Philco Safari

[Thyratron]

I've always found these things pretty interesting (and surprisingly big, once I finally got the chance to see one in person). I'm wondering how usable they actually are though, given the fact that they were early solid-state technology; are they particularly troublesome in any way? Also, what is the "going rate" on working ones in good shape?

[Whirled One]

Originally Posted by Thyratron

I've always found these things pretty interesting (and surprisingly big, once I finally got the chance to see one in person). I'm wondering how usable they actually are though, given the fact that they were early solid-state technology; are they particularly troublesome in any way? Also, what is the "going rate" on working ones in good shape?

I like Philco Safaris too. They're technically very interesting indeed, including their unusual optical arial 'projection' system. They seem to be pretty usable overall, though I haven't actually tried mine in a very wide variety of lighting situations.

Other folks here might know more or can confirm/refute this, but I think one of the more common trouble spots is supposed to be the CRT, which apparently tends to develop shorts.

I do know that a large percentage of Safaris are missing the "shade" that hinges down to cover up the rectangular viewport on the top front, as well as have a broken/missing/incomplete stand on the bottom of the cabinet.

[Einar72]

I had a parts Safari that had an open CRT heater, then I saw how it may have happened. I was watching my functional one when the scratching, popping static in both pix and sound it always had suddenly stopped. At the same time the screen started getting brighter. I jumped up and turned it off. Now that I have another parts set with a suspected good CRT, I will open the complete one and see if the heater opened in it, too. I couldn't scare up that 2EP4 to save my life, so I started looking into those 2-inchers on ePay. Trouble is, they're so cute I hate to cannibalize them! (that and their CRT's are rectangular)