The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area The Electrical Bay Upside down radio?

Original-type AD radios are so expensive, even when in poor shape. There are car radios that look like upside down AD radios, though, and are typically not as expensive. Can these old radios be turned upside down and used in AD trucks? (see link)

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/e...1&category=38644&item=2438184471

I bought a 53 Olds radio, I think it was, a couple of years ago. I had to modify the front by moving the controls outwards slightly but I think that it will fit. It didn't have to be turned upside down either.

Tree: I think not. I do not see radio guys buying up these '48 Chev car radios for AD trucks. The back cover is interchangeable, but that's about it as far as I know. The chassis is completely different. They look the same, but that's about it.

Tree91: I agree with Kook, don't think it's gonna be a simple flip it over, flip the controls and install kinda thing, The contour of the front is different than the AD Radio. I took these pictures of a smoked one a buddy of mine had.
[img]http://www.mongosgarage.com/adradio/DCP_2011s.jpg[/img]
[img]http://www.mongosgarage.com/adradio/DCP_2007s.jpg[/img]
You might be able to get it to work though, I picked up one of the car radio's from a swap for cheap and plan on building a wooden box the same dimensions as the original radio and mounting the dial housing on it so it will mount in the stock location then mounting a modern radio below it and wiring the knobs on it to the original style knobs in the stock location.
MONGO

KC,
does your buddy still have the case ? I would be interested in the rear cover.

truckernix: He's keeping it he just let me take pictures and measurements off of it apparently as bad as it looks it still worked so he's going to replace the damaged pieces and put it in his 52 burb one of these days. I should have clarified, smoked externally internally still fine(It'll need a new speaker to) .
MONGO

By the way, Walmart sells a perfect size replacement speaker. The magnet may be a little tight but otherwise it is a perfect fit and up here anyway, I think the price is $14.95.

Out of curiousity, did your buddy have a serious cab fire ?

Nope I think he pulled it from a junkyard that way.
MONGO

That radio was not burned. That is what they look like when they sit on the speaker foam in a parts box on a shelf in a garage for 30 years. That radio was not in a fire. The push buttons are sun baked and have gotten brittle. That is a '47-'50 truck radio. The slanted case and back cover with hammertone paint was used from '47-50 and then the silver metalic case with shoebox back cover was used from '51-'53. A little AD radio trivia for you there.

I have over 20 of these radios and I'd say at least half of all the ones I come across are missing the back cover. Typically, they would stop working and someone would pull them out and start tinkering with them and then invariably not get the radio working and the back cover would never get put back and would separated for the rest of eternity.

I have a recurring dream that some day, I'm going to go into a junkyard that has only suburban seats, panel truck tool box covers, radio back covers, panel truck passenger seats and a pile of other frequently missing parts.

Thanks for the info, guys. I would like to put a radio in, but I don't necessarily want to spend $400+ on an AM radio. Call me crazy. Do you know if a generic mid-70's GM radio would fit in the slot?

Cook, when you find that junkyard you are either dreaming or dead and in heaven...

If it was heaven there would be some catch like the old joke of the heaven full of beer and naked women...

Tree, I suspose that you know you can get restored ones from Jim Carter and other vendors for about $475 plus core, you can also get am/fm csssette that will fit right in for about$275 or do like I did, just get a boomer portable that I Keep on the floor for around $60..at least I have music,,,,,good luck,,,,,I believe the above radios are for 12volt,,,Fred

Thanks, Joker. I tried to buy one from Jim Carter a while back, but they were backordered so long that they sent my money back. That is the type of expense that I would like to avoid now, anyway.

Does anyone know if the type of radio below will fit in an AD? I seem to remember this type fitting in just about every GM car in the 70's and 80's.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=42606&item=2439013279

Truckernix, are speakers at Walmart the right ohms for Chevy radio? I think radio uses an 8 ohm speaker, and all I can find anymore are 4 ohm speakers.

I used a Walmart speaker in a very similar GM radio and I didn't have any problem. Those radios were not very precise like modern electronics.

I got the latest issue of Hemmings today. In it there is an ad for a radio that is supposed to fit with no modifications, $190, free shipping.
custom auto sound

I have that same dream also Kook. My dream includes a few " Cattle Guards " in addition to your list.
The reason many of the radios are missing the back cover is ..... its easy to take the cover off & jack with the tubes & get the radio to work without actually removing the radio.
http://thumb0.webshots.com/s/thumb4/3/45/30/99434530PxueTW_th.jpg

FYI...I know that the back from a 40's? Pontiac radio will fit a later flat backed AD radio. I bought a '42 (well that's what was marked on it anyway) Pontiac radio at the Portland, OR April swap meet a couple years ago for $10 just to get the back off of it for my AD radio. The Pontiac radio is very similiar to the AD radio except the profile is not quite right. I found this ad on E-bay a couple weeks ago where a guy was advertising a Pontiac radio (that looks like the one I bought) as an AD radio. An E-bay user quickly corrected him, but it was still worth $100 to somebody out there. Apparently the E-bay seller had actually taken it out of an AD truck that had the dash holes slightly widened. Take a look.... Pontiac Radio on EBAY
PS...the Pontiac radios are a bit different internally. I do know that the tuner is a different style than the AD radios use.

I would also like to recommend a radio restoration guy in Newberg, OR. He actually reconed my AD radio speaker. I gave him a mouse eaten and stained speaker that I though was trash and he made the cone, surround and voice coil like new for $20. I don't know if he would give everybody the same deal, but it would be worth a try Vintage Radio Restorations .

Does anyone know of resources that show the old tube radios of the 40's and 50's. I have the radio that I took out a 1952 Chevy 1/2 that I recently bought. Someone identified it as a 1946-48 Pontiac radio. The knobs are actually 3/4" closer together and sit about an inch higher than the AD models. There is no back cover or no information with model number. I would like to confirm what I have. CCottrel says it looks similar to the 42 Pontiac radio.