[rfeenstra]

For grins and giggles I disassembled the old transformer and unwound the primary and secondary. I found a couple of places where there were black spots where the wire was broken. Not only that, every time I measured the resistance of the half of the secondary that was intact, I got a different reading. While unwinding (and counting the layers and turns), the wire came apart with virtually no tension on it. Evidently Philco didn't use the highest quality wire or there wasn't better wire available. Or, years of expanding and contracting dramatically weakened the, what I calculate to be, 35 gauge wire. Both a micrometer measurement and a resistance check of several feet of primary wire indicates this size.

Again, for grins and giggles, I've decided to attempt to rewind the transformer. I figure it will be good practice for repairing an irreplaceable one in the future. Any recommendations on the insulating paper between layers of wire?