[antiqueradionut]

           
Purchased a table radio at auction, not because I had to have it, but because no one else bid on it.  $5  Unable to find anything on it.  52C case and model 51 chassis.  What do I have?

The radio has been molested.  Different speaker (larger), loose power transformer, wires running through chassis where a filter can was and 2 power resistors tied to the remaining can.  I have not powered it up.  Maybe I should to let the smoke out?  

Is this a 51C or a modified 52C?            

[Arran]

I think what you may have is another Phactory Phranken Philco, if the holes in the front panel lined up it was not unusual for Philco to mate whatever chassis they had on hand to it. The speaker looks like an RCA one, and the transformer sitting behind it was just butchery, I think that those sets may have had the transformer mounted under the chassis.
Regards
Arran

[antiqueradionut]

I realize there is a lot of butchery going on here to get it playing. I plugged it in and it didn't play! LOL But all tubes lit up and the audio section is working. (Scratchy volume control.) I need to pull the chassis to see how they wired this outboard transformer. Only 7 wires going to it and 10 are required. Curious how this thing is getting 5V and 2.5V. The 2 resistors, measuring ~ 1500 ohms total, are soldered to the outside of the remaining filter cap that is insulated from the chassis. The other end going to the B+ center tap of the transformer. Must be lowering the B+.

Thanks for the clue on the speaker.

[morzh]

>>> Curious how this thing is getting 5V and 2.5V.

Not sure I understood. There is that power transformer, it makes 5V for the 80 and 2.5V (marked as "A") for the rest of the tubes.
Unless I misunderstood what's being asked?
Oh...and in 50- series the power transformer is under the chassis.

[Paul Philco322]

I would love to see the underside of that set, good luck and when you get that all cleaned up and running you will have a unique set. Paul

[antiqueradionut]

Morzh
There are only 7 wires coming off the transformer. 3 for B+, 2 for 115 in and 2 for 5V to the 80. Maybe there is another transformer under the chassis providing 2.5 volts to the other 4 tubes. I've used run/start capacitors to replace ballast resistors but don't think it would be practical in this case.
My main question is if this set was assembled as a model 51C, possibly near the end of the 51 chassis run? Only the model 52C shows in my searches so far, including radiomuseum.org and Philco Radio 1928-1942, originally by Ron Ramirez. I guess I'll have to clear my bench to pull the mess out to investigate further. Pictures forthcoming!
Arran suggests Philco used up a 51 chassis to complete this set.
I have an AK 20C that is mounted in an AK cabinet that was modified for the 20C panel to fit. The cabinet never had a chassis/panel in it previously and there are no signs of a tag or label on the underside of the lid. This implies an employee cobbled together components to make a radio for his use.

[morzh]

I suggest you take that look under the hood eventually.
Makes little sense to try to figure things out without looking at everything.

[Arran]

The model 51 and 52 are identical mechanically, I'm not sure what may have been changed between the two chassis but one will very easily bolt into the cabinet of the other without drilling any extra holes. Philco did something similar with the model 21, it used the same chassis as a model 20, but the same cabinet as the later model 70, but the control layout was slightly different, as Mike (Morzh) can tell you the model 20s are a TRF, not as good a model 70, but not terrible either. Philco had it's own cabinet shop so it wasn't unusual for them to do things like use up left over chassis, in new cabinets, before starting a new production run, in this case they didn't have to do anything special. It may have been a factory job, or someone had an empty cabinet that they wanted to use later on, but it's conjecture on my part, either way. I can't swear that it is an RCA speaker, but that welded rear bracket was a sort of trademark with their speakers, and the basket looks like something from an RCA (or CGE) set from the 1937-38 period.
Regards
Arran

[antiqueradionut]

Finally pulled the chassis.  Doesn't look very pretty underneath.  
No screws holding the chassis in place, no screws holding the chassis bottom plate in place and the tube shield has a tube label for a model 48.  The model 48 used the same cabinet as the 52C
The remaining filter can appears to still be wired up.  Will investigate further and correct if necessary.  The 2.5 VAC filament transformer is located under the chassis and not even where the original was located.  Replacement filters are taped together where the original transformer was.
Does not appear the paper caps were replaced.
I will troubleshoot this mess to get it working again.

[radiorich]

Hello antiqueradionut,
It looks like Red Green did some repair on that radio in the past with his most trusted handyman's tool Duct Tape !!

Sincerely Richard

[morzh]

It could be a fun project getting this set into a shape close enough to the original one.