Major find in Chicago

[Adam]

That's some find. Where's the ctc-5, I didn't see any round color sets in those pics? The big DuMont looks like it has a busted crt. That picture of the tv from behind looks to me like an RCA b/w late 50s or very early 60s.

[bandersen]

Originally Posted by John Marinello

Those are all posted on Craigslist, sounds like they're desperate to get rid of them:

http://chicago.craigslist.org/chc/clt/1299159772.html

Sure, I saw that too
I was hoping desperate as well, but more like $150-$2,000 a set.

[Charlie]

Oh my... looks like I was mistaken. Sorry if I got anyone's blood pumping... Once I started comparing fronts and backs more closely, I realized that was the same set. Didn't realize they made a Blk and white version of that set. My apologies!

[bandersen]

I believe this is the Dumont model in my picture.

[Phil Nelson]

Fun to see a haul like that. As for radios, I didn't see anything especially desirable (many are hard to spot, of course). One decent Zenith console, maybe a few others. They're whistlin' Dixie if they think that all of the smaller radios are worth $100 and up. The marketplace should educate them on that part.

That little Tele-Tone TV is cute, but kinda rough. I still regret passing on one for about $40 at an ETF auction a few three years ago. Of course, the crating & shipping cost back to where I live would have been three times that amount. A bargain's not such a bargain if you live far enough away.

Phil Nelson

[bandersen]

Originally Posted by Phil Nelson

Fun to see a haul like that. As for radios, I didn't see anything especially desirable (many are hard to spot, of course). One decent Zenith console, maybe a few others. They're whistlin' Dixie if they think that all of the smaller radios are worth $100 and up. The marketplace should educate them on that part.

That little Tele-Tone TV is cute, but kinda rough. I still regret passing on one for about $40 at an ETF auction a few three years ago. Of course, the crating & shipping cost back to where I live would have been three times that amount. A bargain's not such a bargain if you live far enough away.

Phil Nelson

Exactly, I didn't see any radios that really interested me either. I almost got the Tele-Tone, but went with the ugly little Philco instead. It's just so dopey looking I think it'll be fun to restore.

Looks like they took some short cuts on the tuner. 1-2, 3, 4, 5, 6-7, 8-9, 10-11, 12-13 I think.

[AnalogDigit]

Great find! Those old TV and radios look so cool!

[Jeffhs]

I see all these old TVs and radios around Chicago and elsewhere, but hardly anything here in northeastern Ohio near Cleveland. Why is that? Every one of the antique and vintage radios I own are eBay scores from cities and towns hundreds of miles away from Cleveland, and it makes me wonder. Is the Great Lakes region of the US just a poor place to live if you're an antique radio or TV collector, or just what on earth is the problem, if there is one? I would think this area would have just as many antique radios and TVs as any place else in the region. Why it doesn't, I may never know. In the last nine years, I have only seen two (!) older TVs on the curbs in my town; my latest trash find is a recent vintage Sony bookshelf stereo, but no old televisions. The two sets I have seen so far were a 1978 RCA color console about five years ago, and a 12" RCA portable TV the first or second year after I moved here. I can only conclude that folks around here must hold on to their TVs a lot longer than most. I have yet to see a defective flat-panel HD set here, but then again I don't think many people here have FPs yet.

[ChrisW6ATV]

It is probably just the sheer number of people in a city like Chicago, plus the fact that it had a lot of TV stations relatively early. Radios, though, I would expect to see any place.

I like that Crosley 9-407. My first antique TV was one of those, but I sold it within a year or two, long before I knew anything about restoring them. I bought it around Lawrence and California, from an ad in the Tradin' Times, when I still lived in Chicago about 1979. banderson, you should remember that.

[bandersen]

Originally Posted by Jeffhs

I see all these old TVs and radios around Chicago and elsewhere, but hardly anything here in northeastern Ohio near Cleveland. Why is that? Every one of the antique and vintage radios I own are eBay scores from cities and towns hundreds of miles away from Cleveland, and it makes me wonder. Is the Great Lakes region of the US just a poor place to live if you're an antique radio or TV collector, or just what on earth is the problem, if there is one? I would think this area would have just as many antique radios and TVs as any place else in the region. Why it doesn't, I may never know. In the last nine years, I have only seen two (!) older TVs on the curbs in my town; my latest trash find is a recent vintage Sony bookshelf stereo, but no old televisions. The two sets I have seen so far were a 1978 RCA color console about five years ago, and a 12" RCA portable TV the first or second year after I moved here. I can only conclude that folks around here must hold on to their TVs a lot longer than most. I have yet to see a defective flat-panel HD set here, but then again I don't think many people here have FPs yet.

Odd. I always thought Ohio was a good place to find stuff because of the massive Dayton hamfest.

I haven't seen an old set on the curb in many years. Most of my sets were scored from individuals posting on craigslist. When I've asked where they got the set, the usual response is that it was their parents and they've just hung on to it for years.

Also, virtually every vintage TV related item I have - sets, antennas, service guides, etc was manufactured in Chicago. A lot of the companies (Admiral, Motorola, Sentinel, etc) were also based here. Chicago was really booming in the 40s and 50s.

Something else to consider. Most dwellings in Chicago are old - like 1920s and earlier. More than one vintage radio and TV I found had been in the same place since it was first purchased. Maybe the communities around you just aren't that old ? I bet a lot of sets got tossed when folks moved.

Anyway, I hope your luck starts to change.

[bandersen]

Originally Posted by ChrisW6ATV

...I like that Crosley 9-407. My first antique TV was one of those, but I sold it within a year or two, long before I knew anything about restoring them. I bought it around Lawrence and California, from an ad in the Tradin' Times, when I still lived in Chicago about 1979. banderson, you should remember that.

Remember what ? Not to sell it prematurely or the Tradin' Times?

[Phil Nelson]

Originally Posted by bandersen

Looks like they took some short cuts on the tuner. 1-2, 3, 4, 5, 6-7, 8-9, 10-11, 12-13 I think.

This is like the Motorola VT-71 and others of the time. The FCC allowed only a certain number of stations per city (eight?) and I think there was some rule about adjacency, too. The dealer would set up the TV to receive the local stations. If you moved to a different city, you took the TV to a shop and they reset the channels as needed for those stations.

I think my Motorola tuned 2-3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8-9, 10-11, 12-13.

Phil

[JohnVF]

I'll have to check this out, thanks for posting! I've been keeping an eye out for a '50s or '60s TV for my mid century pad. This is very close to where my girlfriend lives...I won't take anything somebody has dibs on! I know jack squat about vintage TVs...

[JohnVF]

actually, I just realized by looking at the pictures that its a BLOCK from my girlfriends apartment, how did I miss this place?

[Snade]

Originally Posted by JohnVF

I've been keeping an eye out for a '50s or '60s TV for my mid century pad.

Be careful, John. This is a very slippery slope.

Snade