VOLUME 16            APRIL 1999                NUMBER   4

RADIO MISCELLANEA -- April 1999

From Antique Radio Classified for April 1999
(Copyright 1996-9 by John V. Terrey - For personal use only.)

"Antique Radio Classified" invites its readers to contribute letters and information for inclusion in "Radio Miscellanea" and elsewhere in the magazine. "In The Marketplace" is based on information submitted by the businesses themselves. All topics should be of general interest and sent to A.R.C., P.O. Box 2, Carlisle, MA 01741. All material submitted should be verified for accuracy and may be edited for publication, which is not guaranteed. See the masthead for more details.

Freshman Polydyne Memories
Dear Editor:

Thanks for the article in the March 1998 A.R.C. on the Freshman Polydyne. I was reminded that at the tail end of the 1920s (having been born in 1915), and being an eager beaver for radio, I took some of my hard-earned money from harvesting Walla Walla onions and invested in one of the Q-15s in a steel box, with cabinet and magnetic cone speaker. It is shown in Radio Manufacturers of the 1920's, Vol. 2, page 32, as a Q-16.

That radio had a Type 222 tube, which soon went dead. A replacement was outside my budget, so I substituted a Type 230 tube with appropriate filament dropping resistor. The radio worked OK until 1934, at which time the power transformer shorted out. By that time, I was wheeling and dealing in radios, since I was in the repair business, and I gave my folks a more up-to-date console.

A few of the radios I repaired were expensive and elaborate consoles with Type 201-A tubes and a "slop jar" rectifier power supply. While collecting radios of the 1920s today, I haven't run across any slop jar supplies -- not that I would want one!

Thanks again for your excellent articles.

--Ben Wilken, Sweet Home, OR

For you, Ben, and all the other lovers of the set, Dale Davenport has contributed yet another article on the Freshman Polydyne for this issue. (Editor)

On Buying Sight Unseen
Dear Editor:

Having read Gerry Harmon's letter in the March '99 issue about advertiser problems, I have a few thoughts in mind. Radio collectors are always upgrading their collections by replacing favored models with better examples. One would be very naive to expect museum or mint quality specimens to be sold through open advertising. Unwanted units are being recycled for other collectors. When buying sight unseen, ask very specific questions prior to the purchase and expect very specific answers. If specific answers are not given, don't buy the radio. Anyone buying a radio when a question is answered, "No problem," is unwise.

--Mike Koch, Yorba Linda, CA

Radio Expo in Portugal
Dear Editor:

I would like to inform A.R.C. subscribers of an exposition of old radios at the Sport Building/Village, in Vagos, Aveiro, Portugal, April 10-18, 1999. It will be comprised of about 1,000 sets dating from 1920 to 1960. The various countries of origin include America, Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Sweden, the Netherlands, and Italy.

For more information, contact: Manuel Antonio Da Silva, Rua Da Central, No. 376, 3840 Vagos, Portugal. Tel: 00-351-34-791252. Fax: 00-351-34-793438.

Pot Lubrication Suggestion
Dear Editor:

This letter is in reply to C.J. Poulos' inquiry in the March issue regarding a lubrication product for volume controls. In addition to repairing antique radios, I am a model railroader and use a product on brass tracks to keep them from corroding to increase electrical pickup. This product is WAHL Clipper Oil. A few drops restores that silky feel to a pot. You can purchase it at barber and beauty supply houses, or have your barber get it for you.

--Michael L. Ryan, Mill Hall, PA

Disk-Shaped Radio ID
Dear Editor:

The unknown radio shown in your Photo Review, February '97, p. 13, and again in the March 1999 issue, p. 15, is a General Television Model 5A5 "Spy Radio," ca. 1938. It appears to me to have Detrola knobs, possibly made for the company by Detrola(?). I have this radio and mine has a sticker on the front saying "GF Sales Co., Chicago, Illinois."

--Jim Hauskins, Bloomington, IL

Dear Editor:

In the March 1999 issue of A.R.C., a disc-shaped radio is shown asking for the identity of the manufacturer. I have the same radio. On the back is a metal plate with the following information: "Licensed under patents of Radio Corporation of America, General Electric Company, Westinghouse Electric & Mfg. Company, Hazeltine Corporation." There is also a sticker on the back which reads: "G&F Radio Patent applied for. For maximum efficiency for local and distance reception, add 15 to 25 feet of aerial. For foreign reception add 40 to 50 foot outdoor aerial." The serial number for this unit is 25-174958. I hope this information is helpful.

--J. Melvin Isett, Huntingdon, PA

Following these leads reveals an example in "Machine Age to Jet Age II " by Mark Stein on page 148. And yet another can be found on the cover of the 1997 tube catalog of Electron Tube Enterprises, Essex, Vermont, which clearly shows the G&F Sales Company, Chicago logo on the lower portion of the disk. It appears that the mystery is now solved. (Editor)

New Subscribers Speak
Dear Editor:

I ordered a 6-month subscription on February 26 and received my first copy today, March 4. Your service is amazing! I am accustomed to waiting two or three months for the the first issue of a magazine to show up.

--Alan McFarlane, Aberdeen, SD

Dear Editor:

I am a new subscriber and wish to compliment you on your excellent publication. I look forward to receiving each issue and read each page with real satisfaction.

--Charles Cross, Valdosta, GA