[Phono-L] Brunswick Panatrope Value? Rarity? Interest?

[Douglas Houston]

Before we get too absolute about this Brunswick, let's get a dew things in
order. There was a Brunswick lowboy model with the RCA Radiola III. It used
two battery tubes, type WD 11. I haven't the books nearby, but the radio
chassis could be and probably was, the Radiola III-A, using four WD-11's.
Those tubes had a 4 pin base, which never became standard. Another
Panatrope with radio model had an RCA Radiola superheterodyne chassis in
it, and used six, I believe, type UV 199 tubes, commonly referred to as
just: V99. They had a funny base, with stubby pins, and locked into the
socket with a pin on the side of the base. 

Yet, a later model of Brunswick's Panatrope with radio did use an RCA
Radiola 28. This used seven UX 199 and one UX 120 tubes. The X99 and the 20
finally had the base, which is even now, considered a standard base design.
Remember, that radio technology advanced so repidly during the twenties
that a manufacturer might have barely gotten a productio run of radios
made, only to have them obsoleted by a competetor. Brunswick, and Victor as
well, rode the crest of RCA's wave of technological advancement. Victor did
use the battery version of the Radiola 28, which was the cutting edge of
technology in their Borgia I phono combination, with a Credenza in the
opposite side of the cabinet. Victor, and Brunswick offered an AC operated
version of the Radiola 28, right on the heels of the Borgia I (Victor), and
the PR 148 phono combination (Brunswick). Victor added a roman II to the
Borgia, and also brought out the Hyperion. In late 1927, both using an AC
operated Radiola 28.  Victor added a record changer to an AC operated
Radiola 28, and called it 9-55.  The Radiola 28 was the last of the sets by
RCA to ues the X99's.

 I surmise that we haven't yet heard exactly what model this Panatrope is,
so all of the above is speculation.  One more swat now. The last of the
Brunswick combos (3NW8) used RCA's Radiola 64, with a manual motor board.
It is a superb performer; the Brunswick counterpart to Victor's 9-18 (both
in my collection). The next step was RCA's acquisition of VTMCo, and
Brunswick had to get an other radio suplier (Bremer-Tully). A couple of
years ago, a Brunswick 3NW8 was on eBay, and the price went through the
roof, to a foreign buyer (Guess where).

As far as scarcity goes, the battery radio panatropes pop up on auction
every once in a while, so they aren't exactly a holy grail. Their value may
not even be greater because of the radio, but that's up to the immediate
character of the bidding masses. I 


> [Original Message]
> From: <phonolist at mac.com>
> To: Antique Phonograph List <phono-l at oldcrank.org>
> Date: 1/1/2009 2:02:44 PM
> Subject: Re: [Phono-L] Brunswick Panatrope Value? Rarity? Interest?
>
> The earliest (1926) AC-powered Panatropes used a 199 tube. These were  
> premium sets in their day, selling for at least twice the price of a  
> Credenza, for the phonograph-only styles.  The models with radios were  
> over $1000.  To the student of technology, they are a wonderful  
> collectible (as an example of the first all-electric phonograph) and  
> somewhat hard to find.  Unfortunately, there are few people collecting  
> them, so they do not seem to have much value.  I would say a non- 
> working Panatrope is a $200-$400 machine, unless it is in an custom  
> cabinet.  You see them now and then on ebay, and they sell in this  
> range.
>
>
> On Jan 1, 2009, at 3:53 AM, ClockworkHome at aol.com wrote:
>
> > Anyone care to comment on how rare a Brunswick Panatrope is?  Is it a
> > desirable machine since it is an early all electronic phonograph?   
> > It is not
> > currently working and is missing the three amplifier stage tubes  
> > though the turntable
> > functions perfectly.  A non-phonograph collector friend wants to put  
> > it up for
> > sale but does not know the value.  Being an Edison only collector I  
> > wasn't
> > interested and could not help him.  It is in a cabinet comparable to  
> > my Edison
> > C2 in quality and looks fairly clean.  It is definitely earlier than  
> > the C2
> > with a horn speaker and tubes like a UX199.
> >
> > Any comments will be appreciated.
> >
> > Al
> >
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