to buy or not

Hi all,

My husband and I are considering buying a 1972 rock ola. We know nothing about jukeboxes and basically want to buy one that works well, has no issues, and that we can enjoy with our family.
We found an ad on kijiji and the story goes -- the seller has owned the jukebox for 30+ yrs but a couple yrs back someone kicked the side of it in (badly) and it needed repair work: parts needed replacing and a good amount of it needed to be rebuilt/replaced. Therefore a lot of the inside, he says, is not original.
He says though that it's in great working order and has no issues. It is currently in his garage...
Question is - we do not know what to look for, or what to ask to know if this is a good machine. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. He is selling for $700, we live close to Toronto, and the price includes all records which date from the 30 ' s to the 70 ' s.
Thanks so much for any help

Hi Caffine,
"Reading between the lines" I would say this is not the one for you ! First of all, what is the model number of the phono--1972 may, or may not be the date that one was made-- is it a 100 select model, or a 160 model ?-- 2nd. "working"--well, from what you say, this one has problems ! 3rd. How does it sound--open the door and listen--any strange noises from the mechanism when operating ? How does the audio sound--should hear hi's and lows--both channels, if a Stereo model. Ron Rich

Hi Ron,

Thank you for the quick reply! We haven't gone to see the jukebox yet, but will go by on Friday night, so we want to be prepared.

From what I gather, the damage and subsequent repair occurred a couple years back, and since the repair work was done it has worked great. He told me about the damage/repair so that he would be "upfront" about it's condition and history. He is quite an interesting guy, who liked to talk, and so I just let him talk about the jukebox and he told me quite the story about how it was damaged

Here is a link to the ad, so you can see from the pics which one it is... I honestly can't tell you if its a 100 or a 160...

http://www.kijiji.ca/v-art-collectibles/city-of-toronto/rock-ola-jukebox/1045877979?enableSearchNavigationFlag=true

Thanks again for your help, it's very helpful! (hope that link works...)

The one in the photo looks like a 100 play 451 from 1973

I live in the UK and I wouldn't buy any jukebox that had been kept in a garage. They don't like the damp and it ruins the chrome.
I agree with Ron, it probably isn't the one for you.
You want the equivalent of "a one careful lady owner." i.e. one that has been loved, kept "in pride of place" in a home and well maintained. They come up when people are downsizing.

I'd suggest you look through the photos on this site and choose a few that you like the look of. After all that's as important as sounding good.

http://www.pinballrebel.com/archive/archive.htm

Then don't be in any hurry, I spent over three months trawling e-Bay until a "suitable candidate" came up, I had 'em all on spread sheet with details of condition and selling prices.
Once you see one you like, if it's on eBay, you can then come back here and ask for some opinions. But as Ron said you need to hear it.

You also have to be very careful when you move one, as they are easily damaged in transit. You'll get advice on here for that too, when you're ready.

Ron what happened to your photo?

Doghouse,
What photo ?
Ron

Ron, I think he's talking about your avatar. Didn't you have and avatar picture?

Guys--
I have never seen an "avatar" for me--??? Where are you seeing this ? There are no photo's of me, as anyone who attempts to take one winds up with a broken camera--I AM that ugly ! Ron Rich

I guess everyone can't be as pretty as me, huh?

(puts bag back over head, and runs off)

I see I am in good company when it comes to looks

Since you are a novice at jukeboxes I would suggest that you spend a few dolloars and at leat buy a copy of "The Always Jukin' Pocket Guide To Collectible Jukeboxes", it was one of the best investments I have made, if we do not count the books I have bought from Ron

I am in no way affiliated with them, but here is a link where you could obtain a copy: http://www.alwaysjukin.com/

Best
Darrell

I think no. In Ontario there is quite a few jukeboxes to choose from. Two years ago I bought a Rockola 448 and 454 for five hundred. The 454 was basically working and the 448 was just blown fuse and bad cancel coils, easy fixes. You can do better on kijiji than buying one on ebay.

Here are example s of what kijiji has to offer
http://www.kijiji.ca/v-electronics/city ... nFlag=true

http://www.kijiji.ca/v-art-collectibles ... nFlag=true

If that is a KS/KD where is the drum? or explanation that it is missing the drum?

Darrell,
That's not a "K" model--it appears to be a "201" -- Ron Rich