It's at an upcoming estate sale in my area. Trying to decide if it's worth going to check out :)

Zenith Chromocolor set

1st generation Chromacolor set from '72 or so. One of their best chassis designs and not a commonly seen set anymore. Grab it!

I think that is a 4-tube hybrid chassis; but, certainly a Zenith color set from the early '70's. I haven't had a Zenith that used the 4-tube chassis since '97; so, yes, they are getting hard to find.

Yes Zenith prob 4 tube job. Continuous UHF tuner puts before
E-line so prob 71-73

73 Zeno:smoke:

Hope they didn't put 23EGP's in those, looks like a decent set.

thats a keeper.should be a flat chassis with a 25v crt.the best set ever produced.period

http://videokarma.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=180831&d=1385608953

No, but the linoleum looks like that used in my grandma's kitchen... :D

No, but the linoleum looks like that used in my grandma's kitchen... :D

That was a real popular pattern in the 50's.
My uncle was an installer and had a lot of remnants of those and similar patterns of the day. :thmbsp:

It looks like the '73 Zenith I have (mine's in a different cabinet), the set I have is the all solid state horizontal chassis, called the Titan 200. It has modules, and the same type very rectangular delta gun CRT, IIRC, it's a 25VBEP22. Good set.

I have a '67 GE that has its original 23egp and it tests like new. I'm pretty sure it's a very low hours set.They are not all bad

What's a fair price for it, if working?

Depending on what is under the hood between 10-60$ in my book.

if working with a good crt,50-75.00.with a flawless cabinet then 100.00 wouldnt be out of line

About what I figured. I'll go Saturday morning when they have everything half off, I imagine it'll still be there. Could sneak out tomorrow though, it's close enough....

Buzzed over on lunch, since it was right around the corner. Yep, just as you guys said, it's a Chromacolor :)

The picture doesn't show its real condition, however. The top was badly water damaged.....it was as if the color was washed right out of the wood on the end towards the front, and there was mild water or mildew on the left side (if I had to guess, it was from some kind of roof leak). I talked to the people running the sale, and they told me that they had plugged it in, but that it didn't work...tubes lit up, but nothing more.

The guy running the show was told it needs a "high voltage vacuum tube". Price was $35, probably could have got it for $20, but passed.

If one of you needs a parts set I'll go back for it tomorrow, if not, it'll just meet whatever fate awaits.....

Here's another set that I can't identify. Magnavox maybe? It's at an estate sale this weekend. Not my cup o' tea, but I'm curious as to what it is....

I am thinking Zenith. You push that black area on top right and a control panel pops out. There might be a key pad there that can be lifted and other controls are under it.

[QUOTE=Fant;3090103]I am thinking Zenith.


I agree. The set looks almost like an early 1980s Space Phone console, but if it has the membrane keypad for channel tuning, etc. (which was quite troublesome as it wore with use) it is probably pre-SP. The Space Phone sets all had a standard pushbutton keypad behind a door on the front panel of the TV; I've never seen a Space Phone Zenith TV with the membrane keypad, as the SP sets were high-end and the membrane keypad was about as low-end (for digital TV tuning) as one could get. Every Space Phone Zenith TV I've ever seen, in ads or the one such set I've seen in person (my great-aunt had one), had a genuine push button keypad with up/down volume buttons, channel high-low switch, etc. hidden behind a door on the front of the set. These buttons were rarely used except in emergencies, when the remote battery died or the controller itself failed or was misplaced. I remember reading an article in an electronics magazine years ago, published shortly after electronic ultrasonic remotes replaced mechanical clickers, which stated that some people thought the remote was worthless when the battery died and the remote stopped working. I even heard of one case where the remote (a very expensive OEM RCA remote for a Guide Plus+ 25" TV) was thrown into the trash when the batteries went dead; the set's owner must have thought the remote was junk because it wouldn't work anymore, when all it needed was new batteries! Sheeesh.

