Sparton model 880

[electra225]

I bought this radio and a Philco 40-180 at an auction in Missouri in 2007. It was the last sale our friend Roger cried before he retired. Roger didn't ever retire. He still works for other auctioneers when they run multiple rings. EVERYBODY know him, and he knows every bidder in central Missouri. The sale was in a trailer park, and the lady who owned the stuff passed away. Everything was pretty dirty. The two radios I bought had been slightly modified. The 40-180 had been brush-painted John Deere green, including tubes and the rear apron of the chassis. The Sparton was brush painted hot pink, with nice moon and stars grille cloth. The inside of the cabinet and the chassis on the Sparton still had the original dirt from 1939. The Philco had a bunch of rotten rubber wire and no bolts holding the chassis in. The Sparton needed one of everything. The Philco built out to be one of the best radios I have ever had. Maybe the best, the only competition being the Stromberg-Carlson 1121. I believe that might even include a Hallicrafters. The good thing about all this is somebody who painted the radios did so right over what was left of the original lacquer. I splashed some furniture refinisher on it where the paint was chipped and got the lacquer coming off, along with the paint. The pink paint wouldn't come out of the end grain, so this was spray-painted flat black. I didn't use toner, I hate that stuff. I sprayed three coats of gloss poly over the whole thing, then sanded everything but the end grain with 800 grit wet sandpaper to dull the shine a tad. The wife found some dull red cloth she liked, so we used that for grill cloth. There was only one remaining issue. We had no knobs. The radio had no knobs when we got it. You guys have met Marie, the lady who bought the '54 Buick new. She was over one day and noticed the radio had no knobs. She said she had a set of "old radio knobs" that she would bring me next time she saw me. We were at a car show a month of so later, and, true to her word, Marie came over with a baggie with four radio knobs in it. They were plastic, so that wasn't correct. One knob is black, one knob is brown, and two are red. They are alike as far as design goes. The wife and I struggled with how we were going to repaint those knobs and not hurt Marie's feelings if she saw them. We decided to leave them as they were. So the old Sparton radio that we play nearly every day, has four mismatched, incorrect knobs on it. I think of Marie every time we turn the radio on. She isn't getting any younger and this old radio with its mismatched knobs will stand as a testament to her friendship. Pictures to follow.....

[William]

That's a cool story, Greg. Marie is some lady, as I'm referred to by her as the tall guy from Michigan. Your Sparton is a good looker, but so is everything else you have.

Bill

[electra225]

I got bid up to $22 on these two radios. That was more than I was prepared to pay, given their condition. But, you know me. I like orphans, something nobody else wants. The fun for me is to get something obviously in need of TLC working again. The "radio guys" would tear these two radio apart, due to their being incorrectly fixed up. We enjoy them. I believe it's better to fix something up so you can enjoy it. Some things I would do correctly, such as a Buick or a Magnavox. Something so obviously neglected I don't worry about hot rodding. And, the wife gets her two cents in and feels included in my hobby. I believe too many radios go to the dump because they are ugly or not totally museum quality. I believe that's unfortunate. There are others on this forum who like orphans as well. I wanted to share a few of mine.

Other than removing the John Deere green paint, I haven't done anything to the cabinet of the 40-180. It is semi-stripped and rather ugly at the present time. Ron the Refinisher was going to do his thing, but time ran out. That job is on my bucket list, along with a hundred others jobs.

[TC Chris]

I think of Marie every time we turn the radio on. She isn't getting any younger and this old radio with its mismatched knobs will stand as a testament to her friendship. Pictures to follow.....

The real value in much of our stuff is the memories they prompt. Going through my Moms things we find lots of cards & letters from old friends & relatives. We remember stories.... I have tools and radios that were given to me by people and I remember them fondly for thinking of me. And often I remember lessons they may have taught, either expressly or by example.

Chris Campbell

[William]

As a kid, I preferred to hang out with adults rather than kids my own age. I loved their stories and always learned something from what was being talked about. I guess I was old before my time.

Bill

[Motorola minion]

I could not agree more about older folks regarding fond memories and stories attached. The 'things" connected to them live on, helping us keep that memory alive. The trick to enjoy them responsibly is to let go of all but the most important ones, letting go what we cannot take with us. May our treasures find new homes with new collectors before there is nothing left to save. cars are almost the hardest to keep.

[electra225]

Here are the pictures I promised of our old Sparton 880 with the red grille cloth and four incorrect knobs. It was built in Jackson, Michigan by the Sparks-Withington Company. Pretty good old radio, well built.

[William]

I remember hearing it play, and Mari has one of her lamps sitting on it.

Bill

[TC Chris]

Got a chassis photo? I've got a Sparton 1081 from a couple years later. It has a huge chassis for a rather basic broadcast/SW radio with no tuned RF. I assumed they were using up old chassis and tube supplies.

That radio was a gift from my sister who bought it at an estate sale. It was in perfect physical condition. I was moving at the time so it stayed in my parents' house, in the basement. Then about 20 years ago there was a huge flood and the city's sewage system lift pumps went down and basements flooded all over. The Sparton developed a bad case of veneer separation in the bottom foot of its case. Every time I moved it around I'd hear those loose veneers and feel guilty. About 5 years ago I set about re-gluing them and doing the electrical restoration. The finish did not need removal/replacement. It remained intact during the gluing process. Howard's perked it up.

This radio has disconnected SW circuits-- a WW II demonstration of patriotism by people of German family origin. I've been hoping to find an under-chassis view of the as-built RF section so I could restore the SW function. Schematics show you how a circuit is designed but not how it is actually constructed.

Chris Campbell

[electra225]

The chassis on this radio is ugly, hence no picture. I'm not a stickler on exact and perfect, but this one is embarassing how nasty it is. It is an eight tube chassis with a tuned RF stage. A 6SK7 if memory serves. It has a weird output tube, a 6AE5 if memory serves. The cabinet is made for a 15 inch speaker, but this one has only a 9-incher. It has an adapter that makes the 9-inch speaker fit in a 15' hole. Quite likely this particular cabinet was made to house a larger chassis and speaker. This one has an eye tube.