Epsilon Comm

This communicator seems to have been among the cast's favorites as it was used aplenty in the show. Thought from the start of Season 1 it had a big tarnish blotch on the top surface of the antenna, making it easy to spot on screen. By the third season, the paper moiré pattern was pushed in at the upper-left corner. Then sometime later, it also lost its right knob. This comm was one of four that Set Decorator John Dwyer said he recovered in 1969 from a studio dumpster. Years later we heard he sold it to Mark English, from whom Greg Jein acquired it. Mr. Jein refurbished the unit; the control panel was polished, a new knob (not the correct type) installed, the antenna got cleaned up and the paper moiré pattern was pushed back into position.
Pre-Refurbishment
Photo from the late 1980s. (786 x 376)	Photo from the late 1980s. (408 x 234)
This is the only original out of the four known surviving comms whose antenna still flips open with ease as you're accustomed to seeing on the show. It stops firmly with a satisfying "thwack." Note a wide cutout in the lower shell for the antenna hinge wheels that allows us a good view at the hinge rotation stop pin. It's also the only found original without screw dimples in the back shell. The mic grill material has the pattern's diamond peaks in the usual upward (convex) orientation.
Post-Refurbishment
(555 x 1200)	(768 x 1200)	(900 x 634)
(1600 x 720)	(1600 x 720)	(1200 x 795)
Just about the only odd feature on this otherwise average comm is the antenna wire is steel and not the usual brass.
(1200 x 657)	(900 x 481)	(900 x 520)
(900 x 510)	(900 x 487)	(1200 x 767)
(1200 x 767)	(1200 x 753)	(960 x 321)
(1400 x 504)	(1400 x 504)	(2748 x 2172)
Thanks to Greg Jein for taking these above photographs (except for the last one) for our website. For edge shots, he propped it up against some small jars with black lids (in case you were wondering). The pictures below were taken to guide the Master Replicas communicator offering in 2006.
(2692 x 1296)	(2303 x 1084)	(2992 x 1953)
(949 x 1478)	(2872 x 1545)	(2043 x 1185)
(1678 x 2106)	(1557 x 2661)	(1592 x 2667)
(2685 x 902) .	(3040 x 1884)	(1001 x 350) A scale drawing that compares the left elevation views of Alpha, Zeta and Epsilon, layered right atop each other.
2023 Auction
2023 Update: Here is the direct link to this prop's Heritage Auctions sale page. Below are the four photographs of the prop on that page:
(3000 x 2668)	(1096 x 3000)	(1803 x 3000)
(1811 x 3000)

Epsilon's Jewels
With its orange tint and flashes of yellow, the center stone is clearly a 16ss Hyacinth, atop a Type C hub that's oddly had its raised back shaved down so the gem sits at the same level as - or is even sunk a bit into - the wide rim. We have no idea why Wah did this. The colors of the outer stones, both 20ss and AB-coated, needed to be determined by the photos we have of this prop, which fortunately are plentiful: The right stone is an easy call; 20ss Emerald AB. The left is a bit trickier, as a good number of rhinestones can render many of those yellow, amber, blue and violet hues, but the one that best shows all those colors is a 20ss Black Diamond AB. .

	Left	Center	Right

Top Choice Other Possibilities .	20ss Blk. Diamond AB 20ss Light Sapphire AB 20ss Amethyst AB .	16ss Hyacinth	20ss Emerald AB
Epsilon's Moiré Pattern
Wah cut this comm's Pattern #4 radial image from Page 9 of Edmund Scientific's The Science of Moiré Patterns book: The moiré bezel ring was once located lower in the control well than it is now. In This Side in Paradise, late in Season 1, it's seen near the bottom fold. The residue of the glue that held it on then can be spotted on the shell today. We believe it is now more centered (after its refurbishment) over the hole Wah cut in the shell: More information on its moiré pattern can be found on our A Moiré Story page. And a high-resolution print-ready scan of the original source material can be found here. .
<<< And see Epsilon here as well next to Alpha and Zeta.