RESTORING AN OLD 1940'S SHORT WAVE RADIO

[@hestheMaster]

Firestone S-7427-8 from 1940. It is clearly marked on the upper right corner of the back! Multiple resources can be used to find 1. the manufacturer, 2.a website that lists them and shows actual photos of the radio in question. 3. then you find the schematic for the radio. This is a little harder to do with Canadian made radios BTW. This radio was incredibly screwed up by the fella who put too long wires from the AM antenna to chassis. This radio has a 3 section electrolytic originally. 16uF at 375 Volts,16uF at 300 Volts and a 10uF at 25 Volts. Ah , that poor cabinet. Minimal work can make it look like a presentable restoration. Nice and loud.

[@stangaloski4208]

Truly appreciate your videos. The amount of work put into them can never be realized in monetary gains. You love what you do and we all appreciate seeing these old tv's and radios broght back to life. And thank you so much for the white blouses! White truly is your color and you look so pretty.

[@repairitdontreplaceit]

hey ron , from my valve tv repair days i remember an old engineer telling me "when working on valve sets always keep one hand on your dikkie it may save your tickie" he was right

[@hectorpascal]

Yep, you won't find many high power radio transmitter engineers wearing rings and necklaces, and they ALL work on equipment with one hand in their pocket!

[@electronicengineer]

That's a really funny piece of Great advice! I am really going to try to remember that one. Thank you for the unexpected laugh, reviews and repairs! LOL! Fred

[@fichambawelby2632]

Thanks a lot for sharing once more your tremendous mastery, Ron. And also your joy and laughs!.

[@VintageLabSilvioPinheiro]

Thank you for sharing your technique, electronics tips and old equipment restoration. It's great to see your work done and your fun to make things happen. Receive the affection of a Brazilian here in São Paulo who appreciates your youtube channel and learns a little more in each video you share. 73 DE PU2SRZ

[@electronicengineer]

Ron is definitely a national treasure for us in USA!

[@doneisenhuth408]

Fantastic educational video. I will admit I know next to nothing about old radios though i have several going back to a Super Zenith V111 and a Sparton AC7. Both somewhat rare in Australia.Fortunately they work well. Your straight and simple talking style has allowed me to learn a lot more about these grand old girls and others than you can imagine. Always interesting and never rushed in your actions. Very best regards.

[@michellevey9608]

Amazing as usual! Love your videos!

[@jasonkortink4785]

love this channel so nice that people still love to keep the old stuff going .im in new zealand and have lots of valve gear love the quality and nice look

[@adrinathegreat3095]

Anyone that's not watched his other videos they're worth checking out. I remember seeing a totally bonkers one where he made up a digital frequency readout using nixie tubes on an old valve radio, a work of pure genius, the complexity and skill/ knowledge to do this was truly something else

[@priestblood]

Hi Ron ,I was so happy to see your video notifications,thanks for sharing. Best wishes & stay healthy

[@tcfdesilva1761]

I have repaired this type vacuum tube radios on 1969 to 1973 .. Then we convert this type radios ,to transistors using with same R F coil pack.. Still i have old vacuum tubes . Thats why i like vacuum tube radios.❤❤ .Philips.. Grundig..Siyara.Telifunken .radios 👍 I am from Srilanka 🇱🇰

[@adrinathegreat3095]

Another entertaining video, nice quick repair including the cabinet.. Love this channel and for some reason I've always been fascinated by the Eye-tubes, replaced eventually by the vu tuning meter, then the led and now nothing

[@josephconsoli4128]

Enjoyed it as always Ron. Your knowledge of electronic theory is so impressive. I always pick up another tip every time I watch. By the way, Air Chief was by Firestone. They sourced out good radio makers.

[@andrew18556]

Thanks again Ron,really enjoyed your expertise once again,keep the videos coming!,

[@FebeAnnSimonsCaneHudson]

Love your video, just started working an old radio of my late husban your video helped a lot.

[@GeorgeWMays]

Love it. Sounds great. Thanks for another fascinating video. It is appreciated.

[@greggaieck4808]

Glasslinger your vintage 1940s shortwave radio Receiver is so awesome

[@davidstacy8314]

Hi Ron your friend Dave here you did an amazing job with that old radio reminds me when I was younger you did a professional job on that radio you're a professional you're very good at what you do I could watch your videos all day long hope to see another one soon may God bless you and keep you healthy always thank you your friend Dave

[@brotherspock8180]

Getting bit once in a while helps keep ya going.

