The owner just called and the deal is made. Finally, I found a CTC-11 locally and not expensive. The cabinet is photo finish but it is MINT, non-smoker and the labels are all pure white and present. The only thing that worries me is my truck has expired plates because it was broke down for a while, it's fixed but the plates are not. Keep your fingers crossed that I find a vehicle to borrow for a few hours. I'm also getting an apartment to put it in tomorrow too, it looks like things are finally starting to get better for me. On another note, a CTC-24 is being delivered to me tomorrow. My back hurts already but at least I'm smiling:D

Hope it ain't a ZILLION effin' degrees where you are to have to hoss them big ol' Roundies around in...103 or 4 here in NE Tin-Uhh-See today..

Not 100+ but's supposed to be 91, I'm just happy to have finally found a nice 11 to play with. They say it MIGHT rain but the've been saying that, any drier around here and were gonna have fires like the west. EVERYTHING is turning brown and crunchy....

The owner just called and the deal is made. Finally, I found a CTC-11 locally and not expensive. The cabinet is photo finish but it is MINT, non-smoker and the labels are all pure white and present. The only thing that worries me is my truck has expired plates because it was broke down for a while, it's fixed but the plates are not. Keep your fingers crossed that I find a vehicle to borrow for a few hours. I'm also getting an apartment to put it in tomorrow too, it looks like things are finally starting to get better for me. On another note, a CTC-24 is being delivered to me tomorrow. My back hurts already but at least I'm smiling:D

I'm happy for you that you found an apartment and the CTC11/CTC24, but I think you'll probably be plenty busy for weeks, months or even longer (!) just getting settled in your apartment once you get there, with little time to think about TV repairs. I remember when I moved to my small apartment 12 years ago, it took me all of a year to get settled -- mainly because I had brought a huge pile of stuff with me from where I formerly lived; most of that (almost all of which was odds and ends for which I had no room in my then-new apartment) got put out for the trash. (I'm still throwing out junk, mostly outdated paperwork, from years ago to this day.) Thank goodness my new furniture had arrived (I bought all new furniture when I came here) and was in place in my apartment when I finally moved in.

BTW, I hope you get both TVs working when you find the time to get to them. The CTC11 dates to the '60s, IIRC, while the CTC24, again IIRC, is probably from the early '70s, with UHF. Unless your area has one or more LPTV or translator stations on UHF channels, that tuner will be just about useless, of course, with the VHF tuner being set on channel 3 or 4 to receive the output from either a cable box or an ATSC->NTSC OTA converter box.

Good luck.

Thanks Jeff, I'm very excited things are getting better, I've been kinda depressed lately. Two phone calls in one day sure made me happy. The 11 is a '61 or 2 and the 24 is a '67. The seventies started with CTC 40 I think, somewhere in there anyways.

Congratulations on your new apartment and your new TV sets. When you get the time, we'd like to see photos of the sets :thmbsp:

Congrats Mark! That's awesome man. Glad things are looking up for you.
Can't wait to see that CTC-11!

Well, shit. My paycheck didn't come today and the lady said she'll hold it for me, which is very nice of her. I told her I'll throw in a few more dollars to hold it as well. I don't want her to think I'm blowing her off. I also have to wait a day or so to move into the apartment. Sooo I guess it's a few more days of the crap I've been living in. I've spent all my savings for an apartment on motels waiting for picky bungholes to call me back on apartments and do credit checks which also cost money. Hopefully everything works out by tuesday. It really sucks because I make GOOD money (20+ hr) and I still can't seem to get ahead.....

Not 100+ but's supposed to be 91, I'm just happy to have finally found a nice 11 to play with. They say it MIGHT rain but the've been saying that, any drier around here and were gonna have fires like the west. EVERYTHING is turning brown and crunchy....

The grass and under brush is like that out in Pewaukee/Delafield as well. Infact some of the trees are starting to turn yellow. It is getting so dry I worry that come Independance Day the state is going to stay lit red after all the other colors go dim.....

It is getting so dry I worry that come Independance Day the state is going to stay lit red after all the other colors go dim.....

I've been wondering that myself. I am sure the pro's take precautions against fires, but I bet the "billies in the fields" around here won't. They'll be shooting roman candles into the crispy-dried wilderness...

