Sharp TS-103 14" Japanese market TV restoration

[cj_reha]

Hey all, been a while but life is ever so busy and my new job (bench tech at a computer museum) has kept me occupied with plenty of restoration projects outside of the scope of this site

For the past year or so I've been importing a small selection of interesting TVs from Japan and slowly restoring them to working order. There is very little information online about Japanese TV history (in English, anyway) and so I'm very interested in what their sets were built like, the differences in circuit design, and in general some of the more oddball features that we never got. So I thought I'd start with something simple - a 1950s black and white set:



From what I can gather, these 14" TVs were basically Japan's version of the ubiquitous 21" black and white sets that still litter Facebook Marketplace for pocket change here in the states. I only paid around $50 (excluding shipping, of course) and found nearly a dozen other sets from different manufacturers that were basically the same thing excluding differences in styling. I'm assuming the size discrepancy is due to how relatively small Japanese living spaces can be - space is probably a lot more sacred. It's technically a tabletop set, but actually has threaded holes in the bottom so that legs can be screwed in! I didn't get any, sadly, though I suppose they could be made fairly inexpensively...

Anyway, when the box first got here, I was assuming it was going to be a writeoff. It was delivered in the rain, so it was waterlogged, and had clearly been stacked under a ton of weight as the entire top and sides of the box were wrecked:



But yet, when unpacking, things didn't look so bad:



It actually survived! The only "damage" was the service cover getting slightly bashed in and warped, but that is very easily straightened out. You know, maybe buying a lottery ticket ain't such a bad idea after all...

The back is in perfect condition, and the original thumbscrews are still present, so I do not think it has been serviced much if at all. Note the little baggie with replacement fuses still tacked to the top right corner:



Both live and neutral are fused. I've never actually seen this in an American set, it's usually just live if even at all. The third fuse holder is a voltage tap to switch between 100V and 110V, which is another confusingly common feature considering I have found nothing showing these sets were ever sold in the US. I'm not quite sure why the extra expense was considered (perhaps they were sold in other 110 volt countries?) but it certainly makes my life better:



Taking off the cover reveals the point to point underside:



Despite the extra fusing it is still just a plain old hot chassis set, neutral straight to chassis. For safety (relative in this instance I suppose ) plastic insulators keep the chassis & mounting bolts from contacting the metal cabinet.

Interestingly all of the paper caps are Sharp branded, and the electrolytics are early Nippon Chemi-Cons. They're certainly the oldest I've ever seen. In the interests of keeping the set as original as possible I am going to try to keep the lytics in the set. It is certainly not going to be a daily driver for me and the less parts I need to change the better:



The flyback has a translucent plastic (?) insulating cover, which I think is really neat:



But enough ogling! I'd love to see the set display a picture and so restoration begins. The seller plugged it in and only got a horizontal line on the screen, so I figured if there was any damage that would happen through a powerup, it was already done and tested it myself. Indeed there is no vertical but I DO get static through the speaker, so I think basically everything aside from the vertical circuit is working and it should come back to life with a simple recap job. I get this Friday off so I think I know what I'm doing!

[Electronic M]

You can get 60s style legs at Menards...A few of my TVs have them.

[Notimetolooz]

The insulators between the metal hot chassis and the metal cabinet is standard practice for TVs and radios and is critical, otherwise the cabinet would be always be hot. The same goes for the screws that would anchor a hot chassis in a non-metallic cabinet.

Different countries have different electrical codes that products must adhere to,
that explains the two fuses.

Some of Japan has 100V and other parts have 110V. Originally it was all 100V.
Due to all the destruction of WWII and the help re-bulding the US did afterward, the new electrical generation in some area followed the US standard of the time. Another aspect is that the 100V system runs at 50Hz and the 110V system runs at 60Hz.

[WISCOJIM]

Originally Posted by Electronic M

You can get 60s style legs at Menards...A few of my TVs have them.

FYI: Menards hasn't expanded to Virginia yet.

.

[nasadowsk]

IIRC, the early Shinkansen lines were 60Hz, just to save that extra few lbs in weight onboard.

Meanwhile in the US, we're still running a 25Hz system, in a country where nobody generates 25Hz power. Amtrak generates it themselves via converter stations.

[cj_reha]

Originally Posted by Notimetolooz

Some of Japan has 100V and other parts have 110V. Originally it was all 100V.
Due to all the destruction of WWII and the help re-bulding the US did afterward, the new electrical generation in some area followed the US standard of the time. Another aspect is that the 100V system runs at 50Hz and the 110V system runs at 60Hz.

I’ve known about the frequency difference for a while but never voltage. It is my understanding they were always 100 volts. Admittedly this is a difficult subject to research but from my cursory investigation I can’t find any sites claiming they ever used 110, do you have links to a place discussing that?

Anyway I’ve made lots of progress on recapping today. I got all of the paper caps on the underside of the chassis changed. I spot checked a few of the carbon film resistors and all of them are still basically dead on in value so I do not expect any problems there. I have one more paper cap hiding in the flyback cage to swap out and then I need to figure out what I want to do with the electrolytics.

The doubler cap is obviously bad, it’s leaking out the vent and will be restuffed, but I see no evidence of (physical) leakage in the other caps. And all of the critical sections are demonstrably not shorted as the set still powered up and tried to work albeit with no vertical. I will probably check at the terminals for AC ripple with the set on and figure out if they need to be changed or not from there. But I am happy with the progress so far!

