RCA Radiola Special 1-tube radio receiver

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images above are before restoration
images below are after

Made for RCA by the "Wireless Specialty Co.". The Radiola "Special" is one of the more rare models of Radiola's. Released in May of 1923, it's a converted model, made by using the same case and panel from the very rare Radiola "Concert". The "Concert" was a crystal receiver released in mid 1922, most of them were converted to the "Special" by removing the crystal detector and adding the circuitry for a 1-tube regenerative receiver employing a UV-199 and fabricating a new front panel. The original panel used on the "Concert" (made of engraved hard rubber) was retained to mount the new components and the new embossed metal panel was overlaid on the old panel. The variometer was the only original electrical component used.

I completely restored the set which included: recreation of the instruction lid label; new paint; rubber shock mount for the tube socket; major cleaning. One more major effort was to restore the badly deformed variometer that  was warped so badly at the mounting base the pointer would "bottom out" at "12:00" (or 5) on the dial. The variometer is made of hard rubber, to restore it required disassembling it and making a jig then heating and re-forming it.
 

	< reprint of the lid label available

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