VOLUME 23               NOVEMBER 2006                NUMBER  11

EDITOR'S COMMENTS

From Antique Radio Classified for November 2006
(Copyright 1996-2006 by John V. Terrey - For personal use only.)

The frost is on the pumpkin here in New England, and indoor activities like auctions and restoration projects have begun to take precedence over outdoor flea markets and other such events. In this issue, we report on a major Estes auction and no fewer than three restoration projects.

The first of these projects is unusual in that it is not a radio or electronic restoration but an audio project in which recorded sounds are recovered from an antique and obsolete medium. Even more unusual is the fact that Nick Gent's grandfather made the recordings on a wire recorder that he built himself. Nothing about the original project was standard, even the home-brew wire spools on which family voices were recorded.

Nick took painstaking steps to recover those recordings with a combination of equipment: a vintage wire recorder, modern sound processing equipment, computers, and software. No matter what your restoration interests, you will admire Nick's ingenuity in recovering a piece of his family history.

What at first appeared to be a bad packing/shipping disaster proved to be a doable restoration project for Richard Arnold. His 5-tube, AC/DC, GE Model GD-60 makes an unusual addition to his collection.

In the name of preservation, not monetary value, Claude Chafin restored his super sensitive Hallicrafters Model S-72L radio. His fellow Ham collectors should be pleased with the results -- "a pretty cool radio."

And there's always room in these pages for "pretty cool" finds that are radio-related. Kent Houck shares his discovery of a Crosley Temperator -- a heater fan contained in a radio loudspeaker case. The ever-inventive Powel Crosley seemed able to find a use for any surplus parts.

Not much at the Estes Auction featuring the Dexter Deeley Collection would be labeled "surplus." The depth and quality of the offerings were such that I couldn't resist making the trip to Ohio. It was worth the effort to see so many sets from early manufacturers lined up waiting for new owners. Most impressive were the 19 Grebe sets accounting for over one-quarter of the proceeds, as well as the nearly 50 crystal sets offered.

Mark Stein adds the first of a new series of radio guides to his long list of very useful aids to the radio-collecting community. This one concentrates on plastic radios, and reviewer Geoff Shearer likes it for its presentation of the material and its handy size.

A.R.C. Benefits. Be sure to take advantage of A.R.C. benefits: a toll-free number (866) 371-0512; Discover, MasterCard, American Express, Visa accepted; the Web, www.antiqueradio.com; books shipped free in the U. S. by USPS media mail; and for current subscribers, a 10 percent discount on book orders.

Coming Radio Events. There are 45 events listed this month. Mark your calendar with at least one of these events before winter closes in.

Happy Collecting!

John V. Terrey, Editor

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ON THE COVER

On the cover is an early wireless item from the Estes auction of the Dexter Deeley collection in April, 2006. The SE-1420C, modified to a BC-131 medium wave receiver, sold for $3,000.

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OOPS!

Several readers wrote to correct an error in the article on vintage auto radios in the October issue. The salvaged radio was from a 1955, not a 1950 Ford.