Yes, your HV cage is missing. I parted out one 810 chassis several months ago, but didn't save that part...

Aw, nuts! I posted in the classifieds - hopefully someone has one. Otherwise, I'll fabricate something.

Here's a dry run of the new veneer.
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4129/...9631e608_z.jpg

I'll let this diluted glue dry overnight and iron it on tomorrow.
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4130/...604b79d1_z.jpg

I'm making good progress on the cabinet this weekend.

First up, I stripped it using a citrus gel stripper by Zinsser.
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4088/...f88df7f3_z.jpg

Then, a liquid stripper and steel wool to get any remaining finish.
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4111/...8c1dc18a_z.jpg

Than, a neutralizer.
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4097/...3bedc457_z.jpg

I coated both the top substrate and the new veneer with a couple layers of diluted Titebond II wood glue. After it dried overnight, I ironed it on and trimmed the excess.
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4113/...806be4f7_z.jpg

I'm going to use grain filler this time. I've used multiple coats of shellac and sanding before, but this Mahogany veneer has a really open grain and it takes forever.

The Behlen water based stuff is easy to apply, no fumes and cleans up easily.
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4108/...6fd04532_z.jpg

I worked it in across the grain with an old credit card. I'll let it dry for a while and sand it lightly.
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4148/...fef01908_z.jpg

Finally, my toner lacquer showed up. Van Dyke Walnut is a great match as I had hoped :thmbsp:
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4132/...52fd3547_z.jpg

The logo polished up better than I expected :)
I'm not quite sure what to do about the control panel though. It seems like the top half is darker. Maybe it has some toner lacquer sprayed on it :scratch2:

Any thoughts ?
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4133/...7cc321b6_b.jpg

The top half of the control panel originally had a matte brass finish, which indeed looks a little darker. The rest was originally plated bright. One of my panels is in pretty good condition so it is easy to see what the original state was.

I'll probably use some coarse polishing compount or scouring powder on the matte part of mine, and the mask that off while polishing the rest with some fine polishing compound.

This veneer really does soak up the shellac. I wonder if all paper backed veneers are that way.

John

Thanks, that sounds like a good plan.

I think it's just the nature of the mahogany - mine is a very coarse, open grain.

The control panel is polishing up as nicely as the logo did. It doesn't look like I'll even need to refill any of the recessed red paint :)
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4108/...594760e8_b.jpg

I found some Rust-oleum satin 'green apple' that's a pretty good match for the old paint around the screen.
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4145/...25c6f61c_b.jpg

I found another dubious repair under the chassis. This is supposed to be 560 7W. It's measuring 412 and I have no idea about the wattage.
Wish I had ordered a new one along with the caps :( It'll just have to do until I place another order for parts.
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4090/...4ee82082_z.jpg

Great that the control panel is brass plated and will polish up so nicely, and is not some painted fake job made to look like brass.

Better than that even - it's solid brass :D So is the screen bezel.
I've used Mohawk 'lacquer for brass' on other objects after polishing with excellent results. No tarnishing or discoloration months later.

I'd like to do the same here, but I'm concerned about the lacquer reacting with the recessed red paint :scratch2:

Bob, it looks great. I often get a set working and then when it comes to the cabinet, I am ready to move on to another project (A-D-D?) But seriously, I like that green apple color from Rustoleum. I have seen a lot of new colors lately from both Rustoleum and Krylon. There is a color that Krylon makes that is very close to the original color of Tektronix cabinets.

Glad also that the bezel is brass. And I too share your concern that the lacquer may raise the red paint. But guess there is only one way to find out...


(BTW, this is the second time I have tried to respond to this thread and the darn dial-up keeps dropping the call. This time, when I suspected it was going to drop it again, I copied what I had typed onto the clipboard. Then, all of the pictures have to download again... Gotcha!)

Thanks. It's all about the weather. I need to get the cabinet sprayed with lacquer before it gets too cold. Luckily, we are having a warmer than normal October so far :)

Sorry to hear about you dial up woes. I would have thought that the pictures would get cached by your browser :scratch2:

Thanks to VK member 'mikeh', I have a HV cover :D

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4110/...1b0f2524_z.jpg

That set is really coming together nicely! Very nice of GE to go to the expense of using a solid brass panel. It looks like it would be much more fun to polish up the old brass than having to strip and repaint the plated/painted panels found on other sets. I'm glad to see that mikeh had that HV cage for you, too. I think if I was missing a proprietary part like that in my set, I'd be lost! I guess it would be time for some fabrication, hm?

Thanks! It's one of the simplest shields I've come across - just a single sheet bent into a "U" shape. Probably not too hard to fabricate - especially if you have access to a brake.
I'm very happy to have an original though.

I had been using the Riders 810 schematic from the ETF and was getting very confused in a couple spots. Then I took a look at a Wallace Telaide, and it matched mine perfectly. I suspect the Riders covers an earlier revision than my set.

