ŠJ.S.
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 | Admiral 397-6M
1940Bands: AM & SW
Tube Lineup: 12SK7, 12SA7, 12SK7, 12SQ7, 35L6, 35Z5 |
A nice streamline design, this Admiral has a striking white cabinet and an interesting glass slide-rule dial with a brass dial escutcheon. In contrast to the more common All-American Five (AA5) radio designs that had five tubes, this Admiral is an AA6 design that is basically an AA5 with an additional 12SK7, which serves as an RF amplifier in the front end. For Admiral radios from around this era, I believe the numbers in the model number before the dash represents the cabinet and dial configurations, and the chassis model for technical information is after the dash. The model 6M for this Admiral can be found in the Rider schematics under Continental Radio & Television Corp.
 | Admiral 361-5Q
1940Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 12K7, 12SA7, 12SQ7, 50L6, 35Z5 |
Another nice radio produced by Continental Radio & Television Corporation as the model 5Q, this Admiral sports a grand gold-brown dial and four station preset pushbuttons at the top of the cabinet. The circuitry is a simple AA5 that performs well. For a simple radio, the cabinet was nicely designed and the wraparound grille louvers leaves a good finishing touch.
 | Airline 62-325
1938Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 6J7, 6J7, 25L6, 25Z5 |
This cute 4-tube Airline has a nice bakelite cabinet and a small gold-colored dial. It was purchased at a VRPS meet in fair condition and needed little repair. The radio still works with all of its original tubes, which are all marked WARDS. While the radio has a charming appearance, its chassis is directly connected to one side of the plug and can be a dangerous shock hazard but the United Laboratories approved it back then.
 | Airline 62-350
1938Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 6A8, 6K7, 6Q7, 6K6, 5W4 (or 5Y3) |
This nice plaskon Airline was purchased off ebay and nicely accompanies my later model 62-352 with the bakelite cabinet. Most ivory color cabinets for Airline radios are actually painted bakelite cabinets, so a true plaskon cabinet can be rather difficult to find.
 | Airline 62-352
1939Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 6A8, 6K7, 6Q7, 6K6, 5W4 (or 5Y3) |
A magnificent example of machine-age design, this stylistic Belmont-made Airline radio was purchased at an auction in working condition for a good price perhaps because the grille cloth was not original and rather hideous. The glittery gold cloth made the radio appear like an eyesore so it was replaced with plain brown speaker cloth that looks much better. This Airline originally sold for about $11 in 1939.
 | Airline 93WG-602B
1939Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 12SA7, 12SK7, 12SQ7, 35L6, 6AB5 (eye), 35Z5 |
This gorgeous brown-bakelite Airline with the lustrous orange drum dial was purchased at a radio auction in restored condition. The grille's middle louver was either broken or missing. The previous owner made the radio appear as original as possible despite the missing louver. Fortunately it was the middle louver so the radio still retains its beauty and style. The radio has a simple AA5 (All-American 5) circuit with a tuning eye and originally sold for about $13 in 1939.
 | Arkay S5E
Circa 1950Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 12SA7, 12SK7, 12SQ7, 50L6, 35Z5 |
The Arkay S5E was commonly sold as a kit from 1946 to the mid-sixties. The case and knobs of the Arkay were painted a dull metallic blue when it came to my collection. It was repainted in ivory then later stripped down to the original brown bakelite. The radio needed serious repairs; the audio was bad and sporadic so the radio required recapping, rewiring, and some alignments. There were many tell-tale signs typical of a kit such as poor solder joints. The radio is based on the common AA5 (All American 5) circuit configuration, but the burned out 35Z5GT was interchanged with a miniature 35W4 via a homemade socket adapter because I had no 35Z5's tubes on hand.
 | Arvin 40 "Mighty Mite"
1938Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 25B8, 50L6, 35Z5 |
This midget Arvin, a product of Noblitt-Sparks Industries, was one of many inexpensive sets marketed primarly for children and college students. Under the ivory paint is a sturdy metal case that houses a simple radio. The model 40 actually only has two tubes: 25B8 and 70L7. I believe this Arvin has the chassis of a model 402A with the tube lineup listed above. The chassis has the same knob layout but was originally housed in a slightly different cabinet.