Have you checked into renting a pickup from Lowes or whatever home improvement store you have in your neighborhood? I haven't had to do it myself but they rent by the hour, might be a good option.

show some pictures of the tv [ in detail ] when you get settled.

Hey Mark,

As I write this, 12:50 pm CDT. The Weather Channel is predicting a huge storm heading for Chicago in the next hour. 100 mph winds, hail and certainly much heavy rain. Be careful if you travel to pickup your CTC-11. Or anything you do outside today.

All the best as things improve for you.
-Steve D.

First I heard of it. Apparently it was well south of us, it's been nice all day where me and Mark are at.

I still don't have my check yet, hopefully it comes in the mail tomorrow. But, my mom was nice enough to lend me a few bucks to get a truck and the set. The resale shop in Racine was closed today but she said it would be ok to come get it, I called her and got no answer but already had the truck, I only had her home number. I thought she might be at the store moving things around like she said she might do Sooo we went up there and no one was there. :sigh: But luck struck big time because we just so happened to get there and be standing in front of the shop when some drunk guy started yelling that the store was closed. I thought oh sh*t what's with this guy. He came over and said he and his sister in law own the store, he asked "are you the guy that wanted the tv" I said YES, and was then thinking "thank God for the drunk guy" (I think his name is Larry) Anyways, he got on the phone and got ahold of his sister in law, then we find out the set is not at the store but at her house in the garage. So, he was then riding in the back of the truck slurring out the directions though a really rough neighborhood, it was pretty funny actually. He had us going in a few circles and we actually passed the house we were supposed to stop at LOL! he then told us "nah this is too far turn around" After an un-scheduled tour of the area, we made it there. It was sitting in the driveway and I thought YAY! this is really gonna work out after all. In the end, I paid for it loaded it, then realized in the haste of all the days activities I forgot to bring a tie-down and blanket. I then rode in the back of the truck with it so it wouldn't move. After all that craziness I wasn't about to have it tip and neck the tube or eff up the cabinet. For now, it is safely sitting in my storage locker. I will take good pictures of it ASAP. I have a few on my phone, if they look ok on the computer I'll post them. About the set, it looks almost new with only a few minor nicks that can easily be fixed, the photo finish is perfect however. All knobs are present, from a non-smoking home. It appears to be quite low hours and probably came from the original home. The cardboard tube cap looks to never have been bumped into anything. It even has the white label on the back of the chassis for the controls that is almost always missing or damaged. All three clips are present as are all the back screws that look to not have been removed more than twice. So, all in all, all the BS was totally worth it. This is the cleanest roundie I've picked up since my Director 21 and Wingate and looks just as new as they do. Thanks all you guys for hoping things get better for me, if my check comes tomorrow I'll also have a permanent address of my OWN! YAY!:banana:

The resale shop in Racine was closed today :

Lots of resale shops in Racine like that one on High St, (building closed and for sale for years ! junk still in window !)

Yeah, lots of things are closed up around there. This one was on Douglas ave. The only reason I knew about the set was that is was listed on CL, I found the ad 3 hours after it was posted judging by the time stamp on the photos. The pictures on it are pretty good, here's the link http://racine.craigslist.org/atd/3108856179.html

Damn, that one looks about as mint as they get! Congrats on the nice save!

You gonna stop by anytime this week? Got lots of proto tube tinkering that might required assistance, such as watching TV on it while drinking a cold one...lol

What a beauty! has "50's" styling

I like it!

That's a beaut! Nice save Mark!

wow thats like a time capsule, wheres that been hiding.

Very nice, i had one as a second set in Allentown.but left behind when i moved to Texas in'83

good luck, nothing is so important to us as keeping our goodies safe!

I hope someday you get a place in the country where they can bury your hide nearby.

Most excellent 11 you've saved there. :thmbsp:

Now's hopping you get in that apartment too.

Dam that looks nice! Congrats on a good score! :yes: :banana:

Cool set! Good luck with the new digs.

Nice to see it go to a good home, I still have my first 11 from '83 and a spare chassis from one just like yours. May the jug have good emission!!!

Thanks guys, I really look forward to getting started on it. I should be working on some other sets first but they're buried in storage right now. BTW, I did get that apartment. We spent the first night there last night. It was good.....I'll be moving the set over shortly, along with all kinds of other stuff.

WINGATE! WINGATE! WINGATE FIRST!!! lol

I'd love to but I don't even know where I'd put it in this apartment. The bedroom doors are kinda narrow, what's the depth on the Wingate cabinet? If it'll fit in there I'll dig it out. Then I can work on the 5 and the 11:D Also if the 5'll fit, I know the 4 will for sure.

I'd love to but I don't even know where I'd put it in this apartment. The bedroom doors are kinda narrow, what's the depth on the Wingate cabinet? If it'll fit in there I'll dig it out. Then I can work on the 5 and the 11:D Also if the 5'll fit, I know the 4 will for sure.

Hey Mark, Congratulations on getting the apt. Here's the dimentions on the "Wingate": Height:36 3/8" Width:38 3/4" Depth:30 5/8". Hope this helps.

Best,
-Steve D.

Thanks Steve! :D (^_^) With any luck, the door frame is Just a little wider than 30 5/8", but it doesn't look like it though. I really don't like to have that set in a storage locker.

If I was able to get my Wingate out of that house in Skokie with it's narrow doors, you should be able to get yours in no problem. And mine had the CRT still in it!

If worse comes to worse you can remove the CRT then reinstall it in the room and or unhinge the bed room door.

Hi, Mark -

Congratulations on getting your apartment. Living in motels is not easy or fun; I spent two weeks in an east suburban Cleveland motel before moving into my place.

I hope you find room for your Wingate RCA TV. If the doorways into the bedrooms in your apartment are narrow, however, you may have a problem. If worse comes to worst, you could put the Wingate or your other RCA in your living room (unless you already have a set to go in there) and hook it up to cable or an OTA converter box, then put the other set in the bedroom or wherever it will fit.

I notice (from the short list at the bottom of your post) that you have a stereo system as well. Again, you may have a problem or two putting it in your place, depending entirely on how large the apartment is.

Good luck, and keep us posted.

That is really beautiful,Mark!I'll bet it wont take much to get that glorious color.
Good luck in your new home.

Thanks everyone, The apt is great, it's nice to be in my own home again. I should have the set here in a few days. Unfortunately my 5 won't fit in our room, it lacks by 5/8 of an inch to get into the bedroom, even with the trim and door removed. Maybe if my son won't scratch it up, I can put it in the living room. Either way it's awesome to be out of the sh*thole I was living in. The water there is on a well and the pump burned up, so there's no water and his house is gonna be repossessed in a few weeks anyways so it was crunch time to find ANYTHING. Things are looking much better, plus my wife found a good job too. I'll post pics in detail of the 11 ASAP!!!!! :D

very nice set. I bet you one dollar that the push fuse in bad.

Congrats Mark!! Very beautiful set!:thmbsp:

Well, what a disaster this turned out to be. I was hauling it up the stairs on my furniture dolly when the landlady came along to "help" I told her I was fine, I have it don't touch it. I started up the second set of steps and she grabbed it anyways, pulling the it off the bottom of the dolly. It slipped out of the strap and fell on it's side, ripping off the top masonite, scratching the side with the dolly and cracking the other side. They should pay me for this goddamn thing, I told her NOT TO TOUCH IT, I'M FINE. As soon as I went up a step, she effed up the whole damn set before I could do anything about it. I really hate stupid people.......

Oh JEEEEEES!

I woulda been EFFING PISSSED!! That was such a nice cabinet !!

The icing on that cake would be if she just says it was JUST an old TV!!

:dammit:Yeah, I'm so PISSED that I'm sick to my stomach. And WAS is now the optive word. What really sucks is it's a WORKING set! It was PERFECT!!! Now I guess I'll try and rebuild it or redo the cabinet with either veneer or new panels. That sucks too because it was MINT and ORIGINAL!:rant: :mad::uzi::smshot:

DAMN!!






-Steve D.

Could have been worse,Mark-Always could have been worse.Sounds like the glass and knobs are still ok-as well as the chassis.You will have it fixed up in no time!

I hope so, It just sucks that it happened to such a nice original set. I want to keep it so I guess I'll do the best I can with it.

Gawd. What a shame. And what a way to start a relationship with the new landlord. :(

OUCH!!! I'm very sorry to hear of the damage to your CTC11. That set was in a beautiful cabinet (I've seen pictures of RCA's early CTCx color sets, and yes, the cabinets are a sight to behold); now you'll have to rebuild it with new veneer and the whole nine yards. :no: I don't know if the landlady or building owner can or will reimburse you for the damage, but I would ask anyway.

I second Ryan's (AUdubon5425) sentiments that an incident such as this is a bad way to begin a relationship with a new landlord.

Accidents happen, but there was no excuse for what happened to your TV, especially since you told your landlady no less than twice not to touch the set. She meant well, I'm sure, but she should have gotten the message the first time you told her to keep her hands off it.

Good luck.

Well, Hell....

I was just checking the CRT and of course, that too is original w/ great emissions. The set is low hours for sure. I might be able to glue the side that is cracked, when pushed together, it's barely noticeable. Sure, I'll know it's there but you know how that goes. Luckily the top popped off in one piece, that can be glued down and all is well. The only thing that might be a real PITA is the scratches on the other side. The clear coat is scraped off but the "finish" is still there. Does anyone know what that clear coat is? Lacquer maybe? What can I apply to cover it without reacting with the remaining finish? I might be able to build it up and wet sand it smooth. I'd really, really like to keep this set as original as possible. It is a shame that it was cared for for so many years just to have someone that was told not to mess with it screw it up. I've wanted an 11 for years and well, I had a perfect one for a week.....

I popped in a new 1V2 focus rectifier (the old one was original) :rolleyes: And have been watching tv on it all night. I've also thought of a plan B if I can't get the photo finish looking good again. Instead of replacing the panels, I can glue them back down and put veneer over them. It should look good as new. I'm bound and determined to get this thing back to how perfect it looked a week ago. Updates to come.....

Dude! Seriously! Sorry to hear that. I'm glad it physically works ok thou. At least we know cabinet rebuilding.

I saw it mentioned in the Zenith cabinet restoration thread, someone said toning lacquers are still available? If not, is regular lacquer still available. I'd figure I'd ask here before searching all over. It's been a while since I went shopping for that kind of thing and it seems poly is most common, I don't want to use poly. Nick, if you see this, where did you get your veneer from? I know of a place that sells it but there wasn't a whole lot to choose from. I don't remember seeing it at Menards or Home Depot.

Yes, it's easy to find toning lacquer and clear lacquer. I use Mohawk brand lacquer, available from http://www.tubesandmore.com/ and other suppliers.

I wouldn't worry about the lacquer reacting with the original finish. The photo-finishes used on older (1930s) radio cabinets appear to have been covered with lacquer. I'm not positive what was used for CTC-11-vintage photo-finish, but practically all radio/TV cabinets were done in lacquer because it dries fast. It's also easily reversible (don't like the results, wipe off with lacquer thinner and try again).

You are right to avoid poly. Apart from guaranteeing that you will go straight to Hell along with all the people who destroy furniture for antique malls, it is pretty impossible to remove except with a belt sander. So you had better apply poly perfectly the first time, cuz you'll not get a second chance. Poly also looks wrong. Nothing says "cheap antique mall" better than a thick, slopped-on coat of too-shiny polyurethane.

Whatever you use, I would first clean the entire cabinet using mineral spirits, to remove everyday grime, furniture polish, etc.

I think a satin finish looks best on most old cabinets. If you insist on using gloss for some reason, you can buff it down a little with #0000 steel wool after it cures.

Applying a clear coat over the whole cabinet might improve its appearance a tad. My 1958 Philco Miss America TV has photo finish, and although it's in wonderful condition, it looks "dead" or lacking depth compared to a real wood finish. I have sometimes thought of adding a coat of clear just for the heck of it, but that's far down on my list of priorities.

Just my $0.02.

Phil Nelson

P.S. If you read refinishing forums, you may hear that the formulation of "lacquer" has changed in recent years owing to environmental regulations. Although interesting to purists, that doesn't seem to matter for our purposes.

