Show us your radios!

[jamespowers]

Sure, it's nice stuff, but the store's survival depends on a clientele with much more money than imagination.

Fortunately, we have the opposite problem(or unfortunately depending on how you rate it.)

 

[tonyb]

Well, big money has been known to ruin people -- generally not the people who founded the fortunes, but their offspring and their offspring's offspring, etc.

Hunger tends to focus one's attentions.

Among the things on which my attentions will be focused are those Eames-designed radios. A cool grand or more for a $25 estate sale radio would certainly fill my belly for a good long while.

 

[jamespowers]

Among the things on which my attentions will be focused are those Eames-designed radios. A cool grand or more for a $25 estate sale radio would certainly fill my belly for a good long while.

You can say that again. :eusa_clap

 

[Giftmacher]

Here's the radio I won.
http://aukro.cz/telefunken-choral-i3274106825.html

 

[decojoe67]

I just recently purchased this 1939 Zenith 9-S-367 console. It was bought in excellent original condition from a New England antique shop years ago and immediately stored away until I purchased it. I just had to go over the cabinet with Howards and have the chassis re-capped. It's a clean, attractive "machine-age" deco design with beautiful veneers. It is a 9 tube, 2 band set with the green "magic-eye" tuning meter. It has the famous "robot-dial" known as the "shutter-dial". Each dial snaps into view separately in a clam-shell style as you select bands. It also has the first full "organ-control" tone and pre-set station selectors flanking the dial. It has a quality robust look about it and is a joy to listen to with it's classic rich "tube-sound"!

 

[Hawkcigar]

I just recently purchased this 1939 Zenith 9-S-367 console. It was bought in excellent original condition from a New England antique shop years ago and immediately stored away until I purchased it. I just had to go over the cabinet with Howards and have the chassis re-capped. It's a clean, attractive "machine-age" deco design with beautiful veneers. It is a 9 tube, 2 band set with the green "magic-eye" tuning meter. It has the famous "robot-dial" known as the "shutter-dial". Each dial snaps into view separately in a clam-shell style as you select bands. It also has the first full "organ-control" tone and pre-set station selectors flanking the dial. It has a quality robust look about it and is a joy to listen to with it's classic rich "tube-sound"!

That's a very nice console. The 9S367 has always been one of my favorites. Isn't this cabinet also known as the Zephyr?

 

[decojoe67]

Thanks. I've wanted to add one of these Zenith's to the collection for years. Radio collectors do often refer to all the slat-grilled Zenith's as "Zephyr's", but I have only seen that name officially used in their '37 line. This slatted grille design would show-up again in '40 for the last time.
This set is a true Zenith "Zephyr", the '37 10S157:

 

[vitanola]

Yes, turned. Past tense.

I picked up a 588 at the Lansing meet for $15. In addition a Zenith 6D30 ($20) and an Emerson 520 Catalin ($125) of course the Emerson 520 is probably the most plentiful and is by far the least desirable of the Catalin radios, but it IS Catalin!

In addition the above modern junk I also picked up a nice 1924 Lecault "Super", a Federal Model 61 (1923), a FADA 160 Neutrodyne (1923) with a full set of brass-base tipped rainbow 201A tubes, some interesting 1920's battery eliminators, and a rather attractive Art Deco "Grandfather Clock" radio by Clinton.

 

[Giftmacher]

Case is restored, one tube is still missing.

 

[CSG]

Found this 1942 Philco console in Sun Valley last week for $75. It's in remarkable condition and works but I'm going to have the chassis and power cord redone by the guy that did my 1936 Zenith tombstone:



The photos don't show it well but the finish is original with a wonderful patina and lacquer.

 

[Giftmacher]

How it come, that American radio from 40's is nicer than European from 30's?

 

[vitanola]

How it come, that American radio from 40's is nicer than European from 30's?

I don't know that many would say that. Your Telefunken is an interesting and attractive set, and the Eurpoean models are relatively much scarcer than their American equivalents. In addition American homes and apartments tended to be much larger than those in the Old Country, so consoles were more prevalent over whilst in Europe table models seemed to predominate. Even cheap five and six tube chassis were offered in more or less elaborate console cabinets. Another possible reason for the rather elaborate cabinets offered b American makers in the 1930's and 1940's would be the extremely competitive nature of our radio market at the time. In the 'Thirties we had hundreds of manufacturers vying for the public's limited radio dollars, and highly styled cabinets were a way of differentiating one's product from the mass.

 

[Giftmacher]

You're most probably right, and I would love to have some Zenith at home, especially when I see the prices at which they are selling-unbelievable!

