1959 GM Delco Buick "Transistor Portable"
Automobile/portable radio, aluminum cabinet
6 3/4 x 3 11/16 x 1 9/16 inches / 171.5 x 94 x 40 mm
Six(?) transistors, four 1.5v AA cells/automotive battery
Manufactured by Delco Radio Corp.
One of a number of "Trans-Portable" radios made by Delco for GM cars in 1959, including Oldsmobile, Pontiac and this Buick model. And as with the 1958 Trans-Portables, it looks like these radios were optional. All of these were seated in their car's dashboard or underneath it. When plugged in, the radio was powered by the car's battery and the tuning shifted to push-button tuning on what looks to be a standard dashboard radio. And a bonus was that they could be removed from the dashboard to become portable. These three Trans-Portable models were much more like standard coat pocket radios in size and shape and cabinet design than were the 1958 models (see photo below), and they seem to have only accompanied something that looks like a standard dashboard radio, rather than replace it. I have to say, I'm not sure I get the point -- whatever, all three are pretty cool radios.
This Buick radio makes use of the same antenna accomodation found in GE's P-715 model: a plastic cut-out area along the top back edge of the cabinet where the antenna could be housed outside the metallic cabinet.
xrhonda91 has a long article on an AntiqueRadios.com forum, posted on April 25, 2025, entitled, "The Evolution of the Delco Auto-Portable Radios". The article gives a comprehensive history of these sets, and it includes examples of prototype sets and many variations on the three commonly-known Delco Trans-Portables.
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