After losing the bidwar for the doody tv, i jumped on an emerson metal portable.

ebay #160264808084

After a dance in the USPS truck, it arrived with the CRT loose and dancing in the cabinet.

UPSIDE? the CRT survived the trip and tested well :thmbsp:

DOWNSIDE? it is a bit beat up and a wire from the yoke is off with no idea where it was soldered.. not to mention theres no tube chart and i cant find a model# and unfortunately, it was priorly molested.

I know it will need a capjob, but ill need some help with identification and a SAMS

Your help is needed and ALWAYS appreciated :D

thanks
Steve

perhaps a pic will help :D

(sigh)......

Still need a SAMS....

I hit a wall... the Horiz. out tube has no #s on it and theres a FEW modifications someone made before me i need to straighten out...

help meeeee,,,, help meeeeeeee

Steve

I thought sure someone would see that picture and have one in their collection, or otherwise know the model. I don't. I could just start digging through the Sams folders, but that can take awhile. Even if you could draw a partial tube chart on your own and post it, that would help. There were lots of books out when this set was made (of the "fix your own tv" variety) that published tube charts and we might be able to work backwards from that.

Okay, I did some digging and came up with Sams 387-1. The photo on the cover is very close, though not exact. This may be as close as Sams got it. Here are the numbers it covers-maybe you can find one of them stamped somewhere:
Models
1254,1264-chassis 120341H
1255,1265-120342R
1258,1268-120347H
1259,1269-120348R
2064-120358H
2065-120359R
The horizontal output tube is probably a 25DN6, though a note says that some versions used a 25CD6GA instead.

If you need a copy of the Sams you can borrow mine (I couldn't find a duplicate in the pile) just send me a PM.

A bell rang in my head when I saw the picture of that Emerson portable. I had a set almost exactly like that one about 35-40 years ago, although mine was in a brown metal cabinet with a brass-color trim strip near the side-mounted control and tuner cluster. The set worked very well for me for many years (it was my second set, don't remember where I got it), then was replaced by a 1959 Zenith portable, and the list goes on...

Those early Emersons were good sets in their day. The one you have probably dates to the early to mid 1950s. The only thing I didn't like about those sets was the metal cabinet--a shock hazard waiting to happen, if anything went wrong with the isolation networks or someone tried to turn the controls with an uninsulated pair of pliers. My 1959 Zenith that replaced the Emerson also had a metal cabinet, but the Zenith had a power transformer so was fully isolated from the line. I don't know to this day how the chassis in the Emerson was isolated, unless it was by simple means such as plastic knobs on the control shafts and rubber or nylon spacers between the chassis and the cabinet, any way that would satisfy the requirements of the National Electrical Code of the 1950s. One way or another there would have had to be some kind of barrier system to prevent the hot chassis from contacting the cabinet (this was one of those sets that would either be hot with the full line voltage or dead "cold", depending enirely upon which way the line cord plug was inserted in the socket; this was decades before polarized plugs, GFCIs and other protection schemes were required by the National Electrical Code on new AC/DC and transformerless TVs, radios and appliances).

I wouldn't give up on the Emerson set you have, if I were in your position. It seems as if the set made it to your house without much damage; if the only real problem is the loose yoke lead, you are lucky. I have read horror stories here on AK of TVs that have arrived via UPS or other carriers at their new owner's home, only to get there with a smashed CRT or worse; I read one particularly sad tale recently of a Zenith radio, model MJ1035 (like the one in my avatar), that arrived via UPS at its new owner's residence (after a journey of some 1,000+ miles) literally in pieces. You were extremely fortunate the CRT in your Emerson TV did not implode, if the set bounced around as much as it did in the USPS truck.

I have restored a couple of the Philco Seventeeners with hot chassis. They have a system of screws into insulators to prevent the metal cabinet from becoming hot. It is a risky arrangment. Some of these even have metal knobs, I do not remember how these are isolated.

I have also restored some 17 inch Hoffman "Easy Vision" sets that have filament transformers, but used voltage doublers for the power supply, leaving the chassis hot. They used fiber connectors, fiber mounts, etc. on the front controls to reduce the risk of shock. However the controls on the back were not insulated, kind of risky if you ask me.

However, the worst design relating to this is some of the 1940s AC/DC radios that I have. No isolation at all. If you pick it up while it is plugged in, the screws on the bottom holding the chassis in the case could be hot. Things were very different back then.

