This Atomic Era 1951 General Electric (GE) clock radio is a real piece of American history. With its maroon and black swirl Bakelite cabinet and large alarm clock, it can be the focal point of any vintage radio collection. It’s got a five-tube chassis and receives AM Broadcast. It has been fully restored. The cabinet gives everything it plays a deep, rich sound.
History – The GE 515 series was first introduced in the winter of 1950 for $29.95. The chassis was common to the 510, 511, 512, 513, 517, 516, 518, 521, and 522 models. Model 515 colors included Alabaster Ivory, Congo Brown, Maroon, Persian Red, and Porcelain White.
This radio is very post-war industrial looking - even a little Art Deco. These series of radios from General Electric from the early fifties was very popular. Soon after entering the market sales exploded and later GE advertised that over 2,000,000 units were in use – more than all other brand radios combined. It is difficult to find surviving examples without missing knobs, especially the top clock set knob. You can easily find this model online but not always with all the knobs and almost never without cracks.
A special feature of this radio is a wake-up alarm and receptacle at the rear of the receiver that is controlled by the clock to provide automatic power control to an external appliance such as a coffee maker.
Today, this attractive radio is sought after by collectors but seldom found in a fully restored condition. We acquired this one in 2020 from a collector who had not restored it. The cabinet was in fair shape with many scratches. The chassis was not working and needed a full restoration and upgrade.
Cabinet – We cleaned and polished the Bakelite plastic cabinet. It now displays with beautiful gloss and has no nicks or cracks. A few scratches remain after fine polishing but are barely noticeable. The speaker grill was cleaned and is in excellent shape.
Dial - The round ruler dial scale looks flawless with beautifully silk-screened burgundy numerals that match the clock numbers. We disassembled it cleaned it to remove the 70+ years of dust and debris.
Chassis – This radio is a classic ‘All-American Five’ tube design. It uses about 3 Watts of power and has about 1 Watt of audio output. We went through the chassis replacing the electrolytic and wax capacitors, checking, and replacing resistors and tubes where needed. It now gives excellent reception free of distortion across the AM band. We replaced the rectifier tube and installed a new power cord for safety and longevity. We aligned the radio, and it plays well across the dial. Knobs are GE original or exact reproductions. The radio is clean inside and out with no odors, and the five tubes are easily accessed by removing the back panel a simple screwdriver.
Speaker – The 4” permanent magnet Alnico speaker was intact when we got it. We cleaned and reinforced it. It tests well across the audio spectrum and should last for many, many years.
Antenna - This model comes with a built-in AM loop antenna that is attached to the back panel. We inspected and cleaned the loop and secured the attachment points. This radio receives most of our AM stations in the San Francisco Bay Area from inside a metal building.
Clock – Most of these radios have grinding noise that emanates from the Telechron clock motor. To fix that we drained and cleaned it and then installed a modern clock lubricant and resealed the motor. The clock is quiet now and keeps perfect time. All the clock functions work: alarm set, clock set, and sleep and 'Wake Up' by radio and/or buzzer alarm. The brass-colored metal clock surrounding gives it a classy touch. The clock face is a pale blue with burgundy colored inner alarm dial.
The clock hands were originally coated with Radium so they would always glow in the dark. However, Radium is radioactive and potentially dangerous. Like most restorers we painted over the hands for safety. The new Ivory enamel closely matches the original color. Everything sits behind a curved glass cover.
Year of Manufacture: 1951
Frequency Range: AM Broadcast Band - 540 – 1600 kHz
Dimensions: 12 x 6.2 x 4.3 inch
See Demo on YouTube here: youtu.be/-a_7CGkCF8c
History – The GE 515 series was first introduced in the winter of 1950 for $29.95. The chassis was common to the 510, 511, 512, 513, 517, 516, 518, 521, and 522 models. Model 515 colors included Alabaster Ivory, Congo Brown, Maroon, Persian Red, and Porcelain White.
This radio is very post-war industrial looking - even a little Art Deco. These series of radios from General Electric from the early fifties was very popular. Soon after entering the market sales exploded and later GE advertised that over 2,000,000 units were in use – more than all other brand radios combined. It is difficult to find surviving examples without missing knobs, especially the top clock set knob. You can easily find this model online but not always with all the knobs and almost never without cracks.
A special feature of this radio is a wake-up alarm and receptacle at the rear of the receiver that is controlled by the clock to provide automatic power control to an external appliance such as a coffee maker.
Today, this attractive radio is sought after by collectors but seldom found in a fully restored condition. We acquired this one in 2020 from a collector who had not restored it. The cabinet was in fair shape with many scratches. The chassis was not working and needed a full restoration and upgrade.
Cabinet – We cleaned and polished the Bakelite plastic cabinet. It now displays with beautiful gloss and has no nicks or cracks. A few scratches remain after fine polishing but are barely noticeable. The speaker grill was cleaned and is in excellent shape.
Dial - The round ruler dial scale looks flawless with beautifully silk-screened burgundy numerals that match the clock numbers. We disassembled it cleaned it to remove the 70+ years of dust and debris.
Chassis – This radio is a classic ‘All-American Five’ tube design. It uses about 3 Watts of power and has about 1 Watt of audio output. We went through the chassis replacing the electrolytic and wax capacitors, checking, and replacing resistors and tubes where needed. It now gives excellent reception free of distortion across the AM band. We replaced the rectifier tube and installed a new power cord for safety and longevity. We aligned the radio, and it plays well across the dial. Knobs are GE original or exact reproductions. The radio is clean inside and out with no odors, and the five tubes are easily accessed by removing the back panel a simple screwdriver.
Speaker – The 4” permanent magnet Alnico speaker was intact when we got it. We cleaned and reinforced it. It tests well across the audio spectrum and should last for many, many years.
Antenna - This model comes with a built-in AM loop antenna that is attached to the back panel. We inspected and cleaned the loop and secured the attachment points. This radio receives most of our AM stations in the San Francisco Bay Area from inside a metal building.
Clock – Most of these radios have grinding noise that emanates from the Telechron clock motor. To fix that we drained and cleaned it and then installed a modern clock lubricant and resealed the motor. The clock is quiet now and keeps perfect time. All the clock functions work: alarm set, clock set, and sleep and 'Wake Up' by radio and/or buzzer alarm. The brass-colored metal clock surrounding gives it a classy touch. The clock face is a pale blue with burgundy colored inner alarm dial.
The clock hands were originally coated with Radium so they would always glow in the dark. However, Radium is radioactive and potentially dangerous. Like most restorers we painted over the hands for safety. The new Ivory enamel closely matches the original color. Everything sits behind a curved glass cover.
Year of Manufacture: 1951
Frequency Range: AM Broadcast Band - 540 – 1600 kHz
Dimensions: 12 x 6.2 x 4.3 inch
See Demo on YouTube here: youtu.be/-a_7CGkCF8c