B3 Radio?

[John-T-53]

john, no the bezel isn't near large enough and the radio REALLY needs the knob holes to support/hold it up.

 

Ah... far out, man

[HanksB3B]

Actually, John, it's a very easy job requiring a fine rat-tail file and one of those mini-hacksaws where the blade extends a couple/few inches (or a dremel cut blade). 

 

The upper two pictures show the after effect of the previous owners cut/install.

 

 

The lower picture is what I did to make the 610-T fit.  

 

The bezel does cover all of the cut outs and does leave just enough "meat" to mount it.  

 

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

 

 

 

This 6-volt radio(also see Jeff's post #23 above) would fit the stock punch out. My question is about the Civil Defense marks along the bottom of the glass bezel. Does that make it incorrect for 1951 ? 

 

Hank      

Edited May 10, 2015 by HanksB3B

[John-T-53]

I wouldn't lose any sleep over the civil defense marks. Probably better to have them anyway especially now with Putin and his shenanigans. I wonder if they'd work equally well for isis, Tehran, or Kin Jung Un? lol

[ggdad1951]

Hmm hank trying to sell me another radio? ;p The knobs look like some I've seen for cigar lighters of the era.

[Jeff Balazs]

If you stop and think about what was going on in '51 and '52 it makes sense the radios sold in that time period would have the CD stations labelled. Scary stuff huh? Came pretty close to using them again.......... An old buddy who was a marine at Inchon told me just how close it was there. Good thing Ike threw his hat in when he did. Wise Wat Tu might have gotten a bit burnt around the edges.

 

Jeff

[HanksB3B]

Hmm hank trying to sell me another radio? ;p The knobs look like some I've seen for cigar lighters of the era.

 

hmm maybe... Mark,

 

Although it would fit perfectly, I think you’ll agree, when compared to the 610-T the 608 is not as nice an appearing radio, knobs and all. But since FEF is a most worthy museum-piece, I personally can understand why you would refrain from hacking up FEF’s dash. It almost killed me to undo my restored-to-factory dash to fit the 610-T I which I had just rebuilt. Now however, I would not remove the 610-T and install the model 608 I just won today on eBay. 

 

 

Go Figure...This radio was sold for Plymouth cars but most will agree that the configuration (will verify) and dimensions appear to match the factory cutout for the 51-53 series trucks. It uses a different power supply incorporating a speaker which in my mind (because of heat to the speaker cone and vibration from the speaker to the tubes within the power supply) would not be a good idea. The power output is compatible but I would need to modify the output cable of (Mark's 610T's power supply) and make it fit the Motorola 608.

 

 

If you stop and think about what was going on in '51 and '52 it makes sense the radios sold in that time period would have the CD stations labelled. Scary stuff huh? Came pretty close to using them again.......... An old buddy who was a marine at Inchon told me just how close it was there. Good thing Ike threw his hat in when he did. Wise Wat Tu might have gotten a bit burnt around the edges.

 

Jeff

 

Thanks Jeff...I personally don't (but I wish I did) belong to the Walter P. Chrysler Foundation. Although 1951 does seem to be an odd time for supply/demand on radios, I wonder if there is a historian that knows what radio really belonged in our trucks.

 

hank 

Edited May 11, 2015 by HanksB3B

[Jeff Balazs]

There is a manual for an 813 radio on ebay right now.......dated 1951-1952

Dodge cars & trucks. Looks like a match to me.

 

Jeff

[Phil363]

Don't  forget about the cut outs that go vertical.  My B-3 semi has a vertical cutout along with 3 of my 6 parts trucks.

 

House cleaning today and came across a USE Chrysler Corporation parts and accessories catalog.  It has optional parts for the B-Series Job-Rated trucks.  It is copyrighted in 1948 but list parts up to the 48-49 B-1-B.  Other pages read copywriter 1949.

 

When you mentioned that some of your trucks had the vertical cut out for a radio I remember looking at this catalog a several months ago.

 

So for the vertical cut radios it looks like the two radios in the photo below were an option.

 

PS:  Just followed a link on the forum homepage where this page was already downloaded to the forum on 17 May 2015 by a moderator I think.  My complete copy is about 60 pages long.

Edited May 26, 2015 by Phil363

[Young Ed]

Interesting that the 48 trucks use the same radio as 46-48 plymouths(and maybe other 46-48 mopars). That does make me wonder if the later trucks also use the car radios? The only difference there is the cars didn't have that external overlay.

[Dodgeb4ya]

So few 1951-53 trucks ever came with radio's ...(the 610) especially.

 

I have never seen either in the hundreds and hundreds of trucks I've seen over the years.

 

I think the 1953-54 plymouth/dodge radio will fit the B3/4 trucks

 

The passenger car radio's could be the most logical choice and might have been dealer installed in the day.

 

Not positive the 53-54 car radio would fit. Someone should try it.

[Phil363]

So few 1951-53 trucks ever came with radio's ...(the 610) especially.

