Seventeener III "New-Matic" - Videokarma.org TV - Video

captainmoody · #1 02-10-2008, 09:28 AM

Seems like all these get stripped for the crt. (Not happening to this one!)
This was saved from the garbage, and took a fusistor, 'lytic reform and vertical feedback cap to get it going. Bulb and hose for the remote are long gone though..

Old1625 · #2 02-10-2008, 09:56 AM

Nice!

I had a couple of those through the '70s. It was refreshing to find a portable with three--rather than the standard-for-portables two picture IF stages.

While it would be nice to have the original I'm sure a bulb and some line could be conjured up to restore remote control.

peverett · #3 02-10-2008, 03:06 PM

I have three or four of these. So far, I have restored two of them. One comment is that Philco, like everyone else, cheapened the sets over time. I have both a 1958 and 1959 model. The 1958 model has a brass plated metal tuning knob while the 1959 model has a painted metal/plastic tuning knob. Guess which one cracked!

One of the other posters here used to work for Philco and noted that these sets were being produced at 5000/month at one time. These were very popular.

As far as the two vs three IF stages, I also have some early 1960s RCA B&W portables with three IF stages. I have one of their cheaper sets of the same era with two IF stages. I guess it depended on manufacturer and the price of the set.

Don Lindsly · #4 02-10-2008, 05:15 PM

The line rate was actually 5,000 per week. There were derivitave models with a single rod antenna and plain handle. The set then evolved to 19 inch and followed with a 19 with 2 IFs. The 2 IFs had as much sensitivity as the three IF models so there was no performance loss. The 2 IF model used new hi gain IF tubes and a slightly more sensitive tuner. The handle-antenna combination remained a feature on top line models throughout the briefcase-style product life cycle.

Similar, but not identical models, were offered through different distribution channels so shoppers could not make direct price comparisons.

Overall, the product was a money maker for Philco.

peverett · #5 02-10-2008, 06:15 PM

One of mine has a single antenna coming out of the side and only a handle on top. Must have been the cheap model.

I also have a 19 and a 19 inch parts TV. These are in much worse cosmetic shape than my seventeeners. I am not sure how restoreable these are yet.

If you wonder where I got all these TVs, I cleaned out an old TV shop where the guy had a problem. He had been in business since 1945 and pretty much saved all the sets that people did not pick up. He also got sets from other repairmen.