1. If you stop and think about it, $250 for a good condition 10 inch R2R deck actually isn't a bad price at all when you consider that these machines are not only no longer in production and thus a dwindling commodity pool (esp in good condition) but that analong in general and R2R in particular seems to be experiencing a sort of renaissance and upswing in popularity.
HOWEVER, that said, I personally would be a just a tad bit leary of any seller who says he "has no way of testing the machine". That tells me that he never owned that deck, and in all probablity, makes his living dumpster diving and yard sale hopping looking for anything he can sell at a markup. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but for you, it's a roll of the dice. I would ask the guy if he can offer you some kind of warranty. I doubt he will simply because he himself has no clue as to the machines heritage, actual condition, and usage history.
It wouldn't hurt to at least ask if he'll come down on the price. The worst he can do is say no. But keep in mind that the price is still a good one-assuming the deck is as advertised. In any event, a lack of reels and/or hubs won't warrant much of a discount anyway....maybe 5 or 10% at most. But don't think that he's going to knock the deck down by 50 or 75% because of that. It's not going to happen.
2. Finding hubs and reels is not going to be so much tricky as it might be expensive-especially for 7" metal reels. All three items can be found almost daily on Ebay. NAB hub adaptors, which can be found as NOS or lightly used will have a selling price of about $60-75 a pair. 10" reels, depending on what brand/style you want as well as condition will vary greatly in price, from about $5 for a beat up, scratched, soiled, and marked up old Ampex or Scotch reel all the way to $30 or more for pristine unmarked mint Akai, Teac, Technics, etc. 7" reels, you're going to have to spend some $$$ as those seem to be proportinately more expensive than the 10's. Again, depending on what you want and condition, expect a low of about $20-25 and up to $75 if you want something mint and NOS such as the Maxell MR7's.
3. If all you're looking to do is make custom mix tapes of records and CD's (as well as watch the cool look of the reels in your den), you don't need a 2-track machine. A 4 track (quarter track) would be better. Half track (2-T) machines are meant for, as you said, studio mastering, as well as live recording, and for people who insist (even if they can't hear it) sonic perfection. If you know nothing about tape decks and buy a 2 track, you will get an unpleasant surprise in the form of having to spend double on tape than you originally envisioned, not to mention having to rewind before every single playing-kind of like a VHS videotape. Half track decks record the whole surface area of the tape. There is no "side 1 and 2" on a half track. It's all one direction. That means if you took a half track tape and "flipped it over", thinking you were going to play side "2", all you would hear would be side "1" playing backwards! A quarter track (4 channel) only records on half the width of the tape, thus allowing for "side 1 and 2" operation. And no matter what side of the tape is out, it's ready to be played.
4. So that said, if all you want is to play around, use 10" reels, and have reverse function, here are some decks that I can recommend: Teac X-10R, X-20R, X-1000R, X-2000R, A-3300SX(R), Akai GX-635, GX-646, GX-747, Pioneer RT-909, just to name a few.
But just keep a couple of things in mind. Remember what I said in above #1 about availability and demand?
Don't shop by price alone. In more than 95% of the time, you're going to get what you pay for. Don't listen to what these guys say about how a "mint condition 20 year old deck isn't worth a penny more than $50". The people who tell you ridiculous lowball figures like that are delusional and still living in a pre-Ebay world. What they say might've been true in 1990 or 1995, but definitely not today in 2006. Buy the best and most expensive deck you can find. A cheap deck from a questionable seller is....well a questionable venture. You may get lucky or you might get burned. If you end up with a lemon, then by the time you settle up with the seller (Assuming you can), get the thing fixed, or buy another deck, you end up spending more in time, effort, and cash than you would've had you simply picked up a more expensive, but guaranteed cherry unit up front. But of course on the other hand, someone who is totally clueless might happen to sell a treasure and be totally oblivious to its real value. And you might be the lucky one to see it.
You feeling lucky?
Good luck. Hope this helped.
