Greetings...I was just given a 40-195 Philco radio that looks to have been sitting for a long time. I'm trying to find out if it's restorable. The wires are all frayed and cracked, and all of the tubes are original, although one of them had the glass seperate from the base. I'm a guitar & home audio tube amp fan, so I have a basic idea about how these things work, but I don't want to get into dumping a lot of money on something that's thay may not be worth it. Any help would be much appreciated.
Posts: 48
Threads: 7
Joined: Jun 2007
City: Seabeck, Wa.
With a lot of tubes and a "just pre war" production, it should be a nice set. What shape is the cabinet? Probably not the best set to start a radio hobby with, but perhaps one to save. If you're just looking for a profit, selling it "as is" might be the better choice. Good luck. This is the schematic.
http://www.nostalgiaair.org/PagesByModel...013340.pdf
Surprisingly, the cabinet is not too bad. Few dings and a chip here or there. I didn't take the unit just to flip it and make a buck. It is really amazing looking, and I'd love to be able to hear what it can pull in. That said, it doesn't make sense to spend a lot of cash on something that will be more of a conversation piece than a daily listener. One thought was to re-finish the cabinet it and put in our living room as the above-mentioned conversation piece and not bother with the electronics.
Posts: 48
Threads: 7
Joined: Jun 2007
City: Seabeck, Wa.
Refurbishing the chassis would probably be more "labor" than expense. Capacitors and resistors are cheap and even tubes (if any are needed) aren't too expensive. Maybe ease into it. Consider it a long term project. If you do decide to tackle it, you can get more advice and help than you would believe. Good luck
Posts: 13,776
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Joined: Sep 2005
City: Ferdinand
State, Province, Country: Indiana
A 40-195 can be a very nice radio. Count on either replacing all of the wires under the chassis, or resleeving all of the wires with heat shrink tubing. I find it a little faster to resleeve; although there is no fast way to properly restore these sets. The old, dry, brittle, cracking and crumbling rubber insulation must be replaced for safety and reliability.
Of course, as already mentioned, all of the paper and electrolytic capacitors will require replacement. You will also need to check the resistors and replace as needed.
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Ron Ramirez
Ferdinand IN
