I SCORED THIS VERY CLOSE TO HOME... NO FURTHER THAN NEXT DOOR. THE SET WAS LEFT AFTER SHE MOVED OUT. A COUPLE OF BUCKS CHANGED HANDS AND IT WAS IN MY GARAGE.
ON FIRST INSPECTION, I FOUND A BRIGHTENER ON THE TUBE. FORTUNATELY, THE TUBE CAME BACK AFTER A LENGTHY COOK. THE BRIGHTNER ENDED UP BEING TURNED INTO AN ADAPTER TO CHECK PHILCO PREDICTA TUBES ON THE BELTRON.
THIS SET HAS FACTORY UHF. AT THE TIME OF MANUFACTURE, UHF WAS AN OPTION. IN MARKETS LIKE YOUNGSTOWN, OH (ALL UHF), SETS WITH FACTORY UHF ARE COMMON.
FOR SOME REASON, RCA USED THERMAL SWITCHES IN THE POWER SUPPLIES. I MAY HAVE TO BYPASS THIS FOR THE SOFT STARTS. BELOW ARE SHOTS OF THE UNRESTORED CHASSIS.
ON RCA BLACK AND WHITE SETS FROM THIS ERA, THE FOILS ON THE PRINTED CIRCUIT BOARDS ARE NOT ENTIRELY ACCESSIBLE. IN THIS CASE, I WILL CLIP THE LEADS FLUSH WITH THE CAPS AND HOOK/SOLDER THE NEW ONES IN.
THE NEXT SHOT SHOWS THE RESULT OF THE SOFT START. I AM USING AN 8YP4 CRT FOR RESTORATION. I DID NOT HAVE TO BYPASS THE THERMAL SWITCH. IT CLOSED AT ABOUT 50 VOLTS. MUCH TO MY SURPRISE, THE ELECTROLYTIC CANS WERE GOOD. IT WAS EVIDENT THAT THEY HAD BEEN REPLACED. THERE WAS A RECOGNIZABLE IMAGE ON THE CRT.
CHASSIS AFTER RECAPPING. I ADDED A FUSE AFTER THE 5U4, BUT BEFORE THE FIRST FILTER CAP. ON POWERUP, THERE WERE VERTICAL ISSUES. THE PICTURE WAS SLOW TO FILL OUT, AND THE TOP STRETCHED AFTER ABOUT 30 MINUTES. THE 6EM5 SHOWED SHORTS ON THE TESTER. EVERY REPLACEMENT I HAD ALSO SHOWED SHORTS. I PICKED THE ONE WITH THE LEAST LEAKAGE AND THE VERTICAL WAS STABLE. THE DIAL DRIVE BELT IS BROKEN. REPLACEMENTS ARE IMPOSSIBLE TO FIND. I WILL NEED TO FABRICATE SOMETHING WITH MODERN MATERIALS. AS OF NOW, I HAVE NOT DONE ANYTHING WITH THE BELT.
THE FINAL RESULT. THE BLUISH TINT IS LIGHTING AND CAMERA EFFECT. THE CRT HAD GOOD EMISSION AFTER THE COOK. IT LOOKS LIKE THE BRIGHTENER DID NO DAMAGE TO THE TUBE.