More Old Radios

ledhedsymbols · 05-26-2012, 02:33 PM

My long suffering wife (in many respects) let me go radio shopping yesterday. These are my two new treasures.

The bigger wooden one is a 1937 Zenith 6-S-229 Tombstone. Missing a couple tubes, needs a new AC line cord, capacitors and resistors but it should be an easy resto. It's pretty desirable from a collector's stand point, and this one hasn't been abused so I don't have any cabinet work to do. There are the usual scuffs and scrapes but the thing is 75 years old!

The other is a bakelite Crosley from 1946. It's called an American/Overseas set. The dial says "American" for AM and "Overseas" for shortwave. It works great and is in nearly pristine condition. I don't think I will keep this one. It's nice, but not really my speed. It's fairly collectible and in great shape, so I think I will get more than enough out of it to pay for both radios plus the restoration on the Zenith. All in all, a pretty nice find.

Chocaholic · 05-27-2012, 05:19 AM

Where did you find them? Our local Target store was all out!

sc_rufctr · 05-27-2012, 05:41 AM

Thanks for posting. My Grandma may of had a "Crosley" like yours. I can't be 100% certain but the site of yours evoked a lot of good memories.

Out of curiosity. What sort of money are we talking about for the "Crosley"?

Evans, Marv · 05-27-2012, 10:48 AM

Used to see lots of the Crosley types when I was a little kid and some of the types like the Zenith too. Of course I also remember my grandparents picking up the telephone earpiece, cranking the crank, and speaking into the mouthpeice to the operator to be connected to one of their friends. It's funny to find those types of things appealing in an antique/artistic sort of way now.

ckissick · 05-27-2012, 12:34 PM

I have this 1956 Telefunken, with all the original paperwork, still in the box. It gets some AM stations, but that's it. It also hums. It probably just needs some new tubes. What might it be worth? I'll sell it for a good price.

ledhedsymbols · 05-27-2012, 03:56 PM

I found them through a Craigslist ad for another radio. he had a bunch of others but didn't want to post ads for everything. I would like to get about $150 for the Crosley. I only paid $100 for both of them, it was a great bargain. If I sell it on consignment at an antique shop I might be able to get a bit more.
The seller was wanting to get out of the hobby. He had a tree fall on his shop last winter and destroy a few of his REALLY high end sets, got frustrated and decided to liquidate for his other hobbies. He has a couple others I am really interested in but with the new baby, my fun money is pretty tight. I do however hope to be back in the next couple weeks.

I don't know for sure, but the Telefunken is probably pretty collectible. There is a segment that specifically collects German and European sets. It's outside my scope so I couldn't give you a real idea. The hum is most likely caused by bad filter capacitors. If you can solder, they aren't too hard to replace and would improve the performance a great deal. You also may need to do something better for an antenna. The old tube sets don't have an internal ferrite rod like a new radio. They may have a loop antenna glued to the back, but MUST have an external antenna of some type for decent reception.

I think the thing I like about them is the historical unknown. I perspective, these are almost like a modern cable TV, internet connection, and surround sound system all in one. This was the pinnacle of home entertainment at the time, and the big consoles are real pieces of furniture. I always wonder what people heard on mine. Was it news of the stock market crash? FDR and "A day that will live in infamy"? VE day? VJ day? Did the original purchased like The Shadow? Amos n Andy? Little Orphan Annie?
Another thing that I like is the real handmade feel. The soldering is all done by hand, every one is a little different, the cabinet work was all hand made, and all the components are marked "Made in USA." It's a different time when things were made by hand and were not meant to be disposable.
The more of them I have the more I love them!

intakexhaust · intakexhaust's Garage

Nice finds and thanks for the pics. Just happened to read last night this old interview of Crosley. Inovated and business savy thru the depression and war time:
Interview with Lewis Crosley

ramonesfreak · ramonesfreak's Garage

that zenith is beautiful. i can hear the grand ole oprey coming out of it, hank williams or carter family perhaps. have fun!

ckissick · 05-27-2012, 10:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ledhedsymbols

You also may need to do something better for an antenna. The old tube sets don't have an internal ferrite rod like a new radio. They may have a loop antenna glued to the back, but MUST have an external antenna of some type for decent reception.

The Telefunken has 2 antennae, one on either side, that pull out to look like rabbit ears. When they are pushed into the body of the radio, they loop themselves into a coil. That must be what you a loop antenna.

ledhedsymbols · 05-28-2012, 06:55 AM

So about that Telefunken... A little research and some Google-Fu says I believe that to be a Telefunken Portable Hi-Fi set. AM, Marine, Shortwave, and FM bands? The onboard antenna doesn't sound like a "loop antenna." Different lengths of antenna are best for different frequencies based on wavelength.
This is what I mean by loop antenna.

Replacement loop antenna