 | Arvin 951T
1955Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 12BE6, 12BA6, 12AV6, 50C5, 35W4 |
The salmon-color Arvin shows the sheer simplicity in both electronic and classic cabinet design during the fifties. The electronics are based on the commonplace AA5 circuit but with the miniature 7-pin tube lineup. Additionally, all the components were mounted on a printed circuit board that became widespread at the time, replacing the old-fashioned chassis with point-to-point wiring of components.
  | Atwater Kent 41 with E speaker
1928Band: AM
Tube Lineup: '12A, '12A, '12A, '12A, '12A, '71A, '71A |
This Atwater Kent 41 is a typical example of many metal-cased AK radios from the late twenties, but the 41 is unique because it was designed to operate off 110V direct current rather than alternating current. A homemade 110VDC supply consisting of a 150 ohm resistor, a diode bridge and 470uF 200V capacitor can be seen in the upper left corner of the radio inside view to allow the radio to operate on mains. The first audio interstage transformer had an open secondary that was repaired by pulsing 350VDC through the secondary to weld the internal breakage back together. Also the RF coil experienced damage and was rewound with new magnet wire from a cassette tape motor. Quite a rough life for a radio that has come a long way since 1928. The E speaker has been repainted completely due to rust damage and discoloration. The radio plays very nicely for a simple TRF set with push-pull audio using a pair of '71A tubes.
 | Belmont 519
1939Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 12A8, 12K7, 12Q7, 35L6, 35Z5 |
This neat, ivory-painted and deco Belmont was purchased at a radio meet for five dollars. This Belmont needed a good deal of cosmetic repairs; it was missing a dial, had several paint chips all over the case, and one larger chip in the cabinet on the right side. The cabinet was lightly sanded down with fine sandpaper to smooth out the surface, and the chipped area was repaired with a piece of plastic. Several light coats of ivory paint were sprayed on the case and the result was great. A new dial was reproduced on Microsoft Paint after close observation of photographs of other Belmont 519 radios. The final dial was printed out on paper and sandwiched between two pieces of transparencies. The electronics, as usual, only needed recapping and the chassis was cleaned.
  | Belmont 525 "The Individual Radio"
Circa 1932Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 6D6, 6D6, 75, 43, 25Z5 |
This metal "lunchbox" Belmont radio is similar to the GE BX found further down on this page. I believe the model is 525 because there are only three models (525, 540, and 541) with the radio's particular tube lineup. Additonally, the chassis layout in Riders for the model 525 closely matches the layout printed on the paper bottom of the radio, and this Belmont has a metal case that was common especially around 1932. Besides the durable metal case, the radio exhibits a very nice decorative appearance.
 | Belmont 638
Circa 1941Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 12SK7, 12SA7, 12SK7, 12SQ7, 35L6, 35Z5 |
This stylish art-deco Belmont was purchased at a VRPS meet for $40, in part because the cabinet had an unsightly hole that was drilled about an inch to the left of the volume knob. The hole was filled in with resin and painted to match the rest of the case. There were prewar and postwar models, the earlier was labeled as the model 638 and the later as the more familiar 6D111. There are no differences in the cabinet design. The schematics for the two models show only one subtle difference, a 25 ohm resistor for the pilot lamp in the 638 and a 22 ohm resistor in the 6D111. Alas, this resistor along with the pilot lamp was missing when I purchased the radio. However, the 638 schematic mentions "Ser. No. 403200 up" and mine has serial number 412211, and also superficial clues such as body-tip-dot resistors and green Solar sealite capacitors indicate the age to be from the mid-30s to early 40s, which suggests the prewar model 638.
 | Crosley 11-105U "Bulletnose"
1951Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 12BE6, 12BA6, 12AV6, 50C5, 35W4 |
This Crosley was found at a flea market for 15 bucks with a unsightly crack on the side. However, the unique bullet-nose dial face attracts attention away from any imperfections. One downside with the alluring dial pointer is that it is often mistaken for the tuning knob, which occasionally leads to a snapped tuning string.
 | Crosley 11-123U
1951Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 12BE6, 12BA6, 12SQ7, 50C5, 35W4 |
These Crosley clock radios are commonly known by collectors as the "dashboard" radio because of its symmetrical appearance with the round clock and dial face. While the classic appearance is admirable, it does not give any hint about the difficulty of repairing the radio. It took me a hour to pry the chassis out of the cabinet just to replace the filter capacitors, but it was worth it to get rid of the rusty sound.
