WOW GM 8 Tract $1300

[70cst]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Original-GM-...tXveqM&vxp=mtr

I didn't realize these were going for this kind of money

[leddzepp]

That's is a boardmember's. He had it for sale here a while back if I recall.

[Coley]

Well...you can ask anything you want for something.
What you can actually sell something for is an entirely different matter....and that is what dictates the market...the sell price.

all good
Coley

[70cst]

It looks like the hard to find options are indeed getting more expensive but - supply and demand rules

[jocko]

I've always felt like I was born a little late... Ha. Folks were giving stuff like that away when the new thing (cassettes) came out... And then they were giving cassettes away. Hey, maybe I should go stock up on cassette players!

[westong]

I sold that to him....he cleaned it up pretty good....i got 850 if remember correctly

[special-K]

No demand here. I never owned an 8-track because I felt cassettes were better. They were available back then but most everyone went for the 8-track. I never got that. Cassettes are easier to store in a car, you could record your own music on better quality tapes in real time (much clearer), stop, start, forward, or reverse, and you didn't need to wedge a matchbook. There was so much good music back then that was never sld on tapes and that was what I listened to. So, I had a huge collection of tapes I recorded...90 minute tapes would fit two albums, so better and way way cheaper.

I agree, hasn't gotten $1,300 yet so can't say that's what they are worth till some sucker comes along, and then that's just one sucker. Just because one person pays too much for something doesn't mean the item is worth that much

[Mollzyie]

I'd spend 1300 for a vintage high end home reciever but for my truck and esp 8 track is rather leave an empty hole in my dash

[palallin]

Everybody went for 8-tracks because they had been around longer than the cassette tapes.

[hamjet]

I remember back in 1970 my cousin got a cassette player in his car and I had 8- tape. he was showing it to me and I asked how does he find the beginning of the next song, because there were no channels like the 8-track. I stuck with my 8-track for many years after that. funny thing is, in very cold mornings the 8-track slooowly drifted to the next channel from the grease being cold..

[1968vetL-71]

I love it!! Probably needs to throw in a book of matches so you can prop up that tape when it starts to run slow.

Indeed accessories are climbing up in price from trucks to any gm muscle car.

[special-K]

Originally Posted by palallin

Everybody went for 8-tracks because they had been around longer than the cassette tapes.

That's what I'm saying, that is not true. Phillips put out the first cassette deck in '64 and the first 8-track was put out in '65 by Motorola (joint effort with Ford). The 8-track probably took off because they were the first player to be put in a car from factory so, as things go, The other car makers followed suit, completely overlooking the better performance of the cassette. Ford didn't always have the "better idea".

I liked all my music so didn't need to skip songs. I listened back to 45 minutes of uninterrupted music before touching the deck. Worked out great for music on the job

[kcsa75]

Originally Posted by hamjet

I remember back in 1970 my cousin got a cassette player in his car and I had 8- tape. he was showing it to me and I asked how does he find the beginning of the next song, because there were no channels like the 8-track. I stuck with my 8-track for many years after that. funny thing is, in very cold mornings the 8-track slooowly drifted to the next channel from the grease being cold..

Originally Posted by 1968vetL-71

I love it!! Probably needs to throw in a book of matches so you can prop up that tape when it starts to run slow.

Indeed accessories are climbing up in price from trucks to any gm muscle car.

If this is what trips your trigger, knock yourself out. But IMO 8-tracks should be left on history's trash heap. They were junk when they were new. I can only imagine what a 40-year old 8-track would sound like.

[geunther]

Originally Posted by kcsa75

They were junk when they were new.

They were indeed. I remember having to wedge a matchbook between the tape and the player to align the heads correctly against the tape. But I was 16, had wheels, had tunes. Chicks were next

['68OrangeSunshine]

Bill Lear, inventor of the LearJet, also invented the 8-Track [legend says, so he could play tunes while flying]. While it may have been superior high fidelity in aerobatic manuevers at altitude (for the period) -- I've had issues with tape stretching and also the inside rubber roller going gummy and contaminating the heads. My Dad's '73 Lincoln Continental had one, worked OK until it gummed/jammed up. Lo-Fi at best.
Never as good a system as the Norelco Compact Cassette.
The Hawker-Siddeley [later British Aerospace] AV8A Harrier was equipped with a cockpit cassette recorder. Ostensibly, so the pilot could record reconnaissance/observation notes while in flight, but I know for a fact (as a former Marine Air Wing AV8A avionics trouble-shooter) that some of the younger sh!thot fighter pilots played their own rock'n'roll mix tapes especially on the longer hops. I would wager the cassette deck was a superior audio component when pushing the envelope in a combat-manueverable high performance jet aircraft.
A $1300 price tag on a military avionics component would not be out of line, but for that kind of money on an 8-Track, I'd want the '67-'72 truck it came in, too.

[1968vetL-71]

Originally Posted by kcsa75

If this is what trips your trigger, knock yourself out. But IMO 8-tracks should be left on history's trash heap. They were junk when they were new. I can only imagine what a 40-year old 8-track would sound like.

Probably sounds better than most artists on todays radio!!

Thats what makes the collector car hobby what it is. If we all had the same opinions about colors, styles, options etc... It would be a pretty boring place!

