Went to estate sales this weekend and found a couple of nice sets at different houses. There were eight this weekend I went to, and the last two homes were the ones with the TV's! That was a nice end for the saterday.
These sets are the first finds at estate sales of the year!
First find, in the basement of a home in River Forest, IL was a nice clean 1968 Admiral color set, an 18" table model in a metal cabinet. First one Ive ever found like it!
It has instant on, so the CRT is basically toast. Unfortunatly the antennas are both broke too. Otherwise, its a very nice clean condition set. Definitly worth the wait on repairs. They would only let it go for $10. I was pretty happy with that.
I figured that was it for the day, but I went to the last sale in Berkeley. A nice clean 1970's tri-level home. Went into the basement, which was a 1970's style finished basement. Sitting ontop of the bar was a very nice clean 1972 zenith 18" color table set with an 18CC30 chassis. It was dusty, but looked great. Plugged it in and a picture came on with a pretty nice picture. When I went upstairs to ask about the price they told me the TV was broken and was supposed to be thrown out before the sale. They said if I wanted it, its only $10. They were surprized to see it go. Good thing they decided to keep it for the sale. This is a near mint set, all complete and nothing missing or broken. Its a higher end model, it has the spotlite tuning dials. I think the problem was, they had it plugged into a switched outlet behind the bar, thats why it wouldnt turn on thinking it was broken.

Both sets came from nice clean homes which is a huge plus! These were rare finds, as tube type table sets are almost completely gone. They were easy to throw out at the time and they didnt have "beautiful cabinets" that needed to be saved like consoles.

Man those are sweeet! I've always liked the look of the late 60s to early 70s color tube and hybrid sets.

I wish I could find more of those around here (not that'd I'd have a place for them)

Doug, NICE sets! Both bring back memories. When I was a kid, that same model 18" Zenith was the first set I got to have for my room. My Uncle got it on trade and was going to toss it as it had a bad flyback. I had him put in a flyback, and the picture tube was toast so I had a new tube put in. As for the Admiral... We had one of those on our service route. It had the best damn picture. The flyback went out in it, and the owners DID opt to have a new one put in because of the great picture it had. Would love to find one today!

thanks.

These are the best kinds of sets to find (atleast for me). I worked on both sets last night. The CRT in the admiral is GONE and will need a replacement, all of my crt jigs cant help it. Instant on really destroys CRT's, I hate that feature!
The zenith on the otherhand turned out just fine! Tested the tubes and replaced the typical tuner tubes etc and the typical alignment for color TV and this set produces an excellent picture!

Nice job on that zenith. I've always liked those sets, and the great picture. I've always tended to avoid sets with the instant on for that reason. Not to mention that I could never afford to install a new tube in the set.

What is the CRT in that set?

polaraman

My Admirla color set has the instant on feature. I disabled, but it was too late. The CRT is toast. I'm looking for a 25XP22 or equivilent. Cataracts are not a problem. BTW: Nice Zenith.

Polaraman,

This set uses a 19GWP22, 19HFP22 or a 19EYP22. Either tube works for this set. If anyone has a tube that fits this set in good shape, Im very interested in buying!

I have two 19" picture tubes. One is a 19KP22 and the other is a 19" RCA mystery CRT. The tag was missing on that CRT. You could have one (free) but how to get it to you. I could pony express to the Television convention. Do you know anybody that could get it from there?


polaraman

polaraman,

Thanks for your efforts to help me out. Was the unknown rca tube out of one of those early 70's series string sets (like a ctc-53?) If so, that tube should work. Those sets use an 18VAHP22 which subs for the original 19XXP22 type crts.
Are the tubes the dark grey bonded lens type?

Thanks for your help!

Both tubes are dark gray with the bonded face plate. They are in my storage area. I will take a pic and post in a couple days. I do not know what it came out of. It does not have a mounting band around the CRT. It has a partial RCA sticker on the side. If I recall it was loose CRT on the floor of the shop. He had good stock of good used picture tubes on the floor in the back. I picked it up because it was small. I was thinking portable TV CRT when I got it. Sadly the Tv shop was torn down and no longer exists.

Anybody pony express from the TV convention to Drh4683?

polaraman

Man, Zenith knew how to make a color picture! They don't get much better. I like that Admiral, too. Always had a soft spot for 'em. I'll probably never have the room for an Admiral console but a set like that would be a keeper.

Doug, the Bradys had that same Zenith :D

In the second episode of season one the Brady brats are watching TV in the Den, you only see the back but it was identical to your set, same antennas and all.
Their set was a remote model, at least they had a two button remote but it might have been just a prop. Perhaps you can tell from the picture if that would have been the correct remote?

I think I'll be in Columbus the week after the TV convention if you could leave the CRT. I picked up an RCA like that for Capt'n Moody last year.

We are getting closer! I will bring it to the convention.




polaraman

Excellent!

Thank you both polaraman and carmine!

Eric, I know what that TV looks like. I hope to be able to find that model some day! It is a space command 300, only reason I can tell is the elliptical shadow being cast onto the back of the cabinet from the studio lights! This proves it to be a space command, as thats where the black channel changer knob is. Its a space command 300 (which is apparently the remote they have on the table). Zenith made an 18" space command 300 color TV in 1969-1971. The 18" metal cabinet table sets like the brady TV and the one like mine are called "decorator series" (according to zenith sales literature).

Ive got a picture of what the brady TV would have looked like. This photo is out of the 1970 zenith color TV sales catalog.

