RCA Model 87K Restoration *FINISHED* - Page 2

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[ARCHIVED THREAD] - RCA Model 87K Restoration *FINISHED* (Page 2 of 4)

Posted: 6/12/2016 12:51:07 AM EDT

[#1]

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So that's what that is. My Dad had a reel to reel tape recorder that had one of those on it.

Vulcan94

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What were those "Magic Eye" devices? What/how were they used?

It is a visual tuning aid. The closer the green circle comes together the more in tune you are

Kind of like this one although there are different types

http://i1289.photobucket.com/albums/b519/Edisla/magiceye_zpspumpd2sw.jpg

So that's what that is. My Dad had a reel to reel tape recorder that had one of those on it.

Vulcan94

My Mom had similar. Not sure what happened to that thing but we still have the reels.

Posted: 6/12/2016 2:25:47 AM EDT

[#2]

Gluing this section back together, front and back.

Posted: 6/12/2016 3:59:29 AM EDT

[#3]

Prices on the I-177 testers have seemed to have dropped a lit bit. You might look into one of those.

Posted: 6/12/2016 11:40:24 PM EDT

[#4]

Remember this pic?

Cleaned that dusty area today and found some writing and there is a staple there where you can see that there must have been some sort of tag at one point.

Took the speaker out today to do some cleaning. Just a simple dusting at this point.

Before

After

Next to pics are the after shots of these 2 areas I glues. Nice and flat now.

Gluing some more areas.

Posted: 6/13/2016 9:17:18 PM EDT

[#5]

PARTS!!!

Posted: 6/15/2016 2:16:17 AM EDT

[#6]

Replaced some more caps today. Hope to do some more tomorrow.

Posted: 6/15/2016 10:15:20 AM EDT

[#7]

Very cool and interesting. I will definitely be checking out the progress.

Posted: 6/15/2016 9:31:19 PM EDT

[#8]

One of the good things about these old radios is how good they sound. That comes in part (mostly) from the big speaker and big cabinet.

Edisla, have you ever put modern guts in a big cabinet? Guts = tuner, amp and speaker(s).

Posted: 6/15/2016 9:54:21 PM EDT

[#9]

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Quoted:
One of the good things about these old radios is how good they sound. That comes in part (mostly) from the big speaker and big cabinet.

Edisla, have you ever put modern guts in a big cabinet? Guts = tuner, amp and speaker(s).

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I keep seeing some guy on Craigslist who turns console radios into guitar amps. While the amps are hand wired tube rigs that probably sound great, it bugs me that he's killing so many console radios.

Posted: 6/15/2016 11:50:25 PM EDT

[#10]

Quote History

Quoted:

One of the good things about these old radios is how good they sound. That comes in part (mostly) from the big speaker and big cabinet.

Edisla, have you ever put modern guts in a big cabinet? Guts = tuner, amp and speaker(s).

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No and I don't think I ever will. I don't like the idea.

Posted: 6/16/2016 12:10:55 AM EDT

[#11]

Swapped out a few more caps and took a look under the IF cans. IF cans are not all that fun

Inside the 1st IF can. I wanted to be sure there wasn't any bad wiring in here. All ok so far.

2nd IF had a couple resistors out of tolerance so I changed them out. These things make me nervous w/ that fine wiring in there

All for now.

Posted: 6/16/2016 10:57:23 AM EDT

[#12]

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No and I don't think I ever will. I don't like the idea.

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Quoted:

Quoted:
One of the good things about these old radios is how good they sound. That comes in part (mostly) from the big speaker and big cabinet.

Edisla, have you ever put modern guts in a big cabinet? Guts = tuner, amp and speaker(s).

No and I don't think I ever will. I don't like the idea.

I'm sure you're correct. It's just that I tried to find a decent table radio and could not. I started thinking about building one - a nice box for the table top and good guts.

Posted: 6/19/2016 2:45:10 PM EDT

[#13]

I have made the final connections and am about to slowly bring it up on the variac.

If you don't hear back from me within the hour send for help

ETA - WHOA! Forgot a cap

Posted: 6/19/2016 3:04:00 PM EDT

[#14]

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I have made the final connections and am about to slowly bring it up on the variac.

If you don't hear back from me within the hour send for help

ETA - WHOA! Forgot a cap

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So...does 80 year old smoke look any different than modern smoke?

