[morzh]

This radio was bought...at least 8 or so years ago. I still was open to getting consoles, especially those that came with a right price.
I am sure it is a 96, as, first of, it is the Highboy with the leaf pattern

   

Also, upon opening the cassis, (the schematics of 96 and 95 are nearly identical) the tell-tell sign, the backelite capacitors, were found, that confirms the 96.

The chassis, other than lots of dust, is in fair to good condition. A fes rust spots are not bad, surface rust, and inside is clean.

This is the back of the radio.

   
   

And the chassis is out.
   
   
   

Like I said, dust galore.

Now, as I knew (some time ago I did check the speaker), the speaker has bad field coil (and good transformer). I have another speaker, exact same problem, and the third one was the same (I used its transformer elsewhere). Seems to be a common problem with G speakers.
Even though this is the type with removable FC, I am not a big fan or rewinding large coils, and so might try to find a speaker with good coil (the transformer I have).

[jrblasde]

That is quite the large tuning capacitor! What are the dimensions of the chassis? I realize that it must be quite large, but in the photos it looks very shallow. Also, what is that large pot enclosure in front of the AC transformer? Is that a battery compartment?

I am excited to watch this restoration. I know that they take up a lot of space, but consoles are just so special to me. Sometimes they don't get enough love.

[morzh]

To have some idea, I (and others) have 87, 111 and 112 restoration, which are the radios from the same period, with often the same or similar cabinets and grillcloth.
I never measured them, but yes they are shallower, or at least look shallower than the later chassis.

This is the 111. It was the earliest superhet by Philco, in the same cabinets and with the same type chassis.
https://philcoradio.com/phorum/showthrea...Philco+111

This is the Philco 112, same radio as 111, but with electrolytics instead of the bug can.
https://philcoradio.com/phorum/showthrea...Philco+112

This is Philco 86. It is a TRF, same as the current 96, but with more tubes: an extra audio stage plus it is a triode-based, and so would require neutralizing during the alignment.
https://philcoradio.com/phorum/showthrea...=Philco+86

[morzh]

More photos. As can be seen, everything is quite dusty.
Also someone changed what seems to be the interstage transformer. Long time ago. The repairs, as it can be shown further, seem contemporary.

   
   

After the first vacuuming

   


The it is put upside down and the bottom cover is removed.

   
   

[morzh]

Some weird looking backelite caps: they are all, except one, are flooded with solder.
I obviously lack the experience to clam this could not be factory, but since the chassis was repaired at some point, I suspect, this is also some sort of repair.

   
   


There is also some weir bubbling on the coils. The wire seems fine, and the bubbles, when pressed upon lightly, get squished. I suspect the glue of some sort bubbled for whatever reason. On two of the coils. On the other two there is also some strange glistening that seems some crystallane stuff, but I tried it with my finger, and nothing remained on the finger, so maybe this is a litz or some stranded material insulation that looks that way.
These are the bubbles, at the second photo I squished them.

   
   

These two resistors simply serialized; the mid-point goes nowhere.

   

And this again is the evidence of repairs:

The transformer, mentioned before, from the bottom (clearly not original), and a solder blob, found inside.


   
   

[morzh]

Oh, and to add to the answer to Joseph:

These periode radios are what we affectionately call "back-breakers". Unlike the later chassis', save some biggies like 37-116 and likes, these ones easily tip the scales at possibly close to 40lbs. Every time I have to carry this one from the cabinet to the workbench, while I am walking, I am silently praying "please, Lord, do not let my back give up while I have that chassis in my hands" (I am not joking).
If this one were to fall on me one day (hope it will not), it would be a quick and almost painless end of me.

[jrblasde]

Goodness, that really is heavy! I would estimate that my 46-480 weighs no more than 25-30 pounds when fully assembled.

[morzh]

As usual, I went to the Riders books first, and here it is:
- the schematic is in Vol I
- The chassis bottom photograph is in Vol II
- And the alignment procedure is in Vol VIII

So, I went to Nostalgiaair and opend the scans, that are consolidated in one PDF file.
Also there is the issue of the speaker.
I have a spare 20 speaker, which is fairly close. The FC is 3.1K vs 3.4K, and the pin-out pf the plug is the same, so for the purpose of the alignment I might be using that one.

Also, someone who repaired (or attempted to, as I am not sure it would work after this repair) miswired at least one place.

[morzh]

This chassis is strange. Yes, it obviously has some repairs done to it.
But many resistors, that seem factory, or at least totally time-appropriate, and do not seem replaced, are not in agreement with any values, even if corrected for time-related deterioration. And some are wrong with the markings, that do agree with their values.

Here.


   
This blue/yellow resistor (dogbone), which does not have the dot (none of these have dots. Some are painted with single color, grey or green), means that the value will start wth 64 (before the multiplier). The resistor shows 48K.
This is R14. It shows 13K on our schematic

https://philcoradio.com/library/index.ph...chematics/
And it says 13K on early and 33K on later models in Riders.
   

Let's proceed.
   
These 3 resistors on the capacitor block.
At this chassis photo (it is better than at the Nostalgia website, right from Riders) these aree R37, 36 and 35, respectively top-bottom-right.
   
The top is Brown and yellow. Which means it will start from 14. The sch shows 25K value.
The one under it is Green-black-red dot, which is 5.1K. And it does show 5.1K (wow, kept well over time). Except the R36 is .. 13K. On my schematic (which is posted above) this one is listed with R14, as 13K/33K early/later chassis.
And the last one, R35, is pained green (there are others painted like that), and they are all different values. NOt even close to 70K that is shown in the sch. Here's the photo of the others painted green.    

I will proceed with the values shown in the schematic, but...it is puzzling; I never met time-appropriate factory-looking components that are so badly in disagreement with the documentation.

[morzh]

There is a lot of confusion about caps' values.

The current sch in our repository shows the 5, 11 and 13 caps as 0.015uF.
The part numbers for 11 and 13 is 3615-E, and according to Ray's book it is 0.05uF
Same value is shown in the Riders sch.
Now the part 5 is 3615-F.
Again, our sch shows 0.015uF, Riders is 0.05uF and Ray's book shows it as...0.006uF.
Notice that this is the only 3615 series part in the book that is not a 0.05uF. Some of them have resistors etc, but all will have one or two 0.05uF cap. So I think it is an error in the book.
I will use 0.05uF.

Plus, I think the way this cap is, it is not really important there; either value will work fine.

PS. South-Eastern Antique Radio Society sourve shows 3615-F, AF as 0.05uF.
PPS. Also Chuck Schwark's Repai Bench also shows it to vbe 0.05uF.
https://philcoradio.com/repairbench/bblokcap.htm

[RodB]

Hi Mike, l seem to remember that Philco had their own color code scheme early on. Someone somewhere has the code. Probably didn't catch on because there wasn't enough colors for all the values.

[morzh]

Rod

Yes, for resistors.
But they too had two colors at least.
Not the same uniform color for various values.

[RodB]

Maybe the green ones were 5.5meg, red 2.2k. $

[Steve Davis]

Here you go    https://antiqueradios.com/philcorestorer-before-rma/   

Steve

[morzh]

Steve

Thanks, seems this is it.
This document should be added to our repository; I only see the old resistor chart and that was not it.

Yes, "Jade Green = 70kOhm" is exactly that.

Also they seem to sometimes add "Yellow end" without changing the value.
Like Silver Grey or the same plus yellow is 100K.
Now, Blue is 13K, and in my case it is Blue and Yellow and is also 13K.