Picked this up at an antique store in Providence, RI over the weekend:
International Radio Corp Kadette 52 tabletop tombstone radio. The enclosure is in OK shape given the age but the electronics chassis looks immaculate; looks like the original set of tubes and has never been worked on. Power and output transformers both test good on my bench. Paid $40 cash.
You did good. What does it require for power?
It looks like a basically standard but early line-powered All American
5-type design. 6A8 oscillator/converter, 6K7 IF amp, 6J7 detector/first audio, 6F6 audio output, 5Z4 rectifier. It has a power xfmr with a 5 volt winding for the rectifier tube, and also for the 6 volt tubes and B+ unlike the later AA5s that used series string heaters.
In my unit everything is a metal enclosure type tube; the 6A8, 6K7, and
6J7 have their signal grid connection on a cap on the top:Original price in 1935 said to be $30 on the above site; there's no dedicated RF amp so I'm guessing this was the "budget" model.
Schematic:
Actually looking at the schematic I don't think the can capacitor in mine is original; it looks newer than the rest of the set and is a double 8uF unit rather than triple 6uF as specified. It was probably replaced at some point, looks like it might be from the late 40s or 1950s?
Nice, but I prefer early 20s peanut tube Northern Electrics. Missed out on an auction near hare a couple of weeks ago where they sold off a NE-2 (or -3?) that reminded me of a set I had back when I first started collecting back in the 60s. Sigh, that was one I am sorry I ever let go!
John :-#)#
Been an interesting repair so far. In that I haven't finished removing the chassis from the enclosure, yet. Most of the screws securing it have rusted and have stuck fast to their threads, including all the screws holding on the dial knobs. But there's no sign of other water damage anywhere; looks like it just happened from atmospheric moisture and time.
I doubt this thing has ever been opened up since it was manufactured, or nearly so.
They're slowly unsticking and starting to turn via repeated light applications of WD-40 being worked down the holes into the threads over many days
I'd recommend PB Blaster over WD40. It works a lot better on cars, so I assume on radios too.
Aren't the knobs some sort of plastic? I would not think a metal screw would get stuck in plastic from rusting.
Nope, all wood! As far as I can tell there are no plastic parts on this radio aside from the plug, which looks to be Bakelite or some similar early phenolic resin
Oh and the tube sockets which are also phenolic
As effective as barking at the moon. Use a real product designed for that. Kroil
Another thing you apparently can't understand.
If the screws rust, the rust embeds itself in the plastic.
Most all wood knobs have a metal insert.
It worked just fine with a little patience.
This guy is grumpy/sassy. I'm going to call him "Grumpy McSassypants"
Rusty metal also expands somewhat. As The Beav might say, it's "swell"...
Rust takes *seven times* the volume of the steel it came from. That's why concrete cancer cracks the concrete and gets worse so quickly.
Yeah sure, right. Everyone says that, but its still good to know that about rust because it can compromise its surroundings.
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