Thanks for posting that pic! BTW, I have the factory cart for this TV too!

Went to 6 estate sales today and found a nice 1968 Ford Philco roundie. Picked it up at 5018 W. 32nd st. Cicero, IL. Only cost me $10. I had my camera with me today and took pictures of the home the TV was in all these years. It was a typical chicago bungalow.
Model Q5528WA and 17MT80 chassis. The set was well cared for and was still in the living room, plugged in and hooked up to the central antenna! The TV still worked too! CRT is bright like new, and no cataracts at all on a 21FJ! Needs some touch up to get it just right though. Also has the EM84 magic eye tuning indicator tube! Never seen that before on a TV! The dial lights up nice, has channel window VHF, slide rule dial UHF. After pulling the back of, its got all original tubes, and the tubes say "Philco Cool Chassis". I guess thats supposed to mean its not a hot chassis as it has a power transformer. Its a nice cabinet, plywood. No particle board! Its a later model roundie and it appears to have a philco designed chassis. Solid state tuner and IF, the rest tube. As you can see in the first pictures of the TV in the home, the control door is missing. I looked all over the house for it and it drove me nuts that it was gone. I left a number with the people running the sale that if they run across it, to please call me. 1 hour later, they found it and got a call! I couldnt believe it! What luck! They said it was behind a picture on the end table in the living room! That made my day, and makes the set 100% complete! This is the first philco roundie I have run across.

When the ol' lady raises that left eyebrow when she catches me trying to sneak in a new piece of vintage hifi, I drag her over here and ask her how she'd like a houseful of these things!

Heh. End of conversation.

No offense meant. A man's gotta do what a man's gotta do.

That philco looks in great shape, although you'd thought they could put some speakers in those side areas! Usually sets like this do.

Doug- Wow, goin' into that house must have been like going into a time machine ! BEAUTIFUL set ! You are one lucky guy !-Sandy G.

Drool...... Nice catch.

thanks-

Last night, fixed it up and got it working like new. Razor sharp picture! All of the original 6GH8's were perfect! I was shocked. This set must have 2 hours on it for those to still be good. Being a philco, had some other oddball tubes that you dont run across too often. Those were all testing excellent (which is good because I dont have those tubes!) Good news is, its an american made set, with a hybrid of american and japanese tubes having the philco name stamped on them. Only problem was, a shorted out 6AQ5 audio out. It was an intermittent short and would loose sound and video. Just to note, this is the same chassis that Art Margolis used in his do it yourself TV repair books. You dont see the front of the set, just pics of him working on various sections of the set. When I pulled the back off for the first time, thats the first thing that came to my mind. I then looked at a few of his books and sure enough, this was the chassis!
BTW, this is a 1968 set. Reason being, most tubes are dated 67-48, 67-52. The sams reference shows it for '67. Most likely this set was made for a few years.

That's a nice Philco! Those are pretty unusual with the round tube... In fact I can't remember ever seeing one. I had seen several CTC-11-based Philcos, though. That eye tube is also neat. I think I saw that in some 19" table model Philcos of the 60s.

Here's a photo of an estate garage that I bought last fall, and just finished going through this week! The widow still lives in the house, and the husband who put all this together had died in the 60s. Take a close look! She had left the whole thing virgin and untouched all those years. I felt bad to take it all apart, as there aren't many time-capsule work benches like this anymore. The widow needed the whole thing cleaned out because she's going to sell the house and move to a senior complex.

There weren't any exciting TVs in there besides the modified 8TS30 that you see on the bench, but a WEALTH of parts and other little goodies were found!! Quite a few NOS picture tubes that I put on eBay, and small tubes, a Riders radio series, tools, World War I and II stuff, etc etc.

Charles

Any color tubes?

Last night, fixed it up and got it working like new.

Man, that is PRETTY! :thmbsp:

Went to 6 estate sales today and found a nice 1968 Ford Philco roundie. Picked it up at 5018 W. 32nd st. Cicero, IL. Only cost me $10. I had my camera with me today and took pictures of the home the TV was in all these years. It was a typical chicago bungalow.
Model Q5528WA and 17MT80 chassis. The set was well cared for and was still in the living room, plugged in and hooked up to the central antenna! The TV still worked too! CRT is bright like new, and no cataracts at all on a 21FJ! Needs some touch up to get it just right though. Also has the EM84 magic eye tuning indicator tube! Never seen that before on a TV! The dial lights up nice, has channel window VHF, slide rule dial UHF. After pulling the back of, its got all original tubes, and the tubes say "Philco Cool Chassis". I guess thats supposed to mean its not a hot chassis as it has a power transformer.

Cool Philco, Doug! --As for the chassis, though, it's a "Cool Chasiss" too, but not for that reason. Philco "Cool Chassis" tubes were called that because of an 'improved' structural design that was supposed to make them radiate less heat than other brands of tubes, thus theoretically prolonging the life of the tube and other parts in the set. I dunno if there was any truth to Philco's claim, or if it was just so much advertising fluff.

Anyway, great find! That's got to be one of the most attractive 60's Philco color consoles I've seen.

BTW, does that set really have an eye tube, or does it just look like one on the outside of the set? I've got a Philco stereo receiver from the late 1960's which has a tuning indicator that looks (from the outside) for all the world like an edge-viewing (long rectangular shaped) eye tube, but it's really a box with a conventional meter movement, a lightbulb, and some simple optics that projects opposing rectangular "shadows" on the background. Seems like a lot of trouble to make something that looks like an electron ray tube, but isn't!

