Radios

About Antique Radios

The ‘golden age of radio’ may be gone, but antique radios are still going strong. Whether you’re interested in a specific manufacturer (RCA, Philco, Zenith, Crosley, Emerson) or style (catalin, transistor, cathedral or console), there’s a radio out there for you.

You can identify most antique radios by model number, which can include any combination of letters and numbers. If you don't see a manufacturer's name, look inside the chassis, as it may be stamped on the tubes or other components...

The earliest radios were typically bare components (e.g. glass tubes) mounted on a board. Later came plain wooden or metal boxes, and by the late 1920s, elaborate cabinets designed to look like real furniture. Cathedral and tombstone style wooden cabinets were popular during the 1930s. And Art Deco style radios made of Bakelite, Catalin and other early resins or plastics (Plaskon, Beetle, etc) became popular during the 1930s and 1940s. Transistors were introduced in 1957, displacing tubes and enabling miniaturization.

Although you may be able to play an unrestored antique radio, note that its capacitors are likely to fail without warning (and may also pose a fire hazard), so replacing them pre-emptively is advisable.

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Interviews & Articles

Guest Column: Understanding Antique Radios

You've just acquired an old radio, but apart from the manufacturer's name on the front, you don't know a bles… [more]

Guest Column: Collecting Vintage Transistor Radios of the 1950s and 60s

Perhaps you recently saw a picture of a cool looking pocket radio from the early 1960’s and were reminded o… [more]



Best of the Web (“Hall of Fame”)

Jim's Antique Radio Museum

Jim's Antique Radio Museum

Jim Tripp's showcase of radios from the 1920s to late 1950s, organized by style and theme (wood, console, plastic, … [read review or visit site]

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This photo gallery of over 7800 vintage radios, categorized by manufacturer and model number, is a group effort wit… [read review or visit site]

AntiqueRadios.com

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Alan Voorhees' reference resource for vintage radio collectors includes a photo gallery, article library, PDF archi… [read review or visit site]

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This vast archive and community of radio collectors features over 120,000 radio model listings and 350,000 photos a… [read review or visit site]

Philcoradio.com

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Ron Ramirez's comprehensive reference on the former Philadelphia Storage Battery Company and Philco Corporation. In… [read review or visit site]

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This extensive collection of antique radios includes beautiful photos and detailed historical descriptions. The sit… [read review or visit site]

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Radio-Guy

Steve Erenberg's extremely wacky and well-done collection of vintage mad-scientist devices and contraptions. Writte… [read review or visit site]


