Purchased in 2003 for $2 at one of my favourite flea markets, the now-defunct Walden Ave. flea market in Buffalo, NY. As can be seen in the photos, this radio was pretty rough, but for $2, why not try a restoration? 

The 31 hour restoration was completed in 2012

Remarkably, the dial was in good condition. The chassis and speaker were cleaned up with the aid of naval jelly for the rust spots, then a general wire-wheel and Peek polish application made the thing look almost new again.

The cabinet had a number of loose veneer spots which were glued down. Also some loose joints had to be glued and clamped.  The bad finish was stripped off, cabinet sanded down, and with fresh stain and three coats of clear-coat, the cabinet transformed back to close to its original beauty. Well, I wouldn’t say beauty really. This was a very utilitarian, every-man’s radio.

Getting this radio to work properly and align properly was a bit of a challenge, mainly due to corrosion in the tube sockets. It took a few extra tries with De-Ox-It to finally get the contacts clean enough.

Luckily I had most of the tubes in my “junkbox” and only had to purchase two new ones. All other parts, knobs, etc. were already on hand. I also had some leftover Emerson decals that I had purchased for a previous restoration.

This was certainly one of those “Labour of Love” radios