 | Crosley 56PB
1946Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 1R5, 1L4, 1U5, 3S4, 117Z6 |
The shiny black bakelite Crosley portable turned up at a nearby antique mall. It has a spectacular all-bakelite case with no cracks or chips! This 4-tube radio just needed a few faulty tubes and some shorted capacitors replaced.
 | Crosley 56TD "Duette"
1947Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 12SA7, 12SK7, 12SQ7, 50L6, 35Z5 |
This Crosley "Duette" tabletop radio was discovered in a dumpster after a local radio auction. It was probably thrown out because the painted bakelite case already had bad cracks and pieces that were taped together. The cosmetic repairs were relatively straight-forward since the case was painted so the radio came home with me for the price of a dumpster dive. The cracks and pieces were glued together with epoxy on the inside of the case. Instead of using bondo, several coats of spray paint were applied over the surface cracks. Once enough paint covered the cracks, it was left to dry overnight, then sanded down. After smoothening the case to make the cracks invisible, the case was painted again with burgundy color. The electronics only needed relatively simple repairs.
 | Detrola 208
1938Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 6D6, 6C6, 25L6, 25Z5 |
This magnificent Detrola was obtained for 16 bucks from ebay and was in great shape. A simple recap and some cleaning was all that it needed. There are several Detrola models that use the same cabinet mold, but with different knob locations. Besides the common brown bakelite, I have seen ivory plaskon and beetle versions.
 | Dewald 530
1938Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 6D6, 6C6, 25L6, 25Z5 |
This fabulous Dewald was purchased at a VRPS meet as another already-restored radio for my collection. The radio appears in pristine condition with a striking and interesting checkerboard pattern grille over the speaker. This cabinet was likely produced by another company and is often seen in many early intercom systems and other small radio brands such as the Lyric or I.T.I. 546T shown further down this page.
  | Emerson 19 "Miracle Six"
1935Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 6A7, 6F7, 43, 25Z5 |
This attractive Emerson was marketed as a "Miracle Six" because of its six-tube sound, but the radio only has 4 tubes. Indeed the radio is not a bad performer, but the cabinet is beautiful enough that it doesn't matter. The appearance of the vertical lines is reminiscent of skyscrapers from the thirties. This model originally sold for $19.95.
This stunning Emerson 108 is very similar to the 126 below, but shaped in a small plaskon tombstone cabinet. The chassis is deep and cramped with components, which is definitely a nightmare to repair. I restuffed all the capacitors in this radio to maintain authenticity. The line cord resistor was replaced with a 8uF 250V nonpolarized capacitor stuffed in an older capacitor container. The model 108 was produced with two chassis types: U5A and AD. Many collectors note that the two chassis are easily distinguished by the dial; the U5A had a painted dial while the AD had a celluloid dial. Interestingly, my example is clearly chassis U5A with the celluloid dial, so the radio must have been one of the last U5A models produced during the switch to chassis AD. The distinction lies in the tube lineup of chassis AD, which consists of 6Q7 and 25L6 octal tubes instead of the 75 and 43 respectively. The 108 originally sold for $24.95.
 | Emerson 109
1935Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 6A7, 6F7, 43, 25Z5 |
The cabinet design of the model 126 shown below echoes the design of this Emerson 109 with the airplane dial. The U4A chassis was used in this model as well as the model 19 and 126, with the only differences being the use of the airplane dial or a slightly different tube lineup. The original selling price for the model 109 was $17.95.
  | Emerson 126
1936Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 6D6, 6C6, 43, 25Z5 |
The brown bakelite Emerson was purchased at a radio auction in near-mint condition, and the plaskon model was purchased from ebay, also in restored condition. Both radios still retain their original molded backs. The 126 model does look strikingly similar to a BA-199 but was produced earlier. In general, there are subtle differences between the 126 and the BA-199 in terms of cabinet and chassis differences; the 126 was produced using the U4A chassis while the latter used the BA chassis.
  | Emerson 149 (or AC149)
Circa 1936Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 6A7, 6D6, 6Q7, 41, 80 |
This stunning brown bakelite Emerson 149 was purchased from Ebay in restored condition. The cabinet is made out of three molded parts for the front, sides, and rear. Emersons in this cabinet were sometimes found with a combination of white plaskon pieces and brown bakelite pieces, such as brown front and rear with the white plaskon sides. I'm glad this one came with all the pieces in the same color! The radio originally sold for $29.95. Additionally, the model number for the radio was molded as "MODEL 149" in the rear bakelite piece of the cabinet, but that model was nowhere to be found in the Mallory Radio Service Encyclopedia. However, an AC149 seems plausible and has the same tube lineup.
