Zenith 7-J-232 (7J232) Waltons Tombstone Radio (1938)
The 7-J-232 (7J232) "Waltons" tombstone is so named
today because of its use by the family in the 1970s tele-
vision series of the same name. The radio actually came
in four flavors, the 7-J-232, 7-S-232, 9-S-232 and 12-S-
232, where the first number represents the number of
tubes used. The -S- models are ac-powered sets featur-
ing a tuning eye and, in the case of the domestic 9 and
12 tube models, motorized tuning. The 7-J is basically a
dual-use farm set, capable of running from either the
110V ac line or a 6V storage battery. It has neither a tun-
ing eye nor motorized tuning. However, all four models
cover three bands and feature Zenith's much beloved
robot dial (nowadays also known as a shutterdial). See
my
12-S-267 page for further discussions on this dial.
The radio had an introductory purchase price of $79.95.

The tube complement for the 7-J-232 is:- 6S7G (RF amp),
6D8G (mixer/LO), 6S7G (IF amp), 6T7G (2nd det/AGC/1st
AF), 6L5G (2nd AF), 1J6G (duo-triode used for push-pull
o/p) and 6ZY5G (rectifier). The audio output power is
1.75W. Overall band coverage is from 540-18,400kc. The
schematic may be found
here, courtesy of NostalgiaAir.

I bought this radio in the fall of 2006 and it is in working
condition. However, my initial try-outs have revealed the
controls to be noisy in addition to it having some other
minor electrical issues.

To be perfectly honest, the styling of this radio will never
put it at the top of my list of favorite radios. However, all
the Waltons radios are highly collectible and no self-
respecting Zenith collection should be without at least one
example!
Zenith...America's most copied radio ...again a year ahead.
Copyright TubeRadioLand.com
Dec 21st 1937, Iowa
Apr 22nd 1938, Va.
Zenith 7-J-232 Waltons Tombstone Radio (1938)
Zenith 7-J-232 Waltons Tombstone Radio Rear View (1938)