Hi, I have two Thorens turntables that I have stored for about the last ten years. They belonged to my brother and in the last years of his life he was too ill to use them. I am now moving house to a smaller property and will not have the space to keep them.
I know nothing about turntables, but here goes:
One is a 160B Mk11 with a SME Series 111 tone arm, it has a cartridge but I don’t know what make. Motor runs fine, but it needs a new belt. Perspex lid is slightly damaged at the hinges. Plinth looks fairly good.
The second just has 160 on it, with I presume a standard tone arm . The head shell shows some corrosion. It is fitted with an Ortophon cartridge. Again the motor runs fine but it will require a drive belt. Plinth not too bad. One hinge pin missing for the cover.
Has anyone any idea what they may be worth, I need to dispose of them, and I don’t want to con anyone , but need to know a fair price to ask. Any thoughts.
I know nothing about turntables, but here goes:
One is a 160B Mk11 with a SME Series 111 tone arm, it has a cartridge but I don’t know what make. Motor runs fine, but it needs a new belt. Perspex lid is slightly damaged at the hinges. Plinth looks fairly good.
The second just has 160 on it, with I presume a standard tone arm . The head shell shows some corrosion. It is fitted with an Ortophon cartridge. Again the motor runs fine but it will require a drive belt. Plinth not too bad. One hinge pin missing for the cover.
Has anyone any idea what they may be worth, I need to dispose of them, and I don’t want to con anyone , but need to know a fair price to ask. Any thoughts.
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The cartridges do not matter, since they would have to be replaced anyway.
Only sell the turntables locally, because they will be damaged in shipping.
It is normal for such older equipment to need service, just sell them "as-is".
Don't worry about the minor flaws, anyone buying them could take care of those.
Only sell the turntables locally, because they will be damaged in shipping.
It is normal for such older equipment to need service, just sell them "as-is".
Don't worry about the minor flaws, anyone buying them could take care of those.
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I would agree with analog_sa in terms of pricing. You'll always have some variation in the marketplace. Summer is typically not the best time to get highest price (in my experience). Thorens tables are desirable because they are well built and work properly. The cartridges do also have some value. It's highly dependent on the model. Ortofon and Audio Technica (the one on the SME) make a wide range of carts. You can learn the model by removing them from the arm. Certainly they will need to be retipped but the body itself should have some value. Given the quality of the turntable, I'd expect the cartridges to be at least mid-range in quality. There are several places that describe how to properly pack a turntable. I've shipped about 40 tables and always with good results.
I think you should buy a pair of genuine Thorerns drive belts fit them to the turntables, clean and lube the bearings, test that motors keep the correct speed when running and play some records for testing.
After that for the TD160 mkii with SME tonearm a fair price would be £600 and for the TD160 with the Thorens TP16 tonearm asking £170-200 would be OK
After that for the TD160 mkii with SME tonearm a fair price would be £600 and for the TD160 with the Thorens TP16 tonearm asking £170-200 would be OK
Thorens and shipping advice
Dear all,
As I received through out the years two damaged Thorens record players from ExBay some packing advice.
Find a good strong cardboard box with enough space for the record player plus plenty of packing material.
The heavy parts go underneath the record player, that means the outer platter with the mat and balance weight(s).
Pack those separably in bubble wrap make sure the bottom is strong and well closed.
Put cardboard on top of those.
When you put the deck itself on the cardboard make sure it does not damage the platter or weight.
Around the plinth of the record player there should be enough space for of few centimetres of either cardboard or more bubble wrap.
If there is a lid, a dust cover you can leave it attached to the player and use a Styrofoam block between the lid and the inner platter making sure the inner platter cannot move.
Sometimes it is possible to secure the sub-chassis with screws.
On top of this at least two layers of cardboard and more bubble wrap.
Make sure the arm is well fixed to its rest holding it in place with some wire
wrapped around the arm and its rest.
Once you have everything boxed up and closed with tape turn it up side down and shake, if you feel any movement ad more packing material.
Many sellers have no clue how to properly pack a record player even if they say so, at least in my experience.
I have in my profession packed at least a few hundred Dual, PE and Technics record players so you can trust me on this one.
Hope this helps, if I have forgotten something please comment thank you.
Dear all,
As I received through out the years two damaged Thorens record players from ExBay some packing advice.
Find a good strong cardboard box with enough space for the record player plus plenty of packing material.
The heavy parts go underneath the record player, that means the outer platter with the mat and balance weight(s).
Pack those separably in bubble wrap make sure the bottom is strong and well closed.
Put cardboard on top of those.
When you put the deck itself on the cardboard make sure it does not damage the platter or weight.
Around the plinth of the record player there should be enough space for of few centimetres of either cardboard or more bubble wrap.
If there is a lid, a dust cover you can leave it attached to the player and use a Styrofoam block between the lid and the inner platter making sure the inner platter cannot move.
Sometimes it is possible to secure the sub-chassis with screws.
On top of this at least two layers of cardboard and more bubble wrap.
Make sure the arm is well fixed to its rest holding it in place with some wire
wrapped around the arm and its rest.
Once you have everything boxed up and closed with tape turn it up side down and shake, if you feel any movement ad more packing material.
Many sellers have no clue how to properly pack a record player even if they say so, at least in my experience.
I have in my profession packed at least a few hundred Dual, PE and Technics record players so you can trust me on this one.
Hope this helps, if I have forgotten something please comment thank you.
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