Ekco valve radio A23

Ekco A23 Dark brown Bakelite rectangular case with 5 preset station selector pushbuttons (3medium 2 long) superhet ECCH35 EF39 EBC33 EL33 AZ31 Long/medium/short wavebands UK 1945. The receiver originally cost £25.10s.4d and I was given it by Brian Aust in 1983.

E K Cole who pioneered the production of Bakelite radios in the UK under the brand name of EKCO. Their early round sets designed by Wells Coates, icons of the Art Deco period are highly prized collectors items and may command a price of £700 to £900. An A23 is not so collectible but recently one was sold on eBay for £102 but as with any Bakelite receiver, condition is critical and you might have been lucky and successfully bid for one a week or so later for £24!

This set was released just after the last round Ekco (model A22). The cabinet (22in x 13in x 10in) is quite large for a Bakelite set and unlike earlier models, there seems to be wasted space within the cabinet. The stations selected by the pushbuttons may be changed by removing the escutcheon that surrounds the five buttons to gain access to the oscillator coil cores and aerial trimmers. To preset a station selected by a pushbutton depress the appropriate button, and adjust the cores and trimmers with a small screwdriver. Three buttons cover the medium waveband and two the long waveband. When pushbutton tuning is in operation the two lamps that illuminate the main tuning scales are are switched off and a lamp glows behind the translucent labels above the pushbuttons.