I saw this Sony while out scouting around.

They had it marked as a Security Monitor, I thought they just didn't know any better but when I looked more closely that's exactly what it is, a Monitor.

The back has inputs and outputs added to it along with a switch, the factory antenna is removed and it seems that the tuner is also gone.

This all looks very professional, I don't think someone hacked it but I don't think Sony modified it either.

How Much ?

Looks like that whole raised panel in back was added. I have a 303. It's a very special set in my collection because it's the one my Dad gave me from HIS collection around fifteen years ago.

I spent quite a bit of time looking at those on ebay when I was on my "Sony kick" a couple months ago. Never saw one done up like this. I remember when I rescued a little 9" Quasar from a trash heap in a surplus place (REAL hard luck case). They had done a little mod like this to it as well. I was lucky and they had simply lifted a wire in the IF and stuck an RCA jack, and some little diode/resistors in place of the tuner inputs. Was EASY to put it all back to normal in my case. Only thing I couldn't fix was they had drilled a HOLE in the side of the set in the woodgrain plastic to mount the little phono jack.

This 303 looks like the WHOLE tuner assembly is gone :-(

I guess I woulda bought this as a curiosity.....but would be MUCH too big of a restoration back into a 303. I bet the lower and upper boards are likely still okay though. it's a VERY clever design of just two boards on hinged edgecard connectors above and below the CRT. You can even run the set on it's side with these two boards "open" a bit.

For any of you out there with these little Sony "Tummy TV" sets, the three models I know of (303,305 and 307)...are NOT at all interchangeable. The boards are all different despite the sets looking similar, but they all do have the clever "two boards" design making them relatively EASY to work on.

How Much ?

They wanted $30 for it, I wasn't that interested in it but if someone here just has to have it I could get it for them.

I kind of wanted to go back that way and see if the CRT in the GE was any good anyhow.

It seems like an awful lot of trouble for someone to go through just to have a small NTSC video monitor that doesn't even perform all that well. Don't get me wrong...I LOVE the little Tummy TV sets.....but I have three, and NONE of them have really been any treat to watch, and the amount of tweaking you can do is quite limitted even with it all apart.

I more enjoy looking at these NOT running, and keep them running as more of a novelty. I don't really like the odd green CRT and it's real warm picture. I keep the one Dad gave me in good nick...because I just have to. He gave it to me, and he isn't around any more. The little 303 will be the VERY last to go if I ever had to choose.

I would only buy one in this configuration for what little parts it would have...so like $15-$20 tops really. There isn't much there without even the antenna (Dad's set has the tip broken off...and it's NOT the same as a 305 or 307).

Yeah...$30 is a tad on the high side for one of these, I'd think...They're NOT "Rare" by any means, & ESPECIALLY for one that's been modifyed...

I think it's a possible factory-authorized set. Sony was big into videotape in the 60s, and they did sell a line of Sony 19" and 21" B&W monitors with the "sony" videocorder socket. Those larger ones were actually Admiral-built! But they had Sony badges and a Sony model #. Probably due to import costs, I'd guess, and limited market, it was a better deal for Sony.

Charles

I think it's a possible factory-authorized set. Sony was big into videotape in the 60s, and they did sell a line of Sony 19" and 21" B&W monitors with the "sony" videocorder socket. Those larger ones were actually Admiral-built! But they had Sony badges and a Sony model #. Probably due to import costs, I'd guess, and limited market, it was a better deal for Sony.

Charles


It looked like a professional job, maybe not by Sony but certainly not by some guy in his garage either.

There was a tag on the side from some company or shop on the side, I saw a date of 1983 but just assumed it was a repair tag.

Back around 1979 I used to work for some small company that modified Hitachi B&W monitors, and installed them inside a metal box along with a lens system, Xray film holder, and a controller. Purpose was to make film hard copy of a video still image input, mainly from a CAT scanner machine. At the time doctors were used to dealing with large sheets of Xray film, and wanted to save the CAT scan video images on such film. A friend described a job at such a company "A standard issue job at a typical company that made a boring product".

Such small specialty companies often would take mass produced consumer product and modify it for some special purpose, and sell it at some expensive price. The above video to film box would sell for a few thousand dollars.

I think it's a possible factory-authorized set. Sony was big into videotape in the 60s, and they did sell a line of Sony 19" and 21" B&W monitors with the "sony" videocorder socket. Those larger ones were actually Admiral-built! But they had Sony badges and a Sony model #. Probably due to import costs, I'd guess, and limited market, it was a better deal for Sony.

Charles

I concur. Two years back at the ETF Labguy demonstrated a 1964 Sony prototype VTR that was quite similar to EIAJ VTRs of a decade later. Sony was a VERY early player in consumer VTR development.

I'm sort of surprised you did not grab that one on sight.....

I concur. Two years back at the ETF Labguy demonstrated a 1964 Sony prototype VTR that was quite similar to EIAJ VTRs of a decade later. Sony was a VERY early player in consumer VTR development.

I'm sort of surprised you did not grab that one on sight.....

I guess (the 5-303 in Eric's post) is not in my personal field of collecting interest, but it's definitely worth preserving. On those Admiral-Sony B&W monitors, I guess I do kinda wish I had kept one. That was awhile ago; 1984-ish.

Charles (realizing I'm an old fart! )

He runs into quite a FEW things I would collect. I get up to LA quite often (family in Rowland Heights), but I've never known where to go up there really....and THEN would be carting around something I found ALL weekend till I got back to San Diego. He is in "So. Calif"...which I guess could be anywhere South of San Francisco.