Zenith Electronex?

[Eric H]

OK, it's a Zenith but where does the Electronex come from??
Do they mean Electronics?

Nice set...

http://cgi.ebay.com/Vintage-Zenith-E...QQcmdZViewItem

[jpdylon]

THat is a beautiful set. SOme here should add that to their collection.

[bgadow]

Early rectangular tube Zeniths seem to be rare, at least compared to RCA, Philco, et al. Plenty of portholes, but then nothing seems to show up until you get up to the late fifties Space Commands.

[Charlie]

Wow... that set is awesome looking! It's certainly worth saving. At least it's getting HV. A white line is a good sign.

[kx250rider]

That's a WEIRD cabinet design... Such a BIG masking around a smaller CRT. Almost reminds me of an early color set! (we know it isn't, obviously). I wonder if maybe that's a custom cabinet with a Zenith table model TV in it? That would explain the "Electronex" mystery, and also the big cabinet with small screen.

Charles

[Charlie]

I looked it up in 159-18. Looks like several models were made... some with radios. The photo on the front of the Sams shows a table model. The set uses a 17HP4 CRT.

It appears that would be the original cabinet for the set. Being that the seller gave a good picture of the speaker, I checked the number in the sams list. There were 3 speakers used in the different models... a 5, 10, and 12 inch. The 10" speaker number checks out with the speaker number in the seller's photo. I'm guessing that a table model would likely have the 5" speaker.

Also, notice in the photos that the CRT base says RCA Silverama... so sounds like the pix-toob has been replaced.

[Chad Hauris]

Yes, this does use a 17" crt...found one of these in the curbside trash about 11 yrs ago which had no tubes in it (except for crt)...was able to find all the tubes but it still needs new caps.

[zenith porthole]

A very attractive set indeed, and only about 3 hours from me...hmm...
My '50 porthole does look awfully lonely among all these Admirals. Perhaps its time to build on my Zenith collection.

[grayga]

J2042R -- 1951 Zenith 17 inch Galsworthy model

Table-top version:
http://www.tvhistory.tv/1951-Zenith-J2027.JPG

[kbmuri]

Hi everyone.

I bought this set from eBay because it belonged to my grandparents. It went "missing" in 1971. It turned up in the same neighborhood, 35 years later. Go figure.

I joined this forum to get more information on the set. First thing I found was my own TV. Small world.

Thanks Charlie for the "159-18" Sams folder/sheet number. That's just what I was looking for.

Attached is a National Geographic ad from 1951. It shows both the console and tabletop versions. The cabinet is original. The RCA picture tube is a 17HP4. "Electronex" apparently was a trade name for some sort of picture-tube manufacturing technique.

I also have a Capehart 333 and a Capehart 325, both similar console TVs of the same era. And a few dozen radios. Restoring them is a hobby of mine. So this forum will probably come in handy for other things too. Definitely a great resource!

[Charlie]

Wow... that's something... to find your grandparents' set on ebay... in their old neighborhood. Did the seller say anything about when and how they got it?

[kbmuri]

Hi Charlie.

I picked the set up personally and talked to the seller. Her ad said she got the set from the original owner but when I asked her to be specific, she kept changing the subject and then finally admitted she didn't know where the set came from. I didn't press the issue after that because she was a nice lady.

The documents that came with the set support where and when my grandfather bought his set (a very small Zenith dealer in the small town of Bluffton, Indiana), a repair receipt from an even smaller fixit shop in an even smaller Indiana town (Ossian) where My grandfather took his stuff to be fixed. My mother is still alive (although elderly) and verifies these details. We're hoping to find a photograph of her parents with the set to be absolutely certain it's the same model (if not the same set), but she remembers the set "clearly", and says is already certain. She also says her dad was one of those people who bought plastic covers for the furniture, and was pretty anal about taking care of stuff. And last, she remembers he had the set modified to recieve channel 49, WIPB, from Muncie Indiana, in 1951, two years before Fort Wayne got their first TV station (Channel 33, WKJG). This set has that modification.

My grandparents upgraded to color in 1966, and gave the Zenith to my mom, who gave it to my dad, who gave it to his parents. His parents lived on the same city block as the eBay seller. They used it until it broke, then in 1971 left it with the house when my grandfather died and grandmother moved. I could see the old house from the eBay seller's back door, about 60 yards away, corner-adjacent lots.

The coincidences are compelling, but I'm still looking for the Sherlock-Holmes bit of proof that says for sure. I'll certainly post news here if I come across such proof.

Meantime, thanks for your interest.