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Nathan's Philco 118MX - Printable Version

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Nathan's Philco 118MX - Nathan Slingerland - 07-04-2017

Today I'm kicking off the restoration of my Philco 118MX that I picked up in April.

Front
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Back [Image: https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4137/35686155876_c51ebdd111_z.jpg]

Top [Image: https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4149/35686156326_99ea46dabd_z.jpg]

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Sides
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I'm really at a loss to explain how the veneer ended up this way.  Icon_e_confused

RE: Nathan's Philco 118MX - Nathan Slingerland - 07-04-2017

The echo absorbing screen makes the speaker box a kind of time capsule. I've never seen speaker cable with the original colors that look this good!

[Image: https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4239/35686086346_4d5e05ef7f_z.jpg]

The speaker is dusty and the metal has oxidized but is otherwise in great shape.

[Image: https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4283/34884467964_f5be23689f_z.jpg]

There are a couple of stamps on the speaker that I haven't seen (or noticed?) before:

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RE: Nathan's Philco 118MX - Nathan Slingerland - 07-04-2017

One other thing of interest - this is the first radio that I've seen any evidence of the rubber gasket that goes around the shadow meter:

[Image: https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4255/34884454144_97d211e519_z.jpg]

I previously noticed that there are reproductions for sale on renovatedradios.com but I've never found anything to replace! Should these be on all of the boxy style shadow-meters? How often do other people find the remains of these?

RE: Nathan's Philco 118MX - Ron Ramirez - 07-05-2017

I think the shadowmeter gaskets were only used on 1935 model Philcos, and usually they melt and cause runs over the amber screen of the shadowmeter. I have never encountered these on older or newer Philco models.

RE: Nathan's Philco 118MX - OldRestorer - 07-05-2017

Love it!

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RE: Nathan's Philco 118MX - Nathan Slingerland - 07-05-2017

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Good to know that I don't need to order a whole pile of those for my other radios. Icon_smile

RE: Nathan's Philco 118MX - Nathan Slingerland - 07-06-2017

Progress report...

Front panel stripped

Interesting that the center strip (which is opaque black) is so much lighter. Maybe the wood got stained from the grain filler? Or chalk it up to wood darkening with exposure to light?

[Image: https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4096/35728278136_06486af51b_z.jpg]

Side veneer removed

Boy this took a lot more effort than I thought given that the veneer was lifting so badly to begin with. I tried a few different techniques:

The heat gun and steam cleaner on their own didn't have much effect. And I found it way too easy to gouge the structural wood underneath with the chisel. I've seen that Fred Taylor uses a chisel to remove veneer - but I readily concede that his chisel skills (and maybe his chisel) are infinitely better than mine. Icon_smile

In the end the clothes iron worked best for me. I put a damp cloth on the veneer and the clothes iron on top of that, set to high. After letting the iron steam on it for 30sec or so I was able to lift it with a scraper. The veneer won't be reused so I didn't have to worry about damaging it further. The iron is a bit the worse for wear though - got pretty dirty even with the cloth.

It turned out that where the veneer had been later reglued that glue would only budge with heat. I was able to pry off the veneer and then used a scraper and the heat gun to remove glue as much as I could.

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New veneer
I'm now tracking down replacement veneer. Based on this earlier thread on the 14MX, the ad copy describes it as mahogany.

I initially tried ordering from Contantine's - but they were out of stock with no estimate from their supplier. This has happened to me several times when trying to order veneer from them - some types of veneer are out of stock seemingly indefinitely yet they still list them on the website.

RE: Nathan's Philco 118MX - Nathan Slingerland - 07-19-2017

A few updates:

Glue down lifting front veneer

Both edges of the left front veneer were lifting. Reglued with yellow wood glue.

[Image: https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4278/35678077761_0bbe99fbbb_z.jpg]

Front Panel Repair
I used the Mohawk epoxy product to fill the 'bonus' hole in the front panel. The surface of the dried epoxy wasn't 100% smooth so I used some Timbermate (oak color) to fill in the gaps as well as a couple of other gouges. Actually the color is irrelevant for these repairs in the middle of the panel as they'll be covered by opaque black toner.