I think its a Zenith also mid 80's. Heres the kicker it may be
a BOSE Zenith. If so it would be worth getting just for the
sound. Also they are rare.

73 Zeno:smoke:

Here's another estate sale pic for one this coming weekend. What is it?

Motorola....? I've seen that long vertical thing under the tuner on sets before...
Just not sure what company did it..... Sylvania....?

Cant tell but I am sure its a B&W.
BTW did you ever follow up on the last Zenith ? The more I see it the more
I think its a Bose set. Went for abt $1000 new...........

73 Zeno:smoke:

Nah, never did. Have to be selective as to what I collect or I'll end up getting boxed in here (again).

The last set pictured, my vote is Admiral 19" B/W, on roll about stand :-)

Another estate sale, another TV.....this 'un is a monster.....who can tell what it is? :)

Another estate sale, another TV.....this 'un is a monster.....who can tell what it is? :)

Mid-later 70's Curtis-Mathes. :yes:

First one is a Zenith System Three as was said and the second is a Curtis Mathes with a built in stereo, late seventies. Use to sell them right here in town for around 2000 dollars.

First one is a Zenith System Three as was said and the second is a Curtis Mathes with a built in stereo, late seventies. Use to sell them right here in town for around 2000 dollars.

It was well known that the profit margin on Curtis Mathes was very high.
Dealers would have to sell three Zeniths or RCAs, to equal the profit on a sale of one C-M. :sigh:

This one's coming up at an estate sale locally, a radio/stereo? console. Now normally I'd think this was a Saba or Telefunken or some European variant based on the wood finish, but I haven't seen a dial face of this style on a European set....

AM /SW band radio with a 78 TT Its such an expensive
cabinet if its US made may have FM also ( the old FM band ).
It does have a German look to it. Prob pre war if US up
to the 50's if German. Must sound real sweet. Worth looking
in to. Problem is someone with $$ will get it & turn it into
a dry bar:tears:

73 Zeno:smoke:

AM /SW band radio with a 78 TT Its such an expensive
cabinet if its US made may have FM also ( the old FM band ).
It does have a German look to it. Prob pre war if US up
to the 50's if German. Must sound real sweet. Worth looking
in to. Problem is someone with $$ will get it & turn it into
a dry bar:tears:

73 Zeno:smoke:

My reaction upon looking at it closely:

I'm ashamed to admit that were I to restore it for my own collection I'd go crazy with getting everything back to original, except for the 78 RPM table. I'd gently remove that and store it, and add some non-permanent carpentry to the space for some delicious single malt scotches...


That is a seriously beautiful radio.

Well, if anyone wants me to pick it up for them, I can. I'll be going to the sale on Saturday morning :)

BTW- radio WAS a German set. Couldn't find any name on it anywhere, but it was hard to move around the piles. Price on it was $350 :no:

Here's a TV at an upcoming estate sale. Kinda like it. It's one of those types of sets that seems to be sitting in the corner of every basement in every estate sale. Anyone recognize it?

BTW- radio WAS a German set. Couldn't find any name on it anywhere, but it was hard to move around the piles. Price on it was $350 :no:

Here's a TV at an upcoming estate sale. Kinda like it. It's one of those types of sets that seems to be sitting in the corner of every basement in every estate sale. Anyone recognize it?
GE Pacer model.
Very low-end, but interesting design.
Series string, but had an auto-transformer to step up the B+ to around 200 volts. It had a strange-for-the-time, 10 plate selenium rectifier, only available at the GE distributor. I don't remember if there was enough room to use two six plate rectifiers in series.
That design was before silicon rectifiers became available. :scratch2:

You seem to live in a collector's heaven Tim! With sets turning up so frequently, it's no wonder everyone is running out of room! :p: I rarely see anything from beyond 1985 around here nowadays, yet the 1960s sets still seem to be piling up in the garage and spare-room - not that I'm complaining! :scratch2:

Chris

This is why I REALLY have to be choosy. I try to save what I can, and pass as many to other people as possible.....

