What’s the trick to remove the brass trim that holds a non-bonded safety glass in an RCA CTC-10 cabinet? And is it the top or bottom piece that comes out? Thanks

From my RCA Field Service Guide:

-Some models have a flat metal trim at the top of the cabinet in front of the safety glass. To remove the safety glass, remove the seven screws holding the trim, tilt the glass outward at the top and lift up and out of the bottom channel.

-All other models have a "U" shaped channel in front of the top edge of the safety glass. To remove the safety glass, pry off the top channel starting at the extreme ends. Insert the blade of a small screwdriver in one of the vertical slots in the middle of a retainer at the top of the safety glass. Slide the bar to the right to release the retainer. Tilt the glass outward at the top and lift up and out of the bottom channel.

Does that help?

Thanks, Chris

I do have that same book/directions.

The ends will pull down, but I can't get them to release, so I'm afraid of bending the metal channel. I guess I don't understand the holding mechanism inside that strip. Not sure if I should be prying downward, or outward on that brass channel. :scratch2:

Let me know if you figure it out. The bottom piece on my CTC-7 glass bezel has some minor dents, so I was thinking of swapping the top & bottom pieces.

I wonder if you need to remove the CRT and work from inside. There's nothing on the front that resembles "vertical slots in the middle of a retainer at the top of the safety glass," unless that's revealed after you remove the channel.

Phil Nelson

LOL! Guess I’m not the only one that’s too chicken to use brute force. I took the directions to mean that the center retainer releases the glass after the fact that the channel is removed. I really doubt the CRT needs to come out; Can't imagine going through all the CRT convergence and purity just to clean the glass.

John Folsom and I wrestled over this issue a few months back on a ctc7 set. Neither one of us could figure out how to remove the glass without removing the crt from the back side and taking all the trim appart. It appeared that if we were able to remove the trim at the top of the glass, there was a high likelyhood that the trim would get bent or damaged in the process.

If there is a way to do this without destrouing the retaining strip at the top of the glass, I would shure like to know how you did it. It does not seem possible to remove the trim without damaging it. But a person would have to asssume that RCA must have provided a method to get the safety glass off so a person could clean the inside, without removing the crt and all associated hardware.

Has anybody actualy done this from the front and if so what is the trick????

It's a major PITA to get that top brass piece off, let me tell ya. You just have to be extremely careful when prying, it comes off easier from the bottom. Reason is the trim snaps over the retainers that sit in the cabinet from the top and bottom, and once it's in there it's in there good. You might have better luck trying to get one side up, then attempt to slide it off one way or the other. If you can get it to clear the edge of the cabinet without bending, you'll likely be able to get it the rest of the way off.

I figured it out. :)

First, you want to roll the brass U trim outward from the top edge, while pushing up on it from below. I found a putty knife works well for this, something narrow will dent the wood. You need to lift it off those tabs along the top the retainers.

Next, slide the outside of the retainer mechanism to the right, then fold the retainer outward from the slots behind (they fold in the center). There are two retainers, left and right of the CRT center.

Be ready to catch the safety glass when you remove that second retainer. Mine about fell forward into my lap before I realized it was moving.

The bottom trim looks to be the same U channel as the top, I have not figured out how it's retained. It's holding mechanism seems different than the top.

Sorry, I missed minimans post by a minute while I was uploading pictures.

Thanks Kevin. So the trick if I understand it, is to pull the upper edge off of the locking tab behind the brass trim piece. And the way to do that is to push upward on the brass trim while at the same time pulling the upper edge of the brass trim outward toward you. Seems like some sort of thin metalic object with a small catch at the end would be helpful to get behind the trim piece to pull it forward. How was the putty knife able to pull the trim forward? Or does the trim just pop off of the tab behind it when you push up? I will have to try this on on one of my 7's

Thanks!

Bob,

The trim floats out past the outer edge of those retainers. So you can pull it forward with the putty knife at the end. At that point I was able to get a finger behind trim end and then move the putty knife closer to the first tab. You need to slowly work it off one tab at time, working inward from each end.

Pictures below show how the U trim hangs on the retainers. The bottom edge of the trim wraps around the back of the retainer, so I don't see how you could slip the bottom edge off first. The right picture is an upside down view of the bottom side.

Kevin,
Is the upper back edge of the trim just sitting on top of the metal retainer, or is the back edge of the trim 'Hooked" into that tab which is sticking out of the glass retainer?

If it is NOT hooked into the little tab, what do you suppose the purpose of that tab is? That is the part that confuses me. I gather that the brass trim is Not hooked into the little tab, but just sort of snaps over the glass retainer assembly in sort of a "force fit"??????

Sorry, had those two last pictures reversed. Fixed now.

Kevin,
Is the upper back edge of the trim just sitting on top of the metal retainer, or is the back edge of the trim 'Hooked" into that tab which is sticking out of the glass retainer?

If it is NOT hooked into the little tab, what do you suppose the purpose of that tab is? That is the part that confuses me. I gather that the brass trim is Not hooked into the little tab, but just sort of snaps over the glass retainer assembly in sort of a "force fit"??????

It's just setting up there, but it's an interference fit between the tab and the cabinet top. My tabs bent outward a little when I pulled mine off, so it now looks loose in the pictures.

Apparently it was never intended to be taken on and off often. It's only those little tabs that cause the press fit. But boy do they ever hold while its all originally mounted in the cabinet.

That bottom J has the glass pressed up against the backside. So possibly those tabs create more of a cam mechanism, so as to allow the trim to rotate around the retainer for removal. I don't know how else to explain it. It holds when it's on the cabinet, but looks pretty confusing while it's off.

Let me know if you figure it out. The bottom piece on my CTC-7 glass bezel has some minor dents, so I was thinking of swapping the top & bottom pieces.


Finally got the bottom trim off.

The bottom trim comes off a little different than the top. After the safety glass was removed, I was then able to push inward on the top edge of the trim. I started on an outside corner, using inward rolling motion, while at the same time pressing down. You can also roll it in the middle, to help it release from the center two tabs. The top edge hooks over the retainer; the bottom is pressed under those four little tabs. It takes a little messaging to get the bottom lip to slide past those tabs.

I ran into this same arrangement on a bw RCA console. I don't know why they had to make it so complicated. I'm pretty sure I bent something getting that one apart. RCA sets that are a little older use a different arrangement which I seem to recall is easier to deal with.

What I don't understand is why the RCA field service manual is so vague on the removal process. I'll bet they sold a lot of replacement brass trim over the years.

So, if I'm following all this . . . the top trim (U channel) piece can be removed without removing anything else, but to remove the bottom one for a swap, I would need to remove everything, including the glass.

Are the top & bottom pieces even interchangeable? This is looking like more fuss than it's worth, especially since my glass doesn't look dirty in the first place.

Phil Nelson

So, if I'm following all this . . . the top trim (U channel) piece can be removed without removing anything else, but to remove the bottom one for a swap, I would need to remove everything, including the glass.

Can't say I tried removing the bottom with the glass on, but I think it will be much easier working from the top first. Also, you can't take the bottom retainers off to remove the glass for cleaning.


Are the top & bottom pieces even interchangeable? This is looking like more fuss than it's worth, especially since my glass doesn't look dirty in the first place.

Phil Nelson

They are interchangable.

What I don't understand is why the RCA field service manual is so vague on the removal process. I'll bet they sold a lot of replacement brass trim over the years.

That's why RCA always tried to sell service contracts with their sets. They used to have those clips inside, all around the CRT. Another PITA, those tuner indicator belts.

This trim removal was probably the sort of thing you learned in an RCA-supported training session.