The late model roundies I've seen were mostly of the el cheapo variety but this was is a cut above. I saw recently an excerpt from a Popular Science review of color tv from about 68 and Philco was in the top third. I guess they had done their homework. I suppose that same basic chassis would have been used at the NASA installations that Philco-Ford had put together, so it had to be right. Whirled is correct about "Cool Chassis". I didn't know they were still using that in 68. I've seen a lot of print ads from the early 60s where they pushed it. I guess heat was a big problem with the Predicta so they apparently designed a chassis which allowed good airflow to combat the problem.

Any color tubes?

Wish there was, but there were only B&W tubes... I was hoping to find some color stuff, but it looks like the husband was pretty much out of TV by the time color came around. According to the military papers I found, he was already in his late 40s when he went in the Navy in '41 as a radar tech. So by the time color came in the 50s, he was about close to 65 and retiring.

Charles

thanks.

These are the best kinds of sets to find (atleast for me). I worked on both sets last night. The CRT in the admiral is GONE and will need a replacement, all of my crt jigs cant help it. Instant on really destroys CRT's, I hate that feature!
The zenith on the otherhand turned out just fine! Tested the tubes and replaced the typical tuner tubes etc and the typical alignment for color TV and this set produces an excellent picture!
watching antiques roadshow on your "antique tv" there?

got a sony kv-9000 for $5 at an estate sale over the weekend.looks and plays like new.
got new 23vaqp22 there for free.new not rebuilt sylvania.
the box was so rotten i didnt notice till i moved it to get at some parts.
the side tore out and there was a delta gun neck in my face.
as a joke i thought of mailing the warranty card.
shipping date was 1973.

Both tubes are dark gray with the bonded face plate. They are in my storage area. I will take a pic and post in a couple days. I do not know what it came out of. It does not have a mounting band around the CRT. It has a partial RCA sticker on the side. If I recall it was loose CRT on the floor of the shop. He had good stock of good used picture tubes on the floor in the back. I picked it up because it was small. I was thinking portable TV CRT when I got it. Sadly the Tv shop was torn down and no longer exists.

Anybody pony express from the TV convention to Drh4683?

polaraman
i can take it if nobody closer can.
i can take it to ft.wayne like i did 2 years ago with some sets drh wanted.
i think i have a gw here somewhere that tests as new but needs cataract surgery.

Just to remind anybody... My plans changed and I'm in Phoenix till mid-March, so no old TV convention for me. :no:

Oh yeah... Beautiful set Doug! I love that cabinet style (Danish Modern), I don't know why every Zentih set I find is some style I'm not crazy about!

The chassis in that Philco looks about like the one I am trying to get working. The yoke socket on mine is mounted in the hole on the side of the high voltage cage.
John.

Picked up a nice 73 zenith 4 tube hybrid. This set was working when found at a sale in oak park. This is my top choice model in the 4 tube hybrid category. This is the exact model I had as a kid that I got from my grandfather.
Its model D4030W and has a 19DC12 chassis. Called the "Drew" in the '73 zenith sales brochure.

Didnt need to do much other than a dedusting and a little clean up.

Also got yesterday a mint 1965 zenith roundie. Found this one in LaGrange park for $30.00 The set was still working when found. Didnt work very well. This was an easy fix,just replace a few tubes to get it going again! This is the 24MC32 chassis. I always liked the diagonal tuners.

Yes, another find. Not really a "new find". This set was at ron's TV for a few years. They got it for free. Someone just asked if they could pick it up as they didnt want it anymore. I first noticed the set back in june of 04.

I finally decided to buy it and bring it home yesterday before it got junked. It was only $100, so I couldnt turn it down. The set is in great shape and works. Only thing that needs attention is the remote circuit. Some functions dont work. This set is from '65 too with a CTC16 chassis. Doesnt appear to be high hour set, however it has a rebuilt tube in it. The PCBs look good yet.
The HI FI is a tube type receiver w/ solid state amp. All of that still works good too. Has FM stereo.
The TV sound goes through the hi fi speakers, so it sounds really nice.

I like your 4 tube hybrid. That's the same set I have in my bedroom. Heavy sucker isn't it?!?

I like that Zenith roundie, I've never seen that model cabinet before. I wish I could find something like that around here.

What kind of car is that in the picture of the back of the RCA? It looks to be about the same age as the TV.

Found this one at 280 Adelia st. Elmhurst, IL yesterday. The set was still in the living room hooked up to the MATV. Being a living room TV for the past 40 years, it was very well taken care of.
Its a 1966 sears slivertone model 7183. As I was looking at it, I noticed it was unplugged. I went to plug it in and the people running the sale said dont bother plugging it in, its not for sale. I was a bit surprized. I asked if it was sold. They said "no, its dangerous". "We had it on and it started flashing and making noise". they said it had to go in the trash for safety reasons. They would not be held liable for selling a "dangerous" tv. I asked agiain how much they wanted for it, as I was interested they said no again! Then they told me the only way for me to have it was if they were to give it too me for free, then the rest would be at my own risk? Sounds pretty stupid, but it works for me!
I picked it up brought it out to the truck and carefully secured it with blankets etc.
Brought it home, and plugged it in. Started flashing and making noise like they said. The noise was caused by the horizontal oscillator running off frequency becuase someone turned the h. hold all the way over, and it was "flashing" because the v. hold was all the way over. The shuttering of the picture cause what looked to be "flashing". Simple readjustment brought the picture in just fine, with color too! Adjusted the vertical size and linearity and the picture was perfect. This set has an addition control called "chormix" (center control, outlined in yellow) it adjusts the balance between the green and the blue screen drives. Center position is called "neutral". You still have the tint control and color controls of course. Just an additional color "fine tuning" adjustment that is never seen on other color sets makes this unique.
Brand new RCA colorama installed 8-28-70. CRT still like new very bright, no cateracts either! Still has all its original tubes, a low hour set after the crt was installed.