 | Emerson 415
1933Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 78, 77, 38, 1-V |
This Emerson was restored and in working condition, but who could resist the stupendous and timeless styling of the cabinet? This is one great example of many attractive case styles and designs by Emerson in the early thirties during the peak of the Great Depression. This model appears identical to the Emerson 20A but was produced a little later and has different technical features, including a different tube lineup and a resistance line cord. The 20A had a built-in filament dropping resistor that posed ventilation problems in the cabinet. However, the resistance line cord of the model 415 was not much safer and contributed to the coinage of the name "curtain burner."
 | Emerson BL-200
1937Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 6A7, 6D6, 6Q7, 41, 80 |
This beautiful ivory plaskon Emerson BL-200 was purchased from a nice fellow who I met on Ebay. The radio cabinet, like the Emerson model 149 above, is made of three parts. This radio has the original ivory front and sides, but a brown bakelite rear. Nonetheless, the radio is a lovely addition to the collection because of its unusual and interesting cabinet.
 | Fada 120
Circa 1941Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 12K7, 12J7, 50L6, 35Z5 |
This lovely ivory-painted Fada made its way in my collection from a VRPS meet. I'm uncertain of the model because the cabinet was used in several later models, including the 148, 209, and 609. The seller restored the radio and noted that the only flaw with the radio was a blown resistor that he could not identify. He identified the radio as the 1946 model 609, which turned out to be incorrect due to the tube lineup. The Mallory Radio Service Encyclopedia lists only one model with the radio's tube lineup, a model 120. The schematic matched perfectly, except there was a 6K7 in place of a 12K7, and the blown resistor was placed in series with the filament string. Perhaps the resistor, which was not shown in the schematic at all, was used to drop the extra 6-volts because the 6K7 was used, but the 6K7's 0.3A filament current versus the 12K7's 0.15A filament current is probably why the resistor blew. Moreover, the ballast tube and the audio output tube were in reverse.
 | Farnsworth ( Capehart ) C14
1954Band: AM |
My mother grew up with this Capehart radio and my grandparents gave it to me when I was fishing for radios. Enclosed in a shiny black plastic case and gold front, the Capehart well serves its function as a simple alarm clock radio.
  | Firestone Air Chief S-7426-1
1939Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 6A8, 6J7, 25L6, 25Z5 |
An incredible ebay find, this Firestone appeared for a buy-it-now price of $50 when the value is normally over $200 and I was lucky to nab it first! The cabinet is a great mix of streamline and machine age designs. The radio circuit is a 4-tube superhet with no I.F. amplifer so there is a regenerative circuit centered on the 465KHz I.F. frequency. The performance is nothing noteworthy although the circuitry is quite unique and unusual. Nevermind the radio, just look at the lovely cabinet!
 | Federal Jr.
1921 |
Although my collection focuses on thirties radios, this Federal Jr. crystal radio was purchased at an estate sale for an irresistible price of ten dollars! The Federal Jr. has a black metal case with a bakelite top. It is quite simple, consisting of the antenna, ground, and earphone terminals and uses a mineral for the detector (diode). According to a reference, the original sale price was $25 in 1921.
 | General Electric BX
1932Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 39, 36, 38, 37 |
This metal General Electric is one of many low-cost "lunchbox" radios manufactured during the Depression Era. The BX model cross-references to a RCA R17-M, so the schematic for the latter model was used for technical repairs. When the radio came into my possession, the "curtain burner" cord (resistance line cord) was cut off. To fix the dropping resistor problem for the tubes; the tube filaments in series draw about 25V so a drop of about 100V is needed. I used a diode to drop 60V, and a 140 ohm 20W resistor to drop the rest. Also the 875 ohm speaker was missing so it was replaced with a 8 ohm speaker and an audio output transformer. Surprisingly, this simple 4-tube T.R.F. (Tuned Radio Frequency) radio worked well after all these repairs.