[@ricardosalesdemello4130]

yea! glaslinger I loved it, I enjoyed seeing you Restore the Radio box & I also liked you fixing the Radio, it was perfect friend glaslinger... on the other hand I love watching your videos .. .. because you are a great technician.. congratulations glaslinger everything you do is very well done asd.. Ricardo salles Franz

[@choppergirl]

I'd totally rock an Air Chief with old bird's eggs in it. A legit barn find. I've got a 1940's GE 202 and GE 430

[@dysnomia-anarchia]

Chopeprgirl's GE 430 AA5: kzbin.info/www/bejne/mXW0k4Cmj9WEbsk kzbin.info/www/bejne/hmSrfoyPj9qhhas kzbin.info/www/bejne/q5nSppWcnM6sftU They're just AM radios, but since I got both of them free, they're treasures not possessions. They're jsut old AM radios and who listens to AM radio any more... it has more to do with having something that is a time traveler that survived from the ancient pst.

[@davidsingh6509]

Those are not bird eggs, those are Lizard eggs. He. He.. He.. Hee. O k duk.

[@ralphhoskins2115]

Simply amazing work

[@blazehauser1432]

glad to have found your channel, lots of good videos to watch! I'm suffering through this Houston heat too, stay cool!

[@frankowalker4662]

Sounds good and looks great. I love the antena coil fixed to the plug idea. :)

[@sr633]

Nice job Ron.

[@Joe-ep9lk]

Nice to see you again :)

[@mariahollyman7466]

great work again and love the little lady too

[@hectorpascal]

I guess spray lacquering a cabinet in 100F must be a bit of a challenge !?

[@atwaterkent911]

I worked on the same radio a few months back. It was the most work I have ever done on a radio. Nightmare.

[@ВячеславРедкокаша]

я вырос в эпоху радиоламп. в плотную занимался радио делом с 10 лет. в 13 лет я уже мог радиоприёмник " РЕКОРД" переделать в передатчик. с удовольствием посмотрел на этот старинный супергетеродин с кенотронным выпрямителем и с динамиком на подмагничивание, в первые увидел такой странный монтаж КПЕ - вертикально. и ещё интересная тема, приёмник имеет УКВ диапазон и встроенную двух дипольную антэну. у нас такие конструкции появились в 60 годах. индикатор точной настойки у нас ставили только на приёмники высокого класса, а этот аппарат обычный ширпотреб.

[@lubomirwinter2628]

This lady is my blood type. Same interests, same age! :-) Beautiful!

[@gotman4409]

I had some broken knobs on a radio I repaired. They were broken on the back side. I used some plastic filler that I got from a hobby store to repair them.

[@ShadowsOnTheScreen]

Thank you for the educational and entertaining video!

[@qzorn4440]

this is a nice cheer me up video 😙 i thought the chassis could be hot... no cat around it.. it wants to keep it's 9 lives... 😅 thanks good restoring job. this is another WW2 news radio, Lone Ranger, The Shadow Knows, etc... 🤩

[@Theoobovril]

Nice work again, Ron...

[@zx8401ztv]

From a heap of nastiness to a nice radio :-D It has a nice tone too :-D

[@shaun27ful]

Just started watching your video will have to watch the rest later I'm sure it's going to be another good video. Still trying to work out how you know where all the wires. My experience in electronics is very basic. I'm at the stage where I put my tongue on things to see if they are live.. well that's for my dad told me to do 🤣 thank you for sharing

[@ranjibborah3274]

Madam ,you are a genius in tube Radio.

[@dbingamon]

Nice work on such a hot day. I heard you mention 99 in Texas, 93 in Cincinnati today. I think I need to get an AC unit in my workshop.

[@Greg-et2dp]

Glass linger your vintage shortwave receiver from 1940s is awesome my friend 😅😅😊

[@daffyduk77]

Great refurb job, thanks for sharing

[@bidanchi1]

Worked on one of these Firestones myself. I think it's 7 tubes with the magic eye. The most expensive part(s) on the whole darn thing are the "winged" bakelite knobs. A lot less common than the bullet type. They go for a fortune on eBay.

[@michaelmiller641]

Nice one! Well done!

[@321CatboxWA]

I hope you live as long as you want to GlassSlinger ! Thank you for posting , love the tuning eye radios . I have a tube type trans oceanic that only receives on 1/2 the dial and a great big /tall AM/SW WITH A clock that has a dial like a phone around it and some pre set's , the only thing that works is the radio . It's like a big piece of furnature . Both radio's have original caps , lol . Whish i could hire you to go thru them . 73s

[@greggaieck4808]

Glasslinger the radio cabinet looks good

[@Greg-et2dp]

Glass linger the radio cabinet looks like new you did a awesome job my friend 😅😅😊😊

[@Super8Rescue]

never blame a cat for your mistakes!