These Silvertone chassis are almost exactly like a CTC-17 and seem to have good performance, I have one just like it...I too have seen "operator error" make TV's look like they didn't work, like when the service switch is set to "service".
Never had anybody tell me about liability for buying old TV's...seems like everything at these sales is sold "as-is" and at your own risk.

they said it had to go in the trash for safety reasons. They would not be held liable for selling a "dangerous" tv.

Illinois, you say??? You must me making a mistake about where you got this TV... That kind of lawsuit-crazed paranoid thinking is a California thing!

Glad you were able to save it! That type of person would have had it picked up by men in white plastic suits, and taken to a deadly chemical disposal plant at taxpayer expense.

Charles

Got a few more sets at the estates today. Found a 1968 RCA b/w portable in Glen Ellyn, KCS172 chassis. Got it for half off of the $5 AS IS price. For $2.50 I couldnt lose. It worked too! Too bad the brightness knob got busted off. It happened when I was leaving the house, the draft blew the screen door right into the TV as I was walking out the door cracking the knob off. DARN IT! Its ok, crazy glue fixed it.
Next sale in my old town of Downers Grove, I a 1963 Magnavox TV with its factory cart. The set was in the basement. Most of the time, whenever I find a "rare" TV the CRT is shot. I was amazed the set worked when I powered it up, with a bright picture! This is a rather unique set, its a real wood cabinet. The set mounts to the stand with special clips that hold it onto the cart.
Last thing I found in Downers Grove is a zenith circle sound table stereo. I never had one of these before untill today. It was $5,still in the living room. This is a model Z448 and is a 1969 model. These are US made with US parts, very high quality peice. The sound quality is amazing, I would have never expected such powerful deep bass and crisp treble. For you radio and or zenith guys, get one of these if you dont already!

That Magnavox TV set looks a lot like (or maybe it was) one my parents had about 35 years ago. Long gone, except maybe the knobs for the tuner and the controls on the back. (Or the knobs look quite similar to those). I also remember that the high voltage flyback cage looked a lot like a cookie tin.

http://audiokarma.org/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=18462

I have the exact same Zenith radio and love it. It's a very good sounding radio for its size. It uses the same speakers that were used in the original Bose 901s (with smaller magnets and a different impedance, but the same cone, basket and cloth surround).

Last thing I found in Downers Grove is a zenith circle sound table stereo. I never had one of these before untill today. It was $5,still in the living room. This is a model Z448 and is a 1969 model. These are US made with US parts, very high quality peice. The sound quality is amazing, I would have never expected such powerful deep bass and crisp treble. For you radio and or zenith guys, get one of these if you dont already!
Wow-- What a weird coincidence! I just recently found one of those on the curb for trash day, and was about to post about it-- and specifically point out how surprised I was by its sound quality. It's really a very pleasant sounding table radio, especially for its size. It also weighs a lot more than it looks though!
I didn't realize it was US-made though-- I couldn't find any markings on the outside of the cabinet, and haven't taken it apart to check, but I figured it would have been made in Taiwan like most of their other later-model table radios. It's definitely more substantantial-feeling than the Zenith Taiwan sets I've seen, so that explains why.

Picked up this mint Zenith 18" color table set yesterday in Elmhurst for $10.00. It was in what was probably an unused bedroom ontop of the dresser. Still plugged in too! The house was jammed with people and another guy was looking at this set, so I had to pick it up asap once he left the room. I had my camera out in the truck otherwise, I would have gotten a picture of the set in its old home. its a model A3906Z. Uses the 16Z7C19 chassis. Its a 1970 model and works great. A low hour one. The screen controls only turn up about 1/8 to produce a bright horizontal line!
Elmhurst is next to northlake, thats when I took the pics of the zenith sign that was posted earlier today.

Golly! You did not find a remote set. A real nice prize though. :smoke: Chicago must be the place for Zenith stuff.


polaraman

Found something other than a zenith today! Todays find was a Sears Silvertone portable color set, 18" in Downers Grove (4740 fairview ave) Model 4168 from 1971. In nice shape too. All original tubes. It was sitting underneath a cardtable full of linens in the bedroom marked "Free". Powered it up and got snow then a blank raster with out sound. Tells me there is probabably a short in one of the tuner or IF tubes. Havnt looked into it yet. Looks like a keeper though. Dont run across these types too often. However, I must say I generally find the "cheaper" sets in Downers Grove like silvertone and airline etc.

cool lookin set, but I would really like to have a color zenith like the one in the back. :D damn I love that look.

Hi Doug,
Nice find on the Silvertone. I've had both the portable and console versions of this set and you'll be pleasantly surprised with the picture when you get it going. Mine displayed in between Zenith and RCA as far as picture quality. I hope you post a pic of it when you get it ready. I always liked the look of those late 60's early 70's portables. Its during the time when bulk was a good thing.
Tony

I got the silvertone going decent so far. Has a bad 5LJ8, replaced with a better but still bad one till I get a new one. New 3HA5 too. Like tony said, nice picture! Very crisp and sharp color. Once I get the new 5LJ8 I should be able to fine tune in the stations better.

