Motorola 7VT1 or Frankenset ?
 

It's been long debated as to whether the 7VT1 picture on the cover of the original TS-18 Motorola service manual actually existed.
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The 7VT2 and 7VT5 certainly do and I have example of each. There is also a 7VT3 in brown bakelite but no one could confirm seeing a 7VT1.

Well recently I saw a tip about this odd looking Motorola TV and decided to take a chance.

It just arrived today. Wasn't packed all that well but it survived.
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I'm still not exactly sure what it is though.

The label on the bottom is for a VT-71 TS-4 chassis. The chassis inside is a TS-18 and the front mask and knobs match a 7VT5.
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So it's either a 7VT1 they made back in 1950 with leftover parts maybe. Or it's a very well done frankenset.

I'll post more in the TV area when I take a closer look inside.

That paint job and decals are trippy and I suspect done somewhat recently.
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I suspect that RCA and Motorola teamed up to produce this set. :scratch2:
There is something just a little "south of the border" about it. Time for that siesta :boring: Nice score though.
Tony

LOL They would look great together.

I wish you pleasent dreams during your RCA siesta.:D

With how many haphazard production changes the VT-71 had it wouldn't surprise me if it gracefully drifted into being the 7VT1...

Still with a 7JP4? or is it the 8-inch tube?

7jp4.

After careful examination, I'm inclined to say this really is a 7VT1. Here's my reasoning.

1. The curved cutout is done very well

2. The foam CRT gasket seems to be made for this cabinet.

3. The sheet metal pan has no holes for setting the channels. VT71, TS-4 based sets have tuning slugs accessable through holes in the bottom. The tuners in TS-18 chassis are set by stretching or squeezing coils on the wafer switch. No other TS-18 based set has a sheet metal bottom because the cabinets have full bottoms like the bakelite 7VT2.

So they specifically made a sheet metal bottom for this model with no holes and had to add some insulating cardboard to the tuner.

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I also noted there are holes for the typical cast metal Motorola logo. I think I have a spare somewhere around here.

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ALso the 7JP4 CRT is good :) I was able to get a spot on it from just the CRT tester voltage levels.

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Here it is with the CRT seated better and polished up a bit.


I'll need to track down a full set of red knobs. I need a set for a 9VT1 as well. Considering getting some reproductions made. Like to get a couple sets of gold knobs too.

Someday I may strip and refinish it. It sure is eye catching as it is though.

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I think it would be eye-catching even without the stickers. Can't wait to see how this one comes together.

I agree it's all factory, minus the paint. No one could have faked the woodworking that well, and it all looks equally aged. It's a great find.

I agree, sort of a rare bird.

Good on 'ya Bob!

It might be possible to combine a 7VT5 mask and gasket with a VT71, but why bother on such a cheap set? It would be hard to get the woodwork so perfect but certainly do-able by a competent Cabinet Maker.

The decals look old, the Red is certainly a repaint but maybe done long ago, the plugs that hide the front cover screws are still the original color.

I would be torn between restoring a (nearly) one of a kind set, and leaving it alone with it's history.

It's very odd that it would have a tag for a TS-4 chassis and a TS-18 chassis and bottom cover. It seems unlikely Motorola would deliberately put the wrong chassis in the set.

Stripping the red paint off might tell the story, if there are bare spots around the mask then that would mean it had been sanded or sawed on after the original finish was put down.

There was also no tube chart inside nor any trace of adhesive where one might have been.

Odd thing about the bottom is no other model that uses a ts-18 chassis has a metal bottom. They all have fully enclosed cabinets.

Bob, did you find a date on the chassis (or cabinet)?

Very interesting Bob! So glad to see it is indeed factory as far as the configuration. it must've been the last wooden 7" VT-71 before the 8" model in '50.
I think it's a great idea to keep it as a period folk-art piece. I would stipple in all the chippy spots, put on a matched set of knobs, replace the Motorola logo in front, and leave it as a conversation piece. Those decals are very cool. Good luck getting it back in shape.

Is it odd that the factory service manual shows this set when in actual practice nearly all the VT-71 sets were the regular rectangular mask?

It also lists the TS18 chassis, which I would assume came later in production but wouldn't the service manual have been prepared early on in the process?

Is there a revision date on that manual? Maybe these were made near the end of production to use up left over cabinets and masks?

And about that metal bottom, I seem to recall when I was fixing my first VT71 I had a bottom cover with no holes in it, I remember because I was planning to drill them but then managed to get the correct cover. Don't know if I still have it.

There is a separate VT71 service manual that shows the two models with rectangular masks.

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Nope, no date :( I admit I was wrong about the chassis pan and the holes. It seems that later production models didn't have them.

I'll check the database I've been maintaining of serial numbers, versions and production dates and see if that lends any clues.

Was just sent evidence of a "K" TS-4 revision. I thought that "J" was the last? It also has cream knobs but those might have come from a VT73 portable or a radio?

Very confusing and the factory using up odds and ends makes the most sense

The fact that this set has no individual tuner slugs suggests that it really is the later TS-18 chassis. So I think the factory mistakenly slapped a left over TS-4 chassis label on the cabinet bottom. Serial numbers could verify, although since this was a new model they may not have stayed consecutive from where the last TS-4 run left off.

A few more photos for you all. Yes, it is a TS-18 chassis serial # 309956. That was pretty early in the TS-18 production run. The earliest TS-18 I've seen is 301795. No dates stamped anywhere.

It had all what appear to be period correct and matching back screws and feet.
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The CRT and masked slipped during shipping but do fit well once seated properly.
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I pulled up this list of Motorola models from a Wallace Teleaide.

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As far as I know....

7VT1 = potentially this set ? Interesting they only show it with a TS-18 chassis. Perhaps indicating it wasn't made for long.
7VT2 = black bakelite
7VT2W = ??? ( a white painted bakelite set? never seen or heard of one, but would look pretty cool)
7VT3 = brown bakelite
7VT5B = brown tolex suitcase
7VT5R = red tolex suitcase

9L1 = 8" suitcase
9T1 = 8" bakelite
9VT1 = 8" wood cabinet

You have to wonder if Motorola was using up some leftover parts at the end of the run, perhaps they had some extra masks from the 7VT5 series and modified the VT71 cabinet to use them?

I saw one photo of a white painted 7VT2W in a trade magazine. They showed it in the kitchen with a woman watching a cooking show. I've absolutely never saw an original one existing. Of course a clone could be made maybe with one that needs cabinet repair.

I just stumbled across this thread from a few years ago and it sure looks like there is a 7VT1 in the upper left.

I see that I was skeptical at the time, but now I'm thinking it's the real deal as is my set.

https://www.antiqueradios.com/forums...p?f=3&t=249451

That looks like a nice one too. The look is a refreshing change from the typical VT-71. I'm just surprised at how few of them are seen.

Here it is for posterity. I wonder if that gold channel selector is correct or did it come from a 7VT2 ? Mine came with a red knob.
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Just for how it clashes with the set, I surely would say the gold knob is incorrect. I'm even surprised about the red knob. I would think a full set of brown ones would look proper.