So, I fit in pretty well.
I rescued our family's first TV and shipped it 2,000 miles because I thought it would be a nice, nostalgic piece of furniture. This is a 1950 Motorola 12T2, in very good condition, but the picture went out in 1969. When I got it home, I had to take the chassis out of the cabinet to clean debris from the front of the screen.
With the chassis out, I plugged it in and I was entranced by the seductive, soft glow the vacuum tubes. With no background in electronics, but with expert guidance, I have been attempting a full restoration for several months.
I've recapped the paper and electrolytics, recoated the CRT, upgraded selenium rectifiers to diodes, and replaced a few clearly defective small components. Now remember, when I started this project the only component I could identify was "knobs." Right now I'm stuck with a dead focus coil.
But my story gets worse! While looking for a focus coil I picked up a delightful Bakelite 1948 Admiral 17T12 that actually works.
Is this going to be my fate? Am I going to lose my wife and my home and live in a cheap hotel room with hundreds of derelict TV sets?
In any case, I'm thrilled to join the forum. I'll be picking brains, looking for parts, and help others in any way I can (I still know almost nothing about electronics but, as you see, I haven't electrocuted myself...yet).
I take lots of photos, so if anyone is interested in either the Motorola 12T2 or the Admiral 17T12, here are links to my PicasaWeb albums (under the name "coldrb.")
http://picasaweb.google.com/coldrb/M...14324729845682
http://picasaweb.google.com/coldrb/A...90650566868642