1965 Magnavox entertainment center

Hello folks,

I just found this resource, and so far it looks like a goldmine of information. I don't have a huge collection, but I did happen across an old Magnavox years ago, which seemed to work halfway decent, so I bought it for $5.

It had a couple of problems that I couldn't seem to fix during the time I had it, and eventually deduced that the receiver component must have some bad internal components, and I never found the guts to tear into it - so it sat for 5 years.

Last week I happened across an ad in the paper for an "antique Magnavox entertainment console" - lo and behold, it was almost the same model, manufactured one month earlier in June '65 (my original unit was July '65.)

So this past weekend I spent a couple hours pulling the stereo component out of that unit and fitting it into mine, and now the sound works great - stereo, internal, external, no humming.

But now, the next issue is that the screen will come on with a good picture, good light, and will work for 10 or 15 minutes, but will then begin to briefly flicker off and back on again. This happens with some bright white streaks followed quickly by a dark screen, followed shortly after with the picture coming back in again. Does anyone have any idea what this could be? The answer feels like it should be obvious --- but I'm not sure.

I've attached photos of the two units, the first photo is of the original one I purchased (manufactured July/65) and the second / third is the one I just picked up (already partially parted out.) The fourth is a strange device I found just lying in the cabinet on the second unit. Obviously this plugs into the back of the picture tube, but I hesitate to use it before I know what it does. Anyone have any clues on that?

Thanks in advance for any advice!
-Jim