[@rodbasham6817]

Ron, The model number is Firestone S-7247-8. It's stamped on the back. Firestone's brand was FireChief on most of their 40s radios. Most likely built by Stewart Warner.

[@rodbasham6817]

I meant S-7427-8.

[@bobshifimods7302]

I'd like to do this myself. The problem is that most AM radio stations have now gone.

[@albert69Einstein]

not in mexico or texas area. I pick them up all the time.

[@F40PH-2CAT]

Air Chief was a brand of radios sold by Firestone tires....so be careful! 🤣

[@oliverharris7366]

They used to give away toys. I had a firetruck when I was 5 years old. They did so kid's would pester their parents into buying gas there.

[@dass1333]

And restaurants are rated by Michelin

[@tigerofsports7204]

I love the old things so much

[@Hazmoment]

Hi Ron, Are you able to help me with some advice on repurposing an old vacuum tube diathermy machine (90kHz) to oscillate at a lower frequency (40kHz) to power a transducer for use in a ultrasonic cleaner? Its a simple circuit, however I dont understand how it works, and dont know if its practical to change the frequency of oscillation. I dont know who else I can ask, but I know you will know! :)

[@glasslinger]

While this could be done it is unlikely it would be practical. It would take a lot of fiddling and in the end it would be a kludge. Best to look on ebay for something designed expressly for ultrasonic cleaners. Good luck getting anything out of china right now!

[@paulcresswell2279]

Liked before even watching.

[@EddieLeal]

I have heard of a radio to communicate with the dead, A necromancer's radio. Creepy stuff.

[@daniela-qk4md]

What a wonderful job!

[@holger8802]

It seems that you have some very nice testequipment. Some seems to be Tektronix TM500. Would be very cool if you could provide a video tour about your equipment.

[@redneckways1933]

alsome job. can't wait until the next one.

[@penelopelgoss2520]

122822 UPDATED - SD, Calif - Are there vintage radio collectors in your followers' group? My dad just passed (95 yrs). He trained as a radio operator in the US Navy (mid to late 1940s) and collected tube radios. I used to watch him when I was a kid while he'd listen to the radios. We have a few we want to sell to collectors. We have tubes and tube tester(s), too. It'll be a bit of time 4 to 6 months as they are buried on a wall rack in a storage unit. We've found a few US Navy Radio Tech manuals today in some boxes. Sure, I would love to hear from those interested. Reply, and I'll be notified. Thanks!!!

[@abclcd]

Mi-ai trezit amintiri placute... cu ce pasiune as reveni daca mi-as putea permite!...

[@choppergirl]

I rescue them as curios. Where are you located - I'm in Georgia. I could trade you some stuff. Radio is kinda totally dead, so it's mostly something you keep as a techie connection to the ancient past. Quite accidentally I ended up with a huge collection antique computers. I ahve two antique table top radios from the 1940's. Actually, these things are mostly good for learning early electronics technology for those who want to learn pre-digital electronics. I'm still trying to wrap my head around how an AA5 works. kzbin.info/www/bejne/gnSagJ2rjqaCh6c

[@dysnomia-anarchia]

Find a smart techie kid who has little nothing and give them to him. I got both my old vacuum tube radios free, and somehow that makes them treasures not possesions. kzbin.info/www/bejne/mXW0k4Cmj9WEbsk kzbin.info/www/bejne/hmSrfoyPj9qhhas kzbin.info/www/bejne/q5nSppWcnM6sftU

[@getcartercarpark.]

May I ask what the blue tape is? I've not seen that tape in the UK, but it may be made in a different colour, and knowing the name of it will help me try and find it in the UK. We have masking tape, but that kind of tape has no sticking strength, it is only really used to mask off areas to stop getting paint on and is a low tack tape, so it can be easily removed. I've stuck stuff down with PVC insulation tape, but sometimes that just stretches or doesn't stick well enough. I've seen a few people on KZbin using the same blue tape, and it looks really useful stuff, if only I can find out what it is and if it can be found in the UK. Thanks, Kay.

[@janetwinslow2039]

I think it's just blue masking tape. The blue stuff can be left much longer without the glue drying and sticking. Available at B&Q etc.

