'56 Hoffman Color-caster

[kx250rider]

I'm glad you have the later chassis... The earlier one is a little more tricky than the CTC-5-ish one.

And Steve D, I'm curious now on the Sams 305... I don't have that folder, and I think I remember 25 years ago, discovering that the Hoffman in #305 was the other chassis (in addition to the CTC-5-ish one) that was different from the two sets I had from Gary H.... There was a fellow in Sherman Oaks who had two ColorCasters, with that chassis in the Sams 305. I want to be sure I get it straight on this. Gary Miller and I beat our heads in, trying to fix a problem in the horizontal on my mahogany one... All we had was the schematic pasted inside the panel.

I was thinking that the chassis in the early ColorCasters as mine, had a mutation of the prototype chassis as in the Hoffman 15GP22 & 19" CBS-tubed sets.

Charles

[Steve D.]

Originally Posted by kx250rider

I'm glad you have the later chassis... The earlier one is a little more tricky than the CTC-5-ish one.

And Steve D, I'm curious now on the Sams 305... I don't have that folder, and I think I remember 25 years ago, discovering that the Hoffman in #305 was the other chassis (in addition to the CTC-5-ish one) that was different from the two sets I had from Gary H.... There was a fellow in Sherman Oaks who had two ColorCasters, with that chassis in the Sams 305. I want to be sure I get it straight on this. Gary Miller and I beat our heads in, trying to fix a problem in the horizontal on my mahogany one... All we had was the schematic pasted inside the panel.

I was thinking that the chassis in the early ColorCasters as mine, had a mutation of the prototype chassis as in the Hoffman 15GP22 & 19" CBS-tubed sets.

Charles

Hi Charles,

The SAMS 305 folder is for the 21" Colorcaster with the 703A-21 chassis. I assume this is the receiver with the removable side panel as seen in the article "Installing Hoffman Color Sets" included in "Color Television" 1957 Edition. That's the paper back issue published by Radio & Television News. You may have this book in your collection. Article on page 108. If you can, please PM your regular e-mail address to me.

Thanks,
-Steve D.

[Cruiseomatic]

Hey Steve,

Right now the Packard Bell is on a back burner for now since it does currently work. (Just a crackle in the back by the HV cage and sometimes diagonal lines on a black screen.) The Hoffman is my main thing right now. I don't know alot about old electronics so what I thought would be smarter is since it is a "Rare" find, (I'm not sure how rare it truely is. Would be nice to know.) I am going to have someone who is a pro in doing these kinds of things restore the chassis. Most I'm doing now is simply cleaning up 50+ years of dust grime and dirt. All purpose cleaner, Q-tips,paper towels and an old rag got the chassis to a real close polish. But them old circuits, Especially them old wax/paper caps are a B#$%# to clean to read them. I'm cleaning this one now since I have the chassis out and getting ready for the "Hospital". I know for a fact, The cleaner the object your working on, The easier it is. And since I know the guy and the amount of work I'm about to give him, I want everything to be easier for him. This poor set had to be in a smokers house, The speaker wires are grimy and sticky, Actually, almost all the wires are like that. Where is a place to get a new grille cloth and knobs for this set? Removing them old knobs,one broke off and the others are badly discolored and look brittle. I've decided that I'm going to have the Hoffman cabinet re-finished so she can relive her glory days. I hate seeing her like this. Cabinet beat to hell, Chassis inop, supposedly a bad tube, List goes on....But I have the determination to get all my old toys as close to new as possible. Still haven't been able to see a SAMS photofact to see how to remove the tube. It has a plastic housing that covers it that is busted in many places.

[Steve D.]

Chuck,

I doubt you'll be able to find those Hoffman knobs. They may have used the same type knobs on their B&W models. So that may help you out. Use great care removing all the knobs and trim pieces. Try some super glue to save the broken knob. Be patient. Don't pry anything that's stuck. Put the knobs in some mild dish soap w/warm water. Let them soak and use a fine toothbrush to clean them up. The grille cloth may have to be a close match. Check with Radio Daze www.radiodaze.com or Antique Electronic Supply www.tubesandmore.com/. There are other suppliers on the net. Looks like the plastic shroud that covers your 21AXP22 is in bad shape. Another junker color set, if you can find one, using the 21AX may have a good one. Or you can replace the tube with a later 21" tube. This will present some new problems in mounting the later glass tube in this set as the plastic shroud is part of the mounting hardware and probably won't work with the later glass tubes. Have your tech friend advise you on this. Color sets of this era are far more complex then B&W 50's sets. WAIT for the SAMS before removing the picture tube. Or anything else chassis wise. Lots of connections, cables ect to remove before you even loosen the chassis bolts. I know you want to get right on this. But don't hurry this project. Good luck in your restoration. I hope your tech friend has experience in repairing these vintage color sets. Not many of this model color receiver stll around. Finally, here's an article on these sets posted on the ETF site: ETF - 1957 Hoffman Colorcasters
Address:http://www.earlytelevision.org/hoffm...lorcaster.html Any other VKer's feel free to jump in on this.

-Steve D.