1923 Atwater Kent Radiodyne Breadboard Radio Gold - Plated Presentation Set
Item History & Price
| Reference Number: Avaluer:7005334 |
Here's one for TV's History Detectives.
What I know:
1) This is a 1923 Atwater Kent Radiodyne breadboard radio whose serial number is 155 (A00155). Given that approximately 6, 000 Radiodynes were manufactured over the course of the radio's brief production run in the fall of 1923, the radio's serial number would almost certainly place its build-out on the first or second day of production. Its serial number is the lowest I've ever seen on a Radiodyne. I...n fact, I'm not aware of any surviving Radiodyne with a serial number below 650.
2) Virtually every brass part on the radio has been flashed in 8 karat gold. This includes the binding posts, the binding post nuts, the fine tuning controls, the tube sockets, the tube pin contacts, the condenser shafts, the screws that secure the components to the board, the binding post escutcheons, the nuts that secure the the tube sockets to the bakelite top of the TA unit, etc. Take a look. Not hard to see what's been done.
3) The gold plating on these brass parts is clearly as old as the radio, with a century-old patina and flecks of brown/black tarnish throughout.
4) With the exception of the high voltage bypass capacitor on the underside of the board (a period replacement), the radio is original throughout. This includes the wire, the staples, the board, the paper tags, the board finish, the green paint on the condensers cans and TA island, the potting tar in the TA, as well as the electronics in the TA, the wire on the RF coils, the board feet, etc.
What I don't know:
1) I don't know the circumstances under which the radio was gold-plated. I purchased the set off the back of a pick-up truck at a flea market in the midwest. I found it exactly as you see it except for the tubes, which I added. The seller did not know the radio's history, other than that it came from a high school classroom in southern Ohio (the teacher protectively wrote his/her name and room number in black marker on the underside of the board -- see 8th picture). I'd like to think that the radio was plated for someone or something of relative importance to the company -- a dealer, a magazine publisher, a trade show, a politician, an executive, etc. -- but obviously I have no way to verify this, nor do I know how or when the radio wound up in a classroom.
2) I don't know whether the plating was done at the factory or by a third party. The factory probably had the wherewithal to flash the brass parts, but since this is the only Radiodyne I've ever seen or heard of with gold-plating, there's no precedent for saying it was plated at the factory. One thing that should be obvious, however, is that deconstructing the assembled radio after it had left the factory in order to flash every piece of brass on it, only to have to then reassemble the radio from its constituent parts would have been very time consuming.
Condition of the radio is very good to excellent throughout, as you can see in the photographs. The board finish exhibits minimal wear, and the bakelite parts are all in good shape, with no damage or repairs. The wiring on two of the RF coils is secured at the top of the form with a tiny piece of tape to keep it in place, but the coils are otherwise in good condition, with no oil stains on the sheathing and with nice, legible, original metal Radiodyne tags atop each coil. Nothing has been waxed, oiled, polished or otherwise glammed up in order to make the radio more presentable.
The chocolate brown bakelite is glossy everywhere, with no chips, no cracks, no issues. Green paint on the condenser cans and TA is original, and it's in good condition, with minimal deterioration, even on the mounting flanges. The engraved numbers and hash marks on all three dials are crisp and legible.
The condenser cans have no dents, no dings, no rust or corrosion eating away under the enamel. All of the brown sheathing on the wire running to the components on the top of the board is original, and all of it is in excellent condition. The binding posts on the back of the board are original, and all of them are reasonably clean, as are the escutcheons. The B+ bypass capacitor, as noted above, is a period replacement.
Transformers test results: Secondary 1 -- 3420 ohms. Secondary 2 -- 3530 ohms. Primary 1 -- 1470 ohms. Primary 2 -- Open. I can send along one of Robert Lozier's tiny and excellent transformer bridges if you want to try powering the radio up with an ARBEIII, but on a breadboard this unique and historic, I'm not going to touch anything inside the TA.
All five tipped tubes have good emissions.
That's about it. I will pack everything carefully and properly, and I can assure you that it will show up at your doorstep in the same fine condition in which its leaves mine. I have been shipping antique phonographs and radios for years, and if you check my feedback, you'll see that I know how to do it correctly. Auction participants with no prior feedback, or with hiddent feedback, should contact me before placing a bid.
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