I just acquired a Philco Socket Power 8. It is a B battery power supply that runs off line current. If anyone has a schematic for it, or any other information on it, I would be much obliged. The previous owner replaced the bad wet electrolytic rectifiers with modern diodes, and says it is working, but I have yet to test it.
[Image: https://66.media.tumblr.com/6e6df765d486...o1_500.jpg]
Looked closely at the face plate of the unit and it is a model 601B. I looked in my Rider CD for volume 1, and found Model 603B which appears to be about the same circuit wise, but mine differs a good bit from the pictures of the 603B interior I found in the links above. Here's what I found inside mine:
[Image: https://66.media.tumblr.com/3c6c6ec060c9...o2_500.jpg]
I'm figuring how to remove the whole guts. Looks like 3 large machine screws from the bottom, and the small machine screws that hold in the front panel. I may actually have lucked out. There is a schematic for it inside the unit behind the rectifier tubes. There was a picture of it taken by the previous owner before he made the substitute rectifier tubes with modern diodes inside. I certainly DO have to replace the line cord which is beginning to fray. It is the ancient two cloth covered wires twisted together type! Fortunately, an antique lamp supply place I have dealt with before carries it. https://www.antiquelampsupply.com/light-brown-twisted-lamp-cord.html
(This post was last modified: 12-04-2018, 03:35 AM by mikethedruid.
Edit Reason: added "mine"
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I have finished working on my Socket Power unit. I found that the proper light bulb to use to get the 135+ volts for the audio output stage is 14 watts. I bought several different bulbs from Bulbs.com, 7 1/2 watt, 14 watt, 15 watt, and 25 watt. Kept trying until I hit the right one. 15 watt was about 145V out, and 7 1/2 watt was only about 100V, but fortunately I had bought the 14 watt bulb which worked perfectly. I also had to replace the resistor between the amplifier +B supply which is supposed to be set at 90 volts for my Freed Eismann Model 50, and the detector B+ which is supposed to be 22 1/2 volts for the UX001A detector tube. Now all the voltages are correct. I made a test jig so these tests could be done under approximately the correct load using a terminal strip and 3 resistors. I calculated the values of the resistors based on the amount of current that they would drop at the correct voltage, figuring for the 00A only on the detector, 5 01A's TRF stages and first 2 audio stages on the 90V+ output, and the 71A output the only one drawing on the 135V. Everything seems to work fine. I looked to check for ripple with my scope and there was nothing noticeable. They must have really calculated this one well, Now I'm working on a Magnavox Telemegaphone speaker to use with the radio. Once that is done I'll put together the C batteries for the radio, easy enough using 3 C cells each for the 2 4 1/2 volt C batteries. I look forward to trying this radio out. I bought it more than 50 years ago, when I was about 13. It cost me $20, which was a lot of money for me back then. It was the most I had ever paid for an old radio. Usually it was no more than $5, and often my neighbors would give them to me free, or I'd find them being thrown out. Back then I built a B supply for it and had it working with an RCA speaker I usually use with my Atwater Kent Model 40. I would like to get it working again.
It may be sacrilege but I gutted a Socket Power B and managed to fit a an ARBE III into the case. I had to remove the plastic ARBE case and install some angled wood supports. With the Socket Power cover opened I can attach all of the necessary voltages to the front panel. I had to add one pair of terminals for the detector voltage and I brought them out to the pair of (now) unused holes on the bottom right of the front panel.