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Vintage Television and Video Vintage television and video equipment, programmes, VCRs etc. |
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23rd Jun 2016, 10:05 pm | #1 |
Heptode
Join Date: Apr 2016
Location: Croxley Green, Hertfordshire, UK.
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Are there pre-war TV's that are now extinct?
The reason I ask is I've never seen a Murphy V88c, only as the picture shown. I would imagine only a handful would have been made anyway so the survival rate would be even more remote... or maybe Mike Barker has one!
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Clive |
24th Jun 2016, 8:27 am | #2 |
Dekatron
Join Date: May 2003
Location: Edinburgh, UK.
Posts: 3,273
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Re: Are there pre-war TV's that are now extinct?
It would be fascinating to see any Scophony sets in operation but I suspect they are all extinct.
Peter |
24th Jun 2016, 9:28 am | #3 |
Dekatron
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: Rugeley, Staffordshire, UK.
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Re: Are there pre-war TV's that are now extinct?
It's a thought that I had during my vintage TV collecting years back in the late 70s and one that still perplexes me now. It'd be nice to think that 'one of every pre-war TV' still exists. But, as has been said, these things were only made in handfuls anyway, and at the end of their working life - which wouldn't have been long after the war - they would have been junked. Newer sets were smaller, had bigger screens, worked better, cheaper etc etc. Accordingly, only certain types of people would have hung on to a pre war set, indeed that's one of the reasons they are so rare now. It's also safe to assume that anyone who could afford to buy a pre war set would have most probably been able to afford a 'modern' replacement after the war. Set against all that, in terms of collectors, there are those of us on here, people who are 'known', communicate, and swap and sell sets, and there are also lots of unknowns. They're the lurkers, people who choose to not get involved in clubs, societies, forums, events etc but nonetheless are bona fide collectors and have enviable vintage TV collections tucked away including pre war sets. So, there's another ponderable; do these people have sets whose existence is not known to the greater community? On that basis I think that there are sets out there that none of us know about. And do you think that there are at least a few undiscovered pre war sets still sitting in back rooms, outhouses, barns, sheds, wherever? It'd be nice to think so.
Afterthought. When I was collecting vintage TVs, I bought a Pye 817 5" vision only set from a guy who was not known in the greater vintage wireless and TV community, he was a lone operator and a friend put me on to him. I have since passed that set on as I did for all bar one of my collection (a TV22) to pay for a divorce. I have my memories though.
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A digital radio is the latest thing, but a vintage wireless is forever.. |
24th Jun 2016, 11:22 pm | #4 |
Pentode
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: Champaign, Illinois, USA.
Posts: 227
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Re: Are there pre-war TV's that are now extinct?
I don't know about England, but in the USA they keep showing up from those old barns. Of course we have the "advantage" of more than just one station, and they kept going during the war, at least a little. The disadvantage is less time to accumulate before the war.
The people I know believe that there are no big time collectors out there unknown to the in-crowd. One clue is that sets on eBay don't sell to unknown people in any numbers, if at all. I also collect rocks, and there ARE "black holes", known only to the top dealers. |
25th Jun 2016, 7:55 am | #5 |
Heptode
Join Date: May 2003
Location: Devizes, Wiltshire, UK.
Posts: 650
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Re: Are there pre-war TV's that are now extinct?
The Murphy V88C was an unusual TV with its added radio unit on top making it a rather unusual looking thing. A bit of an ugly baby!
As far as I know, there are no surviving versions of the V84C, V86C and V88C. I have always wondered if there was a V88C tucked away in the V & A Museum as line drawings of one were done for the early TV display they held back around 1980. Gordon Bussey and Keith Geddes were heavily involved with that, but alas they have both now passed away. I cannot find any record of one in the V & A Museum inventory. The V84, V86 and V88 series of TV's were shown at the 1939 Radio Show on the Murphy stand. So they did actually exist. I know that the initial 'send out' of one demonstration set to London based, TV trained dealers took place, but not which sets were actually sent out. I do not believe from the delivery dates stated for these particular sets (V88C) that any would have been dispatched from the factory for general sale. The release and estimated delivery dates would have been at the time WW2 started and the TV signal switched off. There is a statement in the Murphy News which says that any dealers who have received a new 1939 TV set would not be able to return it for a refund and would have to keep it until the TV service re-started. They did not know it would be 6 years! I have a V84 table model which is the only Murphy 1939 TV that is currently known. On the subject of these things still turning up, It is only a month ago we found in the corner of a deceased BVWS members dining room an HMV900 mirror-lid TV buried under lots of radios! It is a late production model by its serial number but in nice original condition. I am sure there are more out there waiting to be found. At least I hope so... It will be for sale at the BVWS 9th October Special auction. Mike...
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Mike Barker. |
27th Jun 2016, 3:12 am | #6 |
Heptode
Join Date: Apr 2016
Location: Croxley Green, Hertfordshire, UK.
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Re: Are there pre-war TV's that are now extinct?
Thanks for your input Mike, the V88C has always intrigued me because of it's outlandish looks, a shame one seems not do to have survived.
About 25 years ago I restored two prewar HMV television cabinets and have always wondered were they ended up, I took pictures of the work in progress, I must find these and post them up in a thread.
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Clive Last edited by MurphyNut; 27th Jun 2016 at 3:20 am. |
27th Jun 2016, 12:51 pm | #7 |
Heptode
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Carshalton, Surrey, UK.
Posts: 734
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Re: Are there pre-war TV's that are now extinct?
HI,
well as far as I know the Science Museum does have a lot of older valve equipment in it's store ( not on display ). So it is possible there may be one or two televisions stored / hidden there. regards Peter B |
27th Jun 2016, 1:47 pm | #8 |
Heptode
Join Date: May 2003
Location: Devizes, Wiltshire, UK.
Posts: 650
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Re: Are there pre-war TV's that are now extinct?
The Science Museum do not have any Pre-war Murphy TV's on their inventory.
I have been through it very carefully. Mike...
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Mike Barker. |
27th Jun 2016, 4:43 pm | #9 |
Octode
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Co. Durham, UK.
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Re: Are there pre-war TV's that are now extinct?
Not strictly on-topic, but...
Did you notice if they had a Baird Model B on the list? There is a THIRD example of this historic set known but not accounted for. In the Bradford museum, two of these are listed, with photographs; one on display, and one in the Stores. I applied to the Museum for permission to examine the 'spare' set, for the purpose of making engineering drawings. The Curator kindly arranged for this; but on bringing out the set, it proved to be neither of the two listed sets, but another, not accounted for. It was suggested that the original 'second' set may have inadvertently remained in the Science Museum stores. Any further information would be most welcome. |