Zenith Trans-Oceanic R600 Demonstration

[@davidryan672]

That is one gorgeous ZTO. Nice restoration job. I'm working on a H500. Over a year now on the backburner. Seeing your video giving me some renewed inspiration. Thanks for posting.

[@vtradio]

David, Thank you for the nice comment! I really appreciate it. I already restored one H500 for someone else. He gave me another as payment that is also on the back burner to be restored. Good luck with yours! I have a Playlist here on KZbin of the R600 restoration. Paul

[@ThePbrstg]

What a beautiful radio. Nice job on the restoration 👍

[@vtradio]

Thanks! I appreciate that. 73 Paul AA1SU

[@jeffreyyoung4104]

I have the newer, transistorized version of the T.O. It is my favorite portable shortwave receiver! With a wire antenna, or even the built in whip, it gets good reception on all bands. Mine uses 10 D cells, which makes the unit very heavy!

[@vtradio]

I have one of those too, but it doesn't get much use, unfortunately. Thanks for watching and commenting. 73 Paul AA1SU

[@jeffreyyoung4104]

@@vtradio I like to take mine on vacations and to family gatherings, I have made many people aware of the different bands and even made some new SW listeners!

[@danielt.8573]

That's a beauty.

[@vtradio]

Thank you very much.

[@Hacksaw2055]

I have the exact radio. It was my grandfather’s

[@vtradio]

That's great. Does it work?

[@Hacksaw2055]

@@vtradio yes…..along with my 1934 Philco….

[@Hacksaw2055]

@@vtradio yes. I listen to it every day

[@pags1573]

Excellent presentation! Thanks for sharing. A couple of questions. First can a modern headphone with ¼" adapter be used with your R600? And second, how well do the tone controls work in adjusting the tone?

[@vtradio]

Yes, I believe that a modern headphone will work just fine with a stereo to mono adapter. I have not played with the tone controls too much. As I recall, they make a difference, but not a whole lot. Thanks for the question. 73 Paul AA1SU

[@pags1573]

@@vtradio Subtle differences in tone is what seems to be the common response... I'm asking because I can't hear any difference at all with my ZTO R600. The tone is fine as it is, but I'd like to get those tone switches working. Thanks for responding... 73

[@8000Time]

Super!

[@vtradio]

Thank you for watching and commenting. I appreciate it. Yes, it's a Super radio. 73 Paul AA1SU

[@johnblystone8781]

Beautiful job. I have the same model waiting for a restoration but it will be awhile. Did you have to do anything with the black covering (leatherette?)? John

[@vtradio]

John, Thank you for the nice comment. I've read many things about how to restore the black covering. I went with WD-40 and made a video of it. kzbin.info/www/bejne/bGTRn6Zmr9mVgK8 I also touched up some small tears with liquid electrical tape. Although, I did notice it coming off after a while. Good luck with your restoration. See my Playlist about it: kzbin.info/aero/PL8NEttRSNUDqw8twYCw02FBblQUMNidhJ Paul

[@kennixox262]

Amazing radio and remember one like that very early in my memory in the late 1960. I live in Las Vegas and picking up anything besides local AM/FM is nearly impossible. One can imagine that you are in a much better area. Do you ever receive any signals from Europe?

[@vtradio]

I probably have received signals from Europe, but I can't think of anything specific right now. I'm on the east coast, so it's somewhat easier to hear them than from Nevada. Thanks for watching and commenting! 73 Paul

[@bobmarker6812]

I have the same model, not quite nice as yours. I bought the "Voltmatic Regulator" tube for it in the early 80's for $35.

[@vtradio]

Bob - Thanks for watching and thanks for the comment. What is the "Voltmatic Regulator" tube? The 50A1 perhaps?

[@bobmarker6812]

@@vtradio That's the one. It's the ballast tube.

[@Тольяттинец-н6ъ]

I just bought Zenith Transoceanic B-600 off of eBay. BC AM works great but it is not receiving anything on SW - just buzzing noise. What do i need to check to troubleshoot SW reception? Also, is it possible to connect an external antenna to this radio?

[@vtradio]

The fact that you are receiving the AM Broadcast Band is a very good sign. What I would do for starters is to go to a room, away from computers (or outside), and extend the wave rod (antenna) all the way up. If it's daytime, alternate between the top 4 bands and tune around the dial slowly. If it's nighttime, try the bottom two bands. You should be able to tune something in. Yes, this radio will accept an external antenna. Open up the back and you will see two screws near the bottom of the wave rod. You can attach a long wire to the one marked 'A'. The other one is marked 'G' for ground. Don't worry too much about that one. If you want to see the video series that I did on restoring this radio, go to my channel and click on Playlists. It will probably be more that you want to get in to, but it may give you some ideas of what to look for. If you know someone with a tube tester, you may want to start by checking those (baby steps). Installing the Filt-R-Pak from eBay would be a plus, too. I just checked and the seller is running low on stock. I need to order one each for my 8G005 and my H500. Good Luck and keep me posted. 73 Paul AA1SU

[@Тольяттинец-н6ъ]

@vtradio Thank you for your suggestions, Sir. Here's my setup. kzbin.info/www/bejne/iqjHo4uXd6iNgKcsi=9badqcOiyo9E5CTB The SW now works great with my external Hustler HF all band vertical. 31-meter band is my favorite and, of course, it is best to listen to it at night. Here, in California, I am able to pick up Radio España daily on 9.690 MHz starting around 22:00 UTC (around 2 PM Pacific). And, yes, the radio hates all modern electronics and LED lighting, so I had to setup a normal incandescent lighting in my bedroom because I love falling asleep while listening to a SW broadcast with a little bit of static noise. Although, I don't speak any other languages besides English and my native Russian, I still enjoy listening to broadcasts no matter what language they are in. I am a bit disappointed about the lack of European stations that can be heard on SW bands at my QTH but there is a station from. Miami that broadcasts European radio shows. 73!

[@donalddesnoo5303]

1r5 can be subbed for 1l6 in a pinch 🎉

[@vtradio]

I think I read that somewhere. Thanks.