Another one I don't recognize offhand, but I'm sure someone does :)

Another one I don't recognize offhand, but I'm sure someone does :)
Sylvania ( or Philco) @1982
Decent sets.

73 Zeno:smoke:

That's a pretty nice one, although I prefer those about five years older at least.

Sets older than late 80s models rarely show up in this province, I never would have guessed that I would get my hands on a functional Space Command flatty. Good solder is ridiculously expensive though, so I won't be able to get the new safety caps in it for a while yet.

They have a lead tax in Cannuckistan? On average here 40/60 leaded is a buck or two more than silver bearing for a small roll.

Nah, I was looking on Digi-Key's site for the solder, a 1 pound roll of Kester 44 is like 67 bucks. I don't think they sell anything smaller.

Nah, I was looking on Digi-Key's site for the solder, a 1 pound roll of Kester 44 is like 67 bucks. I don't think they sell anything smaller.
Holly fecal matter ! $67 ? I remember it going up to $10 in the
early 80's & we thought it was the end of the world. Came back down
after a while. Must be some damn enviro tax on it. I got at least 2 rolls
around, think I will put them in the gun safe !

73 Zeno:smoke:

You might want to try looking at Home Depot, Ace, or whatever your local hardware store is....I can get a roll big enough to last me a few radio/TV sets for under 10$ at the local stores.

I wouldn't feel safe doing that, cheap solder could mean cold joints later on, especially bad where safety caps are concerned.

I wouldn't feel safe doing that, cheap solder could mean cold joints later on, especially bad where safety caps are concerned.

60/40 rosin core is kind of hard to screw-up, really, and is the only thing you should use when reworking vintage sets because if you slap some 63/37 or 60/35/2 into a formerly 60/40 joint you get all kinds of FUN solidification point alterations... Obviously if you're overhauling a vintage tek you need to use silver-bearing stuff or you'll do bad things to the beautiful silver on ceramic strips they use...

I agree that "cheap" silver-bearing or RoHS no-lead stuff that is "multicore" warrants some scrutiny before purchasing, but not 60/40. Mainly the RoHS stuff because the cheaper it is the more likely it is to have tin-whisker issues...

This stuff look okay? I can get it locally.
http://www.jentronics.ns.ca/products_details.asp?ID=15290&SubCategoryID=744&CategoryID=85

Composition looks fine, but Google the manufacturer part number to make sure the diameter is appropriate. The picture looks like its the really thin stuff for PCB through hole work.

You can still buy a half pound at your local Radio Shack for $14.49. Don't see the one pounder like I use to buy there. A couple years ago they still had high quality solder.

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2062713

Composition looks fine, but Google the manufacturer part number to make sure the diameter is appropriate. The picture looks like its the really thin stuff for PCB through hole work.
That's the bulk what I'm doing actually.

Holly fecal matter !
You forgot to say "Batman". :yes:

Here's a Sony coming up at a local sale. Anyone interested?

I'd pay up to and including $25 for that Sony if I was local. It's a mid to late seventies econoquik model . I have a '78 12" that looks similar and it has a fantastic picture. But, if I turned on that Sony and saw tinted snow, I'd pass, because one or more guns is getting weak.

I would not take it for free...

Almost SURE it is a GCS set--and I do NOT have the patience right now---to mess with those nasty things anymore !! Not too mention..Sony tubes do not last that long, and do NOT hit well at ALL...

If not Saba or Telefunken, maybe Nordmende or Loewe-Opta.

You can still buy a half pound at your local Radio Shack for $14.49. Don't see the one pounder like I use to buy there. A couple years ago they still had high quality solder.

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2062713

I guess, I got lucky and bought three rolls of 60/40 of Ersin Multicore solder at a garage sale.
They wanted $10 a roll for it, plus $7 for a partially used roll of Alpha 60/40.
I had to give $25, for the lot, but I felt it was an OK deal. It is my favorite diameter, about 16AWG.
For the P/C board and small work, I have a roll of Kester 20 ga. from a swap meet. :yes:

Here's another set at an upcoming estate sale. I have absolutely no clue what it is. Center tuning knob makes me think Crosley?