Here's a nice glob of resistors. The schematic calls for 2 X 27K @ 2W, but I discovered 4 x 56K @ 1W.
Maybe they ran out of the correct value on the assembly line ? I suspect a single 13.5 K @ 4W would work fine too.

This chassis is pretty cramped - definitely not my favorite to work on :no:
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1070/...df9517fd_z.jpg

Ge 810
 

I had 3 of those 810's in the past 10 yrs, someplace on here is a posting I placed about my first 810 and restoration about 7 yrs ago..
that lower brass part will clean up well and shine like new, I took mine into a metal shop here in madison and they charged 20 buck to polish it and spray a clear coat over so that the brass would not stain again..
and ALL of my 810's had no HV cover.
also all that weird missmatched resistors and caps were the same on 2 of mine..I had found out that GE had a bigtime problem with the HV transformers on this chassis.
The factory mod and fix was to replace the HV Transformer with the round donut type just like you have there, then a whole bunch of resistors and Capacitors had to be changed..I could never get the Horz size and linearity to operate correctly no matter what I did, so I lived with it..
I had rebuilt the filter caps just like you did, but they really overheat and the best way is a fresh stock Cans.

Bob,

Looking good. I am back home now (but in and out for a little while). I can really follow the thread with my FiOS high speed connection. Funny how you get spoiled.

Glad it is going along. I know that I had a similar experience with my Admiral 16" 26R12 set. The Wallace Telaide schematic was very accurate and the only Sams was one for a console with a radio and phono. The Admiral also had a lot of paralleled resistors. From the same era. Maybe a time when resistors were in short supply? I replaced that stuff with the correct value single resistor as well.

Looking forward to continued progress with your GE!

You could try an initialization string to keep your modem in line. My favorite was AT&F&C1&D2S=50. Usually will keep the connection steady.

Thanks for taking the time to respond, I do appreciate it. I am now home and back on my high speed connection. I really understand how "Spoiled" I was ;)

Couple of points:

Shellac: I have given up on using shellac as a sealer as it goes bad in the can, etc. Now use Deft Sanding Sealer.

Metal Work: using plain or perforated metal available in sheets from home centers, it's not too hard to bend up a box. I've made a number of parts by clamping metal to the work surface with a board across at the bend line, then bending up with another piece of wood sort of hinge style, finishing with a hammer and a block of wood. A brake would make it easier, but good results can be had by hand.

Strange - I've never had shellac go bad. I've been using the Zinsser brand. I prefer it to lacquer for grain and minor ding filling as it seems to shrink less over time. Then I use Deft Sanding Sealer over that.

Speaking of which, I made some good progress on the cabinet this weekend. The weather has been very cooperative - 70F today.

After the sanding sealer, I used a couple light coats of Mohawk Van Dyke Walnut on the old veneer and three coats on the new veneer which was a little lighter.
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1156/...7c42d710_z.jpg

Then 3 coats of Deft Gloss. Once that cures, I'll sand it lightly and put on another 3 coats.
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1384/...3c5ee0ae_z.jpg

I also polished up the rest of the lower portion of the control panel.
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1117/...e7bccc96_z.jpg

I'm not sure about the burnished top section though. I tried some Simichrome on it and it does look better, but it's a little splotchy :scratch2:
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1251/...ee6da90a_z.jpg

Wow, that's turning out beautiful, Bob.

Hey, Bob.

Don't worry about the red paint in the brass bezel lifting or crazing when you clear coat it. It's so dried out it doesn't matter if it was lacquer or enamel. The clear coat shouldn't react to it.

...and even if it does (highly unlikely) you could squeegee in water based red paint AFTER a lacquer clear coat. I did this with my GE 805 brass escutcheon, and the fresh red paint really made it pop. Wait until the clear lacquer hard dries.

To tell you the truth, I would buff the hell out of the shiny portion, mask it off with a rubberized tape, then lightly glass bead the matte section for a uniform finish. Use fine bead and light pressure. Clear coat the entire brass, let hard dry for a week, and fill in lettering with red paint.

Tamiya Color Flat Red XF-7 is a perfect match for that shade of red, BTW. It's water based, and won't react with the lacquer. Available at good hobby shops...:smoke:

Hi Bob,

Well, I picked a GE 810 and a Philco 49-1040 tonight. So I will continue to follow this thread and the Philco 49-1040 thread with great interest! Nice work so far. I hope I can do as well.

Now that's a bizarre coincidence! Did you have your choice of sets or were those the only two ?

Thanks! I just have the front frame left to do.

Thanks for the great suggestions Lee. I don't have access to a bead blaster right now, but someday...

I did manage to make more progress using brass polish. Not too bad I think.
After a bit more polishing, I'll take a chance with some Mohawk lacquer specially formulated for brass.
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1181/...42c6672d_z.jpg

Beautiful restoration. I was admiring the front panel before photo you earlier posted and the after photo above -- its striking improvement in appearance. BTW, where did you get the speaker cloth?

