Help with 1939 RCA radio
 

I have a 1939 RCA w/TV sound that I picked up several years ago at an antique mall from someone who went through it. I can tell by the new caps under heat shrink. It used to play fine, now all I get is static, yes the antenna is connected. I'm pretty handy with electronics but a newb when it comes to tubes and stuff this old. Anything simple to look at first?

It's a model 96-T7

First thing would be loose or corroded connections. With radio turned on, carefully wiggle each tube: tube pins or sockets can be oxidized. Turn the bandswitch back and forth. Clean tube pins and sockets and all exposed band switch points and pushbutton switches with contact cleaner, sparingly, don't soak. Squirt a little inside the volume control, work back and forth. Touch the top cap of the 6F5 w/ finger: get hum in the speaker? If so, audio stages are good. Be sure right hand pushbutton is pushed in for manual tuning. Here's the Nostalgia Air schematic for it: http://www.nostalgiaair.org/PagesByM...7/M0015317.pdf

Good luck,
Reece

BTW, late '30's early '40's sets that advertised "TV Sound" just had an audio input for sound from the TV set. The idea was that people then figured that TV was not going to be very far behind so maybe they didn't want to invest in a new radio at that time, but if they thought that their radio would be part of a TV system then they would buy. The new TV's were supposed to have the video system only and audio up to the first audio tube, the audio amp and speaker being that of the radio. This idea really didn't take off as TV's quickly had audio systems built in. So there's a bit of history in "TV Sound" radios, but no TV sound from them. I believe a few tuned a short wave band that could pick up TV sound in those days, however. But there wasn't much TV transmission around then outside of NYC and a few other places.

Thanks, I've been so busy with my new turntable and tape deck aquisitions that I have not messed with it yet. I'll give that a try.