[@michaelschaub7653]

Another great video. I need to find someone local to Dallas to show me or give me instructions regarding spraying lacquer. I have been using the aerosol cans of lacquer for way too long. I need to find out what type of lacquer to use (often use the satin finish in aerosol), if I need to cut it with thinner, and clean-up afterwards. Also what psi do you operate the sprayer at? Do you ever use toned lacquers or let the stain do the work and you always use a clear coat?

[@glasslinger]

I use 30 PSI. I usually let the wood finish determine the final color of the set, using clear lacquer. Deft Gloss Brushing Lacquer works fine. Thin it half and half with lacquer thinner. Use two or more coats rather than one thick coat that may run. Colored lacquer is difficult to determine the final color. It is very expensive compared to stain and clear lacquer.

[@eduazasmax]

restauração de relíquias é muito gratificante ,parabéns pela bela obra de arte no seu trabalho ./restoration of relics is very rewarding, congratulations on the beautiful work of art in your work

[@vasileymelnikov4553]

Я восхищаюсь этим мастером👍

[@xnavynuc]

Did you get the push buttons working Ron?

[@robertwimmer6969]

Good video😊

[@Greg-et2dp]

Glass linger you are good at restoring vintage shortwave receivers and alignment of vintage shortwave receivers my friend 😅 😊😊😅

[@jeffreyyoung4104]

Nice! Keep up the great job!

[@MVVblog]

Great content!

[@phonotical]

Did your friend like their radio?

[@albert69Einstein]

what voltage did you use to test it at timestamp @4:19 ?

[@glasslinger]

Normal line voltage. I have a watt meter and an electronic circuit breaker to protect the set. If the watt meter reads higher than what is stamped on the nameplate the capacitors are leaky. If there is a major overload, the electronic breaker cuts the power immediately.

[@greggaieck4808]

Glasslinger your utube videos are awesome 👍👍😎👍👍😎😎

[@MrGigi-dz9cv]

You got me into this. I have a bunch of old radios. But the ones i could afford, only date from the 50-60's.

[@MrGigi-dz9cv]

Why don't you use a fuse socket ?

[@glasslinger]

@@MrGigi-dz9cv They need to be mounted. Takes time. Easier to just solder it in. Note that there are collectors that specialize in 50's 60's radios! They are older than most people now alive!

[@MrGigi-dz9cv]

@@glasslinger No. There are sockets that go on the wire. Yes they are. But, 40's stuff and before is much more interesting.

[@DanielTorres-wp3mr]

The victim fought back with 400+ volts 🤣🤣🤣

[@Rev22-21]

Ron..... a couple of questions please. First, did you do anything to that pre-select in freeing them up? And secondly, when you matched a coil to that tuning condenser how did you do that? Do you basically figure it as a tank circuit matching Xc with Xl for resonance....and if so what frequency or range of frequency? Thanks for your reply and enjoy the shows. From central texas...Best regards

[@glasslinger]

The plastic was warped. Had to sand them. The coil is a standard broadcast band coil that is used in many common table radios. It matches the common 365pf variable condensers used in that era radio.

[@alcyon1]

You did it again 👍

[@Andrax999]

im in rosenberg texas my thermometer said 110F insane heat

[@ARK5411]

Eski tip radyolar çok güzel harbiden!

[@bobbybrooks4826]

It's like lightning,, that's 300 million volts vs 400,, lot's of energy but the duration is short or else it would do way more damage

[@brianbloom1799]

Hi glasslinger, I just picked up a 1947 RCA tv, 8-t-241, I brought,it up real slow with a 100 watt,Then lite her up,Everything Lights up, But the CRT, The Back of it is also light, What would cause this, I change the Rectifier, That was bad, I don't no how to Test the High voltage line going Into the Side of the CRT whats your thoughts, Thanks Brian

[@MichaelOfRohan]

The filament lights but theres no phosphor on the screen? Not a single pixel?

[@brianbloom1799]

@@MichaelOfRohan no, The tube filament is lite,But the Picture its self is not

[@brianbloom1799]

Great repair on the Radio, I wish I was as good as you, I would have gone far, Thank you for your Help

[@classiccomputers6211]

If it hasn't been recapped there's a good chance your horizontal oscillator is not running. 40s sets need pretty much all of the wax caps and lytics changed, as they will kill most circuits in the set and prevent it from running.

[@brianbloom1799]

@@classiccomputers6211 Thank you so much for your Help, makes sense

[@AMStationEngineer]

Gotta love them "Air Chiefs"!

[@oscarpicoscalle8657]

Greetings from Spain

[@phonotical]

I was sanding a cabinet today, ugh, even with a power Sander I was having trouble, whatever they used turned back into goop, blocked up my pads and pretty much turned them into polishing disks 😑 any idea what the hell they might have varnished that with?

