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Grandpa's radio - Printable Version

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Grandpa's radio - emmpro - 11-02-2011

Newbie here, thrilled to find this forum and I've learned much already in how to go about restoring the chassis of a 42-395 that Grandpa bought so they could listen to the news of WWII. As a kid, I remember listening to the short wave feature and loved the noises the radio itself made (and the smell of the unit), as well as trying to figure out what language people were speaking. From this forum, I've learned what to do before I even plug the radio in (which apparently does not work at this time). And, I've never soldered before so am going to guinea pig some other old electronics just to get the hang of it. The cabinet and bezel are in pretty good condition - I don't want it to look like new. Thank you all for being so willing to share your knowledge and experience! I had no idea that I was interested in this stuff until the old radio came along! Icon_wave

Re: Grandpa's radio - Radioroslyn - 11-02-2011

Hi and welcome to the phorum!
We are here to help you with Philco needs.
Terry

Re: Grandpa's radio - codefox1 - 11-02-2011

Welcome to the forum. You will find many folks willing to help you restore your radio to a safe and functional level, and more help for the physical appearence. First off Don't plug it in. Take a few pictures, and post them here, and indicate your skill set, as can you read a schematic and solder. THat would be a help for us to guide you.

Re: Grandpa's radio - Arran - 11-02-2011

It's a good thing that the dial bezel is in good condition because there are no reproduction ten pushbutton escutcheons available at this time. If it was really bad the only way that I can think of to replace it would be to take two of the reproduction nine pushbutton bezels, cut them, and then to graft them together with the appropriate glue. I don't know what sort of plastic these reproduction bezels are made out of but I'm guessing it's polystyrene, if it is then it is possible to cut two apart to make a ten pushbutton escutcheon, if everything measures out. If the dial of these 42-395 sets is the same width as a 42-380 then it may not work.
One shortcoming that all American Philcos made between 1939 and 42 have is rubber covered wiring where the insulation tends to harden and disintegrate. It isn't too difficult to replace of sleeve this wiring is you are slow and meticulous, but I wouldn't try rewiring a nine tube set as your first restoration project. I would pick up a five tube AC transformer set to practice on as it is closer to your grandfather's radio in design and there is less of a shock hazzard. Some would suggest an AA5 but the power supply works differently then an AC set and U.S AA5s often have a hot chassis where the steel of the chassis is connected directly to one side of the power line, Philco AA5s do not but the chassis are often overcrowded things to work on and frustrating for a beginner.
Regards
Arran

P.S I just looked at the 42-395 and the 42-380 in the gallery again, I think that the knob spacing is different so the cut and graft idea may not work.

Re: Grandpa's radio - exray - 11-03-2011

Hi and Welcome.

Here's a site that has lots of good information for starting out.

http://antiqueradio.org/begin.htm

Re: Grandpa's radio - emmpro - 11-03-2011

Thanks very much for your encouraging posts. The bezel has the usual shrinkage, enough to make the metal strip bubble a little but it isn't broken and I'll leave it like it is. The cabinet has never been in a basement or attic and the veneer is tight so I'll leave the case as it is. One of the 10 buttons is marked "television" (??). After removing the chassis, I'll check out the transformer and the first surgery will be to replace the paper capacitors - I think, from what I've read so far, that's the best way to begin. Thanks for the tip about practicing soldering, which I will follow. I AM slow and meticulous though (maybe more slow than meticulous haha). My dad was in communications in the army (Signal Corps - WWII) and I have a couple of books of his from some period of his life when he took instruction in this subject. There were several ham operators in the family. I think I was exposed to it so much that I took it for granted, which is too bad, because those guys are all gone now. So, my interest in radio is late, but better late, etc.