CT-100 Rescued!

[radio63]

I got a call from a friend about a week ago telling me he had been in contact with an old guy who had a bunch of electronic gear to get rid of including several old TVs and "a 15 inch round-tube color set". I called the man up and he said he wanted to get rid of it, just haul it away! I made arrangements to meet him this past Saturday.

I arrived at his location-some property he owns out in the desert. This place was so far out the last portion of the trip out there was made on unpaved roads. He had two old large truck bodies like cargo vans. It was obvious they had been out there for quite sometime. He unlocked one of the vans and raised the door, and there before me was this CT-100.

It was evident that being in that van for a long time had taken a toll on the set. The finish is flaking off and the chassis exhibits a good deal of corrosion. It looks complete except the HV cage is missing and the channel indicator and medallion knobs are gone. Looks like some parts have been changed out over the years.

I can only imagine the temperature extremes this poor set went through in that van. To give you an idea, I also took a 7" Motorola TV that was in the same van, and the rubber gasket that surrounds the CRT had melted, yes melted and had run over the face of the CRT! Probably scorching in the summer and freezing in the winter.

I thought the CRT was probably shot being subjected to those extremes of temperature. That night, I tested the CRT and to my great surprise, the filaments lit. Everything looked promising until I pushed the "emission" button, and then I got the blue glow of death around the gun under test. The emission on the guns was decent, except for a weak blue gun. But most surprising of all, the filaments did light.

Among the other finds from this lot was a 21FJP22 CRT that tests like new, and an early Heathkit color TV chassis. Also three b&w sets. I have to go back later to get what looks like an RCA CTC-15 in a metal cabinet, and go rummage around to see what else can be rescued. This is the second CT-100 in my collection that I have been fortunate enough to acquire.

Gilbert