Anyone remove the thumb roller face of a 1967-68 radio chassis? If so, do you think it would interface a modern radio chassis?

Gerald Morris

Gerald Morris

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Greetings C Body Moparians! I've been shopping for a modern, Bluetooth and USB capable radio for Gertrude, and aside from an overpriced Redondo RT ( 1968-1970 Dodge Charger Redondo RT Thumb-Roller Radio ) from Retro Manufacturing meant for the '68 Charger, including Sirius satellite, Apple, and another useless luxury medium I've no use for, the pickings are slim indeed. Now I might be able to get Retro to sell me their thumb roller kit, or not, so if the latter, I might want to try adapting the older interface to a new radio chassis. It would look cool too, with actual chromed metal parts tuning and controlling a mod radio to do this. Have any of you tried it?
 
Gerald Morris said:
Greetings C Body Moparians! I've been shopping for a modern, Bluetooth and USB capable radio for Gertrude, and aside from an overpriced Redondo RT ( 1968-1970 Dodge Charger Redondo RT Thumb-Roller Radio ) from Retro Manufacturing meant for the '68 Charger, including Sirius satellite, Apple, and another useless luxury medium I've no use for, the pickings are slim indeed. Now I might be able to get Retro to sell me their thumb roller kit, or not, so if the latter, I might want to try adapting the older interface to a new radio chassis. It would look cool too, with actual chromed metal parts tuning and controlling a mod radio to do this. Have any of you tried it?
Click to expand...
Tayman Electrical.
 
I had my original converted to AM/ FM Bluetooth. All the controls work and you can still use the mechanical presets.
The issue with modern radios are the dials are no longer mechanical, but electrical.

The thumb wheels drive a gear that drives a volume pot and the tuner drives a belt. I have a 68 Polara radio apart in one of my drawers. I will get pictures of the mechanism.
 
Converted radio by Tayman. Not cheap.
64E3BC5F-4D60-4BF1-B399-63D7017D2810.jpeg


Internal gear drive for volume and tuning.
Plastic gears are stripped on this one.
E34AEE40-BA7A-49CF-9A48-CBCB7608C5FC.jpeg


Tuner drive
CCC5C3D0-79D5-436E-9F81-1D65EE5C11B0.jpeg
 
HWYCRZR said:
Converted radio by Tayman. Not cheap.
Click to expand...

Which is why I won't use the man. I can do a great deal of what he does, though maybe not so well polished. BEAUTIFUL WORK! BTW, 4 SURE!

HWYCRZR said:
Internal gear drive for volume and tuning.
Plastic gears are stripped on this one.
Click to expand...

MAJOR THANKS for THAT PIC! You just spared me the immediate effort of pulling mine and monkeying with it, for now. I just emailed Retro, Their Laguna line would work for my purposes very nicely, IFF I can get the thumb wheel interface for it from them, OR, do as you likely guess I'm thinking of doing with the old stuff from my radio. FWIW, I'll test that one in case it can be salvaged, but I suspect the Bluetooth in 1968 still referred to that state of a wino's dental health.

I see some stuff on the E-Bazaar that might serve for interfaces too. I'd HATE to lose that lovely factory job. At present, I use my phone and a JBL Flip 4....

HWYCRZR said:
Tuner drive
Click to expand...
Thx+++ again.
 
3175375 said:
Gary can use a factory radio to get you Bluetooth and a USB adapter. Plus more.
Click to expand...

Oh I'm SURE he CAN! But he needs his pay for it too. I see he does WONDERFUL WORK! I'm not disparaging the guy in any way, he's out of my range for now.
 
A link for Tayman would be appreciated. I am looking to have a power amplifier under my seat to drive 2 6 by 9 speakers in the rear deck like I used to as a kid but instead of a Pioneer Supertuner hanging under my dash I would love to have the factory radio with blue tooth etc for input and have rca plugs from the factory radio to the amp to drive the speakers. How is the fidelity HWYCRZR? Looks great.
 
3175375 said:
Tayman Electrical.
Click to expand...
Tayman did my 68' Am/Fm Search tune. Cannot tell whats behind the original face plate and operation. Ordered the dual voice coil speakers (I think thats what they are called). All looks original, no new speaker holes etc. Picking up stations I didnt even know existed. Better than my newer cars radios. Very pleased with the operation and appearance. I am sure he can fix your issue if you so choose.
 
Turboomni said:
A link for Tayman would be appreciated. I am looking to have a power amplifier under my seat to drive 2 6 by 9 speakers in the rear deck like I used to as a kid but instead of a Pioneer Supertuner hanging under my dash I would love to have the factory radio with blue tooth etc for input and have rca plugs from the factory radio to the amp to drive the speakers. How is the fidelity HWYCRZR? Looks great.
Click to expand...

As per request: Tayman Electrical stereo solutions for collector cars

Again, I'm sure the man does truly TOP quality work, but you all must remember, I drive Gertrude as a family car because Skool Teechurz and Old Junkeez be piss poor. To wit, I do almost EVERYTHING I can to improve or just repair my ride. I LOVE these Old Mopars especially because they're SUPER SIMPLE, beyond even the wares of other American car makers of the period AND superbly, elegantly designed. As an engineer, I appreciate Good Work. This summer, I must hire a machine shop and upholsterer already, to do an overdue valve job and properly roof that convertible. I'm no seamster, and don't care to **** up that job. Now RADIOS, and ELECTRICAL issues, I DO ALL THE WORK, REGARDLESS, because THAT stuff is MY Specialty, and has been since I still had baby fat.

I'm sure Gary Tayman CAN do better than me, because HIS Specialty is more specifically restoring and modernizing old car audio systems. I've NO doubt the man excels in his craft, but hey, the Bank here is BUSTED. (Thank you Joe Biden, for the bribes we got last year. Not so much for the inflation resulting from overdoing the Keynesian pump priming though.... Oh WELL!)
 
