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What to do with a 1930's radio

DeathOpie

DeathOpie

Active Member
I picked up an RCA Victor 99K radio the other day. I liked the looks of it and it can be a fun project to restore the cabinet for cheap. (paid $30)

The speaker was blown and the amp had a mouse living inside it at some point. It looks in rough shape with one tube missing. Is this amp worth doing anything with? I doubt it, but figured I'd ask. I figure the cost to get it up and running probably wouldn't be worth it. But maybe you guys know better so I'm asking.

It was a pain in the butt to get out of the cabinet. One of the mounting screws was rusted to the foot of the amp. Had to grind the head of it off to get the amp out. The glass and knobs are intact so it will at least look good when it's restored.
 

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Mouse houses tend to create all kinds of issues. A photo of the chassis(s) involved would help.
 
Not knowing your skill set at working on vintage stuff, this would be an interesting project. This RCA radio has 1938 state of the art motorized electronic tuning which I think would be fun to get in working order. Here's a link on a restoration of this unit... included a mouse home too. BTW, this is a 3-band radio receiver, not just an amplifier... there is an amplifier circuit though.

RCA 99K
 
Something like that you restore and use it a a radio. They aren't real useful as much besides what they are. You can tap into the amp and feed it another source, or build or buy yourself a small AM transmitter to feed in your own programming though.

Higher end radios like this are worth bothering with. I like the motorized tuning and such like that. Boring AA5 radios, meh, but something with cool features is fun. Electrically speaking, most of the time these things aren't that bad to work on. Its no worse than a console amp, usually a handful of electrolytic caps, maybe a dozen paper caps, some resistors, lots of dirty contacts, stuff like that. The mechancal and cosmetic parts are harder.
 
Thanks for the feedback and the link. I know my way around a soldering iron but never worked on vintage stuff. But I may give it a shot. Here's the pictures of the receiver.
 

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Oh God

Put the face back on, stick a mac amp in there with a digital streamer...:D

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A cool thing to do too is to make those "older cabinet anythings" a projection/media center. So many of the old radio to mid-century cabinets are still out there (in tough or non-functioning shape) and price to fix can be a deal breaker at times.
Determining rarity should probably a first step but if they are common?

A well re-purposed intent can have so many modern needs hidden in "classic".
Opening a door,flipping up a top can reveal a hidden movie projector,
streaming media computer, Slingbox , charging station, hard drive access.....a place for a sub to hide?

Not for everyone but that could mean they just haven't found the right style of cabinet for it yet.
 
That one will be a challenge. I've seen (and worked on) worse though. Cost is not going to be the deal breaker here unless the PT is shot or tuning condenser is froze up and unable to move. The rest can be dealt with, should you choose to do so. It is going to take some time though and depending on how bad everything is munched or disconnected, could be quite a project to get running. Great practice set, if that is your intention. If not, I'd pull the tubes and dump it.
 
As a collector of antique radios, my inclination is to preserve any valuable radio that is in good enough condition that it can be restored with reasonable effort.

So – what is “valuable”? I’m not aware of this radio having any significant intrinsic value – but that doesn’t mean it isn’t valuable to you. Does this radio have sentimental value to you or your family? Did a grandparent or uncle once own the same model? Are you in love with the style of the radio? Once restored will you display the radio with pride in your home? Or enjoy listening to it in your workshop? I have more than 10 fully restored 1930’s era console radios in my house (plus many tabletops) and I think they’re gorgeous. Each has a unique style. Some have interesting features like shutter dial, motorized tuning, etc. I love them all. To me each is like a work of art. If I were to sell them on eBay next week I’d undoubtedly lose money, but I don’t care – the radios are valuable to me.

What is “reasonable effort”? Like the question about value, only you can answer that. The chassis is in rough condition, showing significant corrosion. Is a good escutcheon available? If you like the challenge of restoring antique items, this could be a fun project for you. Other AK members can provide practical advice - I’m sorry to say that I don’t have the skills to restore radios. (As I’m sure you’re aware there are other on-line forums that focus specifically on antique radios, wherein I’m certain that hobbyists would be glad to share their experience.)

There are countless old console radios out there in need of rescue. You’ll be doing future generations a service if you restore one.

Please let us know what you decide, and if you proceed please post progress pics.

P.S. If anyone hasn't seen how beautiful a restored antique console radio can look, take a look at a few examples of Michael O’Brien’s work: http://theradionut.net/radios/consoles/consoles.html
 
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I have about 20-30 of these that I've restored over the years. I like the Zeniths with the black dials.
Lots and lots of capacitors. You don't need anything expensive, just buy a kit of the yellow paper caps and be done with it.

Keep in mind, there's some "kill ya" voltages running through these, so take the appropriate precautions.
 
Tcomisky said:
I have about 20-30 of these that I've restored over the years. I like the Zeniths with the black dials.
Lots and lots of capacitors. You don't need anything expensive, just buy a kit of the yellow paper caps and be done with it.

Keep in mind, there's some "kill ya" voltages running through these, so take the appropriate precautions.
Click to expand...

I did my 1936 as a first project in this hobby. Big mistake, I knew enough to really muck it up. I paralleled caps etc... It was right, but oh so wrong. It's a really clean radio and pulls stations just like it says "wave magnet". I listened to England news when we in during desert storm. You sure get different perspectives around the globe. It has the push button tuning and I still have the booklets full of numbers and letters, along with all the other paperwork. I rarely listen to it, so I had the wife make a cover back when she still sewed some. The veneer is too nice to let it go, it's a true survivor.:yes:
 
Tcomisky said:
I have about 20-30 of these that I've restored over the years. I like the Zeniths with the black dials.
Lots and lots of capacitors. You don't need anything expensive, just buy a kit of the yellow paper caps and be done with it.

Keep in mind, there's some "kill ya" voltages running through these, so take the appropriate precautions.
Click to expand...

I did my 36 as a first project in this hobby. Big mistake, I knew enough to really muck it up. I paralleled caps etc... It was right, but oh so wrong. It's a really clean radio and pulls stations just like it says "wave magnet". I listened to England new when we did desert storm. You sure get different perspectives around the globe. It has the push button tuning and I still have the booklets full of numbers and letters, along with all the other paperwork. I rarely listen to it, so I had the wife make a cover back when she still sewed some. The veneer is too nice to let it go, it's a true survivor.:yes:
 
My 1939 Philco is like that. It was the first radio I rebuilt, and it required that I replace all of the rotten rubber wire underneath. It works, but its not pretty under the hood. I have gotten somewhat better about not being such a slob.
 
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