Probably the best place to start is with the models actually listed in a Radio Technical Bulletin released by Arvin that declared them 1955 MODELS.

We were fortunate to have some color marketing and specification sheets for many of these sets as well.

Images of these colorful sheets, complete with NAMES as well as MODEL NUMBERS follows.  They are listed below in NAME sequence.

The images below are only thumbnails, but there are links to hi-res albums at bottom of page.

*** Notice that old model numbers have been redacted from the sheets above and new numbers added  ***

Rainbow - Model 840T

Cosmopolitan - Models 851T & 855T

It appears that other models were introduced, as well.  To the right, you can see the photo of a PLAID (!) version of the model 852P that was rescued from a Franklin (IN) antique shop's back room in the mid-1990s.  How many of you have ever seen a plaid radio before (at least this side of Scotland)?

By the time 1955 rolled around, the US was nearly a half decade into the boomer generation.  Both society and the world of consumer goods were evolving rapidly.  The lines between one "year" and the next were being blurred by the rapid changes in needs and desires of the population.  As has been mentioned earlier, there was a lot of crossover between the different model years in the Arvin radio lines.  Some models that were part of the 1955 line had actually debuted earlier.  And since new model lines were generally released in September or October of the previous year, you'll continue to see much back-and-forth on this website when it comes to pinning down when a radio was actually released.  In reality, a year or six months doesn't really matter anyway.  We're concerned about style and function and not whether a radio is 65 years old as opposed to 66 years old.  Below you can see some images and documents associated with Arvin's "1955 models".

Urbanite - Models 850T & 853T

Links to hi-res albums for 1955 models below:

• Model 840T
  
• Model 842T
  
• Model 848T
  
• Model 849T
  
• Model 850T
  
• Model 851T
  
• Model 852P
  
• Model 853T
  
• Model 854P
  
• Model 855T
  
• Model 857T
  
• Model 858T
  
• Model 859T
  
• Model 950T
  
• Model 951T
  
• Model 952P
  
• Model 954P
  

Nocturne - Model 857T

Sportable - Model 854P

Vacationer - Model 852P

1955 Arvin Radios

Preserving Arvin

You can "mouse over" menu items at right to reveal more menu options!

Nocturne - Model 857T

To the left is a page from the the May 1955 edition of "Arvin Folks" announcing the introduction of another portable radio, the Model 954P, into the product line.  One thing that we tend to either forget or not realize about all these portables at this time is that they were still tube sets as opposed to transistor sets; and they still required bulky, heavy batteries.

Moderne - 848T & 849T

Click on image below for hi-res album of marketing materials:

You can "mouse over" menu items at left to reveal more menu options!

Futura - Models 858T & 859T