I have recently acquired a British made Philco BP413 portable valve receiver. It was made in 1944 and was used during the war as a military utility receiver. Unlike civilian utility radios which covers MW and LW, this one is single band and covers 1.4Mhz - 4.2Mhz. It is very small only 10.5" x 7.5" x 7.5" and is battery powered. The radio has 4 valves ARTP2, ARP12, AR8 and CV65.
The radio is in good condition, but all the wax capacitors and electrolytics need replacing. The case is made of polished wood and has a frame aerial built into the front panel.
I am trying to find a circuit for this radio, but cannot find one anywhere, can anyone help or know any more about this little gem?
Welcome to the phorum, Steve! That is certainly an interesting set. I've never seen one before myself. Hopefully some of our resident gurus can provide you with more information about it. Take care and BE HEALTHY! Gary
"Don't pity the dead, pity the living, above all, those living without love."
Professor Albus Dumbledore
Gary - Westland Michigan
I didn't find what you are looking for BUT may this will help. Do take it under advisement that engineering costs $$ or ## depending on which side of the pond you're on. Philco as a company enjoys saving money. So redesigning a circuit doesn't happen unless there is a good reason.
When my pals were reading comic books
I was down in the basement in my dad's
workshop. Perusing his Sam's Photofoacts
Vol 1-50 admiring the old set and trying to
figure out what all those squiggly meant.
Circa 1966
Now I think I've got!
The chassis is the same as the BP413, the valves and transformers are all mounted in the same places above and below the chassis. It looks like the valves in the P-429 are Mazda Octal with 1.5v heater voltage, but the circuit seems to be basically the same as BP413 apart from the bandswitch. I'm sure that I can use this manual to help identify the values of some of the components that need replacing. See photo of underside of the chassis.
Very strange how there doesn't seem to be a manual listed for the BP413 anywhere. Maybe it was a 'special order' for the British Army, the valves used are all British Army type valves similar to those used in the R109 receiver and WS38 set.
When my pals were reading comic books
I was down in the basement in my dad's
workshop. Perusing his Sam's Photofoacts
Vol 1-50 admiring the old set and trying to
figure out what all those squiggly meant.
Circa 1966
Now I think I've got!
Following my earlier post, I have now renovated the very unusual Philco BP413 receiver.
This receiver was built in 1944 and was a utility receiver that has a single band of 1.4mhz - 4.2Mhz. This would be 160m and 80m, but I think it may have been intended for use of monitoring the marine band / trawler band. From what I have found out, they were used during the beach landings and carried in a waterproof back pack by troops. They were probably used to listen to the British Forces Radio transmissions after the landings.
I have replaced all the capacitors and some resistors and the radio works well with it's quite large internal speaker. The radio was powered by the same battery used by the WS38 radio. I have now built in a Mains Battery Eliminator circuit to power the BP413.
The original radio when I got it had been painted with rosewood varnish, but the original colour was a dull battleship grey. I decided to strip it all down to the wood and paint with matt black. This makes it look much better.
Steve
(This post was last modified: 09-24-2023, 05:03 PM by g4aqb@outlook.com.)
I combined the two threads on the same subject.
We prefer to keep the same subject in one thread. Makes it easier to follow and more useful for future restorations when others search for information. (Phorum Rules)
Thanks.
Nice Job! I think that in the US, that would be the very upper limit of the broadcast band, the old 160M, police / marine and 80M HAM bands. Are the tubes Octal or a British style? Are these the equivalent of the 1A7, 1N5, 1H5, 1C5 used in the US battery sets of this vintage? Same pinouts or different bases / pinouts?
"Do Justly, love Mercy and walk humbly with your God"- Micah 6:8
Best Regards,
MrFixr55
(This post was last modified: 09-26-2023, 09:42 PM by MrFixr55.)
The receiver uses British Octal base valves, but the circuit is very similar to the US battery valves. The British valves have a 2v heater voltage (I think the US ones are 1.5v max)
I found a Philco circuit (P-429) which uses the same chassis as the BP413 but with 1A7EG, 1N5EG, 1H5G and15EG valves fitted. The pins are different to the British valves, so the wiring under the chassis is different.
Great Job Steve! I was wondering if there was going to be a final chapter to this story.
So, thanks for finishing up with the ending. Besides us Hams can fix anything! We've
got chasing electrons in are blood.
Keep up the good work.
de N3GTE
When my pals were reading comic books
I was down in the basement in my dad's
workshop. Perusing his Sam's Photofoacts
Vol 1-50 admiring the old set and trying to
figure out what all those squiggly meant.
Circa 1966
Now I think I've got!
Terry
(This post was last modified: 09-27-2023, 01:48 PM by Radioroslyn.)
There were both 1.5 volt and 2 volt octal tubes used in North American battery sets, the 1.5 volt ones draw less current so were practical for portable receivers, the 2 volt ones were often run from storage batteries, and were popular in sets with a vibrator power supply since the whole affair could be run from a 6 volt car battery.
Regards
Arran
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