1949 Tele-Tone TV-209 Vintage Television

This is a Tele-Tone model TV-209 from 1949.

I restored the electronics on this 60 year old TV last year, the cabinet still needs a little attention.

Nicknamed a "Porthole" set because the face of the picture tube is not masked off to create the standard 4:3 image.

Sets like this either stretch the vertical to fill the screen or zoom the entire picture thereby cutting off the sides, neither option is correct as far as watch-ability but it allowed the maker of the set to advertise more square inches of screen without actually having a bigger tube.


Completely round picture tubes were pretty much gone (except for Color sets) after about 1951.


The chassis in this set is a modified version of the RCA
621/721 chassis, typical of Tele-Tone it's been cheapened somewhat but it really works very well.


There is a slight audio buzz that's exaggerated by the camera, in reality it's not so bad.


The video playing is a Public Domain episode of Betty Boop downloaded from the Prelinger Archives.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• Teletone
• Television
• Vacuum
• Tubes
• NTSC
• B&W
• Antique
• Vintage
• RCA
• Philco
• Zenith
• TV

[bluedoris88]

RESPECT!

[netherfield2000]

very cool



[commodore256]

I wanna play MW3 on it!

[stevengrant98]

They used round tubes due to impedance issues with the horizontal sweep - it would sweep round on the sides.

In black and white sets, simple magnets would fix it.

In a coler set, special impedance correction circuits were developed to correct the "round sweep" issue.

[stevengrant98]

They used round tubes due to impedance issues with the horizontal sweep - it would sweep round on the sides.

In black and white sets, simple magnets would fix it.

In a coler set, special impedance correction circuits were developed to correct the "round sweep" issue.

[bryncomeaux]

@corrina253 BECAUSE CAMERAS HAD ROUND HOLES TOO..DUH!!!

[aberdurant]

thank you for the info



[Vintagetvs]

@aberdurant videokarma org antiqueradios com

or just Google those Sites and you'll find them

[Greg98233]

Ms Boop could often be quite risque in her day! Great job of restoring this unit. Back in the mid 60's, my folks bought a Zenith color TV that also sported a stereo hifi and AM/FM radio. The picture tube was also round and was squared off on top and bottom. There were color adjustment knobs for tint an hue that could drive one nuts if reception was poor! Close ups the colors were quite good, but in long distance background shots, they would tend to blend together. Still, it was a fun unit.

[douro20]

The French probably would had called this a "hublot"- it's the French word for porthole.