Found an old RCA for $5. NEED SERIOUS ATTENTION tho. - Videokarma.org TV - Video

mbates14 · #1 08-24-2008, 07:14 PM

I picked up an RCA. Im not even sure what it is. It is in very very poor shape. has a broken pot/missing knob, the face is panted, and the wood around the speaker is cracked/missing as noted.

it also looks jerry-rigged on the antenna or something. I dont know what is really supposed to be there. Also im not a wood worker, I was wondering can anything be done with this radio restoration wise to make it look somewhat decent? and what year/schematics/type of radio this is.

And if you know anyone that can do any black magic (literally) on this cabnet, and is reasonable/trustworthy. let me know.

mbates14 · #2 08-25-2008, 09:31 AM

anyone?

jpdylon · #3 08-25-2008, 10:13 AM

just about anything can be restored, however its all about how much time and money you wish to spend making it happen. Hopefully someone with more experience can chime in and give you the information on that radio.

The first thing I would do is remove the chassis and see what kind of condition it is underneath. Look for signs of serious failure (exploded cap, burned resistor, etc.) If this radio used rubber insulation on the wiring, you'll need to rewire the set. Hopefully the rust and corrosion hasn't gotten to any of the IF transformers.

If the price was right and you have the time and money to restore that set, then great. They are a labor of love, but the outcome can be fantastic. Just remember to document your restoration efforts so people can see and appreciate your work - even if you're not the one to do it all.

Good luck.

Valsimot · #4 08-25-2008, 10:38 AM

Cute little radio. I'm not tube savvy, but the yellow wire should be the antenna (original was most likely lost over the years). You should contact Tom Bavis, he has a respectable collection of tube schematics.

The inside pic shows a few small holes that might have been made by wood worms, but looks to be clean of any now. That could also explain why it was painted. The grill can be fixed with new small pieces of wood and restored to it's original look ("stitches" would be visible though) or maybe with some wood filler (bondo?) but would then have to be painted.

mbates14 · #5 08-25-2008, 11:15 AM

Well see the electronics isnt an issue. I can restore the electronics much like I have in the past with other radios.

The problem I'm having, is the wood wrok. im not a woodworker, so i cant fix the cabnet damage to make it look like new. I'm looking for someone trustworthy who can.

Fisherdude · #6 08-25-2008, 12:12 PM

I don't recognize that particular model, but I'm guessing it's not particularly valuable. If you want to restore it, it would be a lot of fun, and you would have a very nice sounding and nice looking set.

However, if you paid someone with woodworking and refinishing skills to do the work, you would probably end up paying triple what the restored radio would be worth.

On an unrelated fyi, jpg's don't really compress when you zip them, and not everyone is comfortable unzipping/extracting compressed files.

Pic #26 was originally 462,774 bytes and compressed to 460,446.
Pic #27 was originally 517,829 bytes and compressed to 515,844.

So, you only saved about 1% on the file sizes. Pics are always a great help in ID'ing a radio, so go ahead and post them as jpgs.

Hope somebody can give you a model number and/or a Sam's number so you can get started. Good luck!

mbates14 · #7 08-25-2008, 12:33 PM

the probelm is. as pixels of our cameras grow, the forum attachment sizes do also.

And i had to zip them to just cut them under the 971 kb limit of the zips.

and jpegs they only give you like 115K. whoever is in charge of the administration, it would be nice if they allowed at least over a meg for jpegs.

electroking · #8 08-25-2008, 03:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mbates14

the probelm is. as pixels of our cameras grow, the forum attachment sizes do also.

And i had to zip them to just cut them under the 971 kb limit of the zips.

and jpegs they only give you like 115K. whoever is in charge of the administration, it would be nice if they allowed at least over a meg for jpegs.

Don't wory about that 115k limit. I regularly post .jpg files that are way over
that limit as stored in my computer and they end up being posted anyway.
I guess some kind of compression does take place automatically.

mbates14 · #9 08-25-2008, 12:35 PM

Like i said before in my earlier post. im not a wood worker. I dont have the knowledge, tools, or facilities to begin on woodworking. if it was me, it would be ductape city. :-)

Old1625 · #10 08-25-2008, 09:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mbates14

Like i said before in my earlier post. im not a wood worker. I dont have the knowledge, tools, or facilities to begin on woodworking. if it was me, it would be ductape city. :-)

If that is what you want your limit to be then so be it. I was a radio chassis restorer and knew little about woodworking. But I found out the hard way how much the woodworkers charge for their fine craftsmanship, and decided to learn more about it.

Now that I am a piano tuner/ tech by trade rather than electronics tech, I have had to learn more about veneers, woodworking and the special concerns.

A completely successful antique restorer in all truth wears many hats.

It's your choice. After you have done the stuff you know how to do with the works then you might find the cabinet restoration rewarding and enjoyable. It takes a bit of patience, but it is doable. Veneers can be had that will work on the lattice work at the loudspeaker grille. Care in grain matching of veneer bits being placed where original is missing, and careful prep work with filler and filing to form a substrate where veneer can be placed and pieced without it standing proud or shy of adjacent work is in order. Then careful work with matching stain tints follows. Takes time and patience. But not necessarily a trip to Home Despot or WoodWorkers Warehouse on an expenditure trip designed to win the store manager that new bass boat he's been drooling over at the local marina. Simple tools--bought only as needed--can often do the trick.

You can pay someone else to do the work you claim you can't do, but then you will be out the dough, and will not have the satisfaction of knowing the restoration was all yours. There may be more in you than you think....

Just my humble thoughts....

Tom Bavis · #11 08-25-2008, 12:47 PM

Well, first we need to ID it... it doesn't look like an RCA to me (the patent label will always list RCA - they held most of the patents...). Does it say RCA anywhere else? Any labels inside? What does it say on the dial above "Superheterodyne"? The list of tubes MAY help narrow it down - but I'm guessing it uses the usual mid-'30s tubes - 6A8, 78, 75, 42, 80.

mbates14 · #12 08-25-2008, 01:18 PM

ok hang on ill list the tubes... Says World Wide on the dial. I guess becuyase its got AM broadcast, it has the 49mhz band on it, intervened in the same spot as the regular shortwave.

mbates14 · #13 08-25-2008, 01:28 PM

Tube list:

42
6A7
75
80
6C6

3 of them have top anode connections. the 42 and the 80 dont, as 42 is the amp tube, and 80 is the rectifier.

mbates14 · #14 08-25-2008, 02:11 PM

here is a couple pics of the inside.

Maybe these shots will give away what it is? the big orange airline/montgomery ward double lytic maybe? dunno..

also the knob is gone and the shaft is busted/gone on the band select knob. i have no idea where im going to get this from....

electroking · #15 08-25-2008, 03:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mbates14

Tube list:

42
6A7
75
80
6C6

3 of them have top anode connections. the 42 and the 80 dont, as 42 is the amp tube, and 80 is the rectifier.

The top connection on those tubes is to the control grid, not the anode
as it would be in a horizontal sweep tube.