Well, even if the Protelgram ends up being a "Jonah", you got a SUH-WEET Airline & Sonora..

Yup, that is the pic. It reminds me of my VERY rare Electrovoice/Realistic Stereo-4 format Quadraphonic record decoder, but it is wider and does not have two knobs on the front like mine does so I'm guessing it is a different model or a related device.

Where those things really rare?
I had one and I scrapped it for parts. Don't remember where I got it!
That style enclosure was readily available as a project box.
BTW, did you see that early solid state B/W Zenith portable, behind the Airline portable. :scratch2:

Yeah they are the rarest of the quad record decoders that were originally marketed in the US. I got mine for under 15$ at an anti-q shoppe a few years back (probably the latter Bush years), and it was only this year that I saw another for sale in person. It was the first consumer quad record format available and did not get much support beyond Radio Shack. I've only been able to find about 4 records for my unit in all this time, and most of them were Realistic brand. I would imagine that on rarity alone the decoders must be worth a pretty penny considering what stuff of the more common formats goes for.

I never knew that those cases were available as project boxes...interesting.

That could be a Zenith back there...With how obscured it is in that pic I completely missed it.

That's probably the 19" Zenith portable there that went to the scrappers. I would have sworn it was a tube set though. The back was missing and it was rusted out inside. I just couldn't drag everything home :(

I just finished dragging up two flights of stairs :drool: I removed the power supply and receiver chassis, but even so my back is aching. It's a little bigger and heaver than an RCA 630TS and had to be tilted on it's side to fit though my door.

So now you can really see the extent of the water damage. I'm still amazed nothing inside suffered.
http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3715/1...ef1b1465_c.jpg http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5540/1...ffa7f674_c.jpg

I think that's beyond glue and clamping :tears: Probably an entire new top needs to be built, but perhaps the nice side walnut veneer could be reused.
http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3703/1...f40c19ca_c.jpg

This rail is crucial to the flip up screen mechanism so I'll do my best to repair it.
http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5497/1...f37da2c2_c.jpg

Here's the mirror built into the underside of the top.
http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5481/1...68473775_c.jpg

Inside with the Protelgram components.
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7352/1...c7e8f370_c.jpg

I took a quick look at the service info in Riders vol #2 which mentions a speaker but I sure don't have one :scratch2:

They also show the tuner as having three tubes while mine only has two. I also don't the added on to prevent screen burn if the sweep fails. The serial # on the CRT Protelgram unit is 00028 so this could be a very early set.

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3760/1...fc4fe06d_b.jpg

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3713/1...fa5032f8_b.jpg

Finally, here's the chunky little power supply.
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7444/1...28b052e4_c.jpg http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5546/1...f16f7d3c_c.jpg

That projection set is a great find and I'm so glad you rescued it. The cabinet is essentially a big box, so even if you have to build a new one, it won't require tons of fancy cabinetwork.

The same channel selector knob is used in the maker-unknown TV in my Scott 800B Combo:

http://antiqueradio.org/art/scott800b601.jpg

http://antiqueradio.org/art/Scott800BHiddenControls.jpg

It's similar to the main tuning knob in the 800B receiver. Cast metal with chrome plating. The small knobs are also identical to those used in the radio.

Phil Nelson
Phil's Old Radios
http://antiqueradio.org/index.html

I have the Sam's, and it shows two different tuners used in that set. One is made by Sarkes-Tarzian, the other by General Instruments.

Unfortunately they each use three tubes, so I have no clue what yours is.

If you want me to send you the Photofact (no charge), PM me your home address.

.

Phil, beautiful set and nice to know other sets use similar knobs. Jim, PM sent.

The chassis are aluminum which account for the lack of corrosion. They should clean up very nicely :)
http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3715/1...34496555_c.jpg

I careful cleaned around a stamp on the tuner with e q-tip and can just make out "Meck" and "TT10007". The tubes are 6J6 and 6AG5.
http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5480/1...c18ae23b_c.jpg


I see they used RCA components and design in the sweep circuits. That includes the typical flyback, 5V4, 6BG6 and huge power resistor used the 630TS, Admiral 30A1 and many other sets.
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7431/1...1a16d3ef_c.jpg http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3746/1...1dc577ee_c.jpg

It looks quite primitive under the chassis.
http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5521/1...d74922e2_c.jpg

I just noticed "SAMPLE" is written on the chassis :scratch2:
http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2815/1...7b0afe7c_c.jpg

Aww, Man... What I wouldn't give...I have a GORGEOUS 800-B chassis, & speaker...If I could just finagle a cabinet... Would be happy if it had no TV in it...

I found the TT-10007 Sarkes Tarzian tuner mentioned in Riders volumes 6-9 as an option in some Meck sets. No schematics for it though.

Here's a closer look at the options. Apparently this is two pieces of glass with something in between to form a corrective lens. Mine has gone a bit cloudy.
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7452/1...221b9938_c.jpg

Here's a look down into the optical chamber. I've read that these mirrors are plated on the surface and shouldn't be touched.
http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3746/1...e9403d8a_c.jpg

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3700/1...d943b074_c.jpg

Cleaning it didn't help any.
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7459/1...19719559_c.jpg

The flip top mirror is pretty rough too. I hear these type of mirrors are very expensive to replace.
http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2883/1...8d25d7e6_c.jpg

I found lots of fantastic info and pictures in this thread. I'm jealous of those clean & shiny insides. Now I know where the speaker should be and all about the scan failure protection module. http://www.antiqueradios.com/forums/...81239&start=20

You're correct, any sort of optical grade mirror is usually surface coated instead of back-coated to avoid refreaction effects and other problems from having the light pass through the glass before being reflected. (IIRC you could potentially get double images in an application like this; a faint one from the reflection of the glass surface, and the "real" one from the silvered surface reflection) You can tell if this is the case by looking edge-on at the glass, that will reveal which side has been coated.

I wouldn't touch them unless it has a noticeable impact on picture quality; the coating was probably done with silver nitrate and traditional "mirror" making chemistry. It should be able to stand up to a _very_ gentle wash if it's only surface dirt, but I certainly wouldn't try anything more vigorous without a backup plan; you never know how storage conditions may have affected the coating's bond to the glass.

All the mirrored surfaces have splotches that won't come off. No doubt from the nasty environment this set was stored in for years. I'll just leave them alone for now until the set is running.

I noticed some numbers peaking out from underneath the channel plate and decided to carefully remove it for a closer look. Here's what I found.
Perhaps this was for very early versions with a channel #1 tuner ?
http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3665/1...9fd9c77b_c.jpg