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Vintage Television and Video Vintage television and video equipment, programmes, VCRs etc. |
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16th Dec 2009, 10:42 pm | #1 |
Hexode
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Pre-war TV sets
Apologies if this has been dealt with before.
Wireless World estimated in June 1939 that approximately 20,000 sets were in use by then. The TV service from Alexandra Palace was well established and transmitters at Birmingham and Manchester were being mooted (linked to AP via cable). A new licence for TV reception was suggested, a fee of 20 shillings estimated as being able to raise £100,000 per annum if the service were thus extended. Presumably the BBC would then have had a bit more cash to extend the hours of transmission. All these plans were, as we all know, thwarted by Herr Hitler. But how did WW arrive at their estimated 20,000 sets sold. Was it from the manufacturers' own sales figures - and how reliable would these have been? Ian Blackbourn |
16th Dec 2009, 10:48 pm | #2 |
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Re: Pre-war TV sets
20,000 sounds a surprising amount pre war .
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16th Dec 2009, 11:18 pm | #3 |
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Re: Pre-war TV sets
London or should I say Greater London still had a population of about 4 to 5 million before the war so it represents 0.05 percent of the population of London
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16th Dec 2009, 11:38 pm | #4 |
Dekatron
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Re: Pre-war TV sets
I've heard from other sources that 23,000 TV sets were in use just before the war. Also was the EMI made Birmingham TV aerial and transmitter equipment ready for delivery sometime in 1940?
DFWB. |
16th Dec 2009, 11:53 pm | #5 |
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Re: Pre-war TV sets
Hi.
Indeed I have seen that between 20 & 23,000 sets were in use. considering the amount sold its really surprising that so many actually survive. We were at war remember so many houses were bombed and many people would have been moved away from their homes, the television in those hard times would certainly not have been paramount in their thoughts. Postwar how many would have worked and no doubt the well heeled would have replaced a set that was unused for some time. Come to think of it, it's surprizing any have survived! Trevor
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17th Dec 2009, 12:44 am | #6 | |
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Re: Pre-war TV sets
Quote:
For the record, the 'Birmingham' (ie., Sutton Coldfield) transmitter was still under design in Summer 1949. Largely built by Metropolitan Vickers, only the modulator stages were built by EMI. The CAT21 valves used in the TX output stage did not become available until after the War. The aerial was very much a postwar design too. Pre-war thinking was that a 'Birmingham' station would be able to re-use the same Band I channel as AP, but using horizontal rather than vertical polarisation to provide protection: fortunately, the advances in knowledge of VHF propagation characteristics, brought upon us by World War II , enabled us to avoid making that particular mistake... |
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17th Dec 2009, 8:19 am | #7 |
Hexode
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Re: Pre-war TV sets
I may be in error but I believe the figures were extrapolated from license fees, retail sales and manufacturers sales. I think I saw the explanation in "Television the formative years"
There are certainly lists available that were provided by the Board of trade or whatever it was then called for the years 1936/37/38/39 and all seem to agree with the figures mentioned in earlier posts. The figures quoted do NOT INCLUDE UNSOLD SETS. Victor. |
17th Dec 2009, 9:26 am | #8 | ||
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Re: Pre-war TV sets
Quote:
Quote:
TTFN, Jon |
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17th Dec 2009, 11:40 am | #9 |
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Re: Pre-war TV sets
I would certainly back the higher number in use in 1939. I lived in Merton Park [near Wimbledon] as a young lad and amazing numbers of pre war television receivers used to turn up at jumble sales. The scout ones were the best due to having access to vans etc for collection. The 904's were common but I remember a large number of mirror lid receivers. They were too heavy for transportation and alas usually ended up on a bonfire round the back of the hut. As I have posted before, my first job as a school lad in 1960 was breaking up pre war sets in the basement of a television shop. There would be at least three per week to deal with. My services were also called for at another shop situated in a wealthy part of Wimbledon and they had a massive shed full of pre war and early post war part exchanges. Add to this the well heeled areas around Sussex, North London and the provinces and I would estimate as high as 30.000 sets.