However, the weekend was is not over yet! I got my Space command find afterall! While its not an estate sale find, I did find this one through craigslist. Typed in zenith on the search and up came this zenith space command 300! Drove out to LaGrange this afternoon to pick up this little 19" portable. This one is a 1966 model N2231 the "Acapulco". My first portable b/w space command with UHF. This is the highest end model of its type available according to my sales literature, also has the sleep switch on the side of the cabinet. Typical zenith, it still works with out touching a thing.....

Now that sir, is a kick ass portable :thmbsp:

Now that sir, is a kick ass portable :thmbsp:

Portable??? I don't think Jordan has tried to run down the street with one of those all-steel, twin-engine Zenith Space Command remote "portables" :D

Charles

Portable??? I don't think Jordan has tried to run down the street with one of those all-steel, twin-engine Zenith Space Command remote "portables" :D

Charles

:lmao:

Ya caught me! I've only tried pulling one in a wagon. I have carried a set home before, but not a heavy zenith with an all steel point to point chassis. It was some light 19" xl-100 plastic tabletop.

Its more portable than a console :D

In the late 60's my mom worked at a local retail store in Memphis and they sold Zenith tv sets. One day they caught a shoplifter with one of the 19" sets. It was a tube Zenith. She had it under her dress between her legs, and walked out of the store with it. She would have got away if she hadn't dropped it outside the store. Must have been one big woman and one long, loose dress, because although the cabnit was plastic by them they still were heavy with the all metal chassis. I sure would like to have seen it.

Bill R.

Got the silvertone all fixed up and working well. Has a nice picture. Color bars are alot easier to shoot pics of as to show the detail in the picture. Whenever you try to take a shot of a set with a program on, you need to take 20 shots before you get a stable immage on the TV screen as to take a good picture with out blur from the slow shutter speed. Im starting to give up on that!

That was my grandparents' set!




Found something other than a zenith today! Todays find was a Sears Silvertone portable color set, 18" in Downers Grove (4740 fairview ave) Model 4168 from 1971. In nice shape too. All original tubes. It was sitting underneath a cardtable full of linens in the bedroom marked "Free". Powered it up and got snow then a blank raster with out sound. Tells me there is probabably a short in one of the tuner or IF tubes. Havnt looked into it yet. Looks like a keeper though. Dont run across these types too often. However, I must say I generally find the "cheaper" sets in Downers Grove like silvertone and airline etc.

My 11-year-old Zenith Sentry 2 19" table model TV still has its original CRT and still makes a beautiful picture. Considering that the year this set was made was almost right in the middle of that dreaded time frame when many Zenith TVs were turning up with shorted CRTs after just a couple of years, I think mine has held up very well. Even though it was made 11 years ago, though, it was used daily for only four years; it has been in my bedroom the last seven, since I moved here, with a then-new RCA CTC185 replacing it in my living room. However, as I said, the CRT in the Zenith still makes as great a picture as when the set was new. (Haven't had any repairs done on the set in all that time either.) Just goes to show that not all Zenith CRTs of the '90s were junk. I must have been lucky to have gotten a set with a good tube. I had read somewhere as well that RCA had problems with its CRTs in a lot of late-'80s-'90s TVs, but again, the tube in my CTC185 has seven years on it and, like the Zenith, still makes the same great picture as when I bought the TV. The inline guns, vertical phosphors (as opposed to dot triads and delta-shaped electron gun configurations in older tubes) and dark-tint screen help a lot too as far as picture quality goes.

:lmao:

I have carried a set home before, but not a heavy zenith with an all steel point to point chassis. It was some light 19" xl-100 plastic tabletop.

Its more portable than a console :D

Jordan, I can only hope you were kidding about a "light" 19" RCA XL-100. My CTC185, which is also labeled XL-100 (although by the time the set was manufactured, seven years ago, that was only a model designation) weighs about 50 pounds. I could not hope to carry that set any appreciable distance, let alone run down my street (!) with it. As bad as the sidewalks are in my small town, I'd probably wind up tripping on a crack and breaking a leg or worse, not to mention wrecking the TV in two shakes.

Bear in mind that the larger the CRT is in any TV, the heavier the entire set will be, even if the TV chassis itself is just a large PC board (as they all are these days). I read somewhere in this forum--well, at least somewhere in AK--that 25" tubes alone weigh upwards of 150 pounds, and the huge square-corner flat-screen tubes used in Sony's Wega and XBR sets weigh some 400(!) pounds--and that's just the tube. I've seen TV commercials featuring these sets that always show at least two people carrying them. With a 400-pound CRT in there, it doesn't surprise me. Today's large-screen table models are every bit as heavy as the old consoles were, if not more so; try to lift one without help and you may well be setting yourself up for a hernia.

Found this set today in Bensenville for $25! 1969 model GJ670Y the "DuBois" french provincial cabinet with the CTC-38 chassis. When I walked into the living room, this set was actually turned on and working with a perfect color picture! I couldnt believe it! This set is near mint, with very few hours. Thats the original RCA tube in there too! No signs of cateracts anywhere. Only a couple tubes were changed on the chassis, still has most of its original 6GH8's too which is especially rare as the TV still works properly with them in there! The living room was all french provincial furniture as well with avocado green shag carpet and green curtians. Would have been nice to get a picture of this tv in its original "habitat".

man... what a NICE set. I haven't seen a CTC-38 in ages. They bring back MANY memories. Have never seen one in that finish, but that same style in the cherry finish was my favorite set.

