Trying to power late grandmother's portable TV

[tyrathect]

I know very little about electronics or anything related. Please speak in layman's terms

So it says 12v DC on the back. I bought a 12v DC adapter online, only to discover that the part that plugs into the TV, the inner hole of the plug is too narrow (see attached picture). I spent a little while looking at adapters online, but they all seem to look the same to me. That inner hole just needs to be a little bit wider.

Please let me know if you need more background. It's an old black & white TV, but I don't know how old. I saw it for the first time in the late 80s.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Alec_t]

Welcome to EP!
Googling 'DC power plug adapter' should find you something. You need to know the inside and outside diameters of the plug. 2.1mm and 2.5mm are common inside diameters.

 

[Audioguru]

Even more important is the polarity of the plug. The TV shows that the pin is positive. Is the center part of the power supply plug also positive? Does the power supply provide enough current?

 

[tyrathect]

That's a good question. The adapter shows those symbols in the opposite order. All I thought was, there was a metal thing in the middle of the hole, so the adapter should have a hole in the middle of it. I also know to find a 12v DC adapter, but beyond that I'm a bit lost.

 

[Audioguru]

If the polarity is connected backwards, the TV, the power supply or both might blow up.
If the power supply cannot supply the current (amps) required by the TV then the power supply might blow up or burn out.

 

[Doug3004]

I know very little about electronics or anything related. Please speak in layman's terms
,,,
Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Ummm,,, there may be nothing to watch on it? Unless you obtain or build a little converter yourself.

Are any USA TV stations still broadcasting in analog? I thought they all stopped a couple years ago.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_television_transition_in_the_United_States

I'm not exactly sure what a LPTV station is? (Low Power TV broadcasting...)

 

[tyrathect]

I have some oldschool AV cables. I was planning on trying it out on my old video game consoles, or my VCR. I don't plan on using the antenna TV function or the radio function. This is mostly about nostalgia, and memories I have of visiting my grandma's house as a kid, with her B & W tv sitting on the bar. I'd like to get it going again, but from what others here are saying, I clearly need A: a power adapter with the correct inner diameter, and B: polarity stuff that won't make everything explode.

Thanks for the answers so far, guys. You're helping me to learn what I need. Again, I can provide any background info needed, or even take additional pictures.

Edit: One thing that I don't quite understand is the relevance of the + and - symbols and in what direction the diagram is. I get that if I get that wrong I could cause the world to end, but I didn't quite figure out what I'm meant to do based on your posts. Again, I'm sorry, I'm not a tech savvy person.

 

[shrtrnd]

A 12VDC adapter means there is a positive and a negative, just like a battery, which is also DC.
Your adapter connector polarity needs to be wired for the correct '+' and ' - ', just like a battery direction when you
install one in a portable device.
The TV probably has writing on the back that will tell you 12VDC, and the amperage. Your power supply will
need to be 12VDC with at least that listed amperage output.
If you get stuck and don't have anybody you know who can look at this connector, find an electronics supply store
in your area and take your TV in for them to look at and tell you what you need.
And yes, make sure the power input adapter you get, is wired for the correct '+' and ' - ' connections.

 

[tyrathect]

Oh okay, that's pretty straightforward. I'll get working on that and see what I can work out.

 

[tyrathect]

it doesn't give the amperage, but I just now thought to check the battery requirements for the TV to be portable. It requires 10 D batteries. Does that say anything about what amperage I need?

 

[Audioguru]

I haven't used D size battery cells since about 50 years ago. The datasheet for an Eveready Super Heavy Duty carbon zinc D cell shows that it could provide 800mA for 2.5 hours. Select a 12V/1A power supply.