Thanks Jeff:

Yeah it is in fact a miracle the CRT survived, It came loose in transit and was bouncing a bit in the chassis. The yoke is a bit messed up but i think i can salvage it.
UPSIDE, the 14wp4 CRT is a rebuild and tests very strong :D

Im awaiting my brother's camera so i can shoot a few pics of the chassis. This will help Bgadow narrow down a SAMS for it. I cannot find a complete # anywhere on this tv. It also has one of those big blue rectifiers everyone hates in it and since i see no transformer in it, im betting the chassis is a HOT one. Not to mention the tubes have odd heater voltages so that about clinches it. And yes Peverett, it has the the fiber mounts and the plastic knobs :)

Be back with pics as soon as my brother finds his camera... :D

Thanks all for your input :thmbsp:

Steve

Here are some pics..

one pic is of the only sticker i could find on the chassis.. zoom in and see if you can make out the #s

If you need more, i can draw up a tube chart if nessasary :)

Thanks again all for your input :thmbsp:

Steve

I'm sitting here looking at my sams index book....your biggest clue may be the numbers on that tag below the a/c plug. If you can dissect it as best as possible, even with a magnifying glass that would be helpful! It could be a six digit number maybe with a letter after it for the model and/or chassis, or the chassis number seems to be refered to a PCB number which could be something like xxx-x. But you're sure you see nothing stamped anywhere?
I would guess that the sams number will be in the high 300's too. Do you have a public library in your area that has a technicial section? If so, there may be a fairly complete section of Photofacts! The Fort Worth Public Library has been a lifesaver for me on many ocasions! Usually, they would have an index book too and you could go hunting!!
I can't tell if the numbers on the left are the model number or maybe a serial number......but the bold numbers may be the ones!!
Bgadow may be right about sams 387-1. Oftentimes, the picture on the photofact may not even be close! But a picture of the chassis/layout should be accurate.

My guess is it is either the correct Sams or is close enough. The differences are a slightly different top handle design, plus the pictured set has the optional UHF, mounted on the top. There is also another extra knob on the side (tone control?) Steve, you had asked me about the phono input on the back, and I see it in the Sams photos as well.

LOL talk about co incodence :D

Look at ebay item # 160278576509 Is this the set your sams describes?

Talk about "deja TUBE" hehehehe

Yes its VERY close to mine, Mine is the less equipped model..

Steve

Speaking of which i just bought that set as well :D

Steve

The second emerson (model 1259) arrived well :thmbsp:
A unique tv i must say. the extra knob Bgadow mentioned is not tone but a RADIO/PHONO/TV selector switch. The dial on top is an AM radio. What a trip!! And it works!! the tv has sound and channels but no pic. might be the HV. Not to mention the tv has no knobs (as seen) Any one have em? Looks like the tuner is 3 coaxial (vhf/uhf/fine tune) the AM is a single radio knob.

This tv helped me figure out the chassis# on the first tv its a model 1254. I might sacrifice the 1254 to fix the 1259 havent decided yet...
check your sams and knob piles and lemme know :D

Steve

Nice! I love those teal/white metal cabinets. That one looks not to have a scratch.

Yeah the cabinet is in nice shape. ide like to find a pic of this model with the knobs on it so i can find some replacements.. The tuner alone has 3 knobs and it will be a miracle to find a set of these lying around somewhere.. Anyone with a set or an ad for this model is encouraged to respond. I need closeups of the top AM knob and the triple knob setup on the tuner before i can begin a search... Please all chime in :D

On the upside, i used the flourescent light trick to confirm HV is present at the 1B3 still no light on the screen and a hum in the audio so it will need a capjob right out of the gate..

More later :)
Steve

I guess theres a prob with the 14wp4:

Allthough it tests high on the tester, it wont light on the tv where as the soso 14rp4 i have lights and i kinda get a pic. Since the 14wp4 has a loose back, im presuming there is a fine wire busted.. Anyone have a RP4 lying around that tests high?

OOPS, forgot to mention i got my first line to chassis bite today ahhhh that was fun, just like i remember

Steve

I was thinking maybe an ion trap issue, but the book sez the RP uses a trap but not the WP. Did you install the trap on the W? Not sure if it would matter?

GIVE BGADOW A CIGAR!!! (applause)

Removed the ion trap and it LIT!! :D

The trap was on the CRT when i recieved the tv, so i though it was supposed to be there.
The tv lights and has weak, buzzing audio, the horizontal hold wont lock, and it blooms after it warms up a bit.
I reccon thats typical of an old tv thats only had the E-caps replaced so far..

This is the FIRST Emerson tv i bought that im playin with.. Still trying to locate knobs for the second one..

Steve

Great! I really didn't know if having a trap on a non-trap tube would matter. Obviously it was sending that beam off to parts unknown!

Allrightee...

Im trying to locate some knobs for the green one 1259

Mike needs pics of the knobs so he can dig some up, unfortunately my tv came with no knobs. the SAMS on it doesnt show the knobs very well,

can anyone find a pic of this tv ?

Thanks
Steve