[@glasslinger]

Sounds like urethane. It forms a layer of plastic on the surface that gums up a sanding disk. I use solvent first to remove as much of the old finish as possible then sand. Urethane looks great and is bullet proof but if it needs to be removed it is a mess!

[@phonotical]

@@glasslinger you've got that right! Had to keep dousing it in spirit 😅 hopefully I can get it right Thanks for the input!

[@archloy]

Also, sanding disk for power sanders could be washed (spirits, gasoline may works).

[@phonotical]

@@archloy I did try to wipe it off but as it wasn't coming off of the unit with them it wasn't coming off of the disks with them

[@archloy]

@@phonotical :/ and with a scrapper ? (maybe the long way, but you can clean it !). Or at least and carefully a heatgun. Did you try chemical paint remover ? (but on wood... I'm not sure !)

[@bhallfdx12345]

Could you do a quick presentation of types of radio recievers vs years or brank i.e 4.2.1 The first vacuum-tube receivers. 4.2.2 Regenerative (autodyne) receiver. 4.2.3 Superregenerative receiver. 4.2.4 TRF receiver. 4.2.5 Neutrodyne receiver. 4.2.6 Reflex receiver. 4.2.7 Superheterodyne receiver.

[@bhallfdx12345]

That should read years or brands. One can't repair a radio if you don't know how it works. We do not need theory, just what to expect or better yet, how to tell what kind of receiver we have.

[@sa8die]

nice video and info,., thanks!!!

[@dr.rakeshkumarmishra8939]

Good job

[@NOMOREPAM]

Hi. Thanks for the video. Why remove the internal antenna? Replacing the wires with flat 300ohm cable or using new flat ribbon cable would have worked. Also removing a turn or two on the antenna could help. I know it will sell for cheap.

[@glasslinger]

Tried that, removing turns and separating the wires. Still was not able to match the dial marks satisfactorily. There is no padder capacitor to adjust the low end and the top end was still far off. At a certain point it gets to a "hell with it" situation. This radio is not worth doing a front end redesign.

[@NOMOREPAM]

@@glasslinger I agree with the overall situation and I am happy you try.

[@greggaieck4808]

Glasslinger what is your hobbies?

[@greggaieck4808]

glasslinger me and my cousin are going to a Swap meet June 19 Sunday 2022 in the morning in Milwaukee

[@oliverharris7366]

Should last another fifty years.

[@justicelut]

Hi Ron, good job as usual. When you got bit, it reminded me of a poem that my dad taught me. " electric wires boy pliers, blue flashes boy ashes! "

[@greggaieck4808]

Glasslinger my hobbys are painting pictures and lisining to shortwave and ssb iam thinking about getting my ham license I have 4 shortwave receivers

[@pibbles-a-plenty1105]

I don't quite agree with your loop antenna solution, Ron. Yes, lacing up the wires detunes the loop so tracking is out of whack but keeping the wires loose probably is OK. Did you measure the inductance of the loop and assess tracking ability with minimal wiring capacitance? You jumped entirely past attempting that, why so???

[@glasslinger]

Most people won't bother with that much fooling around. All I wanted was the set to work within loose reason. To get the tracking correct would be more work than I am willing to put in!

[@Zbigniewkrupka]

Pozdrawiam z Polski 🇵🇱 👍 Super old Radio👏

[@ukrainehamradio]

One of the most brutal restorations I've seen. Nevertheless, it works.

[@dwtees]

Always there will be trolls

[@jeffreyhickman3871]

By your description, this is probably a Firestone Airchief radio 📻. These were manufactured 👨 by the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company, circa 1947. Certain models were shortwave. Others were a freestanding floor model, but I’m unsure 😐 if those were shortwave or not. I think 🤔 the Firestone Airchief was a 5 tube radio 📻. They had a dial light 💡, and a glass 🥃 dial face. These were such a beautiful 😻 radio 📻 of the time. Just give me a shout if I helped ya out with the name. Your friend, Jeff.

[@MrJohndoakes]

If it has five tubes, that is the "industry standard" tube AM radio of the 1930s-40s, the "All-American Five." Everybody made them.

[@sheldonlatimer6688]

Poor kiddie just wanted some TLC

[@Andrax999]

yea my dad use to be electrician he got a few bites worse ones are the ones you stay stuck to some high voltage will throw you i believe but they are both nasty in their own way

[@stevent3450]

Good Job!

[@n5xmt]

Air Chief was made by Firestone

[@marksommers6089]

Made by sparks withington ?