Adrian's Portable Radio site (plus other stuff!)

[Yorkie]

But I know that others do like portables

they're not generally much to look at - just a box with a lid really, plus the usual four valves

I have to agree with that comment David, you are of course referring largely to the many attache case models I assume? I find those types particularly uninteresting too, dare I say boring even.

As you are aware, the focus of my battery valve portable collection are those models that have VHF - models with 9 or 10 valves and a densely packed chassis to keep me thinking and on my toes!

Regards

Thanks for reading my post and taking the trouble to respond Robert.

I didn't have anyone in particular in mind, and I know of course that the portables in your collection are far from the usual run of the mill commonplace 1950s attaché case jobbies, and the restorations you undertake are far from 'run of the mill' restorations too!

The sort of sets to which I was referring are those such as the Lady Margaret, Pye Jewel Cases and similar offerings mostly made by the battery makers such as Vidor and Ever Ready, to find a ready market for their batteries, until transistorised offerings from 'the land of the rising sun' put paid to that.

I do have a dozen or so tucked away in the loft, mostly given to me rather than 'collected' as such. In their day they were fit enough for their purpose and in general, look more interesting with their lids open. I've got one of those strange and I think rather ugly Perspex Every Ready things, and a Sky Casket, a utilitarian thing which looks like something you'd keep granny's ashes in! I've also got quite a large Every Ready from immediately after the war (Model 'A'?) which uses low consumption octal valves. I've got one or two portables that are mains/battery so are usable on mains.

Each to their own - we all have our likes and dislikes of course. I've no interest in old tape recorders, TVs, phones and the like, but clearly others do, just as many eulogise over Hacker and Roberts, which do nothing for me. Others go into raptures about DAC90As, which is my least favourite radio because I grew up with one and lived through the post-war austerity era. To me, the DCA90A is evocative of ration books, dried egg powder, cod liver oil and queues at shops and for meals at 'British Restaurants'. Luckily for those who do like them, hundreds of thousands of '90As were made for the rental market so they're very commonplace so anyone who does like them can always find one, and as it's probably the most oft restored bog-standard post-war set, there's a whole raft of information out there. Not the ideal set for a first restoration, but nevertheless, it's what most who get into the hobby seem to cut their teeth on. I've got several of course - haven't we all - they can hardly be avoided!

Ironic that when I was young, Bakelite was looked upon as a mass produced utilitarian product inferior to wood, certainly for such things as radios, but of course Bakelite has come into its own - no lacquer to flake off, no woodworm infestation, no risk of delamination due to damp as with plywood cabinets, usually comes up nicely with a bit of elbow grease and polish. Yes, some Bakelite sets have stress cracks, and damage due to being dropped, but a Bakelite set in one piece may well last for an eternity.

Just my ramblings - I don't expect others to concur of course, and many won't, which is fine by me.