25SP22 vs. 25VERP22 and damper tubes

[N9ZQA]

Hi all -

Finally got the pictures out of my camera for the sets I've mentioned in this thread.

First is the 1967 Admiral that started it all. It's currently sidelined with the arcing damper tube mentioned earlier; have a new one on order and hope to get back to it soon.

Second picture is of the 1965 Admiral with the 23EGP22. The cataract on this tube was a lot worse than the first one, so I figured this would be a good one to tackle first.

Third picture - 1965 after checkout, soft-start, and general cleaning.

Finally, 1965 in its final spot, after cataract removal, purity, convergence and CRT adjustment.

Thanks again to all who gave me information on getting this set this far along.

Stay tuned - 1967 Admiral next up for cataract surgery!

Jim

[Bobby Brady]

Those are great sets. They must be very rare. Is either a remote?

[bgadow]

Super job! I really like Admirals from this era but they just don't show up anymore. I think if one did show up I would have to make space for it.

[N9ZQA]

Thanks for the compliments! These sets have probably been the easiest repairwise, but the most difficult as far as cataract removal and color CRT setup. It's definitely been a learning experience and hopefully I'll be able to keep these two running for quite some time.

Bobby -

Neither is a remote, although I do have the service manual for the 1967 and it appears that power tuning was an option on certain chassis/cabinet setups. The tuner/control assembly in the '65 is shown in the service manual, so I would think it would have been an option then as well.

Bryan -

Didn't know that Admirals were that rare; they (at least B/W) seem to be pretty common here in the Midwest. How do/did they stack up against say, a RCA or Zenith from the same era?

Jim

[jstout66]

Jim, where you at in the midwest? I'm in Omaha.

[N9ZQA]

I'm in Joliet, IL.

Jim

[bgadow]

At one time Admirals were plentiful around here. 15-20 years ago I was finding them quite commonly. They were right up there with RCA/Zenith/GE as far as the most common to show up in the secondhand market. They had quite a few dealers back in the day. But all of those sets seemed to have dissappeard in recent years. I cannot recall the last time I saw a sixties Admiral color set anywhere locally.

Some folks, like my uncle (who owned a late sixties console until the early 80s) swore by Admiral. I know they ran into trouble when they started making their own picture tubes (I'm pretty sure the crt in your older set was made by someone else, maybe Video Products? Not sure about the other one.) And the stuff of theirs that I've seen from the seventies seemed third rate. But in the sixties they were at the top of their game & a major player.

[Tony V]

Hi Jim,
I like your sets and it looks true to form watching Emergency on your finished project! I always like the flip down controls on the Admirals and the ones i had were pretty reliable except for the horizontal output tubes. Like Bryan says their not to common on the east coast but have shown up on rare occasions. Just think how many of these early bonded sets were disguarded because of the cataract problem. I know now that if i ever run across another one with cataracts or halo that i can now cure it. I prefer the anti glare glass to the non bonded sets that came out later. Glad you shared your project with us and am looking forward to when you get the other one ready to show.
Tony

[N9ZQA]

Bryan -

Thanks for the information. I haven't been into TVs all that long; I started with radios about 15 years ago and through college and a bunch of moves, never built up much of a collection. But with a house of my own (and a very understanding wife), I've managed to pick up a few sets here and there. Most of what I see around here in Goodwill, antique stores, and Ebay has been Zenith, Admiral, and RCA. I grew up with Zenith and Admiral as a kid - Dad was a TV repairman for a while, so we had a lot of tube sets kicking around. As with anything else - if I only had a couple of those sets now...!

Tony -

Yes, had to watch Emergency once the set was running. Grew up with the reruns as a kid and was thrilled to find it was available on DVD. Fortunately, we have a local channel in the Chicago area that plays many of the older shows (Green Acres, Mary Tyler Moore, Carol Burnett, etc.). For some reason the color on these older sets seems to suit the old programs better.

Jim

[blue_lateral]

Nice Admirals!

John

I have peeled the frosted faceplate off 3 tubes so far using a Burnz-O-Matic torch and alot of patience. The bonding material is the same that is used to laminate automotive windshields and becomes fluid at 350 degrees F, it delaminates around 200 degrees and has insulating properties with respect to heat meaning the tube face itself won't get very hot.
I just heat the entire faceplate up slowly going in a circular pattern to even out expansion and after a while the the faceplate will break loose around the corners, just keep going in this manner for a while and eventually it will fall off. Do position the tube horizontally and support the neck and bell with cat litter bags or something soft and do use a heavy blanket over the bell just for safety. I wear my welding aprons that are leather and also wear my welding helmet with clear faceplates, Im a bit paranoid. Also don't forget to carefully slit the clear tape around the perimeter that covers the bonding resin, I got tricked once from the tape.

So far done 22JP22, 25XP22 and 20 something 22 in a zenith metal.

109