Tucker Radio head on E-Bay

[Tucker Fan 48]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1948-Tuc ... 35a9e170be

They changed the photo to show that it is a Tucker Radio head. $99.00 minimum bid.

[cicero]

Yea, I sent them a message that they had the wrong picture and they replied back with a big thank you.

[Tucker Fan 48]

Someone bid $99.00 on it already

[cicero]

that seems a bit steep given it's condition. I paid around $130 with the cables and radio box in very similar condition. That said, in the proper hands it would clean up nicely.

[TuckerCar]

If there's one thing I've learned in my years of collecting Tucker stuff, it's that there is no price consistency. I still applaud the guy who got $2600 for his seatcovers (and I know the buyer).

[Tucker Fan 48]

This one went for $113.50 and another one went today for $89.77
The one from today did not have knobs but had the all important cables.
I loved the part of this listing "it would be great to put in your Tucker car if your original one is missing"
Great idea except the problem most of us have is the entire car is missing, not just the radio.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Original-Old-1948-T ... fresh=true

If prices for Tucker radio heads stay in this range it would be easy to put together an
entire radio and head for around $150.00 total since Motorola used the same radio in
a bunch of other cars and the demand for those radios is pretty low. It would be a lot
cheaper than paying the $500.00+ a complete Tucker radio goes for as long as you are
OK with not having an exact model 708 radio with the AS-80 chassis.

[TuckerCar]

Great idea except the problem most of us have is the entire car is missing, not just the radio.

LOL

[P.J.]

I was the buyer for the 1st one. I cleaned it up when it arrived and it looks pretty good if I do say so myself. I asked the sellers if they had any info about the radio because the wear on the buttons and knobs looked consistent with the wear and tear that you would find on a radio that had been installed in a car. They told me they got it in a lot from an estate sale of a nationally known restorer from Dayton, Ohio who worked on rare and exotic Cadillacs and Lincolns. I've included 2 pics of the radio, the before pic taken from the Ebay auction and the after from my kitchen table. I was curious about the knobs as well. On my radio the bottom knob has a spring behind it that holds it away from the faceplate but the top does not. Is that normal or am I missing a spring? Thanks in advance for any info.

[cicero]

only one has the spring. If you open it up you will find that there is a switch contact behind that shaft. I think it has something to do with presetting the stations.

[Tucker Fan 48]

Very nice job on the cleanup. Now you just need the radio and of course the all important and hard to find cables.
You might check this listing out on E-Bay. I can't tell if it has the cables that attach the head to the radio but if
it does it would be a cheap way to come up with a complete radio as I suggested earlier. If not, keep an eye on
E-Bay for one like it with the cables. As long as it doesn't say Tucker they usually go pretty cheap and they are
the same radio. You'll see this one is the same without push buttons.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Vintage-Motorola-Ca ... 27b2c4dd96

[Tucker Fan 48]

I see cables on this one but you'd have to get pictures and verify that they are working. It's a little more pricey for the
condition it is in but it might be worth it to get the cables or offer him about half of the asking price since the head
he has is total junk.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1949-52- ... ccessories

[cicero]

The Tucker used the Motorola 708. I think the 605 and 608 were basically the same radio except they had no presets. I don't know that for a fact but based on what I have seen, that is the conclusion that I have come to.

[Tucker Fan 48]

The Tucker used the Model 708 AS-80 chassis but as far as how it will operate and sound they are all the same.
The preset would come from the head so you can take what was a non-preset radio and put a Tucker head on it
and have presets. The preset just turns the cable to a certain spot on the dial which is all operated in the head.

As I mentioned earlier, unless you are a pure-Tucker only collector this is a very cheap way to get a Tucker radio
since a complete one will cost you $500+. Your friends will never know it and even most Tucker collectors would
not know the difference by looking at it. The Model 708 AS-80 was a pretty plain case with no special markings.
A lot of the other models were visable in the vehicle so Motorola embellished them a bit.

Motorola made a lot of different radios with heads like the 405, 501, 505, 601, 605, 701, 705, 708, and a bunch of
others that should all work. As long as they take the two cables they should be interchangable. They made some
models where the head is attached that would not work. They also seemed to be used in cars made by several
different companies which is why they are pretty cheap and easy to find.

Occasionally you can even find a Model 708 AS-80 that has been separated from its head. If the seller is not a
collector they may just think its some old radio since it does not say Tucker anywhere but on the head.

[cicero]

The preset would come from the head so you can take what was a non-preset radio and put a Tucker head on it
and have presets. The preset just turns the cable to a certain spot on the dial which is all operated in the head.

That is actually incorrect. I had assumed the same until I bought mine. I took the head completely apart and discovered that the preset buttons are all part of a gang switch that is not connected in any way to the tuning knob. Each button has a terminal on the switch that is connected to a wire that is connected to the multi pin plug. This in turn connects to a circuit that drives a solenoid that is attached to the tuning coil assembly. The solenoid rotates the selector shaft and switch in the tuning coil and engages the mechanical presets in the tuning coil during the preset setup procedure. So unfortunately if the radio does not have this preset mechanism, the tucker head preset buttons will not do anything.

This is the tuning procedure for the standard Motorola 708. I don't know which buttons on a tucker marked head correspond with a standard Motorola head but I do know that the volume knob is the one that had a spring and there is a switch contact that activates when you press the volume knob.
1.turn set on and allow to warm up for at least 5 minutes

2. Collapse antenna until signal is weak

3. press manual "M" button on control head

4. turn tuning knob until desired station is heard.

5. turn tuning knob until tuning mechanism completes it's operation.

6. press "set up" knob until click is heard

7. turn "set up" knob until previously noted program is heard. this station is now set up

8. repeat steps 3 to 7 for each aditional station desired.

[Tucker Fan 48]

Thanks for the heads up. I have taken apart several heads over the years but never one from a Tucker. All the ones
I had seen had a spring selector switch in the head that drove the cables. Motorola must have got high tech with
the later models by adding the solenoid. I'll have to dig through my diagrams and figure out which models will
interchange with the Tucker head. Still seems like there will be a bunch with the 9 pin socket.