[slford310]

Picked up a nice 48-206 last week.  Wondering what they made the leatherette cover from and what’s the best product (s) to use to clean, condition, and preserve it.             

[radio1]

Hard to say what it is made of, could be real leather - have to see the underside. You could try some At-205 reseal on a small spot to see what effect it has. No petro in it. Try some Neatsfoot oil on a small spot.

[MrFixr55]

I have one of these also. I cleaned it with a mild soap solution. Yours looks in amazingly good condition. Mine is also. Wasn't really interested in one, but the price was right and a friend restoring a 42PT94 wanted to mold a new grille to replace the distorted Tenite grille. He used the grille from mine as a mold and made a great reproduction for his radio, which I restored the chassis on, and returned my grille to be reinstalled on my radio. One of the few AA5 radios I have with an almost perfect cardboard back, rubber power cord and plug on mine are still in serviceable condition. Mine also has the UL label and the Philco Service stickers. For an AA5 these perform well.

[klondike98]

The description of it in the 1948 Sales Catalog found in our library is "Smart Leather Textured Wood-Plastic Cabinet"

Whether that means it is really leather on not, I'm not sure. Try some leather cleaner on a small portion and see how it does.

[slford310]

Thanks to all that added their thoughts. Going for a light cleaning at first then I will try a few conditioners and advise the outcome.

[Arran]

Automotive hand cleaner like Gojo would probably work well, the cream kind without the grit. It's likely something like an oilcloth, or Rexine, but could be an early form of vinyl. Basically it's like what they covered hard cover books with, though possibly thicker, they usually used on portable radios but in the post war era a lot of companies were trying to put anything out the door, and in the shops, as quickly as possible. I have both a Spartan and a Stewart Warner with artificial leather covered cabinets, it's basically an upholstered poplar or pine box much like you would see under the covering of a portable of the era. I guess they were to fill a gap in the market for a cheaper radio without using a plastic cabinet.
Regards
Arran

[radiorich]

Hello Slford,
I have used Gojo many times and works well that is a nice set!!
Sincerely Richard

[slford310]

Thanks, I was leaning towards GoJo, I have used it on many wood cabinets with great success, just not one of these.

[slford310]

Decided to take a break from my other projects to get into this 48-206 that I plan to keep.  It's interesting sometimes to see what others have done before you.  Sometime even scary.  

[MrFixr55]

Could have been a kid who had no money but glombed a cap can from a trashed TV. I wasn't exactly poor as a kid, but there wasn't a lot of money for my hobby. Someone did what they could. Actually pretty clever.

Seems that a recap is in the works. Congrats for wanting to restore this. The chassis from these little Transitones and postwar tabletops are pretty packed.

[slford310]

MrFixR55, you are correct, could have been someone with a low budget.  Nevertheless, all recapped and aligned, running well.  I like sometimes doing the small chassis', makes it more of a challenge.    

Sam

[MrFixr55]

Nice job, Sam. I also absolutely love the meme "I'm not buying..." Hysterical!!

One suggestion, consider rewiring the power switch to the "Hot side" (Rectifier plate and rectifier filament string, and the neutral to the B- and 1st AF end of the filament string. and utilizing a polarized plug with the large pin to the aforementioned B- / 1stAF Filament point. Ever since there were transformerless sets, the mfgrs placed the switch on the B- / 1st AF filament point. on the earliest and some like my Emerson 330, there was no isolation cap, the power cord connected directly to the chassis through the switch. In this configuration, there is always a chance for the chassis tp be hot. Even if the plug was inserted so that the Chassis was at neutral potential with the switch on, when the switch is off, the chassis becomes hot through the filament string. When filaments are cold, there is much less resistance than when they are hot. this is why a tube in the string or the pilot light glow bright when the set is first turned on.Moving the switch to the Rectifier Plate / Rectifier end of the filament string and ensuring that B= / 1st AF tube filament is tied to the neutral wire on the power cord will make the radio safer. Hum may be slightly increased, but the shock hazard by coming into contact with the chassis, shafts if the knobs are missing, or the chassis mounting screws is greatly reduced..