That CTC-38 is amazing! The CRT almost looks like the black matrix 23VALP22 CRT used in the later CTC-39's. I have a CTC-38 like this but it has a Mediterranean cabinet, the RCA block letter logo and a slighly different control panel bezel. This style of controls I guess was an intermediary between the controls at the bottom of the set under a small flip up door and the pull out control bin.

I think the concentrated heat build up of 10 hour a day or more use really took its toll on these sets more so than say Zeniths so its great to find one that hasn't been subjected to long hours.

thanks for the comps. on the ctc38. I finally had a chance to touch it up. Ive been putting in many hours at work in the past few weeks. Convergence wasnt the best. Took care of that. Believe it or not, only one of the all original 6GH8's was bad! Focus adjusted sharp. This set does have its original RCA colorama crt, dated 22-69. This is a true low hour set. The set came out of a 1960's ranch home. There was a "back room" where a large rca projection set was (older model of course). That must have been the main TV room. Living room probably never used, or the set was just in the living room for decoration as it matched all of the furniture!
Dont ever believe those who say "those old color TV's didnt have a that good of picture!"

It seems like a really good strong CRT is the most important factor in making the old sets look good...good convergence is the second.

Went to two sales today. First one was at 1201 rohe ln. Crete, IL. A large 1950's ranch home in a wooded area.
Got this 1973 zenith space command 600X console. Similar to the one I got off craigslist on thanksgiving. This one is the higher end model, heavily laqured woodgrain cabinet (like the grundig consoles) and sliding doors. The set was in an empty bedroom. They wanted $175 which was way too much. I asked if it were negotiable and the lady running the sale said no more than half. "I would't sell a thing to my mother for less than half the marked price" she says. Ok then. I bought it and then needed to get help loading it up. The lady says "you're on your own" "we will not help you, your responsiblity" A bunch of people were in line. I figured I'd ask one of the men at the sale if they could help me out. I asked outloud, if anyone can please help me out and load a TV from a bedroom into my truck, I'll gladly give you $10. NO answers. Yet two of the guys just happend to have "very bad backs". I hear that line every time. I go to sales by myself all the time, so I need help when I find a console.
The lady running the sale starts getting upset with me for bothering the customers like that. Some other guy walks in and I ask if he'd be willing to help me move the set, Im sorry to bother you but I have no help. The kid agrees to help me for $20. Got home and the kid across the street helped me get it out of the truck.

Yep, thats typical for estate sales around here though. Most people won't help you out. there have been times you try to move the console yourself. You'd think someone might want to help you out as they see you are struggling. The only way you get help is if you are blocking a stairway. Then the people get impatient because they cant get up or down. that's when someone will jump in.

Well, here it is. It works of course. Great picture. Although it needs work as the CRT doesnt cut off the raster when the brightness is turned down. With the brightness down, All I get is a dark blank raster with retrace lines.
the vertical blanker circuit always does this. Its a clean set. As you can see, the home had baseboard heat, so there was little dust inside the set. Pics are the set at its original home

Would be neat to see interior photos from the 70's of that place.

Found a nice set today. Poneer SX-780 and PL-510A with HPM-40s for $30. All in good shape except the 780 has case issues but works great. Nobody bid except me. Cool!

The best way I have found to move these consoles by myself is to get a two wheel dolly and put a blanket down on it to protect the finish, then turn the console on its side and truck it with the top against the tall part of the dolly. You can strap the console to the dolly for extra support. Have had to do a lot of these and this method works.
Personally I would not patronize a seller like that again! For me...bad attitude=no business from me!
Doug if you ever see a truck with a Tommy Lift get it, it has been a life saver for us. One time we moved 2 pianos at a time with it.

Went to two sales today. First one was at 1201 rohe ln. Crete, IL. A large 1950's ranch home in a wooded area.
Got this 1973 zenith space command 600X console. Similar to the one I got off craigslist on thanksgiving. This one is the higher end model, heavily laqured woodgrain cabinet (like the grundig consoles) and sliding doors. The set was in an empty bedroom. They wanted $175 which was way too much. I asked if it were negotiable and the lady running the sale said no more than half. "I would't sell a thing to my mother for less than half the marked price" she says. Ok then. I bought it and then needed to get help loading it up. The lady says "you're on your own" "we will not help you, your responsiblity" A bunch of people were in line. I figured I'd ask one of the men at the sale if they could help me out. I asked outloud, if anyone can please help me out and load a TV from a bedroom into my truck, I'll gladly give you $10. NO answers. Yet two of the guys just happend to have "very bad backs". I hear that line every time. I go to sales by myself all the time, so I need help when I find a console.
The lady running the sale starts getting upset with me for bothering the customers like that. Some other guy walks in and I ask if he'd be willing to help me move the set, Im sorry to bother you but I have no help. The kid agrees to help me for $20. Got home and the kid across the street helped me get it out of the truck.

Yep, thats typical for estate sales around here though. Most people won't help you out. there have been times you try to move the console yourself. You'd think someone might want to help you out as they see you are struggling. The only way you get help is if you are blocking a stairway. Then the people get impatient because they cant get up or down. that's when someone will jump in.


That is a surprise to me that everybody was so rude and uncaring towards a man I bet is a very good person and likely comes across as a good person.

