[codefox1]

Agree, I've rescued a few '46 and '49 sets. Some had leatherette sides, and cabinet wood was all over the place, and the straps are almost always bad. I'f taken to removing straps and filling in cabinet top, removing leatherette and use tinted laquer to get everything looking the same. The leatherette backs are usually OK and just get wiped off. I also removed the troublesome AV/Battery switch an all the other battery stuff (don't expect anyone would want to rig up batteries and haul the set around.) But you can make a new handle from an old belt you had when you were skinny, yup, paint the metal clips copper or nickel color as you wish. Don't forget to dumb down the power supply at the last leg (filament supply) of the voltage divider to be correct for the string, definitely a must if you replace the rectifier with a diode.

The radio itself is very good, has an RF amplifier, and very nice sound with it's very efficient speaker. Sit next to a 2' X 2' tuned loop and you will be surprised at DX found!

And as said, you can usually pick up another one on Epay for $20-30 if you are patient.