Posted: 6/19/2016 3:56:15 PM EDT

[#15]

Here is the completed underside work minus some heat shrink tubing I'll do when I know everything is working.

Posted: 6/19/2016 4:04:20 PM EDT

[#16]

IT'S ALIVE!

The video of power up was getting to long so I did it in segments. The first couple are not to interesting so here are some when things got good

1

https://youtu.be/9zLNfEuZVXE

2

https://youtu.be/oYVYTY5-Lb0

3

https://youtu.be/8NUd6LmeV8Y

4

https://youtu.be/BO0tD2ES-GQ

I'm letting it burn in for a while to see how things go.

Posted: 6/19/2016 4:18:48 PM EDT

[#17]

Quote History

Quoted:
IT'S ALIVE!

The video of power up was getting to long so I did it in segments. The first couple are not to interesting so here are some when things got good

1
https://youtu.be/9zLNfEuZVXE

2
https://youtu.be/oYVYTY5-Lb0

3
https://youtu.be/8NUd6LmeV8Y

4
https://youtu.be/BO0tD2ES-GQ

I'm letting it burn in for a while to see how things go.

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That is awesome OP. Thanks

Posted: 6/19/2016 4:21:22 PM EDT

[#18]

Sounds really good to me!

Posted: 6/19/2016 4:23:19 PM EDT

[#19]

Thanks!

So far so good.

Magic eye needs some checking into but I'll deal with that later. I am going to enjoy it as is today and then the next step will be to tear it all down so I can service the chassis and get things all spiffed up. This requires pulling the tuning cap off as well as the entire dial assembly. More fun is coming up!

Posted: 6/20/2016 1:54:55 AM EDT

[#20]

Awesome! I believe it was you who posted a rebuild on here before...if so, you owe me money!

I've been bit by the vintage electronics bug-partially due to that thread and have started buying tools and equipment to work on old radios. I have a couple that I'm going to go through once I understand them more. I've also been hooked on Mr. Carlson's Lab on Youtube. I need a new hobby like a hole in the head, but I guess that's how it goes.

Posted: 6/21/2016 12:40:32 AM EDT

[#21]

So now that we know the radio has potential lets unplug it and tear it down so chassis restoration can begin.

I was not going to bring any more radio work into the house but it's effen hot in the garage and will be for a while.

Getting ready to start attacking the rust spots.

Throwing down some rust removing jelly

Working the one terminal strip

Before

After

I'll most likely be painting the chassis so I will either try and save that sticker or make a new one to put back down later.

That is all for now.

Posted: 6/24/2016 12:52:04 AM EDT

[#22]

Took the dial needles and dial plate off. Needles are down left on top of chassis.

Close up of the gear drive

Dial house off

After cleaning. Didn't even notice the inside part is painted off white. I'll be redoing both sides soon.

Posted: 6/27/2016 12:25:30 AM EDT

[#23]

Got the tuning cap off after about 2 hours of work

My pen iron was not enough so I borrowed a gun iron. Still not enough. Then I tried a torch and WHOA that was a bit much so I went back to the gun. Nothing was working. I decided to go back to the torch on the lowest setting I could get and all was good after like 1 min

You can see the dust build up under where the cap is located.

Tuning cap

Stripped the dial support

Before painting

After

Posted: 6/29/2016 2:52:48 PM EDT

[#24]

I'd love to rebuild one of these and put it in my living room.

Every time I see one of these threads, I troll CL for a radio to restore, but I can never find one. :(

Posted: 6/30/2016 12:03:55 AM EDT

[#25]

Just keep looking.

I've been itching to go to CL but have been trying to keep my addiction under control

Tape, tape everywhere!

Chassis prep for paint.

Painted

Looking pretty good. The one label there is coming up a bit so I'll have to glue that back down.

Posted: 7/2/2016 12:45:21 PM EDT

[#26]

Quote History

Quoted:
So now that we know the radio has potential lets unplug it and tear it down so chassis restoration can begin.

I was not going to bring any more radio work into the house but it's effen hot in the garage and will be for a while.

