The post NEVEE article transistor radio appeared first on Henry's Radio Repair.

 Q-tips– great for appealing cleaner on and getting in those hard-to-reach spots.

  Paper towels- I like to use for all application from wrapping speakers to keeping plastic from the sun.

 Brasso- Great for polishing and cleaning metal, you can also use it on plastic also. It’s not good for you so wash your hands after use.

Novus plastic polish 1,2, & 3 are good for making plastic look all shiny and new again, you can use Number 3 for deep scratches like when the previous owner uses a knife and scrawls their name onto the plastic.

Sctotchbrite 7447 hand pads, Works like steel wool but isn’t conductive. Great for polishing up rusty kickstands.

Emery board, sometimes it works good for taking the rust off kickstands of radios, then you can spray a coat of lacquer on it for best results.

 Toothbrush, the best thing ever made since tweezers, keep a few of them handy.

Paintbrush, I find it’s great to get the dirt out of the grills of modern (80s) clock radios.

Automotive applications, stuff like Armor All can work great for radio cleaning uses so can the wax and polish stuff from companies like Barret Jackson. They are pretty gentle as well as they are supposed to be used on cars, just don’t use Armor All on dyed leather.

Very Fine grit sandpaper, used to sand down the plastic on the radio if there are any nicks or scratches, be very careful you can easily wreak a radio this way. Look it up for more details.

Vinegar, cleaning corrosion off metal.

 73,

     Henry

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Low volume, Bad electrolytic, see repair process below. Very common in transistor radios.

Scratchy audio, Volume control wiper needs to be tested and cleaned.

Distortion & squealing, possibly a bad transistor is also a cause of bad capacitors.

Not picking up stations, it could be you live in an area with bad reception or too much interference.

Dead, Check for broken wires and cracked circuit board joints try new batteries.

 About 90% of transistor radios can be brought back to life, with a replacement of the electrolytic capacitors. Most radios have 4 or 6 although some can have as many as 20. They take a couple of hours to replace and you have to have the proper tools to do it right. Here’s what you will need-

 30-40 watt soldering iron, flux, solder (no acid core solder!), solder braid, solder sucker, dental picks, tweezers, pliers, diagonal cutters, batterie(s), camera, Electrolytic capacitors, and proper lighting/ventilation.

     If you don’t have any of those things repairing your radio may be expensive to buy, not to mention if you haven’t soldered before you should try a soldering kit before starting on a radio. The tools mentioned above are just for a recap that doesn’t even include more testing equipment and tools for further troubleshooting.

  This means if you only want to get one sentimental radio restored it’s much cheaper to just get it restored by a technician.

However, if your willing to invest the time and money into fixing your radio I wish you the best of luck feel free to contact me if you get stuck. It is a fun and interesting hobby if you enjoy it.

       73,

       Henry

The post How to fix my broken transistor radio? appeared first on Henry's Radio Repair.

 Weller WLC100 40 watt soldering Iron, the best tool on my bench. Made in North America with a lifetime guarantee. Most Weller Irons from the 60s are still in use today.

Random assortment of old hand tools, Most are around 20 years old, Pliers, dental picks, toothpicks, screwdrivers, tweezers, box cutter, etc.

Honeywell LED wall light, nice and bright doesn’t cause interference as a fluorescent light does.

Assortment of scrap boards and parts, Parts organized into 2 shelf organizers parts. Scrap boards from every brand. Parts like NPN & PNP Transistors, Resistors, Capacitors, transformers, antennas, switches, Variable capacitors, clips, wires, speakers, etc, etc. Enough to make a couple of Transistor radios from scratch.

 Shop radio, good for using to test other radios, listen to while working, using as an amp (signal tracer), etc. 

 Tripod and camera, sometimes I like to record myself working so I can look back at it, cameras are also very useful for taking pictures of the circuit boards before I work on it.

 Radio shack contact cleaner, a radio repairman’s WD-40, I lubricate all switches and VC pots before I get started on any radio.

 Schematic folder, Of Riders, Sams, and Beitmans servicing info I get the schematic on every radio I work on, then I put it in one big folder to use again.

Very large assortment of screws, most of them from scrapped radios, in case a radio I am working on is missing a screw.

 Bench power supply, no-name brand, this style works up to 15 volts and is available on eBay.

UEI multimeter and other testing equipment, my multimeter works great, they aren’t sold anywhere anymore except eBay but they are expensive. I also have a Chinese component testing deceive which is very helpful. Along with signal tracers, transistor testers, etc.

 Notepad and writing utensils, I use a sharpie to make the polarity on the circuit board when doing a recap and Write down what servicing I am doing for customers on their radio.

Organizing stuff, I like to use little plastic organizers for each radio and plastic bags for the screws and replaced parts. I also have wall hangers with little drawers that I keep components and stuff in. I label it all which makes it easy to find parts fast. A big part of radio restoring is staying organized.

  I also have cleaning supplies, but that’s another story.

         73, Henry

The post My workbench and tools. appeared first on Henry's Radio Repair.

1- Museum condition, New in the box, does not have any signs of use whatsoever. Works very well. Expect collectors to place a premium, if it’s a sought-after model.

2-Great condition, Mild signs of use. may need servicing in the future, but still a rare find.

3-Good condition, around 40% of transistor radios I own will be in this condition when I find them. A scratch or two may be present, mild cosmetic issues. Does not have to work.

4- Fair condition, Most radios are in this condition. They are vintage items supposed to have a patina which may include mild cracks and scratches. These sets are good for restoring.

5- Poor condition, Rusted, cracked, chipped, and non-working. Missing some parts as well was surely an abused or heavily used radio. Would be a fun but lengthy restoration.

This does affect the value if you would like to sell your set, But you can get your set looking clean again if you know how to do it. Do NOT throw out a transistor radio, I would pay you to save it from the trash. My personal favorite radios are the “poor condition” ones I get a kick out of seeing something like that work again. I have a weakness for sad-looking radios 😉

thanks for reading,

Henry

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