 | General Electric M-40
Circa 1933Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 37, 38, 77, 78 |
This is another low-cost metal GE radio made during the peak of the Depression. The model M-40 cross-references to a RCA 102. This radio was purchased in its pristine condition from Ebay for $10 and was already repaired. It still has the original curtain burner cord, which unsurprisingly gets quite warm after the radio operates for a few minutes.
 | General Electric 124
1949Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 12SA7, 12SK7, 12SQ7, 50C5, 35W4 |
The radio that started it all; an ivory plastic General Electric 124 from 1949 that was found at a local antique store. This run-of-the-mill radio wasn't much but one gotta start somewhere. The audio was garbled so the electronics just needed recapping.
 | General Electric 522
1950Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 12SA7, 12BA6, 12SQ7, 50C5, 35W4 |
This General Electric is a generic clock radio that came in many cabinet styles. The glass or plastic cover on the clock was missing so to achieve the concave look it was replaced with a plastic cover cut out of a cheap transparent plastic ball used for decorations. At first glance, this radio would appear like a wooden set with a light colored finish or a "photo finish," but it really is a plastic radio painted with a wood grain pattern. The radio only needed a new set of filter capacitors and a tube.
 | Grantline 503
Circa 1940Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 12SA7, 12SK7, 12SQ7, 50L6, 35Z5 |
Back in the heyday of radio, this Belmont-made Grantline radio clearly boasted a deco design. The arrangement with the pushbuttons and volume control on the front and the horizontal tuning knob on the right side clearly gives this radio away as a Belmont product.
  | Grebe Challenger 1
1937Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 6A7, 6D6, 75, 25L6, 25Z5 |
This marvelous Grebe radio was manufactured by Garod Radio Corporation. I have seen radios under the Lafayette brand with the same cabinet design. The beautiful bakelite cabinet combined with a large striking gold-colored dial makes this radio appear more exceptional than your standard 5-tube superheterodyne. It even has a nice molded bakelite back and symmetry is everywhere.
 | Homemade Radio
2005Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 12SA7, 12SK7, 12SQ7, 50L6, 35Z5 |
Around 2005, someone at a VRPS meet gave me a nice chassis of an AA5 (All-American 5 tube) radio without the cabinet. After inspecting the chassis closely, it appeared likely that it was a homemade or perhaps kit radio. The chassis was stripped down and cleaned, then each individual component (tuning capacitor, I.F. cans, speaker, transformer, etc.) were added one at a time. The whole radio was rebuilt and rewired from ground up. A case was constructed of clear plexiglass so one could see the radio's inner workings and to see the tubes actually glow!
  | I.T.I. 546T
1946Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 12SA7, 12SK7, 12SQ7, 50L6, 35Z5 |
This neat I.T.I. radio is very much identical to the Knight and Lyric 546T, all of which were manufactured by Rauland Corporation. The Lyric, however, has a 50A5 loktal audio output tube rather than the 50L6 octal tube that was used in the Knight and the I.T.I. Additionally, the cabinet design is very similar to the 1938 Dewald 530.
The Kadette model F is perhaps one of the most innovative radio designs of the Depression Era. Although only AC-powered, this little portable radio measures approximately 4 inches wide by 6 inches tall and contains a whole two-tube T.R.F. circuit! These "pocket" radios are highly sought after by collectors; I patiently waited for several years before coming across a Junior on ebay that did not cost me over a hundred dollars. While brown bakelite is the most common, these Kadette Juniors came in a variety of cabinet colors including peanut butter and red.
Other people list this radio as a model "H" but some say it is simply the original Kadette. Nevertheless, this gorgeous beetle Kadette was purchased off ebay for a pretty good price and still came with the original beetle plastic back. This model was the first radio to be housed in a molded plastic case and came in many cabinet varieties, including brown bakelite, salmon, etc. The radio circuitry was rather common at the time to help keep the costs down.
  | Kadette 40 "Jewel"
1935Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 6C6, 6C6, 12A7 |
This remarkable Kadette "Jewel" was purchased from ebay in good shape. At first I had the impression these Kadettes were about the size of a small lunchbox, but I was astonished to see the actual size when the radio came in the mail. The cabinet is just about the height of a coke can, and a 6C6 tube from the socket to grid cap just barely fit in the cabinet! Kadette sure was not kidding when they called this radio a "Jewel!" Anyway, when I obtained the radio, the cabinet was entirely free of cracks except for one tiny one near the rear chassis mounting screw. However, the cabinet was quite dirty at first but a hour's worth of polishing brought back the beautiful shine. The chassis was cleaned, and the electronics were recapped. This radio still has the original tenite grille and the back. Additionally, while the brown bakelite cabinet is the most common, Kadette also offered this model in different cabinet colors such as red, white, and Beetle (marbleized).
