The PHILCO Phorum

Folks, you know that I have been saying for years now that the PHILCO decals sold by Radio Daze were very inaccurate in appearance.

I am happy to report to you that most of the decals have been corrected!



Don't worry, that new PH8 at the top of the photo above is not blurry on the sheets - that happened because of my stacking several decal sheets on the scanner to make the picture above.

I'm not currently aware of any Philco model needing a silver decal, but they have them (DCL-PH2), and the font is now correct.

I think the TRANSITONE font still needs some work, but I need to photograph some Philco Tropic decals and have some custom decals made. I think that when I do that photo shoot, I will also try to photograph an original Philco Transitone decal and submit it to Radio Daze.

I want to thank Mike Slusser and his staff for listening to us and making these decals "right." I hope that those of you who wrote to him with your concerns about the incorrect styles will now contact Mike and thank him for the new correct types!

I am only sorry, Mike, that I was unable to make this post before now - the last two weeks have been quite busy and hectic for me. My weekend traveling is now over for a while and I can concentrate on more things like this. (Yes, folks, Mike is watching, and is interested in your feedback on their products.)

For those of you who participate in that other forum, you have my permission to share the above photo over there if you wish.

And a final note - show Radio Daze your appreciation for the newly corrected decals by ordering several sheets!

I just ordered some decals from Radio Daze per Ron's suggestion.
I'm working on an 18 with the lyre decal at the top of each column.

Are the "lyre" decals available anywhere? I'm afraid to even clean that area on my project. I don't want to loose that detail. Any ideas ?

... what do I do now with my unused incorrect sheets?

Throw them away right now! That way you won't be tempted to use them.

Steve

Take them to radio shows and affix them to Waltons.

Trying to order a new set, I can't remember how I figured what one was the good one for my 47-1230...

Ron, this must make you feel a lot better. As recall, you have been complaining about this for some time. Great job getting things more accurate. I guess I will have to throw out my old supply and re-order for my new project.
Jerry

Jerry

I wasn't complaining for the sake of complaining. I complained because it was the right thing to do. Someone needed to.

Give Radio Daze the kudos for getting the job done for us...and for future generations.

Is there a list of what decal is used for what radio? There's very little description on the site and we have to guess what to use.

The new Philco decals from Radio Daze look great but beware when trying to install them. They are SO delicate you have to be EXTREMELY steady when applying them or they will tear or fold over. Also, you may wish to clear coat over them, as (I found out the hard way) the gold lettering will rub off with just the slightest touch! I had to remove the chassis from my 47-1230 one more time and trying to remove the knobs, as delicate as I was, I still managed to rub off the volume decal... grrr! These decals are a LOT thinner than the one's previously available on the white colored paper (these are on light blue paper). Not criticizing by no means (they are an improvement in accuracy), just wanting to forewarn fellow collectors / restorers :-)

Should they receive like 2-3 layers of clear-coat?

and how difficult are they to install? I didn't touch water-transfers in years.

Once I re-applied the decals on my set, I left it at that and didn't clear coat over them. Another concern is how clear coat will affect the decals? I was a bit gun shy on trying, and figure for now at least, I'll just be extra careful when using the set to avoid rubbing them again.

I've tried the decals today. They are very easy to work with. Once dry, the lacquer doesn't seem to be any issue.

here's the "bad" and "correct" decals side to side.
[attachment=1237]

the "correct" one sure looks better.

I am not a collector or restorer, but do like old radios and OTR programs. I just acquired a 37-116 and am having the cabinet refinished. There were no decals on it when I got it, just a faint imprint of the Philco logo at the top. It looks like I should get the DCL-37-116 decals from Radio Daze for the controls. I haven't seen any images on the web of a straight front 37-116 with a band selector decal, although I have seen pictures of the slant front with that decal. Should I put on the band selector decal on my straight front cabinet? If so, exactly where should it go? Anyone have a good picture of a straight front 37-116 with a full set of correct decals?

With regard to the Philco logo at the top (with "high fidelity" underneath), the cabinet is now stripped and I don't have the height/size of the lettering from the old imprint (I'm a newbie!.) It looks like I should get DCL-PH-HIFI from Radio Daze,l but he decals look awfully small. Can anyone confirm that is the right logo decal? If not, what should I be using?

Finally, the cabinet refinisher wants to put the decals on before he puts the finish on. I see posts on the Phorum indicating that you do it on top of the finish and protect the decals with lacquer or maybe polyurethane. Can you put the decals on either way, either before or after the cabinet finish coat(s) and if so, is one way better than the other?

Thanks in advance for your help.

Hi Larry, welcome to the Philco Phorum!

Your decals should be installed after the toned lacquer and before the final clear coats. Someone else will chime in as to the correct decals and location for your model.

One more thing, has your chassis been restored? If not, this must be done before you turn the radio on. The reason is, even though the radio may still work, many of the capacitors have gone bad and operating the radio will destroy components that are nearly impossible to find replacements for.

Steve