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RME-69 receiver - Printable Version

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RME-69 receiver - bridkarl - 08-28-2023

For a change I pulled this off the shelf. I’d recapped the power circuits a while ago and got busy with other projects. If you have one of these I would like to hear from you.

Now I am going back - checking the wiring etc. This has an older recap done, but I think I’ll replace them. 
It has one cap hidden inside a metal shield so I’ll eventually have to get to that. I also found that the instructions online at ARF for redoing the power caps are wrong and posted a correction.

I have a second RME-69 I can use for parts if needed. I have a full set of knobs and tube shields. It seems fairly straightforward. I am having some issues figuring out the volume control. It seems like the volume pot is on a shaft with a manually operated relay that is the standby switch. This pot shaft doesn’t fit the rod going to the front panel. They used to use smaller shafts on potentiometers? I also am having to figure out the dog bone resistor color codes. I have the chart from the library - brown body, black end, green dot I read as 100000.  I added a photo I found that lays out the wattages. 

This was built in Peoria in 1935. The builders actually signed their initials to the radio. They also didn’t believe in labels as they figured people buying this knew what they were doing. I have been told there are maybe 500 left with 100 in operating condition. 
These sell online for stupid amounts of money. I can’t remember what I got this for - maybe $100. I also found the original speaker and the pre-selector. I’ve never seen another speaker for sale.

RE: RME-69 receiver - Arran - 08-28-2023

Those brown drop capacitors are pretty reliable, however many seem to be bridged across the "dogbone" style BED code resistors which are often not, sometimes they are spot on, but most times they go up in resistance, sometime doubling. You are correct, unless RME made the resistor in house with their own code, the RMA code was Body, End, then Dot, I'm pretty sure that brown, black, green should be one megohm, first digit is one, second is zero, followed by five zeros.
From what I can tell RME liked using Dakaware knobs, which are still being made, though you could probably find some used ones at a Hamfest or swap meet. I have a number of these knobs but I usually see them on test equipment, none of my communications sets used them, including my Nationals, Hallicrafters, or the Hammarlund (the Hammarlund uses a style of chicken head knob on most controls, except the tuning and bandswitch ones which are wrong). I've heard those style of switches called a leaf switch, some radios used them in the bandswitch, operated by a cam of sorts.
Regards
Arran

RE: RME-69 receiver - David - 08-28-2023

Look to be a nice set went looking around the web and found some info.   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w9o5oYnX-Ps    Hope this is readable      

RE: RME-69 receiver - Radioroslyn - 08-29-2023

This is what I can tell you. Go to https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-Rider/41/Rider-1941-PQR.pdf  and scroll down to pg 288. The 5 or 6 pgs will have several versions of the RME 69 along w/a parts list. Haven't used a goto in a long time. You'll be able to see the differences in the early/late/battery/AC/ and so on.

There are switches operated by pulling the knobs out or pushing them in. They are noted on the schematic by dotted lines. They are used to control the bfo,avc, and mute/standby.

On such an old and nice rx you may want to consider restuffing the paper caps and getting rid of the brown epoxy ones. I did it on my '36 HRO. Somewhere there is a pic of it here. You might enjoy the read. https://philcoradio.com/phorum/showthread.php?tid=12058

RE: RME-69 receiver - bridkarl - 08-29-2023

The paper caps are long gone. I’ll just replace the brown caps with yellow axials. I need to replace the power cord and a few other things before I get to this.

I picked a 42-385 today so I may do that before I get back to this.

RE: RME-69 receiver - Radioroslyn - 08-29-2023

On the caps you advertise for dud brand X caps. Alot of guys clip them out some chuck'em others set them aside. I got the ones for the HRO for free from a couple of guys over on arf. There was about 16 .1mfd and about 1/2 doz other caps that got restuff. Brown hot glue works well to fill in the end and you can have some very nice looking replacement caps. 
If you want to go original on the cord it probably used a cloth cord w/an acorn plug. Amazon has a good price on single cords (w/a modern polarize plug).

RE: RME-69 receiver - bridkarl - 08-29-2023

I’ve got lots of dud caps. What I’d like to find some printable labels I could wrap around them once I restuff them.