[Lou Erickson]

I inherited this collection from a friend of the family, and it's been sitting in storage for some time now. It's all classical.

All classical. The first shelf is regular 33 1/3 RPM vinyl, while the other three shelves are all shellac 78 RPM records.

This was carefuly curated by the person I got it from. He noted in each record every time it was played, for example, so you could tell the worn ones and the good ones. There is a turntable with two tone arms, one for 33 RPM and one for 78 RPM. There is a McIntosh reciever with two phono inputs, one of which has had the RIAA equalization removed because 78's didn't use it.

It's a collector's dream!

I need to find a home for it, or it's going to get thrown out. I can't keep paying storage on it. I'm trying to move it off these nice racks and into plastic bins which I can stuff in my basement, but that's slow and my basement is filling up.

As it turns out I'm not willing to list each album for sale on eBay and let them sit there until someone buys them. There's too many and the profit margin is too thin with the difficulties of shipping.

Anyone with a truck want to come pick them up? They're in San Jose, CA and they're heavy. If someone wants to come and cherry pick them, or just wants the 33's, that'd be workable.

Otherwise I'm going to be taking carloads of 78's to the dump, which seems a shame. But I'm not set up to play them right now, and nobody seems to want classical 78's.

Any ideas?

 

[newtophones07]

I would love to have the McIntosh receiver and turntable. I can pick them up. As far as the records I would highly recommend you post this on audiogon, or contact Rasputin's or Amoeba and ask them for classical collectors who would be willing to tale the entire lot. You may even be able to find a buyer versus just donating them all.

 

[Lou Erickson]

Happy to let you have the TT and reciever. I don't have space or need for it here, and it's one of the big awkward things still in storage... the turntable is built into a table. That's the edge of it in the upper right of the photo. I can swing by Storage and take another picture or two of it. It's a Dual of some sort, IIRC. PM me and we'll figure out pickup.

Audiogon is a good idea, and I would never have thought of asking at Rasputin if any of their collectors would want the whole lot. Can do that, and would rather do that than just having to bin the whole thing.

 

[dunring]

I'd try a local record store since they'd do transportation and just offer it all at one price. Vinyl is hot now and for a store owner that's a huge win since they're getting hard to find.
The 78rpm project would digitize them, but for a collection that large I'd call the nearest, largest record store.

 

[Lou Erickson]

78rpm project? Some of these will be out of copyright now - there's one from 1912 that I've found in the pile. If a group is digitizing and sharing I'd be happy to hear about it.

 

[Lou Erickson]

Oh, wow. The 78rpm project's space is only an hour's drive away. If they'll take them, I can just drive them up there and give them to them. Nobody has to pay shipping. They just have to want a giant pile of 78's. Which they apparently do. I am floored, and hopeful.

 

[sajesak]

I inherited this collection from a friend of the family, and it's been sitting in storage for some time now. It's all classical.

All classical. The first shelf is regular 33 1/3 RPM vinyl, while the other three shelves are all shellac 78 RPM records.

This was carefuly curated by the person I got it from. He noted in each record every time it was played, for example, so you could tell the worn ones and the good ones. There is a turntable with two tone arms, one for 33 RPM and one for 78 RPM. There is a McIntosh reciever with two phono inputs, one of which has had the RIAA equalization removed because 78's didn't use it.

It's a collector's dream!

I need to find a home for it, or it's going to get thrown out. I can't keep paying storage on it. I'm trying to move it off these nice racks and into plastic bins which I can stuff in my basement, but that's slow and my basement is filling up.

As it turns out I'm not willing to list each album for sale on eBay and let them sit there until someone buys them. There's too many and the profit margin is too thin with the difficulties of shipping.

Anyone with a truck want to come pick them up? They're in San Jose, CA and they're heavy Fence Company Lynnwood. If someone wants to come and cherry pick them, or just wants the 33's, that'd be workable.

Otherwise I'm going to be taking carloads of 78's to the dump, which seems a shame. But I'm not set up to play them right now, and nobody seems to want classical 78's.

Any ideas?

Since you're not willing to list each album for sale on eBay and the profit margin is thin with shipping difficulties, you're considering options like finding someone with a truck to pick them up or donating them to various organizations or individuals who might appreciate them.

One option is to reach out to local music or record stores, libraries, schools, community centers, retirement homes, or charitable organizations that support music education or cultural preservation efforts. Another option is to attend local record swaps or fairs to see if there are collectors interested in acquiring your collection.

 

[Lou Erickson]

One option is to reach out to local music or record stores, libraries, schools, community centers, retirement homes, or charitable organizations that support music education or cultural preservation efforts. Another option is to attend local record swaps or fairs to see if there are collectors interested in acquiring your collection.

I've spoken to the local record stores, and the 78's have been a hard no for all of them. The 33's could go to a couple of them, but since they're classical the price they'll give me is tiny.

Local record swaps and meets are a good idea I hadn't considered yet, though!

I've got someone from audiogon asking questions, and have sent a note off to the 78 project to see if they'll take the whole pile.

 

[dunring]

Also there's
https://78rpm.com/
They specialize in collections and might be the best way to facilitate the entire collection into a single sale.