They obviously resented him for, in their minds, ripping them off. It is the only possible explanation that would be logical. A home like that is most likely a home of honest hard working classic Americans who try their best to treat others fairly, except when they feel cheated.
That set is the coolest and most classy console by Zenith I have ever seen. That TV, like the home, has obviously been cared for to the highest level since about 1973 and most certainly was something they feel they paid a lot of hard earned money for on top of service bills and the expectation that something special that is well preserved should become much more valuable than a meager $175.00. They likely perceived this buyer(don't know his name) to be some variation of a Mr. Haney(from Green Acres) type that will take that absolutely gorgeous work of art of a TV and tune it up and sell it for $2000.00 or way more as she has probably seen all sorts of examples to support her beliefs. Whether or not that set will ever sell for much money is irrelevant.
I understand this buyers pain of working himself to an early grave for little to no money while onlookers treat him as though he's is on the level of some sort of crook, however, I'd say he got a fabulous deal nonetheless.
Had it been me, I would have talked to them about the facts of the business and made offers to pay them payments on top of the price as I would have been honest to them as to how valuable I think their set is. I would have offered to help them with labor or anything to help them feel less cheated and then I would have tried to get to know them as I love to meet those types of classic Americans. I greatly appreciate another man's time especially when face to face and recieving such a generous opportunity to recieve somthing I would very much want for very little money.
I would value the chance to become friends with some likely great people far more than the item I would be taking.

The only problem in the above scenario, is that Estate Sales are usually conducted when the classic-Americans who worked hard to purchase their well-made Zeniths are taking restful dirt-naps. :tears:

The only problem in the above scenario, is that Estate Sales are usually conducted when the classic-Americans who worked hard to purchase their well-made Zeniths are taking restful dirt-naps. :tears:

That's a rather grim outlook.

Well Bobby... What Carmine has said is most likely true. I don't know if this is the case everywhere, but how estate sales are run, is that the previous owners or moving, have gone to a home, or died. If the person in charge of the estate doesn't want to deal with a household full of items they go thru the house taking the items they DO want, then contact an estate sale company to sell the items. It is usually a 60-40 or 50-50 split. A good estate sale company while in the business to make money, does not overprice. That leaves alot of unsold items which more than likely get thrown away. $175.00 is too much for that set. No consumer is going to go to a sale and shell out 175.00 for an old TV. Also most estate sale companies DO overprice to give people bargaining room. It's a common trick to make people think they got a "deal". Also, most estate sale companies do NOT let any family members attend the sale. They do that actually to protect their feelings as people can be "harsh" when digging thru a loved ones items. In most cases tho the family member really doesn't care about the items left in the house. If they did, they would have gotten it before the sale.

The above is 100% correct. Very rarely do I attend a sale in which the original owners are the ones conducting the sale. In this case, it was kay sherlander antiques from Orland Park,IL. This particular outfit is always very high. 90% of the time TVs are priced under $50 working or not, and I dont bother negotiating.
Most estate sale outfits have a bid box, and also go to 1/2 price after 12PM on saterdays.

A truck with a liftgate is something I have been considering for a long time. It would be helpful more than TV's go as I also work on lawn/garden power equipment.

I dont "cheat" people, nor do I come off that way at the sale. Having good people skills tells you when someone doesnt want to negotiate and know when to stop before they get upset. However, this was not a privately conducted estate sale. The only reason this TV was priced at $175 was for someone to buy as a cabinet and gut it out for some other use. If it were not in such a fancy cabinet, it would have been in the dumpster before I got there.

If you'd like to see pictures of this home, go to estatesales.net, click chicago and click on the sale in Crete, IL.

Around here we have very few estate sales of the kind that you're attending. Usually ours are handled by auction. If you can tolerate standing around outdoors while they auction off a salt shaker at a time sometimes bargains can be had. Most of the time the auctioneer will sell the high dollar items just before the crowd gets tired and starts leaving. The console TV's and Stereo's are usually some of the last things sold and the crowd has really thinned out. I don't think I've ever paid more than $5.00 for a TV or console stereo. The last auction I went to I got a nice RCA 45 record changer, and a GE Bicentennial Portable for a dollar apiece. I also took home a really nice Magnavox Console stereo that works all the way for the five dollar opening bid.

I am going to be going to estate sales here in Florida when I get caught up. I don't know how things are run around here.
I suspect it's "anything goes" in my area based on all else I see.


That is the most beautiful Zenith console I have ever seen!

I used to love to go to farm auctions back when I lived in Ohio, you could even bid half a dollar sometimes and get an old record player or TV. It was fun to listen to the auctioneer too...I think I first started going to auctions back when I was 14 or so.
Here in Texas it is usually fixed price estate sales but most of them are pretty reasonable. Last week an estate sale vendor gave us a Curtis Mathis CTC-17 like set. The one or two vendors that don't trade fair, I don't patronize.
It is almost always an antiques shop which specializes in estate services that conducts these sales here too. Usually any left over items will be donated to charitable thrift stores.