 

[Dragon Soldier]

This afternoon's car boot acquisition. 1944 Wartime "Austerity" Civilian Receiver. Very simple Medium Wave only sets, often cased in scrap wood. designed to be cheap (£10ish) and have as little an impact on war production as possible. It's filthy and all the valves are the originals (they had obfuscated numbers) I don't think the back panel has been off before.

Mains lead is in absolute rag order and will need replaced before I even attempt putting power on it. Off on my holidays this week so it'll have to wait!

 

[jamespowers]

This afternoon's car boot acquisition. 1944 Wartime "Austerity" Civilian Receiver. Very simple Medium Wave only sets, often cased in scrap wood. designed to be cheap (£10ish) and have as little an impact on war production as possible. It's filthy and all the valves are the originals (they had obfuscated numbers) I don't think the back panel has been off before.

Mains lead is in absolute rag order and will need replaced before I even attempt putting power on it. Off on my holidays this week so it'll have to wait!

View attachment 3588

Even if it was designed cheaply, it still looks like a fine piece of furniture. Nowadays you have to pay a fortune for furniture to even look slightly fine. Things sure have changed when the designed to be cheap back then looks stylish still today.

 

[Dragon Soldier]

Now up and running. For the techies, it was surprisingly good! Rectifier tube had a physical fault to the base, patched up with epoxy and a replacement has been ordered from an auction site. Westector was knackered, replaced with a modern signal diode.
The AF coupling & tone correction caps were replaced with modern, audio quality, equivalents. The HT smoothing caps should probably have been replaced as a matter of course but my local Maplin didn't have any close equivalents in stock and.... I'm sort of spent out it anyway (largely due to buying almost silly good caps for the audio line). Case was stripped of it's stain, which had been applied by a previous owner, rubbed down, and a clear polyurethane lacquer applied. Gives it an original-ish looking finish while making it relatively easy to keep clean. Antenna is just a random wire hanging out the back, I have a very good earth.
May attempt a better rx alignment when the new valve is delivered... Or I might just leave it as is.

[video=youtube;ET9bX_Nf5P8]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ET9bX_Nf5P8[/video]

 

[lolly_loisides]

^^^^^^^^^
Argh U2!
Thanks for posting the youtube video. We see lots of pictures of peoples radios on this thread, but it's nice to hear how the radios actually sound.

 

[Dragon Soldier]

U2... I know! I can make them work but I can't make them receive anything good.

 

[MissMittens]

Now up and running. For the techies, it was surprisingly good! Rectifier tube had a physical fault to the base, patched up with epoxy and a replacement has been ordered from an auction site. Westector was knackered, replaced with a modern signal diode.
The AF coupling & tone correction caps were replaced with modern, audio quality, equivalents. The HT smoothing caps should probably have been replaced as a matter of course but my local Maplin didn't have any close equivalents in stock and.... I'm sort of spent out it anyway (largely due to buying almost silly good caps for the audio line). Case was stripped of it's stain, which had been applied by a previous owner, rubbed down, and a clear polyurethane lacquer applied. Gives it an original-ish looking finish while making it relatively easy to keep clean. Antenna is just a random wire hanging out the back, I have a very good earth.
May attempt a better rx alignment when the new valve is delivered... Or I might just leave it as is.

[video=youtube;ET9bX_Nf5P8]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ET9bX_Nf5P8[/video]

Very well done

 

[Foxer55]

As a result of engaging my imagination here at FL I have acquired a new pastime – old radios. My interest was first piqued by old console radios , ones with the Green Eye. Getting one is still my goal but I need to be able to justify paying $1200-$1500 for one. Ah, idea, I can restore one myself. Buts that’s another discussion.

The picture here is of my first ole time radio, it’s a Zenith 755LK manufactured in 1956. As much as I want to deal with tube radios, this is a collector item, one of the first portables with transistors. Eight of them. It really plays well with full deep audio and pulls in stations very well. It sounds great and it is in remarkable cosmetic and working shape. This radio cost about $70 in 1956 so it was a very, very expensive radio then. Today that would amount to well over $1000.

The only problem is this is an AM only radio, FM still had not been developed suitably in 1956 to justify selling it as a retail item. What this means now is I can only get the AM broadcast fare which consists of sports, foreign language, religion, and conservative talk radio. I really would like to listen to some music, pop music or oldies. Ah, well, too bad.

I have two other radios on order, a GE portable tube radio and a Zenith high power transistor shortwave radio with all bands, both from the 1950s. I’ll post pictures when I get them.

Show me your radios!