I was able to get up to Cleveland to pick up my new Saba 410 yesterday. The boxes were undamaged and looked like they were well handled in shipment. I opened the boxes (shipped separately) and the chassis and cabinet were also very well packed. Sadly to my horror... I found that the Dial Glass was broken near the end of the glass. Needless to say I am heartbroken. I know the Saba was well packed and the boxes arrived without any signs of damage. I am guessing the stress during shipment was more than the glass could take. So for the time being I will store the Saba with hopes of someday finding a replacement glass. I do not think these are reproduced so my only hope is to find a damaged cabinet that I can purchase for the glass plate. Maybe the glass can be repaired as it is near the end and may not be that visible. I will do research and see what I can find out.
I guess in retrospect this just part of life.

Although very disappointed I am still very glad to own this Saba…I just need to be patient until I can find a Glass Dial plate.

I guess I now need to find someone who can possible repair the glass and put this back together. Needless to say I will not ship this again. I travel throughout Mi., Oh., Ky., Ind. and Tn., so maybe I can find someone to work on this.

This is why if I ever sell a radio to someone I'll remove the dial glass and package it separately in a strong box. I've been keeping my eyes open for old cd player face cases.

Very good point. Now I know unfortunately.

So sorry to hear that. How is it other than that? I have one myself. I will let you know if I run into one. Not likely based on what I've seen over the years though.



ET

The Cabinet made it safe and sound ...

I am afraid finding a replacement glass will be almost impossible but I can always have hope. The next best thing is to try an repair the glass.

FedX did the shipping but it turns out they are no better at shipping than other shippers.

Your help is appreciated. One never knows.

An alternative would be to reproduce the dial scale.

-- Lay dial pieces together on a scanner.
-- Scan at high resolution.
-- Touch up scan as needed using Photoshop or other art program.
-- Print on a transparency.
-- Glue onto glass or plexiglas cut to size.

Straightforward unless the dial pattern includes white, since most printers can't print white.

I'd do the printing at a copy shop rather than on an inexpensive home printer.

Phil Nelson
Phil's Old Radios
http://antiqueradio.org/index.html

I just looked on eBay for Saba radios. They look wonderful as compared to USA radios and seem to be higher priced.

Is the glass shattered?...or just broken in half.

I've had good luck epoxing halves together...even shattered pieces. When doing it, I used waxed paper on the bottom side to prevent the overflow of the epoxy from sticking. One thing to remember is to place the unprinted side of the glass downward onto the the waxed paper. Also do all the gluing from that side and only halfway up the thickness of the glass. On the printed side, you can redo any of the printing that was chipped off during the breakage. Be careful to remove any "overage" of epoxy once it sets up (leave it for a day or two)
Surprisingly, while still noticeable, at least you can say it's a "work-in-progress" project. Maybe then you could do some photoshop work and make a decent facisimile.

Sorry for the loss, but sometimes this is what this hobby's all about.

...Jim

Thanks...
The glass has a triangle break but it is all still there. I think your idea is the way to go and hopefully I will find a glass dial glass plate down the road.

....you're welcome.

Check to see if Radio Daze can help you. They have invested in new equipment so that they can print on glass I believe.

There is also I guy in California that reproduces dial glass(s) I cant remember his name off the top of my head but maybe someone else knows who i'm talkin' about.
Joe

That was Mike Tobin of RockSea Enterprises....

He sold out to Radio Daze about 5-6 years ago.

I sent an email to Radio Daze yesterday asking help in my situation. I'll see what happens.

Well...I have bought dialglass for my German radios from several sources ...the following is the best...they can provide dialglass,back panels and whatnot...extensive list by make..constantly updated...http://www.skalenscheiben-rueckwaende.de/ you work with whatever club/outfit that has yours listed or post a wanted listing....you have to jump a few hurdles...but you will find one for your 410...eventually.

My guess is a dial glass is broken every 22 minutes in the USA.

You can not ship German radios in the USA any other way but with massive amounts of large cell bubble wrap. 10 times around at least. And, better is to ship Greyhound Bus too. No conveyor belts, no 19 yr olds loading trucks at 2am by throwing boxes in them.

I have about 12 German chassis in my boneyard. Send pix of your dial but I have to say in 20 years I have never matched one. There are just too many types. Grundig, Blaupunkt and Telefunken are the big 3, then Saba, Emud, Korting, Nordemende, Kuba, Phillips, Greatz, and some others I am forgetting. Most were imported into the USA 1957-1964. Great radios, but oddly, little overall collector interest. The Saba brand rates highest overall in interest.

Mark Oppat
www.oldradioparts.net

Thanks...
I'll get a pic this weekend as I am on the road until Friday night.

410s are very heavy and placing them into a box filled with soft packing material is a dumb idea. I found out about this after a set I bought in Germany arrived with the dial glass in hundreds of pieces. Short of removing the dial and sending it in a hard box separately, the only way to ship the set successfully is to cut a wooden board slightly larger than the dial glass and tape it to the cabinet, covering the glass with an empty space underneath so nothing will press against the glass. Actually, this goes for all large dial German radios. After searching for a 410 dial for several years without success, I decided to manufacture a replacement myself.
Fortunately, I have a son who is very good with computer projects and he made a picture of the dial (in three sections, so it could be copied on a standard copying machine). This was quite a complicated task which took him several weeks to achieve.
You can have a glass shop cut a piece and drill two holes for the knobs. Then you transfer the dial information onto transparencies and attach them to the precut dial glass. If you want to try doing it yourself, I can send you the pictures.

That would be great ...
The chassis was separate from the cabinet and double boxed with lots of bubble wrap. I agree with you...shipping these is a no no! Sadly now I find out.

I will need your Email address.