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  1. #1
    Veteran pajeff02's Avatar
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    Old School Amplitude Modulation

    Other than cars, we also have some other bad habits. Our newest bad habit started many years ago, but it ramped up in 2016 at an antique shop on Market Street in Corning, New York. Going way back, on a total whim I purchased a RCA Victor "Cromwell" Electrola. This is an early electric floor model phonograph. In the years I have owned it I have never plugged it in or tried to use it but someday plan to see if I can get it back up and running.

    Last year, while kicking around an antique shop, I happened upon a booth with several AM radios from the '30s and '40s. The owner of the booth happened to be there and showed me his wares. I ended up purchasing a 1936 Silvertone 3-band A.M./Shortwave tabletop radio. Silvertone was the brand sold by Sears, Roebuck & Co. for several decades. The seller goes through the entire chassis and replaces all of the original parts that tend to fail. He provides all of the old parts together with a schematic that shows everything that was replaced. These are all tube type radios and they have surprisingly good reception and sound quality. Although I do not play around with shortwave much, from our home in northcentral Pennsylvania I have tuned in A.M. stations from Ontario, Nashville, Atlanta, and New York City on evenings with good reception. This is a pic of the Silvertone:



    After getting settled into our new office I decided it was time for another radio. Our office was built in 1856 and definitely has a vintage vibe to it. I had been talking to the seller and he had informed me that he had another 1936 Silvertone undergoing restoration, however, this one was a floor model. He called me when it was done and I went up to get it. Throughout the work day, I have the radio tuned in to an A.M. oldies station that comes in nice and strong. The radio looks great in my office and has received many inquiries and compliments.



    My in-laws immediately noticed the new addition to the office and expressed an interest in a radio for their home. I had taken a picture of a Philco from the early '40s that had attracted my attention last time i was in Corning and I showed it to my mother-in-law. Two weeks later they went up with us and bought the radio. It is absolutely gorgeous as the woodwork has been refinished on this one. It also has a neat drum style antenna in it that can be rotated to improve reception.



    As the seller is up in years, I figured I had better get up to speed on these radios in case something ever goes wrong. In addition to literature on the electronics and such, I also picked up a tube tester. The seller also restores and sells equipment for working on these radios, so from time to time I stop in to see what he has available.



    I have at least one more, well maybe two, purchases to make. I would like to get a table top model for the Beaver house and another console model for the second floor of our home. Just another bad habit that I really enjoy.

  2. #2
    Veteran 0rion's Avatar
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    I think we talked about this some time back. My brother collects old radios. Not sure how many he's up to now but probably a dozen or more. Pretty cool hobby.
    Quote Originally Posted by Mean Green Z28 View Post
    Don't worry about understanding women. Women understand women, and they hate each other

  3. #3
    Veteran pajeff02's Avatar
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    I am just fascinated by things like this -- 80 year old radios that we can display and enjoy. Blows my mind too how reasonable they are to purchase. The table top radios are generally around $140 to $165 and the console models range from $225 to $285, depending upon the level of restoration work that was required. I thought we were going to swing over to Corning again today on our outing but never made it. We did find two other antique shops that we had never been to before though.

  4. #4
    Veteran 0rion's Avatar
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    the craftsmanship on those old radios is 2nd to none......some solid built shit that just lasts forever if even halfway taken care of. My dad repaired electronics and was a whiz at that shit. That was back when people actually had things fixed. He would go on rants about how walmart killed the tv repair business. It became cheaper to just buy new. My brother would buy radios that didn't work for next to nothing and dad would fix them.

  5. #5
    Veteran pajeff02's Avatar
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    So true.

  6. #6
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    I love old radios like that.. If I only had room in the house.

  7. #7
    Veteran pajeff02's Avatar
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    Space is at a premium at our Beaver house. Not exactly sure where it'll end up at when we get one, but that won't stop me from pulling the trigger. There are some smaller ones from the late '40s and '50s that are pretty neat and I may go that direction for the next one.

  8. #8
    Senior Member bigrondownhiller's Avatar
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    Are they still making replacement tubes for things like that? Knowing how to repair those things is cool. Maybe find an old jukebox for the house.

  9. #9
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    Are they still making replacement tubes for things like that?
    Getting tubes isn't too difficult thanks to guitar players and Ham operators still using lots of tube equipment.

    - - - Updated - - -

    Are they still making replacement tubes for things like that?
    Getting tubes isn't too difficult thanks to guitar players and Ham operators still using lots of tube equipment.

  10. #10
    Senior Member Whamhammer's Avatar
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    Maybe I should get one of those for my car, I can't pick up crap from Baltimore AM stations more than ten miles away with the Monsoon!
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  11. #11
    Member SuperSSguy's Avatar
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    Jeff..Thats some cool stuff you have there and a cool hobby too! We have an old record player that is a combination chair and desk when the top is down I guess so you could listen to records and sit in the seat next to it...Old things are cool to look at ,Just the craftsmanship and ornate designing of these things are amazing....Like the wood in pics #2 & 3. ..!

