If you don't know,... I retired from 30 years as a Radio/TV broadcaster. Most of that time was spent behind the microphone at various radio stations...
Having said that,..I still have a fond affection for old Radios. I have several of the old 'stand-up radios',..sometimes called floor models. Also a 1937 cathedral-back Philco that I have restored and am quite proud of..
Getting to the point,..I recently purchased a 1946 RCA Radiola from an Ebay site. If the case had been made of wood I would not have done this,...but I purposely bought a bakelite case so I could paint it. I am including some photos of how the radio looked when I got it,..and then the transformation. I cleaned it up..sanded down the case..and applied two coats of Chevrolet engine 'orange' to make it stand out. I also painted the background of the dial to make the black needle indicator contrast against it. Most of my other radios are operational, but this one does what I want it to do. It will be on a bookshelf behind my desk to attract attention. When new this old set would receive not only the standard broadcast band, but also shortwave signals. During World War II most of the overseas signals came home to America via shortwave. I used one of the extra kitchen floor tiles to close up the back and hide all of the tubes on the ancient chassis. Regular Windex was used on the glass dial and it has returned to like-new condition. I think it turned out great and will be a welcome addition to my radio collection.
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