9" RCA B&W TV Prototype "Salesman Sample" - Videokarma.org TV - Video

julianburke · #1 07-17-2012, 06:44 PM

Back in the fall of 1969, RCA made a really cute little 9" tube type B&W TV that had a wood cabinet to look like a Early American console TV. This TV was sold for a kitchen set or where ever else a small TV was needed. Being over 43 years old they seldom turn up anymore except on evilbay and almost always are touted as a "Salesman Sample" which they think it makes it worth more and in reality is NO SUCH THING!! If you type in salesman sample to ebay, you will find about 95% of all items are strictly BOGUS because if an item looks miniature, they automatically think salesman sample because they don't know any better. I suppose people think salesmen always carried miniature TV's, pianos, fridges and cast iron stoves to name a few like they never carried catalogs which they did for over 100 years.

Well I just got back from Indianapolis and love that area because of the RCA plant (and Western Electric) that used to be there and the hamfest and I always run into and look up old friends who still live there that were engineers at RCA. I was chatting with my friend Jim who was an RCA engineer and the earlier TV came up in conversation and said he had engineered the HV network in that tube set, then he told me of the 6 prototypes that he and the cabinet shop built (who were capable of building any cabinet from a drawing, picture or from a napkin drawing) and were wanting to bring this nice little set back into production (with doors this time) for the 1972 model year using the stock solid state AC/DC design we see fairly often from that time. It never made it into production and of the 6 prototype concepts made, 5 were destroyed (verified by other engineers) and forgot to turn this one in. The only other difference besides being AC/DC solid state and NOT being a plain "console", is that it had doors on the front of it! This set and some of the others were the "Picture Prototypes" for internal marketing for a decision to make or not to make for the 1972 Christmas season. THIS SET IS THE ONLY ONE YOU WILL EVER SEE OF ITS' MODEL. It is 15 1/2"W X 11 1/2"H X 11"D.

PS, The model and serial number was affixed to get it out of the plant and will not be a real model number to look up. Oh yeah, it is also not FCC or UL type approved. Notice on the back that a hole had been made for the AC/DC power cord and at the bottom where the AC power cord would have been was closed up. BTW, this set still works good.

Sandy G · #2 07-17-2012, 07:06 PM

Awrite, Julian ! I got one of the Tooob versions several years ago, brought it to Terry to fix, he & his wife made such a big deal about it, I ended up just givin' it to them...I STILL wanna see yr "Collection" some day...

***Eric H*** · #3 07-17-2012, 08:47 PM

I'd love to see this but it wants me to sign up with G-Mail and I don't want to do that.

Any way to post them directly here?

kvflyer · #4 07-18-2012, 07:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Eric H

I'd love to see this but it wants me to sign up with G-Mail and I don't want to do that.

Any way to post them directly here?

I have a gmail account, I was signed in and it didn't let me look at them. I host my pictures on Photobucket now. I have access to an FTP site but don't want to clutter it up...

AiboPet · #5 07-18-2012, 08:06 AM

Yeah....I don't wanna sign up for the idiot Google thing either

John Folsom · #6 07-18-2012, 10:13 AM

Julian, I don't want to sign up for Gmail either. Why don't you just post the pictures here like everyone else does?

xargos · #7 07-18-2012, 10:40 AM

Even signing up for GMail likely wouldn't work. Attachments are most likely only going to work for the person who they were sent to anyhow since if they didn't it would be a security hole.

Oh yeah, and I want to see this too!

bandersen · #8 07-18-2012, 12:53 PM

Right. Those links are tied to his personal gmail account.

julianburke · #9 07-18-2012, 05:18 PM

OK, I think I got the pictures and all info is updated.

ChrisW6ATV · #10 07-19-2012, 12:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by julianburke

Oh yeah, it is also not FCC or UL type approved.

Oh, NO! You CAN"T plug it in, because it will mess up every other TV and electronic device in your neighborhood, and burn down your house too!

The early Admiral 10-inch consoles (30A15, etc.) came in UL and non-UL versions, so I guess it should be OK after all. I hope to see your picture(s) of the set, thanks.

John Folsom · #11 07-21-2012, 09:37 PM

Thanks for posting the photos Jullian. I once has a similar "mini" production version of that TV, solid state if IRC. Never got around to attempting to fix it, and eventually got rid of it.

Your true prototype is very special. You should recap it and bring it back to operational order. :-)

ChrisW6ATV · #12 07-23-2012, 01:58 AM

Very cool, it reminds me of the CTC-5 Wingate or a similar model.

earlyfilm · #13 07-24-2012, 06:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by julianburke

Back in the fall of 1969, RCA made a really cute little 9" tube type B&W TV that had a wood cabinet to look like a Early American console TV. . . . . . .
THIS SET IS THE ONLY ONE YOU WILL EVER SEE OF ITS' MODEL. It is 15 1/2"W X 11 1/2"H X 11"D.

Well, for a look at the 1960's version that Julian mentioned, see:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/251115392056

No affiliation.

I remember back about that time, a 'dollhouse' RCA TV set being given away as a door prize to one of a TV store's customers during the holiday season selected by a random drawing.

James