cheers lifeforms,
there’s a studio use only condition Nagra 4.2 for a decent enough price (1000€) within reach of my dirty noisefingers —
buuuut everyone i discuss a possible acquisition with (fellow producers, colleagues, friends, aunt&uncle) advice against it, since no one needs a machine like this in daily recordist life anymore
please let me know how you fare with your old reel to reel machines — the bliss and pain of it 
I say if you can pick up a nagra in good condition for a decent price, do it, if only for the historical aspect. They are built to last. Of course, if you don’t have any use case for it, your money may be better spent on other things.
…nagra tape recorders remain a damned solid audio tool…
and any reel to reel audio action will always do at least that tape saturation mircale, that can be simulated these days, of course…but that remains always a simulation of the real thing…
if ur an audio nerd that really wants the real thing, u gotto do the real thing…
simple as that…
and whenever it comes to analog tape, nagra was always one of the very best names in the whole ballpark…
only point to keep in mind…tape itself…if u catch it, make sure u also got some decent ammount of tape left to use…
Hainbach would beg to differ (check out his many YT videos with them)…
If you are someone who appreciates tape recording/looping techniques and saturation then it’s a no-brainer.
Over the last decade I’ve owned six Nagra 4.2 and one Nagra lll and they are amazing machines. Each one is little different and has its own quirks depending on the needs of the recordist that used it. This fact makes them really tricky to work on. Everything inside is modular which is amazing and really well designed. Taking into account that they are all 40+ years old, it will eventually cost your much more to have it serviced than what you paid for it. The last three that I had serviced and calibrated cost between $800 - $1000 depending on their issues. There is only one guy who still works on them here and after he is gone I’m not sure what I’ll do.
That being said. The machine I actually use the most is a stereo TEAC 1/4” reel to reel that I got for $100. The belts and parts are still easy to find and when it needs its regular tune up its costs me $50.
Getting back to your original question…the short answer is no, nobody needs a Nagra these days. If you really want to do some mono field recordings and get the Nagra experience, plug one mic into your recorder, strap a 20lb weight to yourself and fill a backpack with 12 D batteries.
Then call your chiropractor and set up an appointment. 
Never owned a Nagra but i’ve got a couple old reel to reel machines from the 60’s that I primarily use to make loops. Aside from the initial head demagnetization and a bit of oil to get things rolling smoothly I haven’t had to deal with much upkeep.
Depending on your use case the Nagra may be a bit overkill, maybe find a cheap alternative to see if you like the workflow? There’s definitely something special about working with tape, nothing like the feeling of making a seamless loop!
aaaaalright, that’s what i needed to hear,
made my day 
ok thanks, tape looping is definitely something i’ll try out soon, have a wonky old uher report around already
Love my Nagra 4.2 long time… If you get it, check what tape it has be aligned for. Then check if that stock is available… if not, you may need to have someone line up your Nagra to whatever tape you have access to.