08-01-2015, 06:44 PM
I wouldn't let the lack of fancy equipment stop you from doing your own work if you're going to enjoy it. You can replace most components just by removing them one at a time and putting a new cap, resistor, or wire where the old one came out. Take pictures and/or make diagrams before you move anything. Sometimes you have to desolder and move multiple wires or components to get one loose, so you can forget where everything goes.
Anything that is messed up or hard to understand because of a funky old repair you can ask folks on the forum about, and they'll often bend over backwards to help you. Having a decent schematic helps a lot, not only because they show what is connected to what, but often they'll have the manufacturer's diagram that shows the location of most of the parts.
You have to have a soldering iron and a half-decent multimeter. The VOM I use most of the time will measure capacitance up 80 microfarads, and down to about 500 picofarads. I use the capacitance feature mostly to make sure that I haven't misread part value codes before I put them in.
I aligned my first few AM radios without a signal generator; I just used local radio stations close to the frequencies recommended and otherwise followed the instructions. For the IF alignment I first tuned in a station and then adjusted the IF cans by ear in the order suggested. The IF was certainly a little off, but the cans were all aligned to the same frequency. Everything sounded fine. I've done short wave and FM that way, but it's better to use the sig. gen.
A few radios later I got a signal generator and hooked it up to an old frequency counter I got surplus from my employer. I also got an analog VTVM. I'd rather do alignment with the signal generator and VTVM output meter, but I didn't let not having one stop me. Sometimes I wish I had a scope and a tube tester, but I rarely have call for one.
Somebody recommended cutting old components out, leaving the lead wire attached to the chassis, and then soldering the new component to the old lead wire. I do that sometimes if the radio isn't too unique and most of the wires are good. It saves time and is barely noticeable compared to desoldering everything. I'm a slow worker, so saving time is good.
Anything that is messed up or hard to understand because of a funky old repair you can ask folks on the forum about, and they'll often bend over backwards to help you. Having a decent schematic helps a lot, not only because they show what is connected to what, but often they'll have the manufacturer's diagram that shows the location of most of the parts.
You have to have a soldering iron and a half-decent multimeter. The VOM I use most of the time will measure capacitance up 80 microfarads, and down to about 500 picofarads. I use the capacitance feature mostly to make sure that I haven't misread part value codes before I put them in.
I aligned my first few AM radios without a signal generator; I just used local radio stations close to the frequencies recommended and otherwise followed the instructions. For the IF alignment I first tuned in a station and then adjusted the IF cans by ear in the order suggested. The IF was certainly a little off, but the cans were all aligned to the same frequency. Everything sounded fine. I've done short wave and FM that way, but it's better to use the sig. gen.
A few radios later I got a signal generator and hooked it up to an old frequency counter I got surplus from my employer. I also got an analog VTVM. I'd rather do alignment with the signal generator and VTVM output meter, but I didn't let not having one stop me. Sometimes I wish I had a scope and a tube tester, but I rarely have call for one.
Somebody recommended cutting old components out, leaving the lead wire attached to the chassis, and then soldering the new component to the old lead wire. I do that sometimes if the radio isn't too unique and most of the wires are good. It saves time and is barely noticeable compared to desoldering everything. I'm a slow worker, so saving time is good.
John Honeycutt