Carl

PS: I enjoy the detailed explanations. Keep them coming.

Actually, the gentleman went to our local club meeting and purchased them and other sets. No one wanted TV sets. I didn't make it home from Louisiana in time for the meeting.

So I bought those two and a Motorola VT-71 with Channel 1. Now, I have 5 VT-71 sets and I have restored one of them.

Unfortunately, I won't have time to work on any of the sets for several weeks, maybe months. Lots going on with the family and friends.

I'm just about done recapping :)
This one has me a little puzzled though. The parts list calls for a 0.0022 (2200pF) paper cap. What I found is this sangamo cap. It does appear to be 2200, but I'm not sure about the composition.
Micamold or real mica and what do the two green dots mean ?
http://www.bobandersen.com/images/GE810/sangamo.jpg

2200pf... it's a micamold. Get it out of there.

And the 2 below it as well.

edit: all 4.

OK, thanks. I'll use a 0.0022 poly cap.
This is an old reference photo from before I started working on it. All the other caps have been replaced ;)

I wouldn't change that one at all, pretty sure it's Mica, it may have some stability issues if you replace it with Poly.

If I read this chart correctly the first Red dot indicates it a JAN Mica Capacitor,
Red, Black, are the first two digits and Brown is the Multiplier. Teh left side green dot is the voltage, 500v.

Here are a couple charts explaining the dot codes.

http://www.tpub.com/neets/book2/3g.htm

http://www.tpub.com/neets/book2/3g.htm

I've run into problems before replacing the square molded caps with regular Polys, even if they are paper there is probably something special about them, temperature, tolerance or whatever.

I'm guessing it really is molded paper. I had a few of these I've replaced. I think the middle green dot means +-5%. The left dot might mean 500V, or it might be a temperature characteristic.

What do they list fo the voltage rating in the parts list? Time passes... Well I just looked it up in the Riders and I think I bet wrong. The one I see listed there is a Mica like Eric said.

John

Hmm. Eric's linked chart results in a 200 pF cap doesn't it ?

It's C47 in Riders. It's listed as a 0.002 mfd 600v paper cap.
It appears to be a coupling cap between the Clipper and AFC circuits.

They also list C30 and C78 as the same type. Those were tubular paper & paper caps and I replaced them with poly. Heck C78 was even connected to the same tube right next to it. I can't find any evidence that C47 was ever replaced. So why would they use different type caps unless it was important ?

I'll just leave it alone for now.

Guess it doesn't quite fit the standard paper mold. I would interpret it as paper 2200pF, 600Volt and 5% using the colors, but guessing on the order of the dots.

It's strage that none of us have found a catalog or the like that explain these oddballs.

John

Yeah, there seem to be a number of variations on what that first dot represents. Type (paper or mica), 1st digit, or voltage rating.

Here's another curious thing I found in this set. A string of five 1W resistors in the video amp. 5.1K + 5.1K + 5.1K + 5.6K + 5.6K = 26.5 K
http://www.bobandersen.com/images/GE...or%20chain.jpg

The schematic actually calls for three 11K + 10K + 5.1K = 26.1K. There aren't any taps and it's not high voltage so I assume it's to create the oddball value of 26.1 K ?
http://www.bobandersen.com/images/GE810/video%20amp.jpg

The vertical oscillator and amp circuitry was so hacked up I stripped it down and rebuilt it with the correct values. I couldn't find a 0.062 uF in tubular form so went with the boxy PC mount package.

I mostly used new carbon composition resistors and Cornell Dubilier poly caps. I didn't bother restuffing them since most had been replaced anyway.

On the far left there's a 2.2 M resistor that's open and was repaired with a 5.6M dogbone :rolleyes: Most of the other old replaced caps and resistors were the wrong value too.
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4112/...2584888e_z.jpg http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4026/...331ab331_z.jpg

Bob,

I am sure that you figured out the .05µFD at 400 volt molded capacitor is a paper cap disguised in that brown plastic.

As for the resistors that are twisted together, I found the same thing in my Admiral 26R12. It was explained that it was very common to use this kind of resistor combination in the early 50s. It was cited that there may have been a shortage (no pun intended ;) ) of resistors when the TV was constructed. May be true... might be myth. But I removed all of that bogus looking crap too...

Yep, that .05 is history :)

I've seen resistors combined in early 50s sets too, but not in a '48 set and not 5 in series... It's tempting to just stick a 27K in there, but I'll leave it for now and see how it goes.

Wow, this sure is gonna be a beautiful set! I like the style of that cabinet. Can't say that I've seen many like that, with the table legs and all. But man, I know if it were me, I'd be getting clumsy with the soldering iron working on that chassis! It's pretty crowded under there, to say the least. How soon do you suppose you'll be able to power it up?