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  #1  
Old 12-03-2017, 05:46 PM
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The Silvertone 6407/8/9 odd dial

Does anyone know for sure how the small dial on these nice little deco bakelite sets were originally designed? Although it looks rather uninteresting, the rear dial lamp is almost completely obscured by the metal dial face! Only a small amount of light comes around it. I see on the Net that other collectors have been curious about this too over the years. Also, most examples, including mine, do not have a dial lens. I believe the few that do have so by collectors adding one themselves, but I don't know for sure. Does anybody?
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Old 12-03-2017, 06:42 PM
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Mine has an oval hole in the center, at the top of the dial that the lamp shows through. It provides zero illumination of the dial scale, and in fact, is rather annoying. I have always speculated that there was some sort of diffuser that is missing. There is a thin clear plastic cover in front of the dial scale, but perhaps I added that years ago, don't remember.

jr
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Old 12-03-2017, 07:37 PM
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Originally Posted by jr_tech View Post
Mine has an oval hole in the center, at the top of the dial that the lamp shows through. It provides zero illumination of the dial scale, and in fact, is rather annoying. I have always speculated that there was some sort of diffuser that is missing. There is a thin clear plastic cover in front of the dial scale, but perhaps I added that years ago, don't remember.

jr
Okay, thanks a lot for the info. Other collectors have come to conclusion that it was just a bad engineering design. The oval hole seemed like a rather lame quick fix. Being it was a cheap set under $10, I don't think neither Sears or the consumer expected many frills out of it. The bottom line is that the dial really stands out even without a lamp (much like battery farm set dials were designed) and it's a very decent performer.
I have a feeling collectors have added a dial cover over the years. There are just too many out there without one. It can't be coincidence that so many have missing covers.
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Old 12-03-2017, 08:26 PM
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I pulled the chassis and examined the dial cover... I am convinced that it is homemade, BUT there is a feature moulded into the bakelite that seems to be designed to hold a dial cover... a little channel at the top and sides of the opening. Perhaps there may have been one there originally.
I ended up sticking a little red tape over the inside of the oval hole... looks pretty decent as a pilot light.

jr
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Old 12-03-2017, 08:50 PM
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Originally Posted by jr_tech View Post
I pulled the chassis and examined the dial cover... I am convinced that it is homemade, BUT there is a feature moulded into the bakelite that seems to be designed to hold a dial cover... a little channel at the top and sides of the opening. Perhaps there may have been one there originally.
I ended up sticking a little red tape over the inside of the oval hole... looks pretty decent as a pilot light.

jr
Thanks for doing that Jr! It solved the mystery. Likely the glue that held the little cover dried and the dial cover often fell off.
Good idea with the dial lamp!
I wonder if you could answer one more question on this set. I removed the two chassis screws and the third on speaker was not even in place. To my surprise the chassis would not even slightly budge! Is it in a tight slot of some kind and tough to remove?
Thanks very much.
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Old 12-03-2017, 09:01 PM
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Yes, I had to pry a bit on both sides below the two screws to get it started, then it slid out fairly easily.

jr
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Old 12-03-2017, 09:03 PM
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Yes, I had to pry a bit on both sides below the two screws to get it started, then it slid out fairly easily.

jr
You've been a great help Jr. Thank you. I will likely try to put a dial cover on mine at some point - Joe
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Old 12-03-2017, 10:22 PM
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You inspired me to go ahead and install the dial lens Jr. It has to be a very small strip because the pushbuttons need to clear when you install the chassis. I like the set better with some reflection on the dial. It really cheapens a radio when the dial lens is missing. I took another photo and you can see a little reflection of the cover. I also turned the lights down and only then you can see the soft glow of the dial lamp.
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Old 12-03-2017, 11:38 PM
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Nice! It really does look more "finished"... That is a very nice polish job on the bakelite!

jr
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Old 12-04-2017, 04:36 AM
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Nice! It really does look more "finished"... That is a very nice polish job on the bakelite!

jr
Thanks. I use Novus 3, 2, and then Meguiars PlastX. By then the surface feels smooth as glass. The PlastX is a nice finishing polish. Lastly I used the water-like Novus 1 with a small brush/cloth and clean all the notches and grooves, finishing with a cheesecloth buffing. The Novus 1 doesn't ad shine, but it eliminates fingerprints when you handle the cabinet.
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Old 12-05-2017, 05:22 PM
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PS - A member on ARF has an example of the set that came with half of the original dial cover. It was glass and had a white strip on the bottom. That finally settles my inquiry!
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Last edited by decojoe67; 12-05-2017 at 07:06 PM.
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Old 12-05-2017, 06:45 PM
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Interesting! do your buttons latch in the down position? The white strip could be used to indicate at a glance which station has been selected.
How would one pull the chassis without ripping out the dial cover? I guess that answers the question as to why so many of these are missing.

jr
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Old 12-05-2017, 07:05 PM
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Originally Posted by jr_tech View Post
Interesting! do your buttons latch in the down position? The white strip could be used to indicate at a glance which station has been selected.
How would one pull the chassis without ripping out the dial cover? I guess that answers the question as to why so many of these are missing.

jr
My pushbuttons don't seem to latch down. I cut the small plastic strip just within the dial frame inset on the inside of the cabinet. I see the original dropped down lower a bit, but it will come awfully close to the pushbuttons. One touch on the glass pulling or reinstalling the chassis would easily pop it out or break it, especially that this chassis does not gently move either way! No wonder so many are missing the glass.
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