Can someone tell me what this is...

[Lester]

...besides "an old radio"... and is it worth a crap?

[genlock]

Yes, it is.
Sometimes people pay hundrds of dollars for such things.
Go to an antique radio website and try to identify it.
Then troll for a buyer.

[Hoosier Daddy]

They called those "tombstone radios" because of the shape.
I'd guess late 20s to late 30s.
Not sure on the manufacturer. Atwater-Kent and Zenith were big names back then.
Worth a lot if you can find the right buyer.
Check eBay or do a Google search and see what they're fetching ...

[fearpeddler]

my grandparent have a few of the older radios like that in working condition, they can be worth a pretty penny if you find the right buyer.

[Lester]

Guess I should clarify...

I'm the buyer.

So for $10 I did OK?

[fearpeddler]

you did really well for 10 dollars

[Hoosier Daddy]

you did really well for 10 dollars

What he said.

[Lester]

It's a "Silvertone", manufactured by Sears. Not sure what model. Did find a picture of the "World's Fair" edition that looks close, but still not quite there.

Turning the knobs does nothing*. Not sure where to go next.

*That's what she said

[Arp2]

Turning the knobs does nothing*.

*That's what she said

Not sure where to go next.

That's what she said you said.....

[Dr. Whiplash]

Turning the knobs does nothing*.

*That's what she said

Not sure where to go next.

That's what she said you said.....

Arp, ladies and gentlemen, he's here again tomorrow night...

I think you done good, Lester, if only for the cabinet, and Silvertone was Sony then. Worth a good bit more than ten bucks! (How much more, I got no idea.)

[fearpeddler]

those style radios ran on tubes similar to those used in todays larger guitar amplifiers (i.e. marshal, and pevey heads) prolly wouldnt hurt to actually open the sucker up if you can and see if you can find tubes to fit it.

[Lester]

Will do. There appears to be some damage, maybe humidity, on the right side of the unit. (It's visible in the picture on the veneer) Also the right hand side "bump" is pulled loose from the main body. I'll try to photograph/document some of the particulars today.

One knob is cracked, another is missing. And there is no power cord... not even a place for where one once lived.

The back panel may not be original... but it is cut to fit. Looks like nothing more than finishing nails holding it on, so getting in there shouldn't be too difficult.

[fearpeddler]

yah, little bit of orange oil and that thing will shine like its still the cutting edge of technology.... if the back side has been replaced that would explain the no power cord issue, but then again it could just be wound up inside the unit. What you may want to be concerned about when you do open it would be a burst or cracked tube.. those older radios had alot of mercury in the tubes and I would hate to hear about the little one getting into the mess.

[genlock]

A problem will be the capacitors in the radio.
Old, dried out and prone to short.
If full of moisture, I would be careful of the power transformer.
Mercury? Radio is too small for Mercury rectifiers.
Selenium? Yes, there may be selenium rectifiers for bias etc.
That could be unsafe.
I would not plug it in unless you want to actually use it.
If so, contact a local person there that restores old radios.
Skills necessary to do this type of things are disappearing.
Schematics are available but may be pricey.
Performance of these old radios is overrated.
Good sensitivity, poor selectivity. AM was not crowded than.
You could probably make some profit from a sale.
Restoration could cost several hundred dollars..

[Hoosier Daddy]

You'll also need to watch the power supply. These old radios had to supply a lot of different voltages for tubes, filaments, etc. Depending on when someone actually connected AC power to that bad boy, you might have some capacitors holding several thousand volts. If the AC plug is (for whatever reason) installed backwards, the entire metal innards (including dials, knobs, antenna connection points, etc.) may be a live wire and will knock you on your ass. Fixing one of these old antiques up and making it play again can be fun and rewarding. Just be careful ...

[fearpeddler]

The capacitors could be an issue, good catch hoosier, that totally slipped my mind.. but I think still that it just be big enough to hold a little mercury in it.. if you can find any info on the inside of that monster though about its actual make and model I'd almost be theres a schematic floatin around the net.

[Tom Taggart]

1. No, they normally didn't use mercury in radios of that vintage, unless it had a thermometer!
2. Selenium rectifiers were most post-war.
3. Usual B+ voltage was around 350 volts, filaments 6 to 12 volts, with bias voltages derived from dropping resistors.
4. You can find modern replacements for the caps, but collectors usually like the innards to look original, with the can type of filter cap or the large paper wound coupling caps
5. Dial probably needs to be restrung.

[Arp2]

You'll also need to watch the power supply. These old radios had to supply a lot of different voltages for tubes, filaments, etc. Depending on when someone actually connected AC power to that bad boy, you might have some capacitors holding several thousand volts. If the AC plug is (for whatever reason) installed backwards, the entire metal innards (including dials, knobs, antenna connection points, etc.) may be a live wire and will knock you on your ass.

Ahhh.....brings back the memory of that high school electrical class and its big project.......

[Dave Loudin]

Start here. We have an old Wards radio to fix up, and I found what I needed there.