I recently acquired an old GE Console Radio/Phonograph which has the
model # RC4652 A on the back.  It's in good condition and works, and I
love it, but I can't find anything on line about it.  I'd like to know
the the date, and history for this model and an approximate value. 
Any ideas on this, please let me know or point me in the right
direction.  Thanks!

pyankcat,

I love old analog radios: there's just something about those glowing
vacuum tubes and Art Deco style that modern electronics can't match.

Several years I bought a book entitled "Radios - The Golden Age"
(http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0877014191/qid=1024186435/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/103-7968089-7571826)
which has many beautiful photographs of stylish radios from 1933 to
1957. For sheer character, they beat Bang & Olafson any day.

While searching for your particular radio, I see what you mean: the
trail seems to be pretty cold. I have not been able to find any
references to a "General Electric radio RC-4652" either (not yet,
anyway).

If I were you, here's what I would do to warm up the trail.


1. Educate yourself, and start networking by visiting antique radio
sites on the Web. There are many of them: here's a few of the higher
ranking ones that Google turned up:

All Things Radio
"A Comprehensive Source for the Radio Enthusiast"
http://www.allthingsradio.com/

Antique Radio Classified
"The National Publication For Buyers And Sellers Of Old Radios And
Related Items"
http://www.antiqueradio.com/

BTW, you can order a free sample of their publication online at:
http://www.antiqueradio.com/freesample.html

Antique Radios
"The Collectors Resource"
http://www.antiqueradios.com/

Antique Radio Resource Page
http://members.aol.com/caschwark/

Antique Radio Page
"Galleries and information relating to antique radios from the 1920s
to the 1960s"
http://members.aol.com/djadamson/arp.html

Many of these antique radio sites have classified ad sections and/or
email addresses where you can ask for more information. Be sure to
check the additional links and resources on each site for more leads.


2. Do a search on eBay in their "Antiques" and "Collectibles"
categories for "General Electric radio". If any matches come up,
contact the seller and see if they have any additional information.
 
In fact, I've already done an eBay search in each category and saved
their URLs below: use these to see what eBay currently has:

"General Electric radio" search in Antiques -
http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?MfcISAPICommand=GetResult&st=2&SortProperty=MetaEndSort&query=General+Electric+radio&srchdesc=y&ebaytag1=ebayreg&ht=1&category0=353&combine=y

"General Electric radio" search in "Collectibles" -
http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?MfcISAPICommand=GetResult&st=2&SortProperty=MetaEndSort&query=general+electric+radio&ht=1&category0=1&combine=y


3. Post a message in eBay's discussion forums asking for some help. 

Go to eBay's "Discussion, Help, and Chat" community section at
http://pages.ebay.com/community/chat/index.html. Down the left side of
the page is the heading "Category-Specific Discussion Boards". Note
the "Antiques" and "Collectibles" discussion boards listed there:
these are the two forums where you should post a message about your
radio.

In your message, be sure to give a detailed description of your radio,
including its overall dimensions (use a measuring tape), color, type
of case (wood/plastic/metal), design and color of any grille cloth,
type and size of control knobs, and so on. The more complete your
description is, the easier it will be for someone to identify the
radio.


4. It would help greatly if people could see your radio. Take a
picture of it and put it up on the Web. You need some closeups of the
radio (from a slight frontwards angle), preferably taken in open
shade, with the radio sitting on an uncluttered background like a
white sheet. Take several shots with flash and without, and get the
prints developed.

Pick the best print and have it scanned: most camera shops can do this
for a small fee. If you know any computer geeks, find out if they own
a scanner. After scanning the print, crop the scanned image and touch
it up so the radio is large and clearly visible in the frame. Save the
image file onto a floppy as a JPEG file, then copy the file onto your
PC.

Better yet, if you own one (or can borrow one), use a digital camera
instead. Then you won't have to mess with photographic prints at all,
and will have a digital image file ready to go.

Post the image file up on the Web. One place where you can do this for
free is at Yahoo! Photo Albums (http://photos.yahoo.com/). Check out
their instructions for creating your own account and making photo
albums.

Once your radio's picture is in your Yahoo!Photos album, you can give
out its URL so anyone can see it online. To get an idea of how this
works, open my Yahoo! photo albums (click each thumbnail image for a
larger view) at the following URL:

http://photos.yahoo.com/huntsmanga

 
5. Perhaps there are some clubs in your area that could take a look at
your radio. The Antique Radios Web site has a list of clubs:

Radio Clubs
http://www.antiqueradios.com/clubs.shtml


You're not the first to be bitten by this bug, so keep at it:

"How I Got Started Collecting Old Radios"
http://www.radioattic.com/started.htm

Somebody out there will know about your GE model: you just need to
spread the word around a little.

Thanks,
huntsman


Search Terms & Google URLs - 

- antique radios
://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&querytime=IV-FE&q=antique+radios

- GE radio RC-4652
://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&querytime=IV-FE&q=GE+radio+RC%2D4652

- radio clubs
://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&querytime=IV-FE&q=radio+clubs

- "collecting old radios"
://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&querytime=IV-FE&q=%22collecting+old+radios%22

Would like to have received the information on this model.  I already
am aware of the sources pointed out to me, but I know you tried so
thank you.