nostalgia for valve radios

Today in an inner-city collectables store, I saw an old Kreisler model 11-7 bakelite radio, just like my grandmother had. Price tag was $295. I don't know if it were working.

Reply to
bruce56
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I feel a little guilty when I think of the dozens of old bakelite cased radios I trashed and stripped down for parts as a kid. It would be neat to have a few of them now.

Reply to
Kennedy

Valve radios had a characteristic smell when turned on. I can still remember it thirty years later.

Sylvia.

Reply to
Sylvia Else

They've been collectable for a long time now.

Reply to
Jeßus

Burning....

Reply to
yaputya

I suppose, but it was clearly a slow process.

Sylvia.

Reply to
Sylvia Else

Maybe the valve heater circuit caused the burning smell? Or was it ozone?

As a kid in the 60's with an interest in radio etc. I strung up all sorts of dangerous arrangements in my room. I remember having Philco radios with electromagnetic loudspeakers that used the speaker as a HT filter, I put one of the speakers on top of my wardrobe with god knows what kind of cable connecting it back to the radio. Must have been a

4-core cable but probably wouldn't have been rated at HT levels.
Reply to
Yaputya

Slowly cooking house dust on the valves.

Reply to
news13

Now that sounds more plausible - if a bit disgusting, given that most house dust is human skin.

Sylvia.

Reply to
Sylvia Else

I suspected that someone would twig.

Reply to
news13

The NTC thermistor for the herater circuit would get hot enough to burn paint. any dust that settles on it would be converted to smoke. any volatile chemicals would be altered too. "Hot" has a smell.

A 4 core cable intended for 415V three phase motors would surely be sufficient. something with automotive applications, not so much.

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Reply to
Jasen Betts

I probably only had telephone cable at the time....

Reply to
Yaputya

"Jasen Bleatts"

** Never seen an NTC used in a valve radio, valve TVs sometimes had them.

No sign of one in the schem for the 11-7.

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The characteristic smell is mostly from hot bakelite (case, valve bases and sockets) and the varnish used on the AC supply transformer.

.... Phil

Reply to
Phil Allison

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