The PHILCO Phorum

Okay, well first I'm gonna say that I think I'm in way over my head on this project, but I think it will be fun to learn

My parents recently moved to a much smaller house and I inherited their old Philco 49-1615 Radio with the M-12c record player. I was totally psyched about it cause my dad said it worked still and my hubby and I have been collecting old vinyls for years but had not been able to find a record player to purchase (we have always prefered the look and "feel" of an old one and I wouldn't break down and buy a new one, and no amount of thrift store searching has netted an old one.)

Well, my dad was NUTS...the thing might have worked when they purchased it from an auction 15 YEARS AGO (I only ever remember them turning it on once after they bought it), but it doesn't anymore...time, moisture and mice have gotten to it.

So, we opened it up, found it was full of a mouse nest and all kinds of crud. Hubby cleaned it out while I started doing some research. Came across this site after a little searching and found the schematics. We know that a lot (if not all) of the wiring needs to be replaced so I ordered a power cord, decided that was a good place to start, since nothing will work when you can't even plug it in cause the cord has been chewed almost in half (my father in law is going to help us replace that when it comes in since he is good with electrical work) Still waiting for that to arrive since I ordered it online....

In the meantime my research into old radio repair has brought up a few other questions. 1) I was wondering about all the rust on the chassis...will it affect the radio (cause it not to run?) Regardless of whether that is an issue or not, how do I clean it up? 2) I'm given to understand that the soundproofing insulation in these old radios is made from asbestos, as the mice have gotten to some of that and some of it now has loose fibers, should I remove and replace it? Just remove what has loose fibers? Replace it all? What do I replace it with if I need to replace it?

My goal is to order/replace/repair a few things at a time since we don't have tons of money, never done this before and I don't know exactly what is wrong. My father in law is going to help us as much as he can, he's a tinker but never done this before either. I hope to have it up and running by Christmas this year so we can FINALLY listen to all the christmas vinyls we've been collecting (I know, what a goof

Anyway, any help with these questions (and the ones sure to come in the future as we restore this thing) would be greatly appreciated!

Welcome to this site!

This is the place to get Philco-related info on restoring your radio. I know, I was there not too long ago. I got myself a 47-1230; two years older than your console.

I too had a bunch of mickey mouse that didn't understand the radio is to provide music for the party, not a place to party in.

You're talking about rust... how bad is it? On mine, the main cause of rust was mouse themselves, pee and poo if you will. Cleaning it was essential as to prevent weird odor while the radio functions.
You might want to post pictures to get a better opinion.

Before you plug this thing in, you will want to replace at least the electrolitics capacitors.

here are some interesting articles on what to do in early times acquiring your radio... the same links I was instructed to read when I started to look for info on mine.
http://www.antiqueradio.org/powerup.htm
http://www.philcoradio.com/tech/plugin.htm

If you have the schematics, you likely have a parts list, you will have to change several of the capacitors; I know at first you'll try to avoid doing so, but believe me, once they are replaced, the amp and radio just isn't the "same old junk" anymore, and become "brand new" again!

I have been trying to get info on the M-12c with no results... is this a multiple speed changer?
The changer on my console was 78rpm only, and I have LPs and singles that requires either 33rpm or 45rpm.

I am not certain about asbestos in Philcos. other will have to chime in. It might be cardboard leftover from mickey making its nest.

enjoy restoring your radio; I am certain it'll play well once properly restored!

Mars, thank you for the quick response. I am really excited about restoring this radio and record player and was happy to come across this site last week.

Guess the mice like to party out on the music instead of with the music huh?

The rust is pretty bad. I'm assuming much of it was caused by mice pee and poo on this radio also. Will post a picture of it tomorrow afternoon when I have some extra time to get out the camera and fight the slow-to-upload computer. What did you use to clean the rust? I think that either way, whether it is necessary or not, I would like to get the rust cleaned off, even though nobody can see it I will know it is there, and we just can't have that ;)

Thank you for the tip on the electrolitics capacitors. I do have a parts list, thank goodness...otherwise I wouldn't even be attempting this. And I will check out these articles too, thank you!

As for the M-12c Record player...mine has two tone arms, which I am given to understand was typical of the model. One is for the old 78's and works with the changer to play up to 12 (?) records (78rpm), the other is for LP's (33 1/3 rpm) and will stop play at the end of each record, when the mercury switch is tripped to the off position. (at least that was what I understood from reading all the info with the schematics)

You're lucky on the record player; mine was 78 rpm only, and had a cartdrige that is extremely hard to find; so reconstructing the changer would prove very hard and not very useful.


It would be good to see pictures of the rust, in order to be able to suggest an appropriate fix. On mine it seemed bad but really was more surface (and I suspect mouse poo to have taken a big place too)
I cleaned it with an old toothbrush and some denaturized alcool. Did an OK job. I had been suggested to rip all electronics and wash it with the backyard hose!!! (my radio is too complex for a newbie like me to do that and expect a working result, really)


In my radio, some wax capacitors and wires had been chewed by Mickey and friends; you might want to ensure there's no exposed wires and nothing is missing.
With your parts list, can you identify what capacitor is what? the ceramics and mica should still be good, but the paper/wax and electrolitics should be changed. They can become hasardous.