Empire 398 project

What would a fair price be for a complete (to the best of my knowledge) Empire 398, in pieces, in the following condition:

• Plinth 8/10 a few superficial scratches in the gold, slight dings
• Motor cover 8/10 same condition as above
• Wood base 9/10 - should clean up well with proper polish
• Platter 9/10 - discoloration from belt wear, but the spindle looks to be in good shape.
• Tonearm 6/10 - Bearings are good, tracking force knob works, functionally okay but severe patina and oxidation. Not sure how to clean it without removing the gold color. Haven't tested wiring. EDIT: Tonearm wiring is fine, patina partially is removed. Cosmetically, now 8/10.
• Papst Motor ?/10 - Haven't tested; power cord is cut. Looks to be in good shape. Grommets are shot, but that's to be expected. EDIT: Motor works, is surprisingly smooth and quiet. 10/10.
• No dustcover
• Cartridge is also an Empire from same era, unknown model and stylus. Not too important. I can just put my OP4 on there otherwise.

The platter has a date in the bottom of the casting of 10-26-63, so it's over 50 years old. It looks like it has potential. I'll try to answer any questions about it the best that I can.

Too many variables in there to give a educated guess. If buying, don't offer much. If selling recognize that not knowing if the motor works is tantamount to saying it doesn't.
Everything can be fixed, but not necessarily easily or cheaply.

Cut cord doesn't bode well for the motor.

I'll see if I can get the motor tested and then reply back here.

EDIT: Put a new plug on the 'table and put a zip-tie around the three screws where the grommets would go to approximate where the motor should be. I can now say for sure that the motor is good :thmbsp:

Additionally, the tonearm is fine. All the wiring is good; all leads measure continuous with very low resistance. The discoloration and oxidation is removable with light application of DeoxIt and some elbow grease.

Knowing now that all the parts are good, can a good estimate of value be determined?

I think that Ebay is probably the best bet for actual pricing, but the last several 398s seem to have topped out at a little over 200 bucks, which seems low to me.
And one in parts would probably be worth less.
I'm kind of surprised -- that's getting into the territory where it would be an appealling project.
My question to you is why not put it back together? Sounds like a very fun project.

I'm actually working on it bit by bit for someone who wants to sell it to me. I think by letting work on it he hopes that it'll grow on me and I'll buy it, or else he'll just compensate me for my efforts. I've bought gear and records from this same guy before, and he sometimes has some really cool stuff so I don't want to insult him. The range of prices on Empires seem to be all over the place lately, and I'm just trying to come to a value that is fair for both parties.