Philco Predicta Console 50's????
 

Hi, everyone! My husband and I recently purchased a vintage TV from an antique market and we have been unable to find any information about our specific set.

It is a Philco Predicta Miss Canada, model # 4656. It does not have an "S" after the number as is the Swivel model. It is a floor model with a beautiful reddish wood and the three-speaker "wraparound sound". It is very similar to the 1958 Miss America (photo attached) except that the channel and volume control are on the top right of the unit, not in the front.

The audio works fine but we have no picture at the moment. Regardless, we love the set. It's a beautiful piece of furniture, functioning or not! : )

I will post pictures if there is any interest.

Can anyone here tell us what we have and what options are available to us in the way of repairs to the picture?

It would be best to stop using it until someone that knows tube tech goes over it. Running it without checking it out is not a good idea. Worst case is a fire hazard (dont want to scare you, that is worse case but not impossilble).

Also you can do more damage, making it harder to fix, by ruining hard to find parts.

If you put your location you may find someone here that can help you find someone that can check it out.

oh and an actual pic of the TV would help ID exactly what you have, and help figure out your best course of action.

I recently restored a Philco Miss America identical to the one shown in that photo:

http://antiqueradio.org/PhilcoF4626MTelevision.htm

This article has some advice about finding a local repairman:

http://antiqueradio.org/howfix.htm

Perhaps you could get a recommendation from someone via the CVRS:

http://www.canadianvintageradio.com/

Meanwhile, as Dave noted, it's best not to turn it on.

I wonder if Philco Canada ran ads featuring Miss Canada, as they did in the US? Would be interesting to see, if so.

Phil Nelson

OP: your location would help, it will show up in your posts if you add it to your profile.

It was actually your Miss America photo that I used!

That "stock" photo appears in the Sams Photofact, so thank them.

I looked up your model number in Sams and saw this photo with knobs on the side and top. Your cabinet may have a somewhat different style, of course; it was common to offer the same chassis in various cabinets.

Anyhow, if you are talking to a repairman, tell them the Sams manual is Set 429, Folder 1 (assuming that the Canadian model numbers and Sams number are the same).

Good luck getting yours fixed. These are nice TVs when working properly.

Phil Nelson

http://antiqueradio.org/art/temp/PhilcoG4656.jpg

Thank you VERY much! We don't have a knob on the side but volume and channel selection are on the top like this one. (Channel selection button pops up and is lighted). Otherwise, it is identical to the Miss America set above.

Thanks for the newest piece of the puzzle!

Will post a pic tonight when I get home!

The TV in the picture is a UHF/VHF model. If yours tunes only VHF (channels 2-13), the side UHF tuner would be absent.

Phil Nelson

There must not have been much on UHF back in the late fifties because I rarely ever see Predictas (or any set of that era) with UHF.

If your looking for that side knob you might try Dave at "[email protected]" Dave has helped me out a few times but he typically wants a good picture of what your looking for so he can make an exact match. One of the members might be able to get a pic of one for you.

We found a tag stiking out of the tv and it seems to be an inspection tag. It says the model number again but with an "M" ant the end (4656M) and a serial number , 80736. And it says that it was made in toronto, ontario.

It wasn't until 1964 that the FCC mandated all new sets sold be equipped with UHF. Prior to that it was optional. Or a converter was used. But get this - later it was mandated that all new UHF tuners be "as easy to use as VHF ", meaning detented rather than continuous tuning. Thus came the infamous click-stop tuning that rendered the shuddering "Rrrrrrrrrrrrip" when changing channels that weren't immediately adjacent on the dial. A classic case of a problem-less "solution" by bureaucracy.:puke:

If the TV were originally equipped with UHF, there will be a "U" at the end of the chassis number and the beginning of the model number.
I don't know the Canadian rule for mandatory UHF. It was certainly later than 1959/60.