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1940's Emerson Catalin Radio Model #au190$4,405 Ends Monday 8 bids 54 watchers
Vintage Art Deco Awa Empire State Bakelite Valve Radio $3,823 Ends Thursday 12 bids 93 watchers
Vintage Atwater Kent Breadboard Model 6 (4052) W/tubes$1,025 Ends Thursday 10 bids 57 watchers
Set Of Rogers Hg88 Tube Amplifier And Tuner,valve Amp$790.00 Ends Sunday 17 bids 71 watchers
Lovely Example Of The Black Awa Empire State Radiolette$584.96 Ends Saturday 6 bids 46 watchers
Emerson Bakelite Marbelized Catalin Radio Model Ep 375 $556.00 Ends Sunday 4 bids 37 watchers
Philco Colonial Mantle Clock Wood Case Tube Radio 551 $521.00 Ends in 3 hours 20 bids 63 watchers
Splendid, Big Philips Biampli Am/fm Tube Radio Bx653a !$515.25 Ends Sunday 9 bids 26 watchers
Vintage Zenith R7000-2 Nib Shortwave Transoceanic Radio$501.00 Ends Monday 34 bids 107 watchers
Rca 74 Junior Ribbon Microphone Mi-4036 Xlnt In Box$501.00 Ends Saturday 13 bids 40 watchers
Top !! Nordmende Tannh??user 58 Tube Radio Fm And Sw$455.00 Ends Sunday 11 bids 31 watchers
Vintage Near Mint Green Catalin Bakelite Fada Radio W@w$410.00 Ends Monday 9 bids 55 watchers
Nice Siemens G41 Tube Radio With Fm&sw,germany 1955.$405.00 Ends Sunday 10 bids 14 watchers
Mint Blaupunkt Palma Tube Radio With Fm & Shortwave$375.00 Ends Sunday 15 bids 25 watchers
Dewald Model 562 Bakelite Catalin Radio W Pinup Girl$358.33 Ends in 2 hours 7 bids 54 watchers
General Electric Bakelite Marbelized Catalin Radio $351.00 Ends Sunday 2 bids 21 watchers
Regency Transistor Radio Tr-1$345.00 Ends Sunday 9 bids 25 watchers
Mint 1924 Grebe Tube Radio Receiver Mu-1 Vintage$330.00 Ends Saturday 4 bids 23 watchers
Mint Philips Tube Radio With Fm & Sw , 10 Tubes!$315.00 Ends Sunday 10 bids 31 watchers
Philco Cathedral Model 90 Antique Radio -works Great!$290.00 Ends Monday 51 bids 124 watchers
Minty Heathkit Tube Tester Model Tt-1 Daystrom 6lq6 6l6$284.99 Ends Monday 12 bids 49 watchers
1940s Fada 1000 Tube Bullet Catalin Bakelite$277.89 Ends Thursday 3 bids 17 watchers
Beautiful Sentinel Catalin"wavy Grill" 1940's Radio$273.00 Ends Sunday 3 bids 32 watchers
Output Transformer Coil Tattoo Ham Winding Machine$269.00 Ends Sunday 1 bid 4 watchers
Zenith Trans-oceanic Royal 7000 7000y Shortwave Radio R$263.00 Ends Monday 17 bids 72 watchers
Rca Victor Bakelite Marbelized Catalin Radio Rc 350$257.49 Ends Sunday 2 bids 28 watchers
Very Early Rca Ribbon Microphone$257.01 Ends Sunday 7 bids 91 watchers
Vintage Near Mint Rca Chrome Art Deco Ribbon Microphone$255.00 Ends Sunday 10 bids 21 watchers
Vintage Gorgeous Atwater Kent Grand Cathedral Radio 558$255.00 Ends Sunday 7 bids 62 watchers
Nice Telefunken Concertino Tube Radio With Fm And Sw $251.50 Ends Wednesday 5 bids 37 watchers
1938 Zenith Childs Tombstone Mini Console Radio$250.00 Ends Tuesday 6 bids 51 watchers
Vintage Crystal The Millet Radio Receiver Set$231.03 Ends Saturday 10 bids 67 watchers
Pandora Crystal Set, New In Box! They Don't Get Better!$228.49 Ends in 2 hours 4 bids 27 watchers
Zenith Trans-oceanic R7000-2 Shortwave Radio$227.60 Ends Sunday 15 bids 45 watchers
1942 Pilot Radio T-133. Unique 3 Band Set W/tuning Eye.$224.50 Ends Sunday 10 bids 22 watchers
Vintage / Art Deco Healing Green Bakelite Valve Radio $205.39 Ends Thursday 5 bids 60 watchers
Northern Electric R-11 Radio Receiver & R-15 Amplifier$203.50 Ends Sunday 6 bids 47 watchers
1940's Vintage "dewald" Bakelite Radio Model-a-501$202.51 Ends in 22 hours 6 bids 39 watchers
Vintage Art Deco Satchel-carlson Tube Radio $202.50 Ends Tuesday 4 bids 6 watchers
Vintage Radio Zenith Transoceanic Model 7g605 Airplane$202.50 Ends Sunday 9 bids 41 watchers
Lovely, Working Emerson Wood Tube Radio Model 418$200.00 Ends Monday 7 bids 40 watchers
1922 Antique Clapp Eastham Tube Radio Model Hr/hz Radak$199.99 Ends Tuesday 1 bid 9 watchers
Beautiful Zenith 1938 5-s-127 Tombstone Radio$182.50 Ends Sunday 9 bids 57 watchers
Radio, Nordmende Sterling Tannhauser, Works, Nr$175.00 Ends Monday 2 bids 2 watchers
Transistor Radio - Bang & Olufsen Beolit 800$172.50 Ends Monday 10 bids 15 watchers
Gorgeous 1934 Westinghouse #wr-28 Musuem Quality Radio$167.50 Ends in 3 hours 7 bids 30 watchers
Vintage Ekco Ad 75 Bakelite Valve Radio Casing.vg!$166.19 Ends Monday 1 bid 51 watchers
Very Nice Grebe Synchrophase Mu1 Battery Tube Radio$165.00 Ends Sunday 1 bid 8 watchers
Vintage Grundig Danish Modern Old Transistor Radio L@@k$158.50 Ends Tuesday 12 bids 55 watchers
Atwater Kent Homebrew Breadboard Radio With Headsets$158.50 Ends Wednesday 9 bids 59 watchers
Vintage Regency Tr 1 G Transistor Radio 1955,56 Look$158.50 Ends Sunday 8 bids 39 watchers
Rare 1921 Deforest One Tube Radio From The Marconi Era$158.50 Ends Sunday 5 bids 44 watchers
Top Philips Tube Radio B5x23a/74 With Sw //fm Till 108$158.49 Ends Wednesday 3 bids 27 watchers
Vintage, London Amplifier, Px4 Output Tubes! 1940-1950!$157.59 Ends Sunday 3 bids 39 watchers
2a3 X 4 Radio Tubes$153.50 Ends in 21 hours 9 bids 22 watchers
Western Electric Vt 2 Signal Corp Marked No Reserve$152.50 Ends in 5 hours 2 bids 9 watchers
1936 Zenith 6d117 Table Radio Beautifully Restored!!$152.50 Ends Sunday 11 bids 39 watchers
1947 Rca Radio W/oriental Designs - Model 75x17 -works!$150.00 Ends Monday 1 bid 11 watchers
Garod Raf Neutrodyne 4-tube Radio Built In 1923$150.00 Ends Tuesday 1 bid 4 watchers

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Recent News: Radios

Source: Google News

Keir Dullea, Mia Dillon to Perform in Radio Shows
Hartford Courant, November 20th

a series of vintage radio programs from the '30s and '40s on Friday, Nov. 20 at 8 pm and Saturday, Nov. 21 at 3 and 8 pm The shows, directed by Frank Jacoby...Read more

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“On the Air: The Vintage Radio Collection of Clyde Stephenson” runs through December 4. Davidson spent 18 years at Wisconsin Public Radio, serving as the...Read more

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Philippine Star, November 15th

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"On the Air: The Vintage Radio Collection of Clyde Stephenson" runs through Dec. 4 at the Aylward Gallery at UW-Fox Valley in Menasha...Read more

Old-time radios take center stage at University of Wisconsin-Fox Valley ...
Appleton Post Crescent, November 8th

They (vintage radios) are getting more scarce. People just threw them away when the newer ones came out." "On the Air: The Vintage Radio Collection of Clyde...Read more

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Scene, November 2nd

“I liked the idea of keeping the radios locally,” Stephenson said. On the Air: The Vintage Radio Collection of Clyde Stephenson runs from Nov...Read more

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By Josh Board | Published Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2009 I collect vintage radios, phonographs, and jukeboxes, so I go to OB's antique stores a few times a year...Read more

Radios

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