[Image: https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4320/35788013112_caca10a360_z.jpg]

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Side Panel Veneer
The replacement mahogany veneer was delivered today!

[Image: https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4322/35177694614_20ff727e27_z.jpg]

I ordered these pieces from Ocooch Hardwoods - they mainly provide thicker pieces for scrollsaw work - but the 1/16" thickness seemed like a good match for the original thickness and they had the appropriate dimensions.

I haven't glued large pieces of veneer before so this will be a learning opportunity. Any advice an adhesive? I've been considering 'Heat Lock' since it seems to be intended for raw veneer like this: http://www.veneersupplies.com/products/Better-Bond-Heat-Lock-Veneer-Glue.html
Has anyone tried this previously? Other suggestions?

RE: Nathan's Philco 118MX - klondike98 - 07-19-2017

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RE: Nathan's Philco 118MX - OldRestorer - 07-19-2017

Awesome..

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RE: Nathan's Philco 118MX - Radioroslyn - 07-19-2017

Great job so far!!!
I've got one but the fluted trim is missing from the top and bottom + needing a bunch of work.
All of the MB's  and MX's are kwel looking sets.

RE: Nathan's Philco 118MX - Ron Ramirez - 07-20-2017

(07-19-2017, 12:12 AM)Nathan Slingerland Wrote:  I haven't glued large pieces of veneer before so this will be a learning opportunity. Any advice an adhesive? I've been considering 'Heat Lock' since it seems to be intended for raw veneer like this: http://www.veneersupplies.com/products/Better-Bond-Heat-Lock-Veneer-Glue.html
Has anyone tried this previously? Other suggestions?

Several years ago, I had a 38-116. One entire side of veneer had come off. I think I used contact cement and a roller to reattach it. I'm not sure I would use contact cement again, though, as I have since read that there is a good chance that it could come off again. Hopefully Steve or Russ will chime in.

RE: Nathan's Philco 118MX - Nathan Slingerland - 07-20-2017

I've been reading some more - it sounds like for the thick (1/16") unbacked veneer like I'm using it really needs a quite hard adhesive that won't 'creep' as the veneer expands/contracts. Apparently that's 'PPR' type glue - powdered pre-catalyzed resin. Sounds horrible! Icon_smile

I contacted https://www.joewoodworker.com and asked for recommendations - they replied with this product:
http://www.veneersupplies.com/products/Ultra-CAT-PPR-Veneer-Glue.html
Unfortunately you have to buy a 5lb pail of it! And it only has a 1yr shelf life.

I think this is essentially the same thing, but available in smaller quantities, so I'm going to try that:
http://www.ptreeusa.com/gluing_brand_proglue.htm

Another consideration is that it requires >70 degrees Fahrenheit to bond. Not a problem in July - but here in the Pacific Northwest that's hard to come by much of the year.

RE: Nathan's Philco 118MX - Bob Andersen - 07-21-2017

I've had good luck coating the veneer and base wood with wood glue, letting it dray and ironing it on. I use Titebond glue. Note that there are three types and all have different working time frames when using this technique.

Good instructions can be found here: http://www.webherrera.com/blog/2009/04/19/titebonds-franklin-internationals-iron-on-instructions/9/


The wood in your control area should definitely be lighter. Here's a photo of my unrestored cabinet.
[Image: https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3956/15063902484_59493765c3.jpg]

RE: Nathan's Philco 118MX - Nathan Slingerland - 07-21-2017

Thanks for the info on the glue Bob! My veneer isn't paper-backed - it's raw veneer, and on the thick side, which I think is where the concern about normal veneer gluing options comes from.

Note - that I haven't toned my front panel yet - only stripped it. It is definitely darker than many other examples that I've seen. I plan to use 'Golden Oak' toning lacquer to try and give it a lighter appearance. I wonder if that will be sufficient though.