  12. #12
    Veteran pajeff02's Avatar
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    ^^ Agree. Just the look of the radios is worth it. So far, I have not had any components fail in either unit.

    I need to "stealth" and extend my antenna wire runs at the house and office. I have been reading up on A.M. antennas and it looks like a longer wire positioned with as little structural interference as possible is best.

  13. #13
    Veteran pajeff02's Avatar
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    I ended up adding to the collection today -- completely unintentional. A new antique shop opened up in town and I stopped in on my way home from the office this morning to check it out. We have something like 6 fireplaces at the office and I have been looking for things to put in them at all the local antique shops. I ended up finding a neat set of log stands with large brass balls topped with eagles for about 1/3 the price of another set I was considering. We then place medium to small pieces of birch on them and they have a real nice look.

    Back in the corner though... I spotted it. A grandfather clock with a built in A.M. radio -- turned out to be a 1931 Crosley Oracle Grandfather Clock Radio. The owner had just plugged it in to see what it would do and since it didn't immediately catch fire, and all the parts appeared to be present, I was absolutely interested. He spotted me checking it out and indicated that he did not know much about it. I looked it up on my phone using the model number to figure out what it was. When he told me I could have it for $50 there was no way I could pass.

    I will have to clean it up a bit and pull the chassis to see how things look. Other than the grille cloth being a bit mottled it really is in nice shape. I may attempt to tackle the restoration myself since I have a tube tester and electricity doesn't scare me. If I fail, I can always take it up to Corning and let the pro check it out. Pic to follow...

  14. #14
    Veteran pajeff02's Avatar
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  15. #15
    Giant Dicks Car Club Zapper2003's Avatar
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    Old School Amplitude Modulation

    Get that at the new place on the corner?

  16. #16
    Veteran pajeff02's Avatar
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    Yes, I ended up there twice yesterday - once solo and again with Dawn, Mark & Billie Sue. They have some pretty cool stuff and the prices are decent.

  17. #17
    Veteran pajeff02's Avatar
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    I started on the restoration of the clock radio a few weeks ago. I have done a lot of reading on the Antique Radio Forum, found a schematic and ordered the parts I need. Essentially, replacing the power cord, installing an in line fuse, and replacing the capacitors is the plan. Provided the transformer is good that appears to be the fix for most old electronics. Being an amateur, I did order a new set of tubes even though the old timers say to only replace them if they are known to be bad. Total cost for the parts was less than $100.00.

    I started with the clock and after some futzing I was able to get it working again. It has a really low torque motor and there is a lever that you have to drop to get things turning. Once it is running everything seems fine. I will also fuse this motor before reinstalling it in the case. The case is in darn good shape with just one light spot in the finish. I am on the hunt for some Howard Restor a Finish right now that should do the trick. I ordered new grille cloth but it has not shown up yet, need to check into that.

    Using the schematic, and with some help from the supplier, I was able to identify all twelve (12) of the capacitors that need replacement. I started with one of the sets that is sealed in tar and mounted in a rectangular metal box. The box contains both a 0.1 mFd and 0.5 mFd capacitor and as I carved the old ones out to see what they looked like, I will most likely mount the new ones in the box and reattach it to the chassis with screws in place of the original rivets. Pics to follow.

  18. #18
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    Sounds like a fun project.

  19. #19
    Veteran pajeff02's Avatar
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    Photobucket seems to be acting up on my laptop and home computer... working on this one though at the office. Here's a pic of the disassembly:



    The radio is quite simple - 5 tubes, capacitors, resistors, a transformer and the variable tuning condensors is really about it.



    Quite a bit of spaghetti underneath the chassis. The two silver boxes mounted to the sides hold 6 of the 12 capacitors that need to be replaced.





    The actual capacitors are mounted in a black nasty tar like substance that I dug out with a small pick and screwdriver. This is a 0.5 mFd and 0.1 mFd capacitor.



    And the modern replacements that will be substituted in their place.


  20. #20
    Veteran pajeff02's Avatar
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    Photobucket seems to be acting up on my laptop and home computer... working on this one though at the office. Here's a pic of the disassembly:



    The radio is quite simple - 5 tubes, capacitors, resistors, a transformer and the variable tuning condensors is really about it.



    Quite a bit of spaghetti underneath the chassis. The two silver boxes mounted to the sides hold 6 of the 12 capacitors that need to be replaced.





    The actual capacitors are mounted in a black nasty tar like substance that I dug out with a small pick and screwdriver. This is a 0.5 mFd and 0.1 mFd capacitor.



    And the modern replacements that will be substituted in their place.


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