than $1,000, I in turn
reconditioned it and sold it to a businessman in southern Michigan for
$2,800 and within about three years he sold it for $35,000.

I could give more examples but I think this is enough to show you that
prices vary depending on the condition, the time, the convenience as
well as other factors that may enter into your consideration.

So, what's a band organ worth?  It's worth what the seller and the
buyer agree upon.

Believe me, there have been times when I later regretted not spending
a few hundred dollars for something.  I passed up a Mills Violano
Virtuoso one time for $800, still in the box no less.  This same
instrument next went for $3,500 then for $15,000 and the last time 
I heard of it, it had sold for a reported $30.000 plus price.  Right
now I'd give almost anything to buy a new in-the-box Violano for $800
but that was back in 1967 as I recall.

Hal Davis
Leslie, Michigan


(Message sent Mon 21 Mar 2005, 03:45:29 GMT, from time zone GMT-0800.)

Key Words in Subject:  Band, Organ, Value

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