A new old RCA VICTOR table top very special look

magicclocks · **Joined:** Jan Tue 03, 2012 10:38 pm **Posts:** 546

I havent picked up a radio in about 3 months cause I was working on my Philco console. Well I took a trip to the antique mall and found this Its a Rca Victor from 1956 about . Is this set rare , I havent seen one before but I look forward to cleaning it up.

a video will be viewable soon here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RNvBjEZy ... ature=plcp

some pictures

Art Hoch · **Posted:** Jun Mon 11, 2012 6:47 pm

Don't believe it's rare. Have fun with it.

Nick D. · **Posted:** Jun Mon 11, 2012 8:57 pm

The 6RF9's aren't rare, but blonde ones in good condition I would say are pretty uncommon.

Paul Preuss wrote:

I have been collecting antique radios since 1974, and one of the favorites in my collection is my pair of the RCA Victor model 6-RF-9 Radios. I have both the Mahogany and Blonde finish versions of this great sounding radio, both of which I was fortunately able to find in near mint condition. I love the 1950’s styling with the large illuminated airplane dial, surrounded by the brass trim and woven grille fabric. I discovered however that the Blonde finish version was more difficult to find, especially in excellent to mint condition. It appears that RCA may have produced less units of this version. It has also been more difficult to find much information on the Blonde version.
Paul Preuss

magicclocks · **Joined:** Jan Tue 03, 2012 10:38 pm **Posts:** 546

Thanks for that story do you think I should sand it down and refinish in a limited way or just leave it as is. If it's real wood which I think it is I would prefer to make it perfect

Nick D. · **Posted:** Jun Tue 12, 2012 12:59 am

With your limited skills, I would suggest that you not lay a finger on it... for your own sake. Blonde finishes are a couple of notches above typical dark finishes so it would be foolish to try if you're not even very skilled at the latter. You could definitely try some Howard's though.

glasdave · **Posted:** Jun Tue 12, 2012 1:13 am

It looks fine, has a phono input, 6V6 output, and an 8" speaker? I think you got a winner.!

gary rabbitt · **Posted:** Jun Tue 12, 2012 4:40 am

Hi,
I definitely would not mess with the finish. Blonde finishes are hard to recreate properly, and simply sanding and staining a light color the set just would not look right.
There was a thread with a member showing some experiments on how he was trying to ge the color just right. I think it involved some opaque yellow/white color wiped on the wood, and then maybe a darker color to accentuate the grain. Finally coating with a yellowed clear overall.

Take a look with a magnifier of the surface. Maybe a place where the finish is chipped. You can see there is more than just a stain and clear on that set.

Clean it, apply some good paste wax and let her look good.

TJM70 · **Posted:** Jun Thu 14, 2012 3:57 pm

It's likely lacquered - it would be possible to attempt to lay a new bit of lacquer or blush retarder on it without messing up the original at all. Test it in a hidden spot first to make sure the finish is lacquer, though. I've had great results "renewing" lacquer finishes this way while keeping them original. The only problem with Howards and the like is that the effect eventually wears off and you're back to where you started.

JStell · **Posted:** Jun Sat 16, 2012 1:08 am

I love these RCAs. I just found a mahogany, and it's plastic cousin the 3-RF-91. Both strong players with great sound. You even got a good intact pointer. The circle is usually not all there. Nice find. You will like it!

Peter · **Posted:** Jun Sat 16, 2012 2:29 am

Mohawk makes a blonde lacquer. I used it on a project earlier this year. It looks ok, but it doesn't really match that old look. It tends to obscure the grain too much. Plus the color is somewhat off...seems more flesh toned than yellow-blonde. I wouldn't touch a blonde finish unless it was hopeless.

Peter

A new old RCA VICTOR table top very special look

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