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Sparton Equasonne Model 931 ?!?
I pick this set up a few months ago for $30 thinking it was a Sparton 931. I've since learned that the chassis is indeed a Sparton 931, but the cabinet and speaker are not. That jensen speaker is from that era, but what about the cabinet?
Does anyone recognize it? Cabinet label |
#2
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I'm not familiar with the Sparton Equasonnes, but don't be too quick to rule it out of being a 931. The cabinet seems to be in the style of the 620 model.
That metal tag doesn't look like it's gone through the abuse of moving it from another cabinet. The Majestic 71 radios seem to have come in a number of different styles of cabinets. Maybe you have a deluxe version of the Sparton 931. If someone made a cabinet from scratch, they did a great job! If someone comes up with an authoritative answer, it'll be interesting to hear. John |
#3
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Here's a close up of that label. It sure doesn't look like it's been tampered with. |
#4
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My impression is that during that time period things changed frequently and you sometimes see the same chassis in two different cabinets. That certainly looks original to me. Atwater Kent was famous for offering different cabinets, made by others such as Kiel, Red Lion etc. for their radios. I'm not a Sparton expert but it doesn't seem all that strange. Nice radio you got. Does that use those weird 400 series tubes?
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Summer's here and the time is right. |
#5
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I contacted Mike who runs this Equasonne site regarding my set. He's never seen a cabinet quite like it but says it not the normal 931 cabinet. Yes, it's supposed to use six matched Cardon 484 tubes, an 80 rectifier and two 182 output tubes. However, mine came with a mish-mash of tubes. Some 484s, some 27s and some unlabeled. I've since found a couple 484s so maybe that's enough to get it running. The main challenge I think is going to be restuffing the oddball capacitors in the 6-stage amplifier unit. |
Audiokarma |
#6
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That cabinet is in beautiful condition and the Jensen speaker is delicious! Congratulations on a great find.
Reece
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Reece Perfection is hard to reach with a screwdriver. |
#7
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If you find you need more 484's shoot me a PM. It seems I had one or two in the stash.
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Summer's here and the time is right. |
#8
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Thanks. The top actually needs to be refinished and the speaker cone has a tear, but it's not too bad. |
#9
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I cant tell you if its original or not but it sure is in nice condition. I agree with toxcrusadr in that it might have been an optional cabinet like AK did with their sets. If thats the case, you may have a rare version of the 931 which would make it extra special. Keep us posted on the restoration as i would like to hear how this one turns out. Good luck in your research!
-Tony |
#10
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Woah ! Gorgeous !!
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Benevolent Despot |
Audiokarma |
#11
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Here are some pics of the inside I took a few weeks ago when I cleaned it up. I basically just used a damp rag and NuFinish car wax on the black metal boxes.
This model uses 3 separate metal boxes. The Power Unit, Amplifier Unit and Tuning Unit. I love that single, huge electrolytic capacitor. They were fairly new then I believe. It doesn't really use those blue Artcurus tubes. I just thought they looked cool Here it is back in the cabinet. I used shims to get the proper height. I suppose they used rubber washers back in the day. Any suggestions on repairing that speaker? I'd like to do something better than slapping a piece of masking tape on it. Last edited by bandersen; 07-25-2009 at 01:00 AM. |
#12
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There are various techniques for fixing speaker holes. The one that appeals to me the most is tissue paper. You can probably get a color close to the color of the cone at a craft store. Dilute some white glue a bit and glue tissue on both sides of the hole. That's a pretty bad one you got there so I'm not making any guarantees.
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Summer's here and the time is right. |
#13
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I figure this tear would need a little more reinforcement. Tissue paper sounds like just the ticket. |
#14
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I've heard that teabag paper works well too. Unused that is!
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Summer's here and the time is right. |
#15
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Bill J over at the ARF has identified that cabinet as a "Cowen Model 96 Radio Console" http://antiqueradios.com/forums/view...=976827#976827
Seems that someone slipped that label onto the cabinet |
Audiokarma |
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