[Geoff]

I just wanted to post some pictures of the Zenith 9-S-262 I am currently working on. I acquired this back in the middle of 2008 and began the disassembly process, but life took over and I just did not have the time to work on it for awhile so in the closet it went until March of this year. Luckily I took detailed notes and created a wiring diagram so I could remember how to put everything all back together again.

Here is the set when I first purchased it:

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Note the scorched area near the antenna coil...

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After removing the dial scale assembly...

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Here is the fried antenna coil. It took me 2 years with a saved search on eBay to find a replacement!

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More detail of the scorched area...

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The rusty band switch mechanism...

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The chassis, totally stripped of all components...

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I'll need to follow this up in a reply to this thread. Apparently, you cannot have more than 10 images per posting. Stay tuned...

[Geoff]

Disassembling the tuning capacitor and gears for cleaning, step-by-step. Unfortunately, I didn't get any pictures of the spring...

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[Geoff]

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Here is the crusty band switch in need of some serious cleaning...

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Band switch disassembled...

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After lots of cleaning and polishing followed by clear acrylic spray on the silver pieces...

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The mechanism for the motorized tuning. Again, very filthy...

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[Geoff]

The pulley AFTER cleaning. Still looks pretty bad so I just decided to spray paint it (see later pitures)...

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After cleaning and polishing. The brass components were sprayed with clear lacquer. The rod that goes inside the brass tube received a thin coat of grease prior to installation.

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And now for my first big goof up. Here are some pictures of P/N 22-558 (C7 on the schematic). This was covered with what seemed to be a light oil and it was very filthy. So foolish me, instead of just wiping it clean I totally disassembled it, cleaned it, and put it back together again. I assumed that this padder was covered in the alignment instructions and I would just reset it when I was done. Well, guess what? It's not.

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Per feedback on a different forum:

"The dual padder ensures correct tracking on the low end of the dial for the two short wave bands. It is (was) factory set! Ideally, it would NOT have been touched. I suppose you could adjust it just like the broadcast band padder is adjusted, only set your signal generator to the low end of each short wave band, tune for a signal, adjust the padder while "rocking the dial" for the maximum signal you can get."

So I'm not totally without hope. I'll follow the advice when performing the alignment.

Well, that's it for now. I've already cleaned, polished, lubed, and reassembled the tuning mechanism but I need to take some pictures. I'll post more as time permits. I hope you all enjoy this as much as I have.

- Geoff

[Eliot Ness]

Great pictures and a nice description Geoff, looking forward to more.

[Geoff]

Here are some pictures with the IF transformer and coil assemblies installed. I buffed the shields out on a buffing wheel followed by hand polishing with Simichrome. All of the nuts were buffed out on the polishing wheel.

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Here is a picture of the volume control, band switch, and the Local/Distance/Power switch. All of these were polished with Simichrome and then sprayed with clear acrylic.

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Here is the underside with the band switch mechanism installed as well as the motorized tuning mechanism in place.

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I was hoping to get the tuning capacitor installed last weekend but didn't have time. I'll try and get that installed over the 4th and upload some pictures.

- Geoff

[Geoff]

I got the tuning assembly put back together again. I took the entire assembly apart, polished all the brass pieces, and then sprayed them with clear acrylic. The posts that these ride on received a thin film of grease and the bearings were cleaned with spray cleaner and then I added a drop or two of light machine oil. Here are the BEFORE pictures:

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Here are the AFTER pictures:

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You may notice that the spring is not wound as tightly after I put everything back together again. I tried winding it as tight as it once was but it was difficult and the spring started to cross over itself when I rotated the tuning capacitor. I have read elsewhere that it only needs to be wound titght enough to cause the tuning cap to spring closed when released and that's what it currently does.

- Geoff

[Geoff]

I used standard rubber grommets to replace the dried, falling apart grommets that go between the tuning condenser and the metal support bracket that holds it.

Manufacturer: Philmore
1/4" x 3/8"
No. 10-048

They turned out to be a perfect fit but the rubber is a little harder than the originals. Some of the original was still intact and it felt like gum rubber. These should work out fine though.

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- Geoff

[PhilcoMike]

Extremely nice work! Great to follow along.

Mike

[jth877]

Keep going Geoff! I'm following your resto closely.

[codefox1]

Breathtaking restoration effort, so glad to see such love sent to a classic set. You havw lot of reads, we are very interested in your progress!

[Paul Philco322]

Somewhere Cmdr. Eugene MacDonald is smiling, maybe hoping to listen too.

Paul

[Geoff]

Just wanted to post an update showing where I am right now. I stripped the black paint off of the transformer and repainted it. I hit it with a couple of light coats of primer followed by 2 light coats of black engine enamel which is good up to 500 F (I hope my transformer never gets that hot ). The high temp enamel is probably overkill but I know the transformers can tend to run a bit hot so I didn't want it to flake off prematurely.

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I'm about half way done with the wiring. The only thing I'm not particularly proud of is my replacement for the candohm. I tested the original and it had sections that were way over tolerance. I added some wire connection lugs above (when viewed from below) the original and then connected in the individual resistors. Not the prettiest replacement but it will work. I'll be restuffing electrolytic capacitor C18 but the three electrolytics (19, 20, and 21) are all inside of one can (22-571) and I think restuffing that one would be a bit difficult. You can see on the lower left where I've installed two 3-pronged lugs facing each other using the original screws that hold 22-571 in place. I'll be mounting the replacement electrolytics there. You can see the two replacement dial belts towards the bottom.

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More to come so stay tuned!

- Geoff

[morzh]

Geoff

Restuffing the triple electrolitic (in my case it is in the copper can) is a snap, actually. It is even simpler than fixing that single cap.

The single one you have to cut.

the triple one, once you unscrew it, just heat it with the heatgun and pull the wires, it will all come out very easy. I even re-used the wires.

After that I just took three al. can ones, made a common wire, soldered them, put them inside and potted with a gluegun. The whole think took me maybe 30 minutes.

The single can took longer, as I had to cut it. I cut it right where the cap tapers down, so when i glued it back, it is not awfully noticeable.


PS. The Xfmr looks neat!

[Joe Rossi]

Geoff,

Oh my goodness! You are a fearless, talented, and obviously patient man. This restoration is stunning. The disassembly of the tuning section was really educational and has given me ideas for future projects. The floating chassis of my 37-650 seems much less complex than this one. Keep up the chronicles because we're all fascinated. Joe