I believe many were home constructed and this no doubt added to the figures. Think of the huge quantity of dual standard colour sets that were produced and the tiny amount that have survived. Regards, John. |
17th Dec 2009, 12:02 pm | #10 | |
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Re: Pre-war TV sets
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Cheers Brian |
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17th Dec 2009, 1:18 pm | #11 |
Hexode
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Re: Pre-war TV sets
Brian, Wireless World published in June 1939 a series of constructional articles for a 405 line receiver with 9" Baird tube & scan coils. If anyone is interested I could scan the circuit and put it on. Unfortunately I don't have all the articles...... Probably not many could have been completed before the outbreak of hostilities, however.
Ian blackbourn |
17th Dec 2009, 1:49 pm | #12 |
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Re: Pre-war TV sets
I think I should have the complete set of articles entitled "The Wireless World Television Receiver" that was published July 2nd, 9th, 16th, 23rd and 30th 1937. Written by W. T. Cocking.
I don't have much from 1939 so I'm not sure if this is the same design that you are refering to Ian. The 1937 one uses 4 valves + 1 rect. in the sound receiver, 5 valves + 1 rect in the vision, 2 in synch sep, 6 in the timebase and 2 further rectifiers for HV. It has a direct viewing CRT. Peter |
17th Dec 2009, 2:33 pm | #13 |
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Re: Pre-war TV sets
It does seam then that most sets were destroyed ,and it also shows how many radios survive by comparesen even rare types ,that have been put away somwhere perhaps . I do think though that peoples feeling about tvs were generally less nostalgic than the radio sets .
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17th Dec 2009, 2:44 pm | #14 | |
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Re: Pre-war TV sets
Quote:
Speak to any (London area) TV dealer active in the 1950s and they will tell you about how they massacred plenty of pre-war sets. |
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17th Dec 2009, 2:55 pm | #15 |
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Re: Pre-war TV sets
Here are some do it yourself prewar set articles, including the 1937 Wireless World set:
http://www.earlytelevision.org/build_your_own_tv.html Here are the RMA figures on British prewar TV sets made: http://www.earlytelevision.org/briti...war_count.html and estimates of the number of American sets made: http://www.earlytelevision.org/us_sets_made.html Last edited by Steve_McVoy; 17th Dec 2009 at 3:00 pm. |
17th Dec 2009, 5:47 pm | #16 |
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Re: Pre-war TV sets
Thanks Steve and Peter. That article from WW has set me thinking! I might have a go at one of those some time - when my bench is clear.
As to the number of sets made, did the request from the BBC say numbers made or numbers supplied to their dealers? Cheers Brian |
20th Dec 2009, 6:48 am | #17 |
Hexode
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Re: Pre-war TV sets
Jon, how right you are, of course there were no T.V. licences. I think the other sources I mentioned are quite near the mark.
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20th Dec 2009, 10:32 am | #18 |
Dekatron
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Re: Pre-war TV sets
There were many designs for pre war receivers published in various technical books of the time. Wireless World has been mentioned and somewhere I have some details of their
'Magnetic Television Receiver' but that might have been mentioned in an earlier post. Television and Short Wave World published their 'Guaranteed Cathode-Ray receiver' in November 1936 and there must have been a good few more before 1939. A number of companies produced equipment for the home constructor but would have gone to the wall on the 1st September 1939. Attached advert for December 1936 from TaSWW. Regards, John. |
20th Dec 2009, 6:15 pm | #19 |
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Re: Pre-war TV sets
Here are the RMA figures on British prewar TV sets made:
http://www.earlytelevision.org/briti...war_count.html Well, that seems fairly definitive, I guess when you add on the home-built ones then 20,000 must be about right. |