One thing I often come across in these Japanese sets is their tendency to twist component leads together before soldering them down. It cuts down on the amount of wires wrapped around the lugs for sure but can be incredibly irritating when trying to separate a paper cap from good parts…

[AlanInSitges]

What a very cool set. Do you have a schematic for it? I can't wait to see the restored version working!

[cj_reha]

Originally Posted by AlanInSitges

What a very cool set. Do you have a schematic for it? I can't wait to see the restored version working!

Thanks! Sadly I do not have any service data. Japan is a lot more stringent about "piracy" than the US. I can usually find a Sams scan for domestic equipment if I look hard enough, but for Japanese market stuff I often find myself SOL unless I get lucky and find someone selling a paper copy of the original service info. In this case I don't think it'll be too much of an annoyance because I've worked on a bunch of black and white TVs and am generally familiar with how they work, but in some other more involved projects (and things like Japanese home computers) it gets painful fast.

For example I ended up spending $60 on a rice paper schematic for a red Trinitron I imported because I needed the winding pinouts for the flyback - its part number was nonexistent online.

[vortalexfan]

Did you check the tubes in the vertical stage? I would check the Vertical Output Tube, that's the first tube I would suspect if the TV doesn't have vertical (I've ran into that with 3 1950s and 1960s vintages TVs I've restored so far.)

Good Luck and and that it a pretty sweet looking TV, I've stumbled upon many old Sony B & W TVs on FB Marketplace (some of them from the 1950s or 1960s) so older Japanese Sets are still out there you just have to keep an eye out for them.

[cj_reha]

Originally Posted by vortalexfan

Did you check the tubes in the vertical stage? I would check the Vertical Output Tube, that's the first tube I would suspect if the TV doesn't have vertical (I've ran into that with 3 1950s and 1960s vintages TVs I've restored so far.)

Good Luck and and that it a pretty sweet looking TV, I've stumbled upon many old Sony B & W TVs on FB Marketplace (some of them from the 1950s or 1960s) so older Japanese Sets are still out there you just have to keep an eye out for them.

Vertical output tube is a possibility but not really something I consider worth checking as long as the set is on original parts. Much more likely the papers were leaking/shorted and causing the circuit to not oscillate.

I have a fairly sizable collection of early Japanese import electronics, but I don't think Japan was exporting to us at the time this set was made. The earliest sets I've seen made for the American market came later in the 50s and into the 60s.

Last night I restuffed the doubler electrolytic. Turned out to be a lot more labor intensive than I was expecting - it was still full of electrolyte paste. And actually it still tested "ok" on my LCR meter, but the fact it leaked through the vent means it was probably not long for this world. Ah well. An hour of digging out capacitor material later...

[TV-collector]

Hi,

Your set is from the beginning sixties!
Because of their 14" screens they look older then they are in real!

I have a big collection of vintage japanese TV sets.
Starting in 1953 (official start of japanese television) with roundies up to 1958 with a Sanyo.
I don`t speak now about TV sets which were sold worldwide as
export models.

History:
The price of japanese TVs was organized by the government and
the majority was the screen diameter!
That was the reason why up to about 1964 most TV sets were 14" sets!
Among the sets of my collection are three 17" sets, these were total luxury
in the 50s (2 Sharp consoles and a General table set).
I saw only one japanese 21" set in my life.

Anywhere I have a chart, but more than 90% over a time were 14" sets.

I have from most 50s/early 60s japanese TV sets schematics and often sales literature.
Maybe I can help you with a schematic......

Regards,
TV-collector

[cj_reha]

Originally Posted by TV-collector

Hi,

Your set is from the beginning sixties!
Because of their 14" screens they look older then they are in real!

It would have to be before 1960 since all of the parts and chassis are marked with the old rounded Sharp logo wouldn't it? I appreciate the info and would love a schematic if you could find one! If anything just to keep on hand because I enjoy studying schematics and different circuit designs.

First power test today and it was a massive success! The set works extremely well and has a superb picture. Great greyscale and contrast, fairly good linearity, and EXTREMELY sharp. The tuner is so sensitive it picks up my agile modulator transmission without an antenna connected. No hum bar so the lytics I did not change are still ok. Only issue is unstable vertical linearity which is most likely just a dirty tube socket. Very happy with the result

Need to finish cleaning the knobs and trim pieces and then I think this set is good to go!

[nasadowsk]

So it is a Sharp Tv! I’d like to see a schematic , If only to see how they designed the set.

Being sensitive isn’t a big surprise. I suspect most places, the best you could do for an antenna was rabbit ears…

[TV-collector]

Originally Posted by cj_reha

It would have to be before 1960 since all of the parts and chassis are marked with the old rounded Sharp logo wouldn't it? I appreciate the info and would love a schematic if you could find one! If anything just to keep on hand because I enjoy studying schematics and different circuit designs.

No, just the design with one big channel knob at the right and 2-3 smaller knobs on the left side points me to the 60s.
The front-end with all that plastic is typical for the early 60s.
My ´58 Sanyo looks much older than 1958, that style you can see at american
1952/53 models.
The japanese companies still use the old american tubes (2 thick pins) from
the early 30s deep into the 50s!
Btw., Sony, astabl. under that name in 1958, as I remember right, never build tube TVs , so don`t
search for one.

I will search for the schematic or something equal.

Regards,
TV-collector

[kramden66]

2 Japanese TV sets can be seen in Gojira 1954 (Godzilla 1956) , anyone know who made those TV sets ?