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Another British Philco - Printable Version

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RE: Another British Philco - Ron Ramirez - 01-04-2013

Arran, you had asked for chassis photos of this 261. Here you go, starting with a front view:

[Image: http://philcoradio.com/images/phorum/261/2013-01-04_00011_zpse9165fbd.jpg]

Looks just like a 60 chassis, save for the shadowmeter and three gang tuning condenser.

The dial scale is interesting. This is a set designed for AM and long wave reception, yet the dial scale shows the long wave frequencies as 1.7, 1.8, etc. instead of 170, 180, etc.

Now, a back view:

[Image: http://philcoradio.com/images/phorum/261/2013-01-04_00010_zps200326a9.jpg]

Notice the "gramophone" jack at the right, on top, close to the rear of the chassis. There is also a voltage change switch behind the power transformer. It is not switchable to the American 120 standard, unfortunately, so if I restore this set I'll have to run it through a 120-240 step-up transformer or replace the power transformer for one designed with a 120 volt primary. I think that due to the relative rarity of this set, I prefer the former.

I have not looked at all of the valves as of yet. The 80 rectifier is a USA Philco tube, but the date code is 4th quarter 1935 so it is a replacement since this set would have been off the market by then. The 42 is a British Brimar valve.

There was once a sticker on the left rear of the chassis, but it is now gone:

[Image: http://philcoradio.com/images/phorum/261/2013-01-04_00009_zps5a35566c.jpg]

I can only assume this was made before Philco began to use metal tags on the sets built in Philadelphia for export.

Finally, let's take a look under the chassis:

[Image: http://philcoradio.com/images/phorum/261/2013-01-04_00012_zpsabdf29a7.jpg]

Looks very much like a 60 chassis under here, except for the tone control which is a 4-position switch. Model 60 sets have two-position tone control switches.

RE: Another British Philco - wa2ise - 01-04-2013

I have a number of Australian and New Zealand radios, all operate on 230VAC. You can always use a step up transformer, but I have access to 240V@60Hz (American houses are usually fed a pair of 120VAC lines, basically 240VAC with a grounded centertap). Your radio's power transformer will be quite happy with 60Hz.

[Image: http://www.wa2ise.com/radios/240vout.jpg]

If you have an outlet that looks like this above (240V@15A) you could plug your radio into it via an adapter extension cord (the female end connector that would match the radio's power plug).
[Image: http://www.wa2ise.com/radios/eupwr.jpg]

Oddly enough, America once used the Aussie pattern power outlet, which I used to provide power to my Aussie radios. It has the UL stamp of approval.

[Image: http://www.wa2ise.com/radios/americanaussieoutlet.jpg]

If you own your house, you could install a new 240V@15A circuit and place the outlet near where you want the radio to be presented. Don't use the clothes dryer or electric stove outlets, those would provide way too much current if the radio develops a short.

RE: Another British Philco - Arran - 01-04-2013

There is another trick to powering British and European 205-240 volt only sets that a retired TV repairman I know used to use. He would take a pair of normal AC mains transformers and hook up the primaries in series aiding, ignoring the secondary side, and connect the 120 volt input across the primary of the first transformer only. Then he would connect the line input of the 240 volt across the primaries of both the first and second transformer that would of course be connected in series aiding. It's a way of making a 120-240 volt autotransformer out of junkbox parts.
Regards
Arran

RE: Another British Philco - Arran - 01-04-2013

Ron;
I may be wrong but it looks like they used the dial from a Philco 60 on that British Philco model 261. On the 60 I have the upper end of the broadcast band drops off at about 1500 KC and continues on at 1.5 MC on the police band. It looks like they reused the Police band notations but had 1.5 MC represent 150 KC, why they left the decimals in makes no sense to me. My only guess is that Philco maybe didn't think the British market was large enough to justify spending money making screens for a new dial, everything else on this set, aside from the power transformer and long wave parts, looks like it came standard from the Philco parts bin.
With regard to the tombstone version of this radio, the one with a Canadian Philco 3118 style cabinet, that looks identical to the set I saw on one of "The Empty Child" episodes of Doctor Who, it had the same escutcheon. However I think they may have also had a 6 tube chassis used in the same cabinet so we will likely never know for sure which model it was, it only caught my eye due to the cabinet's resemblance to my Philco 3118.
Regards
Arran