Zenith 1950 St Regis porthole restoration part 4

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[@mikefinn2101]

Loved watching this video again. Bob is the best of the best. Thanks again. Happy 4th to you and family

[@williamsquires3070]

Ahhh, there’s nothing like the glow of some tubes and a CRT in a darkened room! 😊

[@mikefinn2101]

Thanks God a great evening viewing been waiting for the next Bob video so happy thanks a trillion Mike

[@Scott.Newmaster]

Man, at about 11min or so it was looking and sounded like you were going to get a message from the planet Yeckdorb or some foreign planet from the 50's.

[@WC0125]

Great series Bob. Just a bit of knowledge from my experience with this chassis.....your pilot lights should be controlled by the momentary contact push button between the control doors on the front of the cabinet.

[@bandersentv]

I wonder if it is missing? There was nothing plugged into the RCA jack

[@davearmstrong1932]

Hey Bob, thank you for the Zenith picture tube warning. What my little pea brain , in my case pee wants is a 1950s Zenith TV radio, phonograph console. The ones with the cobramatic record player and the maroon plastic. Maybe time to tell my brain no. PS I am very aware of Zenith rubber coated wires.

[@bandersentv]

They are out there and tend to go cheap because of the large size.

[@billharris6886]

Hi Bob, you spent so much time working on the bottom of the chassis on this one, I assumed all the typical restoration components were replaced. That is, until I saw the dirty tubes and chassis. Someone at Zenith was really thinking with that plug on the high voltage wire! Seeing the amount of torque you need to put into changing channels on that tuner, I am surprised the knob hasn't stripped out.

[@bandersentv]

I rarely test tubes before first power up. I think it's interesting to see how it performs with the tubes it came with.

[@billharris6886]

@@bandersentv The TV shop I worked for in the mid 1970's used the same technique, in fact, they didn't own a tube tester, with exception to a CRT tester. After they got the set working, they would bang on the tubes while watching the picture. Any flinching or weak performance would necessitate a tube replacement. Of course, the horizonal output was their favorite tube to replace.

[@BerislavBradarić]

Hi Bob Can you explain why there should be no purple or blue glow inside the tube? I have several devices from the 60s that have stabilizer tubes, and they all glow with a strong purple glow.

[@bandersentv]

All of these are vacuum tube. Meaning there is no gas of any type inside them so no glow. If there is a defect and some air has leaked in, they will glow purple due to the nitrogen. The stabilizer/regulator type tubes have a special mixture of gas in them to breakdown at a specific voltage very much like zener diodes. In other words they are designed to glow much like a neon sign or bulb.

[@BerislavBradarić]

If I understand correctly, I don't have to be afraid of a beautiful shine if it's a stabilizer tube? If for some reason there is harmful x-radiation from these devices, can it even be seen with the eye? I follow your channel with interest and I also follow Shango's channel. Shango has dealt with x-radiation of these old televisions on several occasions. It seems to me that there is no protective shield around the high voltage part on your TV? Did the manufacturers take care of protection against possible harmful radiation on all old CRTs?

[@bandersentv]

No, you do not need to be afraid. There are no x-rays being produced. The B&W sets I work on run on much lower voltage that color sets. You need above 20,000 volts for that. Even so, only a small about of soft x-rays are produced in very specific areas. There was a lot of over-reaction in the media when they heard about it and manufactures added more lead shielding. It's not even the picture tube - it was the high voltage shunt regulator tube in the back of the set that was the main issue.

[@bzuidgeest]

1:01 on the phone screen, either midday or you don't sleep at all

[@bandersentv]

That's 1am. That's when I usually work on sets. Go to sleep around 2 - 4 or 5 on weekends. Get up around 8. Plenty of sleep

[@tennesseered586]

@@bandersentv I hear ya, mate.

[@bzuidgeest]

@@bandersentv that's 3 to 6 hours at best, I can deal with 6 for a while, but 3? That's not even close to enough. Certainly not if it would be every day.

[@bandersentv]

@@bzuidgeest I can't sleep more than 5 hours. I guess we're just different.

[@bzuidgeest]

@@bandersentvthe conventional wisdom of 8 hours of sleep is certainly not a law. I'm just somewhat surprised at how little seems to work for you. If I could do that it would certainly add a lot more usable time to my life.

[@zinckensteel]

Did you say CADMIUM plating?

[@bandersentv]

Sure. Just about every radio and TV chassis from the 30s to the 60s was cadmium plated steel. Why?

[@billharris6886]

The EPA banned Cadmium several decades ago due to its toxicity.

[@notimetolooz9655]

@@billharris6886 Oh that's just for starters. It isn't uncommon for equipment made before the mid-50s to contain asbestos. If you use compressed air to clean, its a good idea to do it outside. Of course solder is at least 33% lead. It isn't a good idea to eat a sandwich while working on vintage electronics!

[@tennesseered586]

@@notimetolooz9655 Don't forget the radium they used to put in plastic emergency exit signs.

[@bzuidgeest]

@@billharris6886 you watch the set, you don't lick it🤣