[Arran]

I can't recall reading anything outstanding about the reliability of Philco sets from this time period, the earliest models from the 1948-50 time period apparently had high voltage problems where the voltage would drop as the set ran. I'm not sure that this was a defect in the design of the flybacks or a result of lingering moisture inside the windings. I haven't heard much of anything about the 1953 models, good or bad, I believe that they still used point to point wiring, and had a proper power transformer, they were not series string, nor did the use an autotransformer. One advantage this has is that they obviously had settled on 21'' rectangular picture tubes by then, I think that they were either 45 or 60 degree, but are much more common then the earlier 17'' rectangular tubes, and were until the 110 degree tubes came out in the late 1950s.
Regards
Arran