  | Kadette 90
1935Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 6D6, 6C6, 75, 12A7 |
This stylish but seldom seen Kadette has the more common brown bakelite cabinet with interesting and intricate detailing on the front. Plaskon was another material used for the cabinet and brings in a higher value today. Kadette likely continued some of the electrical designs from earlier models into the model 90; the 12A7 used in both the Junior and Jewel is again used in the 90 as a rectifier and audio output tube. However, the 90 has a superheterodyne circuit that is superior to the TRF circuit in the Junior and the I.F. cans take up significant chassis space and not to mention the small power transformer they managed to fit on the chassis. The four tubes snugly fit on the narrow chassis. Kadette never ceases to amaze me with their cramped radios; every cubic inch was used up well.
 | Mantola G45-XJ5
Mid-1940sBand: AM
Tube Lineup: 12SA7, 12SK7, 12SQ7, 50L6, 35Z5 |
This Mantola radio was sold by B.F. Goodrich. Although the radio is based on a simple AA5 (All-American 5) circuit, the styling is very nice. Unfortunately, the case has severe cracks on both sides near the bottom though they are unnoticeable on a shelf.
 | Pacific 30
Circa 1938Bands: AM, SW
Tube Lineup: 6A7, 6D6, 75, 6G5 (eye), 25L6, 25Z5 |
Purchased off ebay, this neat plaskon radio came to me as an unknown brand and model. After some online searches, it appears that this radio was most likely produced by Pacific and is sometimes seen under the Lafayette brand, although the schematic for the Pacific 30 does not entirely match the circuitry in mine. When turned on, the radio has quite a colorful dial that is comparable to those of many Truetones and Detrolas. The tuning eye was offered as an option and adds a very nice touch to the appearance.
 | Philco 46-420 "Hippo"
1946Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 7C7, 7A8, 7B7, 7C6, 50L6, 35Z5 |
Known by collectors as the "Hippo" radio because of the distinguishing dial and curvy lines, these Philcos sold in large numbers over a few years during the middle forties.
 | Philco 49-503 "Flying Wedge"
1949Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 7A8, 14A7, 14B6, 50A5, 35Z5 |
The "Flying Wedge" Philco, characterized by the magnificent combination of a round dial and a wedge on the front, was found in a friend's attic and made its way in my collection for an amazing thirty dollars! The speaker was gone and the radio had missing parts, which were quite tough problems to tackle at first. The speaker was replaced with a modern 8-ohm equivalent, and the electronics were thoroughly recapped and checked against the schematics. For weeks, the radio refused to utter a syllable. The problem turned out to be a bad wire, so now the radio plays like a champion. Also note that the knobs in the picture are not original.
  | Philco PT-25
1939Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 7A8, 7B7, 7C6, 35A5, 35Z3 |
This neat tiny Philco was purchased at a flea market in need of cabinet polishing and new filter capacitors. The cabinet has many hairline cracks, but overall it looks terrific. This model originally sold for a cheap price of $9.95 and was versatile for AC or DC operation.
 | Philco PT-91
1941Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 7A8, 7B7, 7C6, 50L6, 35Z3 |
The model PT-91 (also classified as a model 42-PT91) is the earliest among many other later models to use this cabinet style. The PT-91 sold for $11.95 for the 1942 year in numbers exceeding 50,000.
 | Plamor (Admiral 5CU)
1939Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 6D6, 6C6, 25L6, 25Z5 |
This little 4-tube Plamor radio was manufactured by Continental Radio and is often seen under the Admiral brand. The model is unknown, but the radio circuitry and tube layout matches the Riders schematics on the Continental model 5CU. The radio performs very well for a simple 4-tube T.R.F. set and picks up many stations. Unlike most sets where the dial is lighted from above, the dial on this Plamor is illuminated from behind and looks great.
