Hi All,
I completed the recap on my 42-360, plugged it in, kept the kids at a safe distance, turned it on ... and I was pleased to hear some wonderful sounds!!!!!
I was able to tune in a bunch of stations -- which came in quite clearly.
I do have a couple of problems though -- and I could use some advice as this is new ground for me.
1. I have virtually no volume control -- the volume is always blazing -- and oddly -- the louder I turn the volume control, the LOWER the volume gets! I did encounter a blazing volume issue on another set I restored (an Emerson table radio from the late 50's) and I ended up replacing the potentiometer.
2. There is an awful squeal when I am between stations. And the squeal is present for the first few seconds of warm up even if I am tuned to a station.
I would appreciate any guidance and input as to where to start debugging these issues.
Thank you -- and thanks for all your help this far!!! I don't think I'd have gotten this far without this site!
--Ira
Update ---
1. I had an "aha" moment and realised that the on/off switch is attached to the tone control, not the volume. LOL - a Philco quirk?
2. I cleaned the volume and tone pots with QD4 (I can't find DeoxIT)
3. I noticed that the rubber coating was flaking off the wire to the volume control that passed thru the chasis -- and the bare wire was touching the chasis. I temporarily covered the wire with electrical tape (will replace soon).
And -- voila -- sound/volume control/tone control -- all work. It sounds wonderful!!!!
AM works -- I didn't get anything but hum on shortwave -- I think I need to spray that selector switch!
The sound is so full and rich -- it's unbelievable how good these old boxes sound!!!!
--Ira
Update ---
1. I had an "aha" moment and realised that the on/off switch is attached to the tone control, not the volume. LOL - a Philco quirk?
2. I cleaned the volume and tone pots with QD4 (I can't find DeoxIT)
3. I noticed that the rubber coating was flaking off the wire to the volume control that passed thru the chasis -- and the bare wire was touching the chasis. I temporarily covered the wire with electrical tape (will replace soon).
And -- voila -- sound/volume control/tone control -- all work. It sounds wonderful!!!!
AM works -- I didn't get anything but hum on shortwave -- I think I need to spray that selector switch!
The sound is so full and rich -- it's unbelievable how good these old boxes sound!!!!
--Ira
Glad to hear you've got her up and running well! The tone/off/on switch isn't a Philco "quirk". Zenith comes to mind as having that setup on some of their radios. Makes sense to have volume control "set" and just adj the tone.
Have you replaced the bad rubber wiring (as needed)? Lots of times a cleaning of the band switch may resolve inoperative shortwave band if the set works otherwise.
Terry
Congrats, Ira.
Re. the re-wiring -- what gauge wire do you use?
I see spools of stranded copper in 18, 20 & 22 at my local radio shack. It's wrapped so I really can't see what size matches the original.
Thanks
Well, I'm fond of the fabric covered wire like you can get at RadioDaze or AES. The typical colors are available and it 'fits' visually. 20 gauge is pretty typical in radios of that era. Stranded or solid is somewhat dependent on the application. Flexible speaker leads vs fixed chassis wiring, for instance. Size or style makes no difference in actual operation - mostly preference and convenience.
A good many tube radios, especially before the war, put the on-off switch on the tone control or on a separate switch altogether. I think this might have been so the volume would be at whatever comfortable level it was when you turned the radio off, and you didn't need to stand by to adjust the volume after the 15 to 30 second warm-up period.
Cheaper tube radios, especially after the war, put the switch with the volume control as most radios do now.
What wire to use is a hot topic. I've mostly used the 20 gauge cloth covered wire as xray does, even though it doesn't look original to replace the rubber covered wires in the pre-war Philco sets.
Wire from Radio Shack would probably work fine, but I'm a little concerned about whether the thin insulation on modern wires would stand up to the high voltage. Those wires also look very skinny, and to me they just don't look good in old radios. I've seen photos of restorations done with the plastic insulated wire from Radio Daze, which has thicker insulation, and it looks much more like the rubber covered wire.
I almost always use stranded wire because I've had some problems with solid wire breaking inside the insulation, which can create interments that are hard to find. Solid vs. stranded is another hot topic, and everyone has his own preference. Solid is a lot easier to work with. In the end the radio will work well with either, so if you prefer the ease of working with solid, do it.
I've never used Ron's method of sleeving the original wires with heat shrink, but I think I'll try it next time around. I'll need to order heat-shrink tubing in all the right colors beforehand.
I think stranded wire is a PIA except in situations where it will ever be be moved or flexed. It's best to have a nice supply of red colored wire with at least 600 volts rating to use where appropriate. And heat shrink generally works great, especially on transformers if you get the bells open and pass it up as far as possible into the windings. I've even doubled up with a larger guage of heat shrink on the B+ windings just to be sure. Then I hit it with a judicous flick of my Bic. Paint them bells, and reassemble and it's nice again.
I figured if I commented on stranded vs. solid wire it would start a debate! To each his own. Stranded IS a PIA, what with tinning the ends and all. But the times I've spent chasing down an intermittent only to discover that a solid wire has broken inside the insulation make me prefer stranded.
Most of my Philcos have used both stranded and solid. Other than transformers, coil, and speaker wires that have to be flexible, I've never figured out a rhyme or reason for why they use solid in some locations and stranded in others.
Hi All - thanks for the input re. wires.
It turns out that I only saw one problem wire.
I opted for the reskinning method. I used some sleeving material that I got from Radio Days (FSLV20). I desoldered one end -- crumbled and slid the old insulation off -- and slipped the new one on. Whole procedure took 5 mins.
Before putting everything back together -- I applied liberal doses of QD4 contact cleaner to the pots and the band selector. That seemed to have cured my missing Short Wave band issue. Everything is working perfectly now.
I absolutely love this radio -- the clarity and tonality are absolutely phenomenal. A testament to the technology of the 1940's.
Happy 4th Everyone.
--Ira
One of the nicest things that happens is when I get an old set up and running enough to receive the local am station 1100 WHLI. This means I'm at least half way home, but doesn't mean I'm done at all. The only thing troubling is they are playing some 60's things now, and no more Bing. Shrimp boats ain't coming neither.
Is it true that we're no longer young?