Got the set going strong again. Its model SD2565, "The Quincy" according to the 1973 Zenith brochure. 25DC58(Z) horizontal solid state chassis. Once again, pre chromacolor II (1974). Retrace lines caused by improper adjustment of the G2 controls. they were cranked way up. Luckily, the CRT is excellent still considering how overdrivin it was. Some hack tech got his hands in this set. Looked like the chassis and TMA were pulled to go to the shop. I found screws laying inside the cabinet, improper screws holding the switch brackets, tuner mounting etc. I pulled the chassis to see what was done. The 24 volt regulator diode was replaced under the chassis, thats all I could find. The tech reinstalled the chassis using only 1 screw underneath. Wires were all over the place.
Had to relocated the screws to their original locations, properly dress the wires. Im a real purist when it comes to that kind of thing. Yoke was badly out of position.
remote control didnt work at all. Found a shorted 10uf 3v lytic on the common emitter circuit for the function relays. While I was at it, touched up the coils for each freq. You can tune this set from quite a distance now.
Since everything got pulled apart, I took some pics of the varactor tuner and chassis.
Its fixed up now and works like new. This set could be the candidate for the new daily watcher. Give my '69 zenith a break. its been going non stop for over 2 years now, working perfectly exept for a shorted out rectifier on the SC chassis last year. The set wouldnt turn on with the remote.

Doug, keep it up and that museum is going to have the full Zenith model line!

As I've often mentioned, things are mostly done by auction around here. Many auctioneers & the paper is always full of sales. Hardly ever worth the effort on my part, though, as attending can be an all-day commitment. Some of the auction barns won't even take most TV sets any more because they don't sell. A few years ago I had never even seen a non-auction estate sale but they are starting to pop up. There is only one real company doing it that I can tell; I did leave my card with the owner, who said she usually just tosses older TV sets. The last 2 sales I attended were conducted by the family of the deceased. The first was fairly well run; nothing was marked but the prices were reasonable & negotiable and it worked-by afternoon most everything was gone. The second sale was a joke-2 sisters camped out for days in Dad's mobile home, trying to get top dollar for a small assortment of knick-knacks and rusty tools.

For the occasional occasion where you might need to move a heavy object yourself, I've discovered that those folding aluminum hand trucks with the swing-out wheels are really pretty handy. You can find similar ones at many home-improvement stores; here's a web-link to one I happened to find (using a quick Google) just as an illustration:
http://www.handtrucksrus.com/crashdetail.aspx?id=462

Again, you can find similar ones at lots of other stores; I got a hand truck of similar design at Harbor Freight last summer on sale for ~ $30. It's very light in weight, stronger than it looks, has nice large-diameter wheels and a big toeplate, and sets up and collapses *very* quickly and easily. ...And since the thing (*including* the wheels and toeplate) completely folds flat, it doesn't have to take up much room in your vehicle-- if you've got a station wagon, minivan or SUV -like vehicle, you can just leave it in the cargo area strapped to the back of the rear seat with a bungee cord until you need it.

That's a rather grim outlook.
its grim but its true. see my comment on jstouts on why.

and I agree with jstout about the estate companies not allowing family to attend. most of the people who attend estate sales where I live are ghetto and want nothing more than a trinket they think they can sell for $5000 on ePay. they root irreverantly through peoples things and scatter stuff everywhere throughout the house. It may sound weird but I like to go to these places, these places where in most instances people have spent 30-40 years, and reflect.... try and pick up some of the energy that rubbed off from them in the place they called home. I will walk through their rooms, rooms where they cried, rooms where they laughed, rooms where memories were made. I'll look at their pictures and the things they had, and try to imagine the people that lived there.

One estate sale I found a workroom with a bunch of disassembled ham radio chassis; in a box were a bunch of slide trays and pictures that were thrown and disorganised. It was an old couple's house, and there was a picture of the old lady at the barbecue, in the 60s. A kodachrome moment; she looked so happy, the sun was golden and everything looked right with the world. The stone barbecue was new, probably built by her husband. As I walked out of the garage I saw the barbecue, and it looked like i was standing in exactly the same place where her husband took the picture. The barbecue was crumbling and the grass was dying, but in my head I could reassemble every detail, and imagine the scene behind me, probably with family laughing and having a good time, with a portable 45 player scratching in the background.

What makes me sad is in a lot of these pictures you see pride; pride in home and posessions. These are people that took pictures with their new TV when it arrived, these are people that took pictures of the new Olds, and took two, "in case one doesn't come out." Never again will people like that grace our planet, never again will buying a car/house/TV be associated with such pride. So yes, I can understand why people at estate sales are bitches.

This is it, the final TV find for 2006. It's a rare one, a 25" zenith chromacolor II table set in the steel cabinet. Picked it up today at 355 W. Harrison St. Lombard, IL for $10.00. The set was in the front room beneath a card table. Didn't see any kind of stand for it. It still works too with strong clear picture. Uses the 25FC45 chassis. Its a rather rare set, as it was part of Willowbrook high school. (AV department). The original owner worked at the high school as a janitor as I saw his "District 88" uniforms throughout the basement. I did find a zenith 3A3 hv rect. dated 1965 in the basement, so there must have been a zenith color set somewhere at one time but couldn't find it.

Problem with this set, broken off volume slider. Anyone have one they'd like to sell?

It was a successful year for vintage TV finds. Hopefully the trend continues for "Estate sale finds in 2007".

Nice set.. Looks like it even has had the "four lead cap" changed.

man i fixed a bunch of those sets. far cry from thr zeniths now pure junk. seems like you couldnt wear some of those zeniths out. i sold rca and those were great sets also but not anymore the only thing the rca,s have going for them they still have fine crt,s. chassis are pure crap. steve

Doug, do you have a part number for that slider? There is a slight, slight chance at me having it but I would need the part number (from Sams or svc manual) to find out. I got rid of all my later paperwork.