Marlin:

I don't know the exact model number but it is from 1949. As far as I can determine, Zenith released their first production TVs in 1948 for the 1949 model year. This is one of those. I think it was a great marketing ploy to capitalize on the round CRT's drawback and market it as a "Giant Circle Screen". I beleieve they produced "Giant Circle Screen" models until 1951. One was even named the Stratosphere. If you find the model number, usually lightly rubber stamped on the top rear, I can cross it to the set's marketing name.

I'm curios. Why at those early models they didn't put a mask so the image to be recatngular?

There are some that did...I have a Westinghouse with round tube and a rectangular mask.

Tele, the idea was that you got a bigger picture this way. Sure, its big, but its round! Not many manufacturers did it that way but a few did. It was kind of a gamble, I guess. Who knows, it might have caught on and today we would be watching HDTV with fully round screens! I think the problem was that people were already used to watching movies where the screen was rectangular & round just didn't seem natural. My understanding is that some Westinghouse sets were "convertible" meaning you could have a round screen, or twist a knob and have a rectangular screen. And some Zeniths had a button you could press that electronically reduced the height so the picture was about the same as the early rectangular sets.

Marlin:

Coincidentally, there is an ebay auction for the Sams for it going on now.

It is covered in Sams 74-13 and is model 42T999RLP. Marketed in 1949 as the "Marlborough". 16AP4 CRT.

In reference to Bryan's post, here are photos of the Westinghouse he mentioned.

Tim, I searched for maybe 20 minutes and I guess I did not use the right search phrase 'cause I did not find it. Would you mind posting the auction # or the ebay store link?
Thanks!
Marlin

Yea, I shouda done that. Here it is:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...sPageName=WDVW

That helps, thanks! I looked the file up. That set has the odd combination of dual band FM radio and a tv tuner that runs 2 - 13. TV stopped being built with ch 1 around mid 1948 (except maybe RCA projectors and a few others) and the lower FM band was dropped at about the same time. They musta had bunches of them old Armstrong radio chassis's around the warehouse.

Zenith in Rolla Museum update.
 

Sean recently told me that the aforementioned museum is gone, building and all. I never heard what became of the Zenith. When I tried to get friendly with those folks a couple of years ago I got the cold shoulder. It would be nice to find it was saved from a land fill.....

Hate to hear that...

Found another one!
 

Wow, no sooner do we loose track of that cool TV than I find another one! Was at a social event yesterday, catching up with a friend I had not seen for maybe 5 years, when he made one of "THOSE" statements: "I have an old TV in my basement, you want it?" Four doors down the street, down the basement steps, and there it sat, the same Zenith model! Cabinet near perfect. I did not check details as was running late, but will pick it up in the next couple of weeks. More anon.

Cool Find... Same one perhaps?:thmbsp:

Which changer does it have?... The picture in your first post shows a changer with one arm... mine has 2 arms, one for 78 (maroon) and one for 33 (green), but I don't know I have a legitimate variation or not. :scratch2:

Update: attached changer photo... Note: I have removed the doors from the TV section for display.

The layout of the TV looks a lot like the Mayflower. Channel selector on the left volume on the right. The '49's where the other way around. That would put in about 1948. Did Zenith make TV's before '48 ?
Terry

My Marlborough is here
 

Last weekend I brought home my newly found Marlborough. The date on the cabinet under the TV chassis says May 23, 1949. The turntable is a single tone arm 3 speed. The TV has tuner left, volume right. No channel 1. Oddly for that year the FM radio is dual band. This puppy is heavy! Separate 4-6V6's, parallel push pull audio amp in the bottom next to the usual 20 pound power supply. The 16" steel CRT has a lot of rubber gasket filling the gap between the porthole bezel and the screen, almost like it could have used the 19".

My Marlborough is here
 

Addendum: This thing has 43 tubes on 5 chassis! 2 are on the magnetic cartridge preamp chassis stuffed behind the turntable. I asked my friend where he got it, and it is not the same set as was in Rolla. Still not sure if it was called Mayflower or Marlborough. No mention in the papers that were with it.