[El Dorado Jim]

Originally Posted by Coley

Well...you can ask anything you want for something.
What you can actually sell something for is an entirely different matter....and that is what dictates the market...the sell price.

all good
Coley

x2

[El Dorado Jim]

Originally Posted by geunther

They were indeed. I remember having to wedge a matchbook between the tape and the player to align the heads correctly against the tape. But I was 16, had wheels, had tunes. Chicks were next

I made a small wooden wedge i used in mine, the only way it would play right, if not, would hear more than one song trying to play, but it was great to have anything besides just an am radio back in the 70's!!!!

[palallin]

Originally Posted by special-K

That's what I'm saying, that is not true. Phillips put out the first cassette deck in '64 and the first 8-track was put out in '65 by Motorola (joint effort with Ford). The 8-track probably took off because they were the first player to be put in a car from factory so, as things go, The other car makers followed suit, completely overlooking the better performance of the cassette. Ford didn't always have the "better idea".

I liked all my music so didn't need to skip songs. I listened back to 45 minutes of uninterrupted music before touching the deck. Worked out great for music on the job

Not quite: the 8-track was developed on the 4-track platform which goes back another decade using pretty much the same cartridge 9one less roller). There were 4-track players in cars before the '60s; it is natural that the 8-track would dominate.

[Tuff Gong]

I am the owner of this item. It is cool to see all the comments this post has generated. You definitely wouldn't buy this for the sound quality, lol. You would be a fool if you thought thats what you were getting. What you do get is a great conversation piece. You also get a rare nostalgic accessory that takes you back to the earlier days. For me, that's what these trucks are all about. I didn't buy my truck because it had modern features and great fuel efficiency. I got it because it's awesome and it continually reminds me of my childhood. I enjoy hunting for all the hard to find parts that make these trucks even more special. I'm sure there are quite a few people out there just like me. For others it's the paint job, the restoration process, the rims, etc.

[saskred]

I have to agree that obviously no one would be purchasing an 8 track for their truck because of the amazing sound quality and high tech design.... You may as well ague about buying a gen I small block over today's engines as being a stupid idea...

That being said - many people - myself included - are on the hunt for rare period correct accessories. And to me the pinnacle of period correct accessories are those produced and sold by GM. Must also be the same opinion of many others based on the successful sale prices of these accessories on ebay.

In my opinion - that 8 track is worth $1000 -- to the right buyer. The GM cb radios are even starting to sell for as much as $400 for these trucks. Speaking of that - someone got an amazing deal on a NOS gm cb for the 65-70 ish year trucks on ebay recently - $150

There is another 8 track for sale on ebay for 67-72 trucks that looks a little different. It looks like those that came in Cadillacs and when I asked the seller why he thought it was correct for 67-72 trucks he said he had install instructions and all the dated documentation specific to 67-72 trucks. I know everything I've read on this forum says the above pictured 8 track with GM on the door is the only correct one - but looks like the one this guy has may also be correct.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/NOS-67-68-69...lTZApk&vxp=mtr


-

[70cst]

Originally Posted by Brian Atkinson

I am the owner of this item. It is cool to see all the comments this post has generated. You definitely wouldn't buy this for the sound quality, lol. You would be a fool if you thought thats what you were getting. What you do get is a great conversation piece. You also get a rare nostalgic accessory that takes you back to the earlier days. For me, that's what these trucks are all about. I didn't buy my truck because it had modern features and great fuel efficiency. I got it because it's awesome and it continually reminds me of my childhood. I enjoy hunting for all the hard to find parts that make these trucks even more special. I'm sure there are quite a few people out there just like me. For others it's the paint job, the restoration process, the rims, etc.

This will be bought by the guy who has a high dollar restore who wants to add that final touch - Supply and demand is the name of the game. You wont see many GM 8 Tracts up for sale. That's what is special about this 67-72 truck hobby. We have high dollar trucks and we have trucks that are daily drivers - we have work trucks and everything in between. Good Luck in your sell.

[special-K]

Originally Posted by palallin

Not quite: the 8-track was developed on the 4-track platform which goes back another decade using pretty much the same cartridge 9one less roller). There were 4-track players in cars before the '60s; it is natural that the 8-track would dominate.

I'm talking automotive 8-track decks. I know 4-tracks were before. I think the 8-track dominated because of Ford introducing them in '65 for the '66 models. What I never understood is why 8-tracks dominated when cassettes were available, no matter which came first. Both were certainly available during 67-72, the era we are dealing with here and the period I started driving and listening to cassettes

[el_fantasma]

It's like Betamax and VHS, right. Betamax was a superior technology but VHS dominated because their marketing and or distribution were better?

[James the III]

Originally Posted by special-K

That's what I'm saying, that is not true. Phillips put out the first cassette deck in '64 and the first 8-track was put out in '65 by Motorola (joint effort with Ford). The 8-track probably took off because they were the first player to be put in a car from factory so, as things go, The other car makers followed suit, completely overlooking the better performance of the cassette. Ford didn't always have the "better idea".

I liked all my music so didn't need to skip songs. I listened back to 45 minutes of uninterrupted music before touching the deck. Worked out great for music on the job

Because 8 tracks sound better, than the cassette tapes back then..
it was not till the type II tape that the cassette sound got close to the 8track..
cassettes won out for one reason, easier to carry.. same reason the c/d killed vinyl.. not that they sound better..