Wow, that's a nice looking blonde! :-) I think maybe you are right, Crosley?

Wow, that's a nice looking blonde! :-) I think maybe you are right, Crosley?

Nope! Raytheon Vu-Matic.
They had the craziest clutch arrangement to select between the VHF and the UHF tuner.
I don't know of anyone that was able to repair them. :sigh:

Welp, I came home with it. It was marked at a ridiculous $195 at the estate sale. I figured hey, no harm in asking, so I asked if it worked. The lady said that the screen lit up, but they couldn't obviously get any stations.

I said, if I plug it in and the screen lights up, I'll give you $40 for it. It did, and I bought it. Full raster, but dim, with some bottom vertical foldover. Figured at least I'd have something to work with though. Cabinet's about as perfect as they come.

Got it home and powered it up. Raster came up, and I figured I'd see if I could tweak anything out of it. Raster started to shrink on the left slightly and it smelled as if something was heating up, so I shut it down.

Opened the back and saw a brightener. Wonderful. Removed the brightener and went to test the picture tube. The tube lit up WAY too bright on the tester and showed a dead short...so something either happened when I removed the socket on the picture tube or something's really amiss....but I shut it down fast. Not even sure what picture tube is in the stupid thing.....it's an original Raytheon tube but all the decals are missing on the inside.

Someone on the FB TV group mentioned that it should have a 21FP4, so I tested it as that, standard 6.3V filament and socket. It's a Raytheon model C2113A.

And yep, some rearranging down here is needed. Getting a little crowded lately.....

The later models used a 21YP4. The screen curvature looks like a Y.

Still the same heater voltage, and I'm all sorts of confused. I'll pull the 5U4 and power it up again and see what I see.

Still the same heater voltage, and I'm all sorts of confused. I'll pull the 5U4 and power it up again and see what I see.

I don't think, that model uses a 5U4. Selenium rectifier, voltage doubler. It uses a small heater transformer for most of the tubes. The sweep tubes and a few others are in series across the line. :D

Aw frig. I didn't look at the chassis too closely. I kind of figured I'd run into seleniums the size of toasters in this damn thing. After all, Raytheon wasn't exactly known for a quality product in the TV realm.

One of those things that I knew would be a PITA to restore, but figured that if I didn't do it nobody else would, and what the heck, at least I had a starting point.

This is the screen shot I had from last power up. Potential is there, anyway....but this one might wait for a while.

Well, it does have a 5U4, so nyah :D

This picture tube issue is weird. With a "remove shorts" procedure, the tube tests into the good range, but the H-K leakage pegs the needle. Not sure what type of picture that'll end up giving.....?

Now here's a thought.

The 21FP4 uses electrostatic focus. I believe I can use a 21EP4 which uses magnetic focus. I have a good 21EP4. Just have to rig up a focus magnet assembly.

Could also grab an isolation 'booster' and skip the modification.

Well, it does have a 5U4, so nyah :D

This picture tube issue is weird. With a "remove shorts" procedure, the tube tests into the good range, but the H-K leakage pegs the needle. Not sure what type of picture that'll end up giving.....?

Now here's a thought.

The 21FP4 uses electrostatic focus. I believe I can use a 21EP4 which uses magnetic focus. I have a good 21EP4. Just have to rig up a focus magnet assembly.
I can't believe I'm wrong again! Third time this year and it's only March 14th.
I've never ran across a Raytheon with that control panel, that had a full transformer and 5U4 chassis. :sigh:

Yup! Here's a shot of the nasty dirty chassis.....

Yup! Here's a shot of the nasty dirty chassis.....

I didn't think they built that chassis in a 21" model. It looks like there's mounting holes, for a PM focus unit.

I split this thread off into another thread about the Raytheon just to keep things organized, we can pick up on it there :)