Rare Truetone Tombstone twin speaker - Printable Version
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+--- Thread: Rare Truetone Tombstone twin speaker (/showthread.php?tid=13778)
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Rare Truetone Tombstone twin speaker - Fred Taylor - 01-01-2016
Cant seem to find this radio anywhere on line but have figured out its a TSS chassis in witch was used in several models of radios using deferent names and using the twin speaker system, I'm thinghing Tom Forbes my know something about this rare relic, mine happens to be a truetone and is quite uncommon to rare according to other radio collectors and no pictures anywhere to be found of this model. Cabinet was tastefully refinished to what I think looks very nice although may not be exactly what the factory finish would have been. The chassis was painted black from factory and being restored as well and will post pictures of that work as I go along with the restoration of this beautiful radio
RE: Rare Truetone Tombstone twin speaker - Fred Taylor - 01-01-2016
More pictures
RE: Rare Truetone Tombstone twin speaker - Fred Taylor - 01-01-2016
Few more pics, sorry I should have reversed the pictures in order from before to after. Note the cabinet when I got it had been refinished but lacked any toner or clear coat and just had something on the wood like a thin coat of varnish which looked terribly
The twin speakers is an very unusually set up along with the matt black coating on chassis. When I took chassis apart the black showed up under the cans and condenser proving that indeed was painted like that from the factory. The black paint was flacking off in areas and was quite dirty which prompted me to refinish chassis as well since I had it tore down any way. I will post pictures of chassis later today because I am going up to shop and work getting this radio finished.
RE: Rare Truetone Tombstone twin speaker - Fred Taylor - 01-02-2016
(OHOOOO)The Stewart Warner is coming along nicely, installed grill cloth and escutcheon . The chassis was repainted black as factory and some caps were replaced along with the speaker wires. The radio is playing but still needs work and I will need some help in that department. Dick will help me out on that as he is an expert in that field. I'm not real sure if I will keep that cloth in there as it looks a little to goldish for me. Doesn't look to bad standing head on but when you move sideways its turns gold and I don't like that to much, and I know what your thinking ( I don't care what you like) its not about you chump
Ha Ha Ha IM starting to talk like Kirk I better shut up now 
RE: Rare Truetone Tombstone twin speaker - Phlogiston - 01-02-2016
Fred, I know it is a little late now but I think they made this very similar cabinet for Airline. I have seen this radio with several different chassis in it. I kept the one that was copper plated, for that reason only. I also think that I have that chassis and speaker combination in a console version.
The color scheme is as it was when produced. The speaker (only a single) looks to be the same make and design as yours though, a different model.
This combination was probably quite variable. The last one I sold had a different chassis that was zinc/other silver metal plated with other differences..
RE: Rare Truetone Tombstone twin speaker - Phlogiston - 01-02-2016
I found a picture of the console (though very small) which is a WG-24 from 1932(?). So I think that chassis might be a Wells Gardner. It also has the dual speakers.
RE: Rare Truetone Tombstone twin speaker - Fred Taylor - 01-02-2016
Thanks Russ I think your right on the wells garner chassis, I will look it up in the riders book. I think the grill cloth needs to be changed out to something else, what's your thoughts on that Russ?
RE: Rare Truetone Tombstone twin speaker - Phlogiston - 01-02-2016
Well, I ended up using gold also. I think the one I used is the current Philco replacement. The one you used is the early Majestic (model 90) replacement. I am not sure that there is anything better. Maybe this one.
http://www.richmonddesignsinc.com/grille_cloth_product_page
Third one from left on top - Whisky Rayon
I use it but spray a little walnut brown dye on it to take the yellow/gold down a notch.
Or maybe the "Soldier Brown" one.
RE: Rare Truetone Tombstone twin speaker - TA Forbes - 01-02-2016
They were a W.G. chassis/speaker set offered in a couple of different versions.
I have the one with four knobs and four bands.
