@SaSi I half agree, though the SL-1500 imo is not as bad as you picture it. So feel I have to say something in defense of it.
I find the plint is not that inadequate and also the arm is well engineered and can perform well as long as you match it with the right cartridge for it.
It is true the pitch drifts with temperature, however you will be hard pressed to hear drifting it when listening to a single song or even album, because the short term speed stability (wow and flutter) is excellent just as the quartz locked equivalents.
The advantage it has above the more complicated mk2's is that the electronics and mechanics are kept as simple as possible while maintaining the essential Technics DD qualities.
Actually I rate it a lot above the grey average of turntables
, if you consider the reliability and build quality, I tend leaving out the sonic part which I find a lot harder to discuss in terms of quality.
That a $250 price tag is high and a SL-1300mk2 is more valuable though, I fully acknowledge. On the other hand lots of people seem to disagree and are scared off by this mk2's series armlift problem. To me that has never been an issue, I have repaired many of them with succes.
Is it a first generation or MKII? If it is a MKII, make sure the arm lift works. This is a common failure.
I have a MKII and the lift doesn't work. Other than that, it's a great turntable, earning a place next to my SP-15 and SP-25. It is a little rough cosmetically. I bought it at GW for $20.00. I haven't seen a turntable at a thrift since then.
Why not just repair it?
By the way, though they are all excellent I rate this series higher than the SL-16/17/1800mk2 series. Mass, build quality of things in general is just a notch above, and I prefer the looks.
On topic: SL-1500, nice turntable! $250? No. $50? Yes! $100-$150? Maybe, depends on the condition.