  | Remler 51 "Skipper"
1936Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 78, 77, 42, 80 |
A seldom seen bakelite radio, this Remler 51 shares many similarities with the Emerson bakelite radio cabinet designs of the mid-thirties. Emerson, however, made the switch to transformerless AC-DC radios in the early thirties. Remler used a small power transformer in this model 51, which is quite unusual for a small radio and an expensive design choice. The Tuned Radio Frequency (TRF) circuit utilizing two tubes and the audio output tube was also a bit dated for 1936. Nevertheless, the striking visual appearance of this Remler makes it a nice addition to my collection.
 | RCA 8X541
1949Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 12SA7, 12SK7, 12SQ7, 50L6, 35Z5 |
A very common radio that turns up just about anywhere, this walnut bakelite RCA has a unique trapezoidal design. The radio has a standard AA5 circuit and a vertically mounted chassis. The back clips on rather than attached via screws, which provided convenience for replacing the tubes. This RCA only needed some polish and the shiny brass pointer makes it look good as new.
 | Silvertone 4500 "Streamliner", "Election"
1936Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 6D6, 6D6, 6C5, 43, 1V |
This magnificent streamline Silvertone is nicknamed the "Election" model because of its success during the 1936 presidental election. The 4500 remained in production until the late 1930s. There are several variants of the original 4500 that have pushbuttons and/or different cabinet colors including ivory plaskon, brown bakelite, and red. The black bakelite is the most common. While the cabinet design was considered revolutionary at the time, the T.R.F. radio circuit was not quite cutting edge technology.
  | Silvertone 6103A
1938Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 6D6, 6D6, 6F5, 25L6, 12Z3 |
This ivory plaskon Silvertone is modeled after the successful 4500A model shown above, which did not have pushbuttons. The cabinet encloses the chassis completely and has beautiful deco styling. There are other models similar to the 4500A that used less lovely cylindrical pushbuttons with notches for a screwdriver to readjust the pushbutton settings, but fortunately the pushbuttons on the 6103A look nicer.
 | Tiffany Tone 50B
1938Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 6A8, 6D6, 75, 42, 80 |
Made by the Hebert H. Horn Radio Manufacturing Company in Los Angeles, this attractive plaskon Tiffany Tone has many LA stations on the dial. The brand is rather uncommon so this example is a nice addition to my collection. The radio was purchased off ebay and is in good original working condition. How nice, I don't have to worry about recapping, yet. It is advised that the radio is recapped first before it is even powered up.
 | Travler T-200
1959Band: AM
|
This Travler radio is a magnificent example of jet-age design of the late fifties with the unique "steering-wheel" dial and cabinet design. The cabinet was available in several color combinations.
 | Truetone D-941
1940Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 12SA7, 12SK7, 12J5, 12SQ7, 35L6, 35Z5 |
Belmont manufactured radios for numerous companies, and Western Automobile Supply Co. was one of their "consumers." This Truetone, a brand name by Western Auto Supply, was purchased at a radio auction for a good deal. The entire radio was complete and only needed minor repairs; the beautifully polished bakelite cabinet had some minor hairline cracks but nothing serious. The dial warped slightly over time and did not fit around the dial face correctly so its positioning was readjusted. Also the tuner needed a good deal of cleaning. The electronics just needed a few new capacitors.
 | Westinghouse H-126 "Little Jewel"
1945Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 12SK7, 12SA7, 12SF7, 12SJ7, 35A5, 35Z5 |
These Westinghouse radios are known among collectors as the "Refrigerator" because of the unusual and interesting appearance. The unusual cabinet design for portability resulted in a vertically oriented 6-tube AA6 (All American 6) chassis that stood on its narrow side. There is a single screw in the center on both sides for easy removal to replace the tubes or to perform technical repairs, which is quite convenient! When I was given this radio by a friend, the beige-white bakelite sides needed repainting. All of the tubes had the original Westinghouse brand, which indicates that perhaps the radio was not used too much. However, two of the tubes had bad filaments and had to be replaced. The filter capacitors were replaced, then the line filter capacitor shorted soon after the radio was fired up for the first time. It was rather interesting how the radio died out as the line filter capacitor fried, which effectively put an incredibly heavy load on the isolation transformer during testing. The remaining capacitors were replaced, including the bad line capacitor, and the radio plays splendidly.
  | Zenith 516Y (or G516)
1950Band: AM
Tube Lineup: 12BE6, 12BA6, 12AT6, 50C5, 35W4 |
This Zenith radio is sometimes referred to as an "owl" because of its appearance. Nonetheless, the radio has attractive styling for a clock radio.
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