Hello All,

3 years ago I bought this old Zenith at auction for $2.
The date code tells me it is a 1968 model, although I have seen the tuner knobs on earlier sets.

The cabinet is actually in very nice shape. All it needs is a cleaning and a coat or two of Johnsons Paste Wax. No particle board here. Solid maple cabinet.

The chassis is another story. It is exceptionally dirty and dusty. It is so dirty that at first I didn't realize that it has the copper chassis. The set works, BUT, the color is horrible. I haven't tested the CRT, but is suspect it is probably OK judging by the very nice brightness response. I can play with the controls and get an OK picture, but certainly not what it could be. The tuners are also nasty dirty and scratchy. And then there is the "moldy" cataract picture tube.

So is the set worth a restoration? I dunno. Normally I would say no, but the cabinet is really nice, the pics don't do it justice. Sorry for the poor pix, but the set is literally burried in the utility room.

restore it! those are really good sets.except for the cataract,those zenith crt s are like tanks.clean it up,fix it up and enjoy!!!

I agree. That would be a nice one to restore and you'll definately be rewarded for your efforts.
-Tony

Any Zenith tube set is worth keeping and restoring... And those knobs definitely are more like '63-'65. May be a carry-over, not sure. If the date code isn't correct, I'd have said it's a first-year rectangular set; probably '66.

Charles

I had one of those exact sets from Adam. Fixed a problem in the blue drive circuit and it produced a great picture with plenty of DC restoration. I believe mine was a 68. Eventually went off to Shawn (freakaftr8) who is still using it as a daily watcher AFAIK.

Definitely a fixer.

*EDIT* - here are some screenshots from an old post
http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=67635&d=1194591238
http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=67638&d=1194591238

My late Uncle's '66 Zenith had that same control layout. It was retired around '81 and I wrecked it around '91, before I had any sense. I still have the old cabinet and CRT stashed away somewhere. I'm probably going to use the CRT in my CTC25 combo. I've kicked myself a thousand times for destroying that set.

I agree with everyone, restore it. Personally I think it's a '67, it's identical to my '67 except mine is in a metal cabinet. Whatever the year is, it is worth fixing. I have a '68 with the concentric dial, they only did that for two years IIRC. I think that layout was still used in '68 too so it may be. Check for more codes when you dig in further, that should make it more clear as to the year.

I guess I should move this set to the top of the list for restoration. After 3 years of sitting around it is definately time.

The cabinet and mask/knobs etc should be a breeze. A washing and then buffing on a few coats of paste wax to the cabinet should be all it needs.

I am afraid that the chassis will require a real bath. A bucket of warm water, some simple green and an old 4" paint brush. Then a couple of days sitting out under the back porch in direct sunlight. I can't recall a more dirty chassis, suprising since the cabinet is in really good shape. The home this set lived in was a nonsmoking home, so it isn't tar/nicotine I will have to deal with. I suspect it is dust/soot from an old coal furnace. The home was a 50's 2 story brick colonial with a basement. Sitting near dead center of the basement is/was an old coal furnace. On top of the furnace, the duct work resembled and enormous, inverted spider. I am sure that beast pumped coal soot into that house for decades.

I have found that even in non-smoking homes, air-borne cooking grease can be quite a nuisance. When chassis are really dusty, I find that giving them a good "blow job" (please pardon the pun) with the exhaust of your vacuum cleaner, with the crevice tool attached, is quite effective for initial dust removal (outdoors, if at all possible) Carefully go over the components with a tooth brush and a blast of air before getting it wet. In my experiences detailing, it saves a lot of messy, gooey wet lint later on. Good luck with the restoration. I had a black and white plug & play Zenith set of similar vintage, that was used for several years, and performed beautifully until it was replaced by a Curtis Mathes. I miss it now. It was so reliable, despite having a mistreated cabinet, and a lot of nicotine. As far as paste wax, I would recommend against Trewax, as it seems to turn white when it dries in cracks and crevices where it isn't buffed. I still prefer good old S.C. Johnson wax myself; I've never had a problem with it, be it furniture, floors, hell! shoes in a pinch! and the nearly half hour drying time gives you a chance to rest and and enjoy a cold beer.:tresbon:

By now, any tube color set is worth saving, provided it isn't a total basket case. Tons of potential in this set...actually, this is the kind I like to find. Just enough work needed to make it a fun project!