'49 DuMont Telecruiser gets resurrected
 

Lots of hard work and funds going in to this to get it up and running considering the condition it was in when found. Used to be owned by local WFAA Ch 8 in Dallas.


www.telecruiser.com

That is so cool, I can't imagine the work, time and money needed to do something like that but I'm glad someone is doing it!

Wow....

That is so cool!

Excellent to see the successful restoration of the Dumont Telecruiser, from the photos it looks as good as if it just came out out of the factory!!!:D Awesome to see one of the Dumont cameras operational, that to me really is something as there's not many IO cameras been restored to working order!!!:D Just a question about the camera, is it using its original image orthicon and circuitry or has it been refitted with a moderner vidicon camera or CCD camera as I see this been done a lot with old cameras?

I don't know but I just asked the person doing the work. I'll let you know what he says.

I was not aware of this being done - could you point us to some examples?

Examples:

History For Hire I believe have refitted their old camera props with modern cameras to make them look to be operational, check out Outkast's music video "Hey Ya" which a RCA TK-41 and RCA TK-60 appears in this clip in working condition:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PWgvGjAhvIw

Aussie camera collector James Paterson (austvarchive) has cosmetically restored one of his PYE MKIII cameras in which he refitted the camera head with a Sony vidicon camera to make it a functional prop:
http://www.oldtvgear.com/pye-restoration-page-5.html

And I recall seeing either a thread in Videokarma or on some other website (can't remember for the life of me), someone who owned I think a RCA TK-11 had refitted it with a modern colour CCD camera due to the fact the camera's original electronics got destroyed in a flood.

That is awesome....... simply awesome !! Great project and what a nice job you've done !!

What was mounted on the top of the telecruiser in the "as found' photo ?

No credit for that here! That would be "Chuck"s project on "Radiodiscussions.com, Texas TV" discussion board, DuMont Telecruiser thread.

I would guess that's air conditioning equipment on top. Still waiting for a reply about the cameras. It's a pretty slow forum.

Tk-31
 

Aussie...great memory. That is my TK-31 that I have had for about 12 years in it's new sheeps clothing. CCD cam, LCD viewfinder, Radio Shack DA for signals and genlock input to the cam if needed. It is in my shop at the moment getting a little retrofitting. It was on display at the Sarnoff Library for a few years until I had to get it out as they had to leave the property. The local PBS borrowed it as a set piece for a fund-raiser and now it is back with me.

Enough about me. The Telecruiser has to be the most amazing restoration I have ever seen. As soon as I find a DuMont meatball metal logo I have, it will be donated to the effort if needed.

Your suspicions are confirmed. Got this reply about the camera:

" The DuMont camera has a modern CCD camera inside. It isn't anything that can't be reversed. I simply removed the Image Orthicon and yoke and put a CCD camera and lens in place. I have saved all the parts and documented how it was connected so somebody could put it back if all the other parts (cables, accessory amplifiers, CCU and power supply) ever materialize. I'm missing all those essential components, so this was about as good as it gets."

Kinda sad that there is so little left of some vintage cameras, and so few parts that they can only be frankensteined/fishtanked back to life......

more info..

"...the add on AC unit was incredibly ugly and made the bus top and front heavy, I can understand why it was there. With all the tube type equipment, it must have been like the "Little Debbie Bake Oven" inside.

Amazingly, that air conditioner actually worked after sitting around unused since 1972. It was quite a challenge getting it off. Whoever installed it wanted to make sure it wouldn't come loose while traveling down the highway. "

Thanks for finding out, yep I had a feeling it was refitted with CCD as the picture greyscales just look too uniform to be IO, I was hoping to be wrong but anyhow, making the camera into a workable prop is better than it not going at all. Someone should invent CCDs that can mimic the characteristics of past image pickup tubes from Iconoscope to IO to vidicon etc. so these incomplete camera chains can be fitted with CCDs that can authenticate the original tube images.