Museum Grade Replica of 1939 Clear Plexiglas TV Case
Posted by Drew Schwartz on Sun, Sep 26, 2010 @ 07:40 PM
Colorado Plastic Products was hired by the Early Television Museum of Hilliard, OH, to construct a clear plastic replica of the case for a Lucite TRK-12 television set; just like the one that was on display at the 1939 Worlds Fair. 
The Early Television Museum lent us an original wood case, the electronic guts from another TRK-12 and some photos of a another replica case to work from. Over many hours of fabrication, John Butler was able to create a museum grade case for exhibit in Australia. One inch thick clear acrylic sheet was bonded using IPS Weld-on adhesive compounds including Weld-on #3. And since the picture tube is mounted vertically in the RCA TRK-12 (which means the image is viewed on a mirror in the lid), a hinged clear acrylic lid needed to be part of the project. And since the outside of original wooden case was wrapped with eight ribs, the replica case needed to have the same number of clear plastic ribs heat bent to match the outside profile of the case.
The final version of the TRK-12, on display in its exhibit, looks like this: