Thrift Store Find! Wollensak 1580 Stereo Twin-Amp Magnetic Tape Recorder - Videokarma.org TV - Video

iKokomo · #1 01-09-2021, 01:20 PM

Sorry, this is not quite a "radio" but this is the closest topic I could find!

I just got back from my first thrift store run of 2021! I found a neat Wollensak 1580 Stereo Twin-Amp Magnetic Tape Recorder. It does use tubes. I got it for about $10. I had some questions about this unit.

I was wondering if anyone knew some of the histories behind this?
Also, where do I get a power cable for the Wollensak 1580? I really want to see if it works!

Electronic M · #2 01-09-2021, 02:47 PM

Wollensak was the in-house electronics manufacturing brand of the Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company (AKA 3M). I don't know if 3M bought them out as they did with the Setchel Carlson TV manufacturing company or if 3M built Wollensak from the ground up.
3M back then was a leader in magnetic Audio Tape with it's Scotch Audio Tape brand...It makes sense they would have a tape recorder brand the same way that Kodak a leader in photographic film at the time also made cameras.

There were a lot of different power connectors back then both standard and proprietary. A picture of the power jack would be helpful in identifying it.

Also it would be nice if you reduced the resolution of your pictures by about half so the image doesn't occupy %300 of my screen and require zooming out and or panning to see.

vortalexfan · #3 01-09-2021, 03:18 PM

I had the monural version of this unit several years back that a friend of mine from church had given me, but it ended up dying on me, and it was beyond repair unfortunately.

Ed in Tx · #4 01-09-2021, 08:12 PM

I remember a friend had a mono tubed version, and later I obtained a mono transitorized one. Still have a few tapes recorded on it. The school system had 10 or so at each school. Common as the old Newcomb record players with the 6X9 speaker they all had too.

pallophotophone · #5 01-13-2021, 08:27 PM

It seems to me that this can use a regular television type cheater cord- but without the mounting holes.

dieseljeep · #6 01-14-2021, 09:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pallophotophone

It seems to me that this can use a regular television type cheater cord- but without the mounting holes.

Go to Ace hardware and look at a mixer cord. They refer to it as an appliance cord. Pin are the same dimensions.