That sounds very cool, Dale! If this was my radio I’d run with the Burgess art. It’s pretty neat to wrap a “battery” in original art!
On this one, I returned it again today. I just couldn’t get the switcher quiet enough so did go with the LM317. It was a world of difference. A switcher might work but probably needs to be in a shield or something. It was always night and day between the switcher and a solid linear regulator or bench supply. The big advantage was it just dropped out fast without much sag.
But with the LM317 it sounds great. We listened to it a little and on the internal antenna it works great and he was pleased. He’s wanting to ground it and add an antenna on those back panel screws. It was pretty beat up but his grandad’s.
And thanks to all for the insights and information!
MZip Wrote: A switcher might work but probably needs to be in a shield or something.
That's a major reason why I don't use switching supplies for DIY projects. The transients in a switching supply, causing RFI, can interfere not only with antique radio reception, but with noise measurements that I sometime have to make on professional equipment.
MZip, that is totally cool! I don't know which art I like better, the Burgess or the Eveready "9 Lives". The earlier Eveready batteries with the radio towers and lightning bolts are also cool, but by the time that these 1.5V / 90V portables came out, I believe that the artwork changed to the "9 Lives" logo that I remember well from the flashlight batteries of my youth (Lo those years ago!).
Where did you get the case from?
BTW, some of the smaller "3 Way" portables, especially the smaller ones like my 1948 Zenith 4G800 "Zenette" and my 1954 Revere 400 had elaborate switching systems, usually activated by plugging the line cord into the chassis, where on AC (or DC) line operation, the tube filaments are in series but on battery operation, the filaments (including the 2 subsections of the 3V4 output tube) are paralleled for 1.5V operation from a single D cell. The B Battery is 67.5V. Later on, by the mid 1950s, this was eliminated by a 7.5V A Battery that installed with clips but different from the clips for the 67.5V or 90V B battery. By 1960 or so, these radios all but disappeared, replaced by transistor batteries which, while more expensive to buy, paid for themselves in one season in reduced battery costs.
"Do Justly, love Mercy and walk humbly with your God"- Micah 6:8
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Hello guys,
I really like the battery designs, and I agree with Dale that switching supplies are no good in antique radios. Mr. Fixxr, Nine Lives is my favorite—I don’t know why Eveready ever stopped using that cat and Nine Lives. I like it better than the bunny.
Hello Mr. Zip,
I’m sure you’ve heard the old expression “Keep it simple, stupid.” The LM-317 has been around for many years and was one of the early ICs, much like the 555 timer. It was designed by Bob Dobkin in 1976, and I’ve used it since I was a teen, back when Radio Shack sold them in bubble packs.
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