 

I have never seen either in the hundreds and hundreds of trucks I've seen over the years.

 

I think the 1953-54 plymouth/dodge radio will fit the B3/4 trucks

 

The passenger car radio's could be the most logical choice and might have been dealer installed in the day.

 

Not positive the 53-54 car radio would fit. Someone should try it.

 

This thread has me thinking ahead on my rebuild though I am not even close to working on the cab electronics yet.  I also think that the automotive / car radios will fit into the trucks from what I have read up on so far.  I could be wrong but I have found nothing to indicate that there were radio models manufactured that only fit into the trucks.

 

While I do not have a radio cutout in my 52 B-3-B I do plan on installing a period correct one in the future.  But which radio(s) is/are the correct one? 

 

After reading Jeff's post #32 about a reference on e-bay I went an ordered a few references to help track this down:

 

1. 1932 to 1954 CAR RADIO IDENTIFICATION MANUAL AUTO; basically identifies what radio goes into what vehicle (it also had trucks listed in the example).  I will get it on 1 Jun on CD.  Will update this post once it comes in with the radio(s) for B3 series trucks if any are listed.

 

2.  1951 MOPAR 812 DODGE CHRYSLER RADIO SERVICE MAMUAL photofact 813, 815, 816, and 817.   

 

- Hank's photo in Post #26 looks like 2 model 813 radios they have on ebay.  Ggdad's dash photo in his hyperlink in post #1 and Jeff's in the #2 post look like this model radio would fit.

 

3.  1953 MOPAR DODGE RADIO SERVICE MANUAL 610T photofact schematic DODGE B-3, B-4.

Edited May 26, 2015 by Phil363

[Jeff Balazs]

Good luck with this Phil. I am not really interested in one of these radios.....but I do love to see a good mystery solved.

Since there are several of these 51-52 trucks with factory cut outs......I figure there just has to be a radio or two that is a correct fit for them.

 

Jeff

[DJ194950]

Edited May 26, 2015 by DJ194950

[Jeff Balazs]

 

:P

[Plymouthy Adams]

I think I know the owner.......hold me beer while I look up his address.....

[HanksB3B]

So few 1951-53 trucks ever came with radio's ...(the 610) especially.

 

I have never seen either in the hundreds and hundreds of trucks I've seen over the years.

 

I think the 1953-54 plymouth/dodge radio will fit the B3/4 trucks

 

The passenger car radio's could be the most logical choice and might have been dealer installed in the day.

 

Not positive the 53-54 car radio would fit. Someone should try it.

 

 

This thread has me thinking ahead on my rebuild though I am not even close to working on the cab electronics yet.  I also think that the automotive / car radios will fit into the trucks from what I have read up on so far.  I could be wrong but I have found nothing to indicate that there were radio models manufactured that only fit into the trucks.

 

While I do not have a radio cutout in my 52 B-3-B I do plan on installing a period correct one in the future.  But which radio(s) is/are the correct one? 

 

After reading Jeff's post #32 about a reference on e-bay I went an ordered a few references to help track this down:

 

1. 1932 to 1954 CAR RADIO IDENTIFICATION MANUAL AUTO; basically identifies what radio goes into what vehicle (it also had trucks listed in the example).  I will get it on 1 Jun on CD.  Will update this post once it comes in with the radio(s) for B3 series trucks if any are listed.

 

2.  1951 MOPAR 812 DODGE CHRYSLER RADIO SERVICE MAMUAL photofact 813, 815, 816, and 817.   

 

- Hank's photo in Post #26 looks like 2 model 813 radios they have on ebay.  Ggdad's dash photo in his hyperlink in post #1 and Jeff's in the #2 post look like this model radio would fit.

 

3.  1953 MOPAR DODGE RADIO SERVICE MANUAL 610T photofact schematic DODGE B-3, B-4.

 

Because not too many people ordered trucks with radios. I speculate that during the Korean War in 1951 Motorola's assembly line may have had concerns other than pasenger car and truck radios. Demand/Supply was definately low. I'm pretty much convinced that back in the day dealers would install almost any Motorola Passenger car radio that qualified as 6V Positive ground.

 

Not sure if Zeke's 610-T was installed by the dealer or a previous owner.

 

The Motorola 608 fits, the Motorola 813 looks like a fit as well but would need to verify.

 

Nice work guys, looking forward to seeing more original documentation.

 

Thanks,

 

Hank   

Edited May 27, 2015 by HanksB3B

[John-T-53]

To downplay this whole radio debacle....

 

Radio's in these trucks are just for decoration anyway.

 

It's too loud in the cab to be able to hear anything coming out of their speakers. Drivers often wear ear plugs.

 

And....there are no free hands available to play with a radio anyway.

 

[Phil363]

To downplay this whole radio debacle....

 

Radio's in these trucks are just for decoration anyway.

 

It's too loud in the cab to be able to hear anything coming out of their speakers. Drivers often wear ear plugs.

 

And....there are no free hands available to play with a radio anyway.

