[NostalgiaRadioTime]

I attended the Fall Jefferson Car Show and Auto Swap Meet in Jefferson, WI today and just got home a couple of hours ago. http://www.madisonclassics.com/car-shows...ferson.php

It's huge, with around 3,100 swap vendor spaces. As such, not everything is solely devoted to classic car parts. Every other vendor was a tool vendor it seems. So I was surprised to come across a vendor with about a half dozen plastic cabinet radios for sale! I picked up these two little Crosley's for $85, which I didn't think was too bad. The white one is worth that alone (a model 10-135 from 1950). But the other set is a mystery to me, as the model number tag on the bottom is half gone. Unlike on a Philco, there is no model number on the backside of the chassis either. I haven't had a chance to take the chassis out of the cabinet to see which tubes are used, but it is a standard run of the mill AA5. So, since it seems to be a fairly common one, I thought I'd post a picture to see if anyone can ID it?

   

I'd just like an idea of the model number to try to locate a schematic. If no one knows, when I get a chance I'll take the chassis out of the cabinet and take a picture of it, and list the tubes used.

Thanks,

[OldRestorer]

I believe it is a 56 TU but no handle?

Kirk

[sam]

hi greg
white one looks like   10-140 from 1950
http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=&img...CAQQsCUoAA

[NostalgiaRadioTime]

Thanks, yes I was able to ID the white one, it's the dark colored (brown) one I am puzzled by. Kirk, this one evidently never had a handle, as there are no tell-tale holes in the top of the cabinet. Also, this one has a reverse dial. Meaning it goes from (left to right) the high end of the band to the low end, instead of the (more common) other way around.

[NostalgiaRadioTime]

I found this one online, and, in comparing pictures, it does have the same dial face. I think 56 TU is probably it, just that it doesn't have the handle on top. http://www.ebay.com/itm/251655043457

Note: I'm ONLY posting the listing for reference, NOT to promote someone else's eBay auction.

[sam]

can you peak inside top
maybe was covered over ?
some one swap chassis ?

[NostalgiaRadioTime]

OK, Just took a minute to pull the chassis. It is indeed the 56TU, as it uses the exact same tubes shown on the Nostalgia Air schematic for the set. BUT, it has no holes, no anything on top of the cabinet. And, looking at the listing for the set on Radio Museum http://www.radiomuseum.org/r/crosley_56tu.html it says "Tablemodel, Mantel/Midget/Compact up to 14" width, but not a Portable (See power data. Sometimes with handle but for mains only)". Not sure what 'for mains only' means, but evidently some came with a handle and some without.

[Arran]

 Radiomuseum is a European site, half the content is stolen from photo sharing and other websites and the information is often incomplete, incorrect, or uses whacky terminology, this is largely because of their idiotic policy of being a "pay to play" website where they trade memberships for uploading pictures or schematics. In this case they say that the cabinet is made out "Modern plastics (no Bakelite or Catalin) even though the brown cabinets are all made out of Bakelite and the white ones out of painted black Bakelite. Unfortunately many of the posters on kijiji and Craigslist use "Radiomuseum" as a reference, one of the dead giveaway is the cutting and pasting terms like "Electro Magnetic Dynamic (moving-coil with field excitation coil)" in the description. I think what they mean by "Mains only" is the fact that some have a handle, like some portable radios do, but they are for AC or DC power line operation only, not batteries. Actually you could run one off of batteries by connecting ten car batteries in series, but it would be far from portable.
 Much as I like the chrome knobed Crosleys from the early 1950s I think they are largely overpriced for what they are. Every one is just some variant on an AA5, there aren't any with a tuned RF amplifier stage, or extra IF amps, or an FM or shortwave band. One thing you have to watch for is worn or pitted plating on the trim. The one positive aspect is that they have a larger then normal loudspeaker, so they sound a bit better then the typical 4'' equipped AC/DC set.
Regards
Arran

[Paul Philco322]

Look like they are in good shape, I like the brown one, very typical of the time.

Paul

[NostalgiaRadioTime]

I spent the afternoon recapping the white one and polishing up the cabinet. Turned out rather well I thought. It plays remarkably strong and sensitive for a little AA5. Here's an "after" pic...