Getting ready to start attacking the rust spots.

http://i1289.photobucket.com/albums/b519/Edisla/IMG_3528_zpstbrkmxh6.jpg

Throwing down some rust removing jelly

http://i1289.photobucket.com/albums/b519/Edisla/IMG_3529_zpsorrobnfa.jpg

Working the one terminal strip

Before

http://i1289.photobucket.com/albums/b519/Edisla/IMG_3536_zpsva2httri.jpg

After

http://i1289.photobucket.com/albums/b519/Edisla/IMG_3538_zpsdscdnfqo.jpg

I'll most likely be painting the chassis so I will either try and save that sticker or make a new one to put back down later.

That is all for now.

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Would it be possible to use the phonograph input as an auxiliary audio input?

Posted: 7/2/2016 6:31:50 PM EDT

[#27]

I would think so but you may need to add some more parts. I never actually looked into it to much.

This might help - http://antiqueradios.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=134197

What I do is I have an AM transmitter I hook my tablet to and put on Pandora.

This is what I have - http://www.sstran.com/

Posted: 7/2/2016 6:43:39 PM EDT

[#28]

I noticed that the wiring for the two bulbs was hard and cracked so I needed to replace it.

Here is the wiring for the bulbs

The heat shrink tubing was crusty as well

Here are the new wires. The original wiring was one wire but I put two in since I figured it would be easier.

I did not shrink the tubing down yet because I found something else I am going to try and fix

Here is one of the bulb holders. This is the left one that was loose. Now I know why. Look at the crack along the bend.

What I am trying is some JB Weld along the inside and wrapped around to the bend. I then took one of the radios old caps and tied it down slightly to try and get it to be down closer to original tension.

I don't expect this to work well but maybe good enough.

Posted: 7/3/2016 11:18:04 PM EDT

[#29]

Time to paint the speaker

Before

After

I tapped off the markings so I could retain some originality.

Everything but the cabinet as it is today

Posted: 7/7/2016 12:03:03 AM EDT

[#30]

The 3 new grommets came in for the tuning capacitor. 1 of them didn't have a complete groove around the entire grommet so I had to cut it out a bit.

Close up of one of them. Now I need to get the cap mounted back to the chassis.

Posted: 7/7/2016 12:41:00 AM EDT

[#31]

Looking good man, thanks for the updates.

Posted: 7/9/2016 12:37:25 AM EDT

[#32]

Mounted the capacitor back onto the chassis

Mounted the dial plate support back onto the chassis

New belt for the tuning capacitor has been ordered.

Reinstalled the magic eye and lights.

Eye will be getting replaced in the future.

Posted: 7/9/2016 10:16:22 AM EDT

[#33]

This is pretty cool!

Posted: 7/10/2016 10:28:46 PM EDT

[#34]

Getting ready to pull the speaker and grill cloth supports

All removed.

Those black smudges appear to be hand prints from manufacturing. Not uncommon to find a fingerprint or two somewhere on these things.

Here is the grill cloth and support or back board. I'll be replacing both.

You can see upper left how the cloth should look. Darker and gold.

I think this cloth is the best match out there.

http://richmonddesignsinc.com/yahoo_site_admin/assets/images/Zenith_Swirl.120114604_std.jpg

Posted: 7/10/2016 10:45:19 PM EDT

[#35]

Thank you for the updates; I'm really enjoying this thread!

Posted: 7/10/2016 10:53:45 PM EDT

[#36]

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Quoted:

Thank you for the updates; I'm really enjoying this thread!

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Hey no prob at all.

I might slow a bit since it's mostly cabinet stuff now and it takes time to get what I need and get it done to where I am happy.

That and my damn sciatica is kicking my butt right now

I'm going to lay low for the week and see how I'm doing this next weekend.

Posted: 7/10/2016 11:26:19 PM EDT

[#37]

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Quoted:

Hey no prob at all.

I might slow a bit since it's mostly cabinet stuff now and it takes time to get what I need and get it done to where I am happy.

That and my damn sciatica is kicking my butt right now

I'm going to lay low for the week and see how I'm doing this next weekend.

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Quoted:

Quoted:

Thank you for the updates; I'm really enjoying this thread!

Hey no prob at all.

I might slow a bit since it's mostly cabinet stuff now and it takes time to get what I need and get it done to where I am happy.

That and my damn sciatica is kicking my butt right now

I'm going to lay low for the week and see how I'm doing this next weekend.

