[Tubejunke]

These images are of a 1939 RCA VICTOR Model K-80. My actual radio is actually in much better shape than this one, but the triplet image gives a better pictorial of my radio and some issues that I wouldn't mind dealing with if possible.

For the sake of the topic, my grandfather brought me this radio back in the early 80s from PA to VA. I suspect he picked it up at some auction as he was doing a lot of that back then. At the time I was in high school and taking electronics. I always had a strange attraction to radios of about this vintage and later television sets. Nobody knows why really; not even me. I was born with a desire to obtain and sort of give new life to long forgotten and neglected gadgets of all sorts, but primarily electronic ones.

Anyway, the radio came to me with no speaker and by that time I had obtained and parted a number of basket cases, so I had a large speaker sitting around. The problem that I was presented with was that many radios then had the audio output transformer mounted on the speaker with a plastic plug. Basically I was able to cobble what was needed out of a smaller speaker with the transformer and plug. I was able to transfer the parts to the large speaker and rig up a way to mount the parts. Also, the speaker was not quite as large as the original which I believe is 12", so it hangs to this day on one mounting stud.

The pictures here show the correct speaker which I would like to obtain if anyone has one that they would be willing to let go of. What I rigged up all those years ago works fine, but I am a stickler for things being completely stock with no alterations. I just had no choice back then, nor did I have an Internet or V-K. Like other electronic goodies I have posted about, this radio is 100% unrestored and works great! I wouldn't hesitate to let it play for hours on end and I do several times a year. I find examples of radio and TV still working normally after so many years completely fascinating and I am proud to own a few examples.

Last, a number of years back I cracked the dial glass. Luckily it is just a lower corner snapped off and is not all that noticeable. If anyone here has an extra dial glass I would be interested in that as well, but the speaker is the most important item.