 

 

 What ??? our trucks are noisy   

 

But I just have to have one after seeing Hank's shiny dials and buttons above in post #15 

Edited May 29, 2015 by Phil363

[ggdad1951]

To downplay this whole radio debacle....

 

Radio's in these trucks are just for decoration anyway.

 

It's too loud in the cab to be able to hear anything coming out of their speakers. Drivers often wear ear plugs.

 

And....there are no free hands available to play with a radio anyway.

 

 

Odd, I can easily carry on a conversation in FEF while speeding thru time and space at 47mph!

[ggdad1951]

 What ??? our trucks are noisy   

 

But I just have to have one after seeing Hank's shiny dials and buttons above in post #15 

have I got a deal for you!  

[Jeff Balazs]

To downplay this whole radio debacle....

 

Radio's in these trucks are just for decoration anyway.

 

It's too loud in the cab to be able to hear anything coming out of their speakers. Drivers often wear ear plugs.

 

And....there are no free hands available to play with a radio anyway.

 

It is a fair amount of work but you can make these cabs pretty darn quiet. I probably have more than a hundred manhours and a $1000 of material into insulating my cab. And I will tell you what it was money and time well spent. Makes all the difference in the world. I never listen to the radio but the Ipod stereo sure sounds great.

 

Jeff

[Phil363]

 

 

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

 

 

 

This 6-volt radio(also see Jeff's post #23 above) would fit the stock punch out. My question is about the Civil Defense marks along the bottom of the glass bezel. Does that make it incorrect for 1951 ? 

 

Hank      

Got two of the references I ordered in today.  The references were published by the Radio-Television Manufacturers Association (RTMA) Dated 7-51 for the 812 ... series radios and Dated 11-53 for the Dodge 610T radio.

 

The photo below show the series radios that were in production in 1951 for Dodge, Plymouth, and Chrysler cars. 

 

The photo of the receiver for the 1951 models do not have the Civil Defense markings as your photo does above.  What is the model number on the back of the one in the photo?

 

Reading the remarks on the 610T radio .. it was built for the 1953 B-3 & B-4 series trucks as I read it.

 

Note:  I may go all "1953" for a 610T radio ... it could keep my 1953 engine head company in the vehicle

 

Both photos are just the top part of the first page .. there are 6 pages with all of the parts / schematics etc. used to rebuild or replace the parts for both the radio and power supply.   

 

Just waiting on my final reference from my earlier post.

Edited May 31, 2015 by Phil363

[Dodgeb4ya]

Ya know what.... who really cares if the RTMA or Civil Defense markings are on theses radio's!

This is a old cheap dodge truck of the day. You won't win a trophy because of a supposedly correct "factory" installed super dupper one off radio. 

 

Install one that works and sounds good.

 

Then haul a good heavy dirty load of Shiitte and prove to your self your little old dodge can really be a worthy dodge PU truck able to do something other than sit at the car show !!!!

Bob

Edited May 31, 2015 by Dodgeb4ya

[Phil363]

Ya know what.... who really cares if the RTMA or Civil Defense markings are on theses radio's!

This is a old cheap dodge truck of the day. You won't win a trophy because of a supposedly correct "factory" installed super dupper one off radio. 

 

Install one that works and sounds good.

 

Then haul a good heavy dirty load of Shiitte and prove to your self your little old dodge can really be a worthy dodge PU truck able to do something other than sit at the car show !!!!

Bob

 

Bob, I actually agree with you about getting whatever radio you want for the vehicle as that no one really cares what the vehicle owners have in it.  The only thing that matters does it make the vehicle owner happy at the end of the day.

 

However,  if you want to get a radio that fits the current cutout in the dash of your truck and not waste your time and money purchasing a radio that does not fit.  It would be kind of nice to know what MoPar radio went with what year(s) and perhaps with what model(s) car / truck.  

 

So in that vain of thought    .... my final reference came in that I mentioned in post #36.  1st Photo below breaks it down first as Dodge Vehicles by year and radio model number. The second and third photos break it down by Mopar with Year, Radio number and specific vehicle make.  Photo numbers below go from Right to left ..

 

Going back to the original question posed in this thread ... paraphrasing here ...  what series / year vehicle does the 610T go in.  My answer based upon what I have read it goes into the 1953/54 B-3/B-4 Dodge Pilothouse trucks.  Not earlier or later years of the B-3/B-4 series. 

 

Several other members mentioned other radio models and the data for each of those is also in the photos.

 

Hope this helps a forum member get the radio they want to fill that cutout many have in their dashes.

 

As for me .... no plans for truck shows etc ... I am going with a 610T radio in to my 1952 dash ... because I like it

 

PS:  Hank you would like this final reference ... it has the part numbers for all of the vibrator things that go in all radio models.

 

Phil

Edited June 2, 2015 by Phil363

[ggdad1951]

so in all the craziness of this thread Hank is fixing me up a 608...does that sound like it will fit right from your researching?