My newest project, Philco 50T-1402 year 1951
 

Picked up this TV for $40. Set is complete, with all the knobs, back, tubes, etc.
Picture tube is a 12LP4 with a CBS Label. Obviously it needs to be recapped and restored. According to the Sams it's probably a 1951 Model, however Sams only lists a 50T-1403, with 2 different productions changes. The Sams is either a 115-8 or 114-9. Picture tube tests really good on my Beltron, and gets up to .9 when at full 6.3 volt, but does drop some at 5V. I powered the set up slowly rising it as far as 100 volts, cautiously and got a raster. With a converter hooked up, I could see that it had video, but the horizontal was off frequency, and vertical was folding over at the bottom. The good news is that I had good sound. Cabinet needs attention, not sure what I'm going to do with it yet. Maybe sand it down, re-stain and put a finish on it, or just clean it up with some Old English scratch polish. Any info you guys have for a Philco 50T-1402 or advice will be appreciated.

Great TV. I really hardly ever see the 1402 with the square cabinet as much as the 1403 with the rounded cabinet... The 50t-1402 was actually my first vintage TV!

*que flashback* I had opened up my first shop in Gardnerville, NV right next to a Stor-All facility when I was 19 years old. I remember one day walking out back to check out some loud crashing noises that had caught my attention... looking through the chain link fence between myself and an open storage unit was an elderly woman with a large open trailer and a hired hand throwing all of the contents away. I glanced inside the unit and saw THAT TV (your Philco 1402) sitting perched sideways on top of a pile of other junk stacked to the ceiling. I couldn't help myself....

I piped up, "Excuse me..." which got both of their attention. I introduced myself, and asked what was becoming of the contents of the unit. The elderly woman explained that it was all the estate of her now deceased husband, a 'hoarder' as she called him, who had owned TV and Radio repair shops over the years and who KEPT EVERYTHING. While he was alive, he wouldn't let anybody touch the contents of the storage units, most of which had been stored for over 15 years. Now he was gone, as she explained, and for all she was concerned, all of his stuff was following him. I told her that I would empty both of the units for her because I was into vintage electronics and could put a lot of it to use.

Oh, that day I was her 'little angel' :D

Lots of 50s TVs, boxes of loose tubes, old Radio-TV electronics publications from the 50s, a lot of Lake Tahoe casino memoribilia and ephemera- played keno sheets, lighters, ashtrays, an interesting early 20th century x ray or electroshock therapy machine with a huge frankenstein-esque transformer, and from what I could piece together from bits contained in the unit, his name was John Andresakis or John Anderson (possibly same guy, simplified his name later in life perhaps) who owned a Radio repair shop called "The Radio Doctor" in Oroville, CA, and later one in Zephyr Cove, NV called 'Johnny's Radio and TV."

Anyway, didn't mean to hijack your thread. It's a beautiful set and I remember it staring me in the face through that chain link fence. I still have two extra yokes and a flyback that will fit this set. The 50t prefix indicated it as a 1950 model.

electroshock therapy machine
 

My dad, who passed in 1987 at 87 years old, used to have some kind of an electroshock therapy thing, that was about I'd say 10 inches long, about 3 inches round and had glass, gas filled tubes in different shapes that plugged into one end of the cylinder and the other end had a adjustment knob and an asbestos cord. Turned on it gave purple sparks that would jump to your skin to stimulate sort muscles, etc. with lots of ozone smell. He claimed it helped his arthritis, and actually used it from time to time. The knob as you turned it up made the sparks stronger. I'm sure it was a quackery gadget from many years ago, and I'm sure the relief it gave was mainly mind over matter.

Found a picture of a similar shock therapy thing on e-bay. This is just like the one my dad had only it has more glass tubes in different shapes than the one pictured. There trying to sell it for $235. Gosh, wish I had grabbed it when we cleared out my parents estate.

Update on Philco 50T-1402 Got the chassis removed. Here are a couple of pictures of the chassis before restoration. Lots of bumblebee capacitors need to be changed, along with electrolytics.

I always thought Philcos from that era were "cap happy" decoupling caps galore, but should make a nice pic when done.

Looks like a fun project, ETF has schematics and service info.

http://www.earlytelevision.org/tv_sc...ms_pw_n-z.html

That's a Tesla Coil. They are worth at least somewhere near that.

I have two of that exact sort which I bought new in the 70's and used daily for years. They still work.

The standard use was to look for leaks in glass vacuum systems.
You turn it on and hold it near the glass, and see
a purple glow near the leak. It is also used
in real science demonstrations for exciting gas tubes,
like hydrogen, neon, helium, mercury, chlorine, bromine, etc.
You get different excitation from a 30kV neon sign transformer
and different yet from DC. This of course works on
gassy vacuum tubes, well, but I don't suggest it on
valuable ones since there is the possibility of damage.

That particular type won't hurt you unless you have
a bad ticker. I got hit many times ... always in the behind,
by my grad students.

Looks very similar to my 50T-1404 with matching base.

Oddly, the coil that I remember using around vacuum devices (sans medical quack stuff) is still available:
http://www.amazon.com/Electro-Techni...rds=tesla+coil

not affiliated,
jr

I think Philco has always been "cap happy". Have you ever seen one of their mid 30's console radios? Sheesh ........
charlie

We called ours the "cattle prod" and used it exclusively for cleaning the guns in rebuilt CRTs.
(Small nit, but it's technically an Oudin coil.)

Another vendor on Amazon has it right:
http://www.amazon.com/Oudin-Coil-Tes...rds=tesla+coil

"Cleaning" as in spot knocking?

I have heard the term "cattle prod" as well, but the mental picture of cowboys on the range trailing long extension cords behind their horses during "roundup" is just too amusing. :D

not affiliated,
jr

Walter, what a great set and it works, to boot. The chassis looks untouched and unrusted and should clean up easily like new. Congrats.

Not sure what is meant by spot knocking. But rebuilt CRTs would frequently arc after installation due to less-than-perfect cleanliness by the rebuilder.
The "cattle prod" applied to the pins would cause debri particles inside the tube to incandesce white and fly around, eventually welding themselves in place somewhere, out of harm's way.

Sometimes particles or burrs on the gun parts in a finished CRT would field emit electrons causing brightly illuminated areas on the screen of the tube, even though the electron gun was turned off. Internal arcing was often observed, as well. The "spot knockers" typically used a HV supply to draw excessive current from these burrs to "burn them out" or dislodge them to a place somewhere out of harms way, as you described, eliminating the field emission "spots". Similar process, for sure.

jr

On Philco turn on, my rounded top 50T-1400 fired up (with a gentle variac ramp-up) after sitting un-used for over 40 years, with sound, video, decent HV and Horizontal but very short vertical. Most parts and tubes are original. Philco must have used pretty good parts in these sets. :)

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