Turboomni said:
A link for Tayman would be appreciated. I am looking to have a power amplifier under my seat to drive 2 6 by 9 speakers in the rear deck like I used to as a kid but instead of a Pioneer Supertuner hanging under my dash I would love to have the factory radio with blue tooth etc for input and have rca plugs from the factory radio to the amp to drive the speakers. How is the fidelity HWYCRZR? Looks great.
Click to expand...

Tayman Electrical stereo solutions for collector cars
 
I tried to find an Aurora kit (Same that Tayman uses) to do it myself, but Aurora only sells to their authorized installers. A couple of years ago there was a thread where somebody on this forum with electrical and radio knowledge did their own conversion with random parts off of Amazon. At the time it seemed to be a complex list, and am not sure if you could use the tuner dial or not.
If it happened, it is on this forum somewhere.
 
Which is why, if the old stuff WON'T do, I'll cop a Laguna unit and see about the thumb rollers from Retrosound. But I'll resolder the old AM rig before I pay for something I'll never use.
 
I am considering this. Anyone with some experience with this unit from Tayman?


Secretaudio Radio​

With Stealth Sound Technology the SST-V is equipped with Bluetooth for streaming your favorite tunes and hands free use of your cell phone.
The SST-V is a 200 Watt AM/FM radio with USB MP3/WMA Flash Drive, IPod control, CD control and Satellite ready via Bluetooth auxiliary. Featuring "RF" (radio frequency) remote control, ideal for Street Rods and Classics. The SST-V hideaway radio is designed to provide a classic car or truck with exceptional audio quality while leaving the dash and original radio visible in the dash. The SST-V receiver / amplifier unit is usually hidden underneath the driver's seat or behind the dashboard and integrates with the vehicle's speaker system.
If the speakers are for a mono radio they should be replaced with Custom Autosound DVC speakers or DUAL speakers.
SST-V.jpg


Click on photo to order

Specifications
• Bluetooth
• 200 Watt AM/FM Stealth Audio Solution (50W x 4)
• USB MP3/WMA Flash Drive Player
• Alpha Numeric LCD Display. (Shows artist/song titles on IPod/USB/Satellite)
• Direct CD Changer Control (Custom Autosound CD player sold separately)
• 4 Channel 3V RCA Pre-Outs
• Subwoofer Pre-Out
• 4-way Fader
• 5 Selection EQ Curves - Pop/Jazz/Classic/Beat/Rock
• Zero Memory Current Draw (no car battery drain when not in use)

  • PRICE: $380.00
 
Turboomni said:
I am considering this. Anyone with some experience with this unit from Tayman?


Secretaudio Radio​

With Stealth Sound Technology the SST-V is equipped with Bluetooth for streaming your favorite tunes and hands free use of your cell phone.
The SST-V is a 200 Watt AM/FM radio with USB MP3/WMA Flash Drive, IPod control, CD control and Satellite ready via Bluetooth auxiliary. Featuring "RF" (radio frequency) remote control, ideal for Street Rods and Classics. The SST-V hideaway radio is designed to provide a classic car or truck with exceptional audio quality while leaving the dash and original radio visible in the dash. The SST-V receiver / amplifier unit is usually hidden underneath the driver's seat or behind the dashboard and integrates with the vehicle's speaker system.
If the speakers are for a mono radio they should be replaced with Custom Autosound DVC speakers or DUAL speakers.
View attachment 544699

Click on photo to order

Specifications
• Bluetooth
• 200 Watt AM/FM Stealth Audio Solution (50W x 4)
• USB MP3/WMA Flash Drive Player
• Alpha Numeric LCD Display. (Shows artist/song titles on IPod/USB/Satellite)
• Direct CD Changer Control (Custom Autosound CD player sold separately)
• 4 Channel 3V RCA Pre-Outs
• Subwoofer Pre-Out
• 4-way Fader
• 5 Selection EQ Curves - Pop/Jazz/Classic/Beat/Rock
• Zero Memory Current Draw (no car battery drain when not in use)

  • PRICE: $380.00
Click to expand...
For some more $, you have the opportunity to do the job with Gary. Several members here have had it done, including myself (I haven’t installed the radio yet). Your time to find references for the method you have listed, versus Taymans offering are part of the trade.
 
Marine radios meant for a console are compact and have all the modern connections including an amplifier. Here is an example that has a square face but most are round. A lot of other options. So you keep your factory radio for looks and find a place for this somewhere. While compact hey are not small so finding a place for it would be the trick. Looks like most of these would fit in a cup holder. Maybe mount to front seat frame under your legs facing up?

Like me if you already are planning external amplifiers then various "power sports" UTV options exist without the amplification. Here are some examples. they are very small and could fit in a bunch of locations. Including under the dash as an add-on to a gauge package.
Amazon product ASIN B07SLF7P3XAmazon product ASIN B07PLMT446Amazon product ASIN B07BV578YGI may go with this one or similar.
Memphis Audio MXABTRX Bluetooth Controller with AUX | Electronic Express

And here is another version of the secret headless stereo - Amazon product ASIN B09GCTY6KD
And then if you really want to do something cool would be to dip your factory radio face in silicone to make a mold and a fake faceplate. Yes, lots of painting etc. But then replace a knob or 2 with this kind of Bluetooth amplifier that has its own knob. I have this one and it works good as my bench speaker tester. Ive really been wanting to try casting automotive parts.

Amazon product ASIN B086GDNR72Replicating Cooking Range Knob - Molding & Casting | Alumilite
 
Just saw this thread. Hey, this is a Mopar site. Can we keep this automotive without the political BS. There is inflation all over the world. I come here to escape that crap.
 
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