RE: Rare Truetone Tombstone twin speaker - Fred Taylor - 01-02-2016
(01-02-2016, 01:41 PM)Phlogiston Wrote: Well, I ended up using gold also. I think the one I used is the current Philco replacement. The one you used is the early Majestic (model 90) replacement. I am not sure that there is anything better. Maybe this one.
http://www.richmonddesignsinc.com/grille_cloth_product_page
Third one from left on top - Whisky Rayon
I use it but spray a little walnut brown dye on it to take the yellow/gold down a notch.
Or maybe the "Soldier Brown" one.
I like the soldier brown and may get some of that and your tombstone set looks beautiful buy the way and is very similar cabinet design to mine.
RE: Rare Truetone Tombstone twin speaker - Fred Taylor - 01-02-2016
(01-02-2016, 02:29 PM)TA Forbes Wrote: They were a W.G. chassis/speaker set offered in a couple of different versions.Hello Tom, hope you had a nice Christmas and new years day, seen Henry at the convention last November and had a real good time there. We sat in the back corner of auction room and with other collector friends. Henry had a lot of fun and bought and sold some radios. You should have came down! Maybe some other time you can, would like to meet you and we can go to flight museum in Dallas, well get Henry to go along.
I have the one with four knobs and four bands.
RE: Rare Truetone Tombstone twin speaker - Arran - 01-04-2016
It looks like the chassis in this Truetone had one of those weird textured paints they used back then on test equipment, I've also seen it on some 1920s radios, sort of like a fine crackle finish. I have no idea how one would duplicate it, I found a formula for making a crystalized frosted finish by mixing naptha into whatever constituted enamel paint in those days. The closest that I have seen to that crackle paint was modern wrinkle pain like VHT sells for painting valve covers, but it's wrinkled not cracked. A lot of brand Z chassis used a gold hammer tone paint, Strombergs used a dark brown crystalized frosted paint on theirs, with copper plate underneath. Sometimes you can restore a textured finish by cleaning it really good with something like TSP and then by painting over it, I did that with an A.K speaker a few years ago.
Regards
Arran
RE: Rare Truetone Tombstone twin speaker - Phlogiston - 01-04-2016
Arran, I think this is the wrinkle paint.
If it helps, I can take a picture of the console chassis above. I still have that radio and I am sure it is either the same or very similar chassis.
RE: Rare Truetone Tombstone twin speaker - Arran - 01-05-2016
(01-04-2016, 12:32 PM)Phlogiston Wrote: Arran, I think this is the wrinkle paint.
If it helps, I can take a picture of the console chassis above. I still have that radio and I am sure it is either the same or very similar chassis.
Russ;
It would be interesting to see that actually. I wonder what the motivation was behind using two 6'' speakers rather then an 8'' or a 10'' in that tombstone? Does your console use the same size speakers or are they larger ones? I have an empty Airline tombstone cabinet that is very similar, though less elaborate then the one Fred fixed up, the grill actually looks like it should have had dual speakers as it is wide and separated down the middle, I don't think it did though. The cabinet is inexpensively built in my opinion, the bottom is cheap plywood with the molding nailed to it, the only fancy wood is on the front panel I think. I've held onto in in the faint hope that I might locate a chassis and other bits to fit it, maybe from a trashed console.
I don't know how exactly Monty Wards operated, did they design and have the cabinets built and then source chassis from various radio manufacturers? I know that some were made by U.S Radio and Television, but Wells Gardner and Belmont made a lot of Airline chassis too. One thing that is unfortunate about most American makes is that they seemed to like using paper labels on the back aprons of chassis to mark out the model number and other information, almost all Canadian sets had metal plates with this information.
Regards
Arran
RE: Rare Truetone Tombstone twin speaker - Phlogiston - 01-05-2016
I'll get some pictures today of the console. I believe that it has the very same speakers.
It might be a little later in the day. I have to go look at a collection for a charity today.
I can think of one other radio in my display with a similar "why" as to having 2 speakers and that radio is the much more popular Zenith 760, photo below.
The radio I pictured above and its various chassis are narrower than the subject chassis. So it is just very similar - probably related.
Note too the similar paint selection on the zenith chassis. Maybe this was an early 1930s "style" with no other explanation.