clean or dirty?

[wrangler05]

I have a rare fm tuner.and could be worth a lot.
my question is do I clean and restore or sell as is.what do collectors want?

[Chuck H]

I always thought it was a good idea to clean things up carefully. Then I found that cleaning things can lead to finishes coming off, revealing rust, demonstration of finish checking, letters wearing, etc. The unit might be worth more as a seller item if you leave it to someone else for cleaning. Someone will look and think "It mostly just needs cleaning." when in fact they haven't uncovered the issues. Unscrupulous? Not really. If you clean it yourself YOU take on the responsibility of either taking a hit for what you don't know yet or restoring finishes. Either of which reduce value. Just flip it.

In truth I usually clean such things. That's why I know this. The reason is that I wouldn't have acquired the thing if I wasn't interested in it. So I guess you just need to decide what this tuner is for you. A hobby or a livelihood?

JM2C on that.

[Mick Bailey]

It's like asking 'how much salt do people like on their steak?' Different collectors want different things. There are people who want items in as-found condition to restore themselves. They have proven techniques and materials that they're comfortable with and want an untouched piece of equipment. Your ideas for restoration and cleaning may not be theirs and you could devalue the equipment.

Other collectors want pristine items and just want to get their hands on a ready-to use, fully operational piece of equipment - what the antiques trade refers to as full retail condition. There are dealers who offer items in untouched condition, but who also have the resources to restore the item to a level agreed with the customer if that's what they want.

I'm suspicious or restorations and would rather find an unrestored item, new to the market. The same with guitar amps, guitars, radios, cameras, clocks or anything else, unless the restorer is skilled and the work done to a high standard.

The first thing to do is to research your likely market and see what the tuner is fetching in various conditions. Bear in mind that if you ship overseas the transport cost may exceed the value of the item and clamp down the ceiling price.