Take your time and enjoy the ride man. Sciatica is where the term "pain in the butt" comes from you know. Hope you get to feeling better soon.

Posted: 7/17/2016 12:14:05 AM EDT

[#38]

I started putting the tuning mechanisms back together and noticed that the belt idler arm was sitting at an angle. Turns out it was a tad worn out.

Being my cheap assed self I JB Welded it and turned it on my drill press w/ 1000 grit paper.

Came up with this where the JB remained in the low spots

Here is the shaft w/ the idler attached. If you look I had broken a C clamp and again being my cheap ass self I used a star washer and made a clamp out of it instead of buying a new one.

The old dial belt and the new poly belt

Tuning shaft and new belt in place

Face and needles in place

Lit up, a new magic eye will need to be ordered. It's actually working but VERY dim. Funny since that will cost as much as I paid for the radio

Posted: 7/17/2016 9:07:03 AM EDT

[#39]

When you say "new" Magic Eye; do you mean an original that works better, or do they still make spare parts for radios that old?

Posted: 7/17/2016 11:26:23 AM EDT

[#40]

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When you say "new" Magic Eye; do you mean an original that works better, or do they still make spare parts for radios that old?

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I'm not sure if there are NEW eyes out there but there are a lot of NOS like this one but I hear these are real bright - http://www.ebay.com/itm/1PCS-TOYO-6E5-Magic-Eye-Vacuum-Tube-JAPAN-NOS-/151325245645?hash=item233bb000cd:g:QisAAOSw4bVTmDnl

I'd like to get a more duller original green looking tube. I'll probably go with the 6E5 instead of the 6G5 that I have here mainly due to cost, I only paid $25 for the radio itself. This one might due - http://www.ebay.com/itm/6E5S-6G5G-6E5G-6E5-MAGIC-EYE-TUBE-NOS-1970s-/201586823287?hash=item2eef82d077:g:sIoAAOSw9VZXPAkM

The one thing I hear you run into is that the 6E5 substitute will overlap the green on strong signals.

Sites to get new and repro parts for radios - http://radiodaze.com/ , http://www.renovatedradios.com/

I get capacitors from here - http://justradios.com/

I'll probably be getting grill cloth from here again - http://www.richmonddesignsinc.com/grille_cloth_product_page

Posted: 7/17/2016 6:46:02 PM EDT

[#41]

Worked on the alignment today. I'll wait a bit to see if WWV comes in on the other bands before I call it good enough.

Posted: 7/17/2016 7:26:47 PM EDT

[#42]

Loving this thread, thanks for sharing!

Posted: 7/17/2016 9:14:29 PM EDT

[#43]

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Loving this thread, thanks for sharing!

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Me, too, Edisla always has GREAT threads.

Posted: 7/17/2016 9:56:05 PM EDT

[#44]

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Quoted:
Me, too, Edisla always has GREAT threads.

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Quoted:

Loving this thread, thanks for sharing!

Me, too, Edisla always has GREAT threads.

Yes he absolutely does!

Posted: 7/19/2016 12:16:35 AM EDT

[#45]

An iron? WTF!

Posted: 7/19/2016 12:23:43 AM EDT

[#46]

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An iron? WTF!

http://i1289.photobucket.com/albums/b519/Edisla/IMG_3639_zpsjzgvmueg.jpg

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Attempting to raise some dents out of the wood?

Posted: 7/19/2016 12:30:37 AM EDT

[#47]

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Quoted:
Attempting to raise some dents out of the wood?

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Quoted:

An iron? WTF!

http://i1289.photobucket.com/albums/b519/Edisla/IMG_3639_zpsjzgvmueg.jpg

Attempting to raise some dents out of the wood?

Actually laying down some diluted wood glue into the cracks of buckling veneer. Weigh it down and if that doesn't sit flat iron it out.

So far it's working pretty good.

I'll keep y'all posted

Posted: 7/20/2016 1:02:51 AM EDT

[#48]

Ordered up some Medium Brown Walnut paste wood filler. Hoping this makes things easier. The first radios I did up I used Natural color that I had to add coloring to to make it blend. It was a real bitch!

Still trying to figure out a new magic eye. I noted the 6E5's I see have a center key but my socket is solid for the original 6G5.