EH Scott Radio Enthusiasts

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Interesting Scott factory tool on eBay

This coil winder is said to be an original tool from the Scott factory. It is interesting how almost  anything with the name E. H. Scott attached to it is offered at such a high price.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/223503119530?

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and there is a bid on it, even at that price. I have my suspicions about where this may have come from. An item like this, if it was really in the factory, would be a one of a kind item for the hard core types. The trouble is, it would be almost impossible to verify the provenance, if my guess is correct, the fellow that originally had this is long gone.

I am always concerned when there is "private listing" on eBay.  I get the sense that someone is hiding something in these listing more than the bidders identity.  What I can tell about this coil winder is that the base appears original, but not the counter.  Take a good look at the counter and the base.  They are different.  Look how the counter is attached to the base.  Note the engraving on the counter base!  Engraving tools as such were not used in the 1930's and only became popular in the later half of the 20th Century.  Is it really a one of a kind?  I don't know.  It has a number of issues with it from a collecting standpoint.  

I did contact the seller. He informed me that it was an estate find from an estate in Indiana and that no other E H Scott related items were in the estate.  He could not tell me anything else regarding this item.  He may not have known its history or he may have.  Importantly, I think Kent is right when it comes to provenance.  When you deal with any item such as this reputing to be original, it pays to do your homework.  

As with any eBay purchase, it should always be "buyer be aware".  I think this was an original coil winder base that is partially "jerry rigged" to do the work of winding coils, maybe for an amateur radio HAM.  It could have also been pieced together to sell as it did as "original".  Is $2k for a small steel base plate stamped with EHSRL worth the price?  Someone thought so.  Not me!  Still, you can not 100% prove that this actually came from the factory.  It is a big concern when spending a lot of money.  

This auction was like that portrait painting reputed to be EHS a few years back.  It was painted when Scott was documented to be in Australia and not New York, when Scott was lucky to be able to pay the rent and put food on the table. He was a salesman for NCR at the time.  Not a high paying job where you could go out and have your portrait done by a New York portrait artist. But, someone bought that painting!  

Oh, we almost universally have something from the factory in our collections.  That is an E H Scott Radio.

Finally, while visiting the factory several years ago, they were renovating it and had a pile of trash outside near a dumpster.  In that trash I found a door knob.  Maybe it came from EHS's office door!  Anyway, I kept it. It is from the factory on Ravenswood.  I have a provenance I'll attest to regarding it.  Make me an offer!

Cheers,

John

Hi John-when you toured the old Scott factory was there really an office on the roof that was where Scott worked ? Google photos don't seem to show it.

Bruce -

Actually, Scott's office was on the 2nd floor, above the sales salon. He had some "listening tubes" installed so he could hear the sales people talking to the customers. He was quite particular about how the sets were presented to the customer. I've got some floor drawings of the factory layout that Marvin Hobbs drew from memory before he passed. I need to clean those up and scan them in....so many things I need to digitize.

Kent

I am curious about the buyer myself...

John T. Meredith said:

I am always concerned when there is "private listing" on eBay.  I get the sense that someone is hiding something in these listing more than the bidders identity.  What I can tell about this coil winder is that the base appears original, but not the counter.  Take a good look at the counter and the base.  They are different.  Look how the counter is attached to the base.  Note the engraving on the counter base!  Engraving tools as such were not used in the 1930's and only became popular in the later half of the 20th Century.  Is it really a one of a kind?  I don't know.  It has a number of issues with it from a collecting standpoint.  

I did contact the seller. He informed me that it was an estate find from an estate in Indiana and that no other E H Scott related items were in the estate.  He could not tell me anything else regarding this item.  He may not have known its history or he may have.  Importantly, I think Kent is right when it comes to provenance.  When you deal with any item such as this reputing to be original, it pays to do your homework.  

As with any eBay purchase, it should always be "buyer be aware".  I think this was an original coil winder base that is partially "jerry rigged" to do the work of winding coils, maybe for an amateur radio HAM.  It could have also been pieced together to sell as it did as "original".  Is $2k for a small steel base plate stamped with EHSRL worth the price?  Someone thought so.  Not me!  Still, you can not 100% prove that this actually came from the factory.  It is a big concern when spending a lot of money.  

This auction was like that portrait painting reputed to be EHS a few years back.  It was painted when Scott was documented to be in Australia and not New York, when Scott was lucky to be able to pay the rent and put food on the table. He was a salesman for NCR at the time.  Not a high paying job where you could go out and have your portrait done by a New York portrait artist. But, someone bought that painting!  

Oh, we almost universally have something from the factory in our collections.  That is an E H Scott Radio.

Finally, while visiting the factory several years ago, they were renovating it and had a pile of trash outside near a dumpster.  In that trash I found a door knob.  Maybe it came from EHS's office door!  Anyway, I kept it. It is from the factory on Ravenswood.  I have a provenance I'll attest to regarding it.  Make me an offer!

Cheers,

John

Nothing on the roof when I visited it.  It has been over twenty years ago.  --  John

Y2K Bruce said:

Hi John-when you toured the old Scott factory was there really an office on the roof that was where Scott worked ? Google photos don't seem to show it.

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