Solid State Zenith

[DaveWM]

whats the scoop on this? in a local craiglist, guy sent me a pic. Is it a decent set? ease of service? problem areas? I normally like to work on vacuum tube sets.

[radiotvnut]

I'd junp all over that one if the price was right. I'm 99.9% sure that this set uses the 25EC58 horizontal solid state chassis. The chassis looks like a tube chassis except that it has solid state devices in place of tubes. These were among the best solid state sets built by Zenith. This set is from around '73-'74 and will make a great picture when working right.

[sampson159]

grab it in an aggresive fashion.that is the best set ever made.that flat chassis zenith is bulletproof.if it were closer,i would be there pronto.get it now!

[radiotvnut]

The last one I saw in that cabinet style was back around '93. A friend of mine, who fixed and sold used TV's, had it for sale for $100. It made a great picture and he didn't have any problem getting $100 for it. Of course, that was back when most any kind of working TV was still sellable.

About 12 years ago, I had another Zenith that used the flat chassis, only that one was in a more traditional looking cabinet. The tripler was shorted in that one, which took the HOT and flyback with it; so, it didn't get fixed.

[Zenith26kc20]

If the HOT is dead from a short, check for a 15 ohm (I hope that is right, may be a 1.5 ohm, been a long time) and an electrolytic with positive to ground that goes bad in the HOT circuit. If these are bad you will get a foldover in the picture and the new HOT will fail again. That is the only problem that I saw regular in these sets. They can provide a great picture!
Good tuner also!

[DaveWM]

he says its working, I will have to wait until after Tday, to check it out.

I have been staying away from SS, but I may have to make an exception.

I was just nervous about getting parts (I can get tubes but know little about the availibility of SS parts).

[drh4683]

Yes, this is the best chassis of them all. It might also be a 25DC56, 57, or 58. Highly doubt it, but its possible to be a 25CC25. All are horizontal SS chassis. Its the only exception to the rule of collecting tube type only sets, as these are built on the same frame. The whole idea of Zenith's metal chassis was for greater heat dissipation in the tube type sets as heat is the killer of electronic components (also, the high voltages and pulse currents strain parts). With the horizontal solid state, you get the same benefits of tube type chassis construction including there is essentially no heat being generated by any components to the point where the ambient temperature inside the cabinet rises. low B+ voltages too, so its basically the best thing out there from a longevity standpoint. Picture quality? The CRT's are indestructable in those, and the picture is about as good as you will see in CRT televisions. Flat chassis solid state was introduced in '71 as the 40BC50 but I don't think any exist. You have the models inbetween as previously mentioned and then the 25EC58, which was the last flat chassis, produced in 1974.

Pictured is a 1973, 25DC58 chassis:

[rca2000]

Originally Posted by drh4683

Flat chassis solid state was introduced in '71 as the 40BC50 but I don't think any exist. You have the models inbetween as previously mentioned and then the 25EC58, which was the last flat chassis, produced in 1974.

Pictured is a 1973, 25DC58 chassis:

on THAT note::

WHY aren't there any "40bc50 sets??

I have NEVER seen one, nor has anyone else. Even if they were a "low run" set like the RCA2000, SOMEONE should have seen , or have one. After all, less than 2000 2000's were made, and I own 2 of them, and others here have a few too--and they"pop up" every now and then anymore.

OR...was the "40BC0 only a "field test set", and not marketed?? That would make the 25cc55, from 1972, the first SS Zenith color set(the 1M30T20 was their first SS BW set, IIRC. and the 1Y21B55 19" was the first line-powered SS bw set,(which I ALSO have never seen--and DEEPLY desire) from 1968.)

[radiotvnut]

That Zenith chassis is not only a performance workhorse, it's a visual work of art. That's one set that should have been made in a clear cabinet version.

[ha1156w]

DRH4683: I have a 14A9C50 set (SC600) that I heard you might be interested in. PM me if you can. I haven't been able to send you private messages as your mailbox is full.

Thanks!
ha1156w