1968 Motorola Combo

[polaraman]

Got this set at Salvation Army for $5.00. Does not work but that is all the fun. Glad I talked them into not tossing it in the dumpster.

polaraman

[jstout66]

nice set! I'm guessing it's a "works in drawer"?

[bgadow]

I once had 2 table models very similiar to this, I often kick myself for scrapping them. Mine were steel cabinets that weighed a ton and were certainly not WID! (mine were all tube) I recall at least one having a date code of 67. They did have the convergence board mounted in the front behind the speaker, complete with a hex tool for adjusting, which was a nice touch. Hey, I might have dumped those tv's, but I'm no fool, I saved the hex tools!

[drh4683]

Rare find! Thats a neat set. I found a cheaper mini console with the same control layout in march 03. It was an all tube chassis from 66. I gave it to captainmoody last year. They have great pictures once they get fixed up. Motorola is among the hardest to find sets (for me atleast)

Old stuff around here is very rare. I do occasionally see old Zeniths in thrift stores. I have in my life seen ONE Motorola TV. That was my uncle's Quasar.

Keep up the good work. I wanna see more Moto's.

[Chad Hauris]

Did someone rob the speakers out of there...it looks like there may be light shining through the speaker grilles. I got a console one time that had the speakers missing....the junk shop owner sold them separately to a kid who wanted to use them in his car!

Also have a Zenith TV and a Truetone radio where the speakers were removed and the chassis carefully put back just as it was, so the lack of the speaker was not immediately obvious. Turn it on, there's no sound...oh, there's no speaker!

[polaraman]

The unit is complete but dead. I have not had time to look at it. Pulled the HV tubes and all tested fine. It smoked a little when I plugged it in. Stereo and record player are both dead. I will have to check the fuses and the switch. We had a Quasar Tube set when I was a kid. If memory serves me right it was a roundie. Spent many hours sitting and watching cartoons on the thing. This has similar knobs to our set. Have been looking for another but it seems Motorola/Quasar are had sets to find.

polaraman

[jroberts500]

Originally Posted by polaraman

Got this set at Salvation Army for $5.00. Does not work but that is all the fun. Glad I talked them into not tossing it in the dumpster.

polaraman

Just wondering how the restoration is going.

[polaraman]

I put the set on hold. Got too many roundies to repair. It is on my list to dig out though.


polaraman

[jroberts500]

At least you will do it . It looks like a very nice and rare piece. I hope you can get matching speaker fabric but I guess that's impossible?

[El Predicta]

Looks like a Motorola Quasar, ' w/works in the drawer'. If it is, you have yourself a very reliable TV, easy to service, too. Good luck with it.

[El Predicta]

Not a Quasar if it has more than 4 tubes..Quasar 2's had 4. You might check the date-I believe Motorola went all Quasar in '67'?

[polaraman]

The chassis was on the bottom of the cabinet and it had more than 4 tubes. The set is buried in my storage area right now. The Army is moving me to South Carolina in January. I will be seeking a 3 bedroom house with a garage. I will then be able to spread out a little. This is one of the sets I really want to restore.

polaraman

[bgadow]

The Motorola table model I brought home recently was made in '69 & is certainly no Quasar! All hard wired chassis, looks like a Zenith. That might have been about the end of the road for the non-Quasars, though. Most of the Quasar consoles I've seen had the 5 push-button tuning.

[kc8adu]

the front of that set reminds me of a set i rebuilt about 20 years ago for a farming family in waynesville oh.
series heaters and a 23egp22
last time i talked with them they still were using it!a friend and myself rode there on a motorcycle and came back with not only our toolkit but 75lbs of sweet corn!and rode through several severe thunderstorms.