Mamba Black Owl Eyes Bakelite 1950 Zenith Model G516 AM Vacuum Tube Radio Excellent Condition! Great Sounding!
DESCRIPTION: The much sought after Owl Eyes among Zenith designs! First generation owl eyes! Tabletop tube AM radio manufactured by Zenith in 1951 in excellent working and physical condition. Rare black Bakelite.
SOUND QUALITY: Picks up AM stations clearly and loudly around the dial without need of external antenna attachment.
CABINET CONDITION: Original shiny black molded Bakelite cabinet in excellent condition with no chips or no major scratches. There is a thin repaired hairline crack on the left side. Not repainted, no touch up, no over spray. The front gold metal fascia tuning surround trim is in excellent condition not faded not heavily tarnished or rusted. The front gold metal clock surround not tarnished or faded or rusted. None of the numbers are rubbed off.
KNOBS: All volume and tuning brown knobs are original, matching, and securely attached real clean. Three original black little clock function knobs, one for the on/off/auto and the other for alarm setting on and off, and sleep timer are matching and factory original. The tuning dial works fine. The tuning dial pointer is in excellent condition no cracks and securely attached. Volume knob is a replacement.
CLOCK: Clock works and keep accurate time. Clock motor is silent no humming no buzzing no ticking noises. Clock and alarm set time works. Alarm works. Wake to radio and buzzer or wake to radio only. Both work. Sleep timer works. Clock clear glass dome cover is in excellent condition with no cracks
DIAL LIGHT: No dial light. Not designed with one but can be added for an extra charge.
INTERNAL ELECTRONICS: All paper and wax capacitors have been replaced with modern equivalents so this radio has another 50+ years or more of playing time! The tubes are working fine. All out-of-spec resistors have been replaced with modern correct value and voltage equivalents. There is no loud or pervasive hum. There is no loud or pervasive static between stations. The set has been aligned according to factory specifications. The antique radio has been thoroughly cleaned and inspected. All wiring has been thoroughly checked for possible bridging and weak solder connection.
POWER CABLE: Replacement power cable and plug are in excellent working condition no breaks no exposed wires no brittleness.
BACKING BOARD: The original backing board is still present which is incredible because it's only held on by 4 t-pins. The attachment tabs are still present but partially missing not completely fatigued. The back board is still relatively securely attached but it doesn't take much for it to come loosened. Zenith could have done a better job securing this backing board with their design.
DIMENSIONS: Approximately 12" x 5.5" x 6" (l x w x h)
WEIGHT: 4lbs 15oz
COLOR: black
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ADD DIAL LIGHT: See pricing and info here
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Product: antique radio, vintage radio, retro radio, vacuum tube radio, AM radio, art deco, mid-century product.
Category: radio
Cabinet construction: Bakelite
Period: 1950s
Country of manufacture: USA
Electronics: Mounted circuit board or chassis. Vacuum tube circuit.
Vacuum tubes: tested and working. Amplifier, converter, detector, pre-amplifier, rectifier