Thanks Phil! That stuff isn't very expensive either. I think that is the route I will take. I usually prefer a semi-gloss or satin finish as well but after cleaning this thing with just some dawn dish soap, you can see yourself reflecting off the sides and top, the front which is real wood is also quite shiny. It looks very pretty on this set so maybe gloss is a good choice for this particular set. Like you said, if it turns out too glossy I can always buff it down a bit.

I popped in a new 1V2 focus rectifier (the old one was original) :rolleyes: And have been watching tv on it all night. I've also thought of a plan B if I can't get the photo finish looking good again. Instead of replacing the panels, I can glue them back down and put veneer over them. It should look good as new. I'm bound and determined to get this thing back to how perfect it looked a week ago. Updates to come.....

show some picture's of the panels ,when i was desiding what to put on the zenith i look at lot of different choices ,do you have any restores in your area sometimes they got some high end 4x8 sheets veener panels left over from some job site ,after i started useing what i did thought about looking there if i knew what i know now i would looked there first ,sometimes they have a better sellection lowes/menards/depot all have the same stuff,i used the wood veener because i had sheet one left over from re-doing my bathroom and i didnt know how to stain nothing, i was surprised how easy it was. i still havent got to see your tv the craigslist picture expired.

Hey Mark,

I also didn't see the original Craigslist photo. Would it be possible to post a before & after photo of the set so we can see what you have to deal with?

Thanks,
-Steve D.

Here are the pictures I saved from the listing. When the set was perfect:tears:
She still looks pretty good despite what happened but the left side now has a crack about 7" long and the right side has two really big scrapes from top to bottom:mad: I'll take some pictures of it this evening if I get a chance.

Mark,

Thanks for posting the photos. Nice set. Thankfully the chassis, pix tube and cabinet front were spared. I think you'll be able to repair the cabinet. Seems to me that you should try & refinish just the scrape if possible and use a wood tint crayon as a scratch filler. Perhaps I'm over simplifying. Hope you're still on speaking terms with your new landlady.

-Steve D.

I can't believe people are that insensitive, even though she was "helping". I think the property owner should be liable, and the landlady needs to maintain a civil attitude during your tenancy, in the event she might get called on the carpet. And, it is a truly beautiful piece besides.

Here are the pictures I saved from the listing. When the set was perfect:tears:
She still looks pretty good despite what happened but the left side now has a crack about 7" long and the right side has two really big scrapes from top to bottom:mad: I'll take some pictures of it this evening if I get a chance.

man it looks like it was a new tv , i know what you mean just because its old it does have to look old and scratched up, it will drive me crazzy to have the insides working like new and outside looks rough.

That's got the gray bezel and control knobs like my Wakely. That looks sharp and it WAS worth all the trouble.

It still is worth all the trouble. It is now just a much larger project than expected. If I can't get the original finish to look good again (probably not) I will veneer it and put lacquer on it. It won't be original but it will still look beautiful, as it should. I'd rather it be all original like I was all excited about but well, sh*t happens. I just wonder why it happens to me and or my stuff so often:mad:

Hey Mark, answer your phone! lol

Hey, sorry Nick. I fell asleep on the couch. I'll give you a call tonight :)

Sorry I didn't answer again. I feel like crap. I slept in. I went by my old house this afternoon and the antenna is gone. i was kinda pissed, I wanted to get that for you, I paid 100 bucks for that thing....

Interesting story, I had the whole thing down and ready to load into the van and some guy drove up saying he owns the house now and is keeping the antenna...

What a putz...Some people do stuff like that just to be hateful, I think...

;)...

I just took some pictures of the 11 playing a DVD, I couldn't get them off my phone via bluetooth. That sucks. I've done it before but now it won't let me. I had a really good screen shot of a dirty movie before it got X rated too. I'll use a different camera and post something later....:(

interesting story, i had the whole thing down and ready to load into the van and some guy drove up saying he owns the house now and is keeping the antenna...

you got to be kidding! :d

He probably thought you were a metal scrapper.

He probably thought you were a metal scrapper.

I used to be able to get antennas for nothing, now everybody thinks I'm a scrapper and says no. I have to get a ladder out if I want anything free now.

The separated scrap value is a few bucks at best but they will spend hours drilling out rivets anyway.:thumbsdn: