Wireless Set No. 52 Canadian - Project

[David Dunlop]

Thought I would post another update photo of the collective project now that 80% of the main set components are now assembled.

Just the Carrier No. 4 delivery to sort out now.

David

[David Dunlop]

This is almost a simple topic as only one modification shows up in the listing I have for the Sender. Naturally, it is Modification No, 1, for the installation of the modification card holder.

This is where the 'almost' above comes in.

The instructions state a metal plate is to be removed from the left rear corner of the chassis, holes to be drilled into the plate, the holder attached and the plate returned to its position on the chassis. Problem is, there is no metal plate on the chassis in that location, either on the rear or left side of the chassis. I checked the Sender chassis I have and all the photos of the Sender in the manual. No such plate.

There is no room at all on the top of the chassis to mount a card holder and I could see nothing anywhere when looking through the chassis. Curiosity got the better of me finally and as a last resort, I carefully turned the chassis over to have a look at the bottom. There it was, as per the attached photo. And there was a modification card inside stating the modification was done in 1947, but no mention of the Shop where the work was done.

David

[David Dunlop]

I have not really detailed out the parts sequence for restoration work on this project just yet. The Carrier No. 4 still needs to be looked at up close once it arrives, but other than that, all I know so far is the first priority will be to finish work on the two receivers. That work is already three quarters completed, so best follow through with it.

My suspicion is the Supply Unit may end up being the last item tackled. I still have two single conductor connector cables to find for the main set and until they are found, I do not want to risk damage to the Sender, Supply Unit or both by ad hocing anything foolish. So buying more time by restoring the supply last makes sense from that perspective.

I was initially hoping the panel of the Supply Unit could be polished back down to the right shade of paint patina to blend in with the two receivers, but now that I have cleaned the grime off and had a closer look, that will no longer be possible.

First, too much paint is completely gone from the bottom of the panel. Nearly an inch, and in that same area, the bottom inch of the Receiver Vibrator Supply Module has been bent inwards just enough that it will have to be tooled carefully back to straight. I don’t think there is enough ‘careful’ available in the paint to prevent it from spalling off when that work is done.

The final factor in deciding on a complete restore of the supply panel was the discovery of just how incredibly sloppy the decal application work was during its 1966 shop refurbishment. Take a look at the attached factory photo of the supply decals from the manual, and compare it to the work done on this supply. Yikes!

I think some good water transfer decal software is on the horizon for me at some point.

David

[Grant Bowker]

Originally Posted by David Dunlop

I think some good water transfer decal software is on the horizon for me at some point.

I recall reading about creating water transfer deals by printing. One issue is with printing white - most printers rely on white paper rather than actually printing white so you either need to find one of the rare printers that deposits white to the page or print on transfer film that has white background (and cover every scrap that you don't want to show white (including around the edges)).

[David Dunlop]

Hi Grant.

Yes. I suspect a bit of research will be involved when I get to that point. And very likely, a new desk top system.

Something else I just noticed reading your response. The decals used in the 1966 rebuild have a similar overall size to each of the originals, but there is a lot more black surrounding the words. The decals in the manual photo are a match in surround size to the decals on my receivers, and the Sender.

Hmmm. I think I will have to put the black light on the Supply Unit and Sender tomorrow and see what, if anything glows, and in what colours.

David

[Grant Bowker]

A really quick Google says that waterslide "paper" to suit either laser or inkjet printers exists with either white or clear background (i.e. four different types of "paper").
At one time there were dye sublimation printers made by ALPS that could print white but they seem to be out of business...
There are listings on ebay for refurbished Alps printers for waterslide printing - eg. https://www.ebay.ca/itm/Refurnbished...IAAOSwRJ1Zn~QZ There are also results for Windows 10 drivers for the Alps MD-1000. However, specialized orphans can be relatively expensive and the consumables can also be out of line compared to more widely used and current product.

[Bob Carriere]

Could a very light canary yellow or very light grey be substituted for the white color?????

[David Dunlop]

The last major piece of this project arrived yesterday afternoon via FedEx. Quite an impressive beast when you get it unpacked!

Main plan for it at the moment is a basic clean up of all the years of dirt and grime accumulation. Sadly, it underwent a 1960’s era repaint in which all original finish was stripped and NATO green applied. Like the Remote Receiver Case I found, even the inside of the carrier was painted. In the Remote Receiver Case, the paint inside was thin enough the two grounding springs in the upper back of the case were still capable of grounding the case to the chassis of the receiver. The paint job on this Carriers No. 4, however, is so thick inside, I don’t think any of the six grounding springs could work properly again.

Once cleaned, I must read up in the manual about the correct way to reinstall the three components. Jacques Fortin brought this point to my attention, as it is a very tricky task. A 52-Set definitely makes for a very interesting learning curve!

David

[David Dunlop]

Hi Bob.

In reply to your question on water transfer decal colours, it could easily be done that way, yes.

From what I can piece together, the original decals were printed with the layers of paint colours built up on them. This included the small patches of luminous paint. When you look at the original decals up close at an angle, you notice they are not completely flat on the radio panels. There is always a subtle rectangular raised patch visible, where the pad of luminous paint was applied. The lettering in this instance is the clear portions of the decal allowing the 'white' luminous paint patch to show through.

If one is restoring a panel and not worried about the decals being luminous anymore, white background transfer sheets are a good fit. If, however, one wants to preserve the glow in the dark appearance of the panel, things get a lot more complicated, quickly. Commercial printers could possible reproduce the original luminous decals, but at what cost? I have some ideas to work around that problem floating about in my head at the moment, but have not yet made complete sense of it all.

Adding to the problem, is the luminous paints used during the 1940's. They all have a very similar, if not in fact identical appearance in daylight: a milky white colour. Under UV stimulation, however, some glow blue, some yellow, some orange and some green. Probably other colours and shade factors out there as well. Blues and greens are reasonably common in craft supply places today, but I have not looked enough to see if other colours can be had with the required milky white daytime appearance. I have found an orange one, but it comes as a neon orange daytime colour. Yikes!

David

[Bruce Parker (RIP)]

Dave, I would never have believed a loose 52 set carrier would be out there. Good find!!!!! I think you and I need to mix up a batch of matt brown wrinkle paint.

Originally Posted by David Dunlop

The last major piece of this project arrived yesterday afternoon via FedEx. Quite an impressive beast when you get it unpacked!

Main plan for it at the moment is a basic clean up of all the years of dirt and grime accumulation. Sadly, it underwent a 1960’s era repaint in which all original finish was stripped and NATO green applied. Like the Remote Receiver Case I found, even the inside of the carrier was painted. In the Remote Receiver Case, the paint inside was thin enough the two grounding springs in the upper back of the case were still capable of grounding the case to the chassis of the receiver. The paint job on this Carriers No. 4, however, is so thick inside, I don’t think any of the six grounding springs could work properly again.

Once cleaned, I must read up in the manual about the correct way to reinstall the three components. Jacques Fortin brought this point to my attention, as it is a very tricky task. A 52-Set definitely makes for a very interesting learning curve!

David

[David Dunlop]

Actually, Bruce, it was part of a complete set out of Quebec. The Supply Unit and Sender are its mates. The complete set was $200.00 Cdn. I did not need the Receiver so gave it to Jacques Fortin to save a bit on shipping costs.

Its interesting, Bruce, in the roughly three years I have been looking for 52-Set parts, two complete sets have surfaced. This one and another about a year ago in Alberta. That one started out at $400 Cdn, jumped to $1,000 and then went dark. It might still be out there. Neither of the owners knew to identify what they had by the information on the ID tags on each component in front of them. The sets showed up on line as ‘Old Army Radio’, ‘Antique Military Radio’, or some other description. If you look on line under those types of terms, you get swamped with hits. Thousands of items pop up, covering all decades from WW2 to the present. Makes it really hard. I have come to suspect these sets, though few in numbers, are still very much out there. The trick is flushing them out.

It will be interesting to sort out a good wrinkle No. 2 Brown. Very few enamels still out there and even fewer wrinkle options. Compounding the problem is the fact ‘wrinkle’ does not seem to define a single thing, but more typically a spectrum of paints, all of which seem to show up on wartime wireless equipment sooner or later.

While I think of it, Bruce. The mounting hardware securing the Receiver, Supply Unit and Sender in this 52-Set was missing. My Remote Receiver Case has 1/4-20 hex bolts holding the Receiver in place. I am running with that for the Carriers No. 4 at the moment, but find it interesting there are no tools in the set Tool Box to accommodate hex bolts of any size. There are, however, three different sized slot head screw drivers. So, perhaps the mounting hardware was slotted, round head 1/4-20 machine screws. Access to all the screw heads would be a challenge for any of the three sized screw drivers in the tool box, as there are so many knobs, dials and fiddly bits sticking out on the front panels. How is your 52-set installed in the Carrier No. 4?

David

[David Dunlop]

A quick update photo of the Carriers No. 4 after a good wash, brushing, air gun blow and vacuum. Quite a difference now from its first arrival as per the first photo in Post 218.

David

[Bruce Parker (RIP)]

Originally Posted by David Dunlop

A quick update photo of the Carriers No. 4 after a good wash, brushing, air gun blow and vacuum. Quite a difference now from its first arrival as per the first photo in Post 218.

David

Just asking….

Is the bed on the left what your wife insists you sleep on when you get too worked up on your project? My wife demanded one too...so just asking....

[Grant Bowker]

I think it looks like a mock-up of the Diefenbunker. Not the PM's office but some of the work spaces where a duty person would nap by the work, expected to spring to life as required. I know the feeling - expected to do that at work on occasion.

[David Dunlop]

Truth be told, folks, napping has happened from time to time while working on this project.

Debbie has been very supportive. she knows how much I have dreamed of putting one of these wireless sets back together and on the air, and I have managed to hold up my end of the project by keeping the costs out of the realm of the household budget.

She has even volunteered to help me with hauling the Carriers No. 4 up onto the wireless bench in the background, into its designated resting place. Hope to get that done this weekend.

David

[David Dunlop]

Weighing in at 110 pounds, the Carriers No. 4 is the heaviest piece in the 52-Set wireless. It consists of two main parts, joined together at the sides by means of three rubber Bridge units, each side.

The lower portion of the Carriers No. 4 consists of heavy steel stock, formed and welded together to create essentially a long, U-shaped cradle mount, which is secured to a wireless table by means of two large steel clamp and bolt sets, each side.

The upper section of the Carriers No. 4 is essentially a long steel box with two inner partitions that holds the Receiver, Supply Unit and Sender components of the 52-Set. The basic box is made of one large folded, heavy gauge piece of sheet steel making up the top, rear and bottom of the wireless case. Two separate pieces, mirror images form the ends and two inner pieces form the partitions, each side of the Supply Unit. All four of these pieces, and the two end pieces of the Remote Receiver case, start out the same, but have slightly different stampings and/or holes drilled in them.

On the upper rear portion of the Carriers No. 4, a long, rectangular opening has been punched, with eight equally spaces holes top and bottom, to mount the PLUG, Assemblies, Multi and its corresponding COVERS, Metal No. C1. It is this Plug Assemblies that provides all the interconnections, but one, between the Receiver, Supply Unit and Sender.

The Cover is a single piece stamping out of the same gauge sheet steel as the case portion of the Carriers No. 4.

When removing the screws from the Cover, I was unsure of where to start. The Cover looked heavy and I wanted to be sure when down to the last screw, it stayed accessible if the Cover swung downward. Turned out to be an unnecessary concern. When the last screw was removed, the Cover stayed put. I assumed the fibre gaskets around its edge (GASKETS, Fibre, No. C1 ZA/CAN 4251) had stuck to the paint so gently started to pull backwards on the Cover. It came back about one quarter inch and still stayed put. A close look revealed a pair of retaining brackets screwed to the back of the Carriers No. 4, one at each end of the Plugs opening. Clearly, Canadian Marconi had been aware of the weight of this Cover and how difficult if could be to install it for any reason in tight quarters. Love it! A further steady pull brought the Cover completely free of the two retaining brackets, with the Plug Assemblies Multi tucked safely inside the Cover.

David

[David Dunlop]

Once I had removed the COVERS, Metal, No. C1 from its retaining brackets on the rear of the Carriers No. 4, things suddenly started to make much more sense in the Instruction Manual for the 52-Set. In particular, Section 6.11 starting on Page 137. This section explains the correct procedure for reinstalling the Receiver, Supply Unit and Sender into the Carriers No. 4, if all three have had to be removed at the same time for any reason.

The only thing that holds the PLUG, Assemblies, Multi to the 52-Set are the five individual Bakelite plugs themselves, once they are pressed into the five corresponding sockets fitted to the back of the three set components. If none of the three components are present, the PLUG, Assemblies, Multi becomes a free-floating object inside the Covers, Metal, No. C1. As a unit, this PLUG, Assemblies is heavy and the vertical wiggle room within the Covers is not enough to prevent the Plug and component sockets from lining up with each other. Same for the lateral movement to either side of the set. With the Cover screwed in place, the two Cover Retaining Brackets either side minimize the side-to-side wiggle of the Plus Assembly to acceptable limits. The exception is the depth of the Covers. See the first photo.

The internal depth of the Covers, Metal, No. C1 is twice that of the Plug Assemblies, Multi. If all three set components have been removed from the Carriers at the same time, as soon as you attempt to replace the first component, it will simply push the Plug, Assemblies, Multi to the back of its Covers, out of reach. You will have no choice at that point, other than to read up on Section 6.11 of the Manual and perform a ‘by the book’ reinstall.

I would also strongly advise you carefully clean the connecting surfaces of both the Bakelite plugs and sockets on the 52-Set. They are a snug fit to start with and it will not take much in the way of fine dirt or dust building up on the surfaces to cause them to bind against each other when being connected or disconnected. They are all black Bakelite and all of mine looked fine at first, but it is amazing how dirty a damp cloth and toothbrush gets when you start cleaning.

It is also a good idea when connecting, or disconnecting these Bakelite connectors, to apply the force you are using perpendicular to the faces of the connectors. In other words, push straight in and pull straight out. If the force you are applying gets too far off the perpendicular, the connecting faces of the plugs and sockets will bind against each other. Bakelite was never a forgiving material at the best of times and these parts are additionally, now 75+ years old. Be nice. The last picture posted here shows the damage that can happen to the Plugs if not treated carefully. Four out of the five in my Carriers No. 4 have this type of damage present.

The nice find was that the paper terminal labels inside the five plugs are minty originals.

The other photo I posted is of the back of the Plug, Assemblies, Multi. Again, a one piece sheet steel stamping, satin nickel plated. The metal gauge seems to be the same as used for the Covers and Carriers.

I have been thinking about the design of the Plug, Assemblies, Multi when it comes to all three components of the wireless set being removed from the Carriers. I have not yet seen any documentation from Canadian Marconi, or the Military end users of the 52-Set flagging this topic as an issue or problem. No revised Covers. No apparent modifications. The logic of the design may be difficult to grasp today, but it would seem to have been a valid design. The same style of connectors system was used by Marconi on wireless sets built for use by the Navy during the war and no concerns appear at that end either.

Two possible justifications for the design come to mind. When mounted on the back of the Carriers No. 4, the Plug Assemblies are open to the inner case of the Carriers. When the fans in the Supply Unit and Sender were operating, warm air would certainly be capable of circulation around the Plug Assemblies so they would stay dry. Secondly, as mentioned earlier, Bakelite is not the most forgiving substance. If the Covers were snugged up against the Plug Assemblies firmly, it is possible the shock of any blow to the surface of the Covers could transfer to the Bakelite connectors and crack them.

That’s all I’ve got on this topic at the moment.

David

[David Dunlop]

Well, it was an interesting and productive day today.

Debbie and I got the Carriers No. 4 up onto its intended resting place on the wireless bench to start with. I then took the opportunity, while the Plug Assemblies was out in the open to check the continuity of all the circuits therein. They checked out just fine. Then the individual plugs got a cleaning.

Finally, I slid the three main set components into the Carriers No. 4 and reconnected the Plug Assemblies and Cover. That is one challenging task, and I much more fully appreciate Marconi's warnings in the manual about such work, having now gone through it. It did not help that the lower bank of screws on the Cover had to be reinstalled blind because there was only seven inches of clearance between the back of the Carriers No. 4 and the basement wall. Not thrilled about eventually having to do it again when it comes time to repaint the Carriers No. 4, but at least I now know more fully what to expect.

The attached photo shows the 52-Set in its place of honour on the bench. The set from Montreal did not have the Coil, Aerial Tuning assembly with it, so I wonder when the last time was that this set actually had one fitted to the top of it?

Hard to believe I am now just two small connector cables away from having a fully integrated 52-Set. I don't think the progress on this project has fully sunk in yet!

David

[David Dunlop]

This part of the project is a ‘Planning Ahead’ segment, more than anything.

I will eventually be doing a restoration of the Supply Unit for my 52-Set, which is going to bring the two dynamotors into the picture. The main concerns with them will be the inspection and cleaning of the brushes and armatures, which is a relatively straightforward process. Where it will get interesting, however, is the cleaning and regreasing of the bearings.

This 52-Set was very likely last operated sometime in the 1970’s, and when the dynamotor bearings were last cleaned and lubricated prior to that is anyone’s guess.

Version 2 of the Parts Listings for the 52-Set, issued July 1948, identifies the grease used as GREASE, Lubricating, Andoc and it was available in 1-pound tins.

In 1954, Modification Order No. 4 was issued dealing with changing the original grease to one identified as 3-GP-683a, which was an Arctic tolerant grease, if the 52-Sets were being deployed there.

While checking the web today, it appears Andoc grease was an Exxon Product and version ‘Andoc C’ was discontinued in 2001. I have no idea what the qualities of this particular grease were, to be able to match it to a modern substitute, so I am very much open to suggestions for an appropriate substitute. I would like to track down suitable grease ahead of time, rather than have the project grind to a halt, when it reaches the point of restoring the Supply Unit.

David

[Chris Suslowicz]

Originally Posted by David Dunlop

This part of the project is a ‘Planning Ahead’ segment, more than anything.

I will eventually be doing a restoration of the Supply Unit for my 52-Set, which is going to bring the two dynamotors into the picture. The main concerns with them will be the inspection and cleaning of the brushes and armatures, which is a relatively straightforward process. Where it will get interesting, however, is the cleaning and regreasing of the bearings.

This 52-Set was very likely last operated sometime in the 1970’s, and when the dynamotor bearings were last cleaned and lubricated prior to that is anyone’s guess.

Version 2 of the Parts Listings for the 52-Set, issued July 1948, identifies the grease used as GREASE, Lubricating, Andoc and it was available in 1-pound tins.

In 1954, Modification Order No. 4 was issued dealing with changing the original grease to one identified as 3-GP-683a, which was an Arctic tolerant grease, if the 52-Sets were being deployed there.

While checking the web today, it appears Andoc grease was an Exxon Product and version ‘Andoc C’ was discontinued in 2001. I have no idea what the qualities of this particular grease were, to be able to match it to a modern substitute, so I am very much open to suggestions for an appropriate substitute. I would like to track down suitable grease ahead of time, rather than have the project grind to a halt, when it reaches the point of restoring the Supply Unit.

David

Searching for Andoc C Grease in Google, got me a "Table 14a List of Consumable Material" and Item 55 is "Grease, ball and roller bearing" Specification "Commercial, Standard Oil ANDOC C" in 8oz. tubes, FSC 9G9150-261-8311, intended use "Lubricating bearings for high speed and temperature", which sounds about right.

https://www.nationalprecision.com/mi...lubricants.php suggests "Polyrex EM" as a replacement for Andoc C, though it looks like Beacon 325 or Royco 27 might be good substitutes depending on temperature range.

The last two are Lithium grease variants, and with any change of lubricant type it's very important to get rid of any existing grease before re-filling the bearing (to avoid chemical reactions between different grease types that can -under some circumstances- produce a compound of abrasive rather than lubricating properties).

I think these are aerospace/military lubricants and therefore Not Cheap. Any standard grease for small motor bearings should be fine.

(I made the mistake of looking up Royco 27 on Amazon and the first hit was "Royco Mchuzi Mix (Spicy Beef Flavour)" which to my mind has dubious lubricating properties and is unlikely to be suitable for this application.)

Chris.

[David Dunlop]

I have not reported much on this project recently, so thought an explanation would be in order. I have been sidetracked with a related project(s).

I am at a point now where I need to go through both receivers to align and calibrate them. This requires a multimeter and an oscilloscope. I have a good analog and digital pair of meters to do part of the work with, and I had a working OS8-B Oscilloscope until last October, when a pair of electrolytic can capacitors in the power supply died. Exact modern replacements are available but pricy.

In November, a local friend told me of a pile of surplus electronics that had just been dropped off at a local museum and that most of it was not usable for the museum and headed for scrap. He suggested I drop by for a rummage. Ended up coming home with four semi scrapped Tektronix oscilloscopes and a pile of related goodies. The scopes weighed 65 pounds each and it took two car trips to get all the stuff home. All for the price of a large Timmies Coffee.

Out of the four scopes, I now have one restored and finally doing almost all it is supposed to do. Still a bit of fine tuning to sort out, but the end of this project is finally in sight. Then I can get back to the two 52-Set receivers and get them finished.

David

[David Dunlop]

Thanks for the information on the grease, Chris. You are right...best not mix it up with the spices.


David

[David Dunlop]

I had to take a break from oscilloscope work this week as my head was starting to spin, and I think I was also developing a mild case of 52-Set Withdrawal.

I decided to try a little more hand polishing to remove more of the yellowed varnish top coat on the Sender panel. A simple half hour of freehand work without work lights. I tackled the lower right quadrant of the sender fan door assembly, where I had earlier removed a set of red numbers. (See Posts 201 and 228).

The polish cloth was coming away with quite a brown tone to it as I worked, but the colour did lighten up quite a bit and when the time comes to clean the Sender panel, I think I should be able to get a very close match to the upper portion of the Receiver panel.

The other little bit of excitement was the arrival yesterday of a second Cases, Spares Box for the 52-Set.The interior KimPaK lining in this one is as close to mint as one could hope for, compared to my other box. (See last photo Post 168). Restoring/replacing that lining was going to be a major challenge, so I was pleased to cross paths with this one.

This box also underwent a NATO conversion on the outside and I will be surprised if any original stencil markings show up. But I will take a careful look...just in case. The exterior of the box was sanded and NATO Greened, and then a large patch of tan paint was slapped on and NATO stencil ID's added in black. It looked so garish, the previous owner toned it down with a uniform coat of green paint.

David

[David Dunlop]

This assembly is missing from the Slow Motion Drive on my Sender P.A. Drive Dial. I have been able to source an example of the earlier version from a 19-Set Mk II, which I can install to get the dial controls operational, but I would eventually like to find the correct later version of this assembly.

The early (Mk II 19-Set) version is a single leaf spring item. With hard use, these were found to weaken over time so on the 19-Set Mk III Canadian, and the 52-Set, a reinforced version of the assembly was introduced. It can be recognized by the addition of a second half leaf piece of spring steel riveted at the base end pivot point.

If anyone happens to have a junker Mk III Canadian 19-Set with one of these reinforced assemblies available, please let me know.

David

[David Dunlop]

The oscilloscope sub-project is now officially on the back burner. I have been able to bring it back from a disassembled hulk to a working scope, even if, at the moment ‘working’ is not yet exactly as per design.

Having been away from the 52-Set Project for almost two months is enough time away. I pulled out the 2nd to 4th Echelon Repair Manual and started rereading it today. With a little luck, I should be able to align and calibrate both receivers, without having to sort anything serious out with a scope.

I do like the approach of the individuals who wrote the repair manual. They start you off nice an simple. Step 1 is to zero the indicator needle on the meter and calibrate the meter. So off we go! I will continue to post as things unfold.

David

[David Dunlop]

Well I am finally catching up a bit on this project, but not without a fair amount of multi-tasking. Something I have never been very good at for long, without getting a major headache in the process and a large empty space in the wine cellar (for which I deny any correlation whatsoever).

The first thing I realized was the documentation of work in the 2nd to 4th Echelon Work Manual is comprehensive, but not organized in the best manner for actually recording test data results. Five tables of specifications relate directly to the 52-Set Receiver as follows:

Table 7 - Receiver Voltage Check
Table 8 - Receiver Resistance Chart A
Table 9 – Receiver Resistance Chart B
Table 10 – Crystal Calibrator Resistance Chart A
Table 11 – Crystal Calibrator Resistance Chart B

I have now transcribed the first three tables to Excel Spreadsheet format, adding in spaces for recording actual test results next to each specification. This makes saving the data for later analysis so much more efficient. I hope to have the two calibrator tables finished by next weekend.

In addition, this morning I was able to complete working through the data collection from my Remote Receiver for Table 7. This data is collected with all valves and lamps in their sockets and the chassis powered up. It took longer than I thought, for a couple of reasons.

First issue to arise, was realizing I had been away from working on my 52-Set just long enough to not remember the pin layouts of all the valve sockets, when viewed from the top, or bottom, of the sockets, and once I had sorted Pin 1 locations out, whether the pin count proceeded from that point in a clockwise or counter clockwise fashion. It took about four sockets before it all started to come back to me.

Since all valves are in place and the power is on, the only place to access the socket pins is from below the chassis. That seemed pretty good initially, as all valves except V1G and V1H can be accessed at the back of the chassis. The remaining two can be reached simply by tipping the chassis to either side to expose the bottom chassis assembly. But there is always and exception, isn’t there…and in this case it was two!

V1A and V1B sit quietly in the upper right rear corner of the chassis, directly behind the large Bakelite 8-pin Connector Socket. There is no way around it. The three small screws holding the connector backing plate to the upper right rear corner of the chassis have to be carefully removed and the Connector Socket assembly guided gently away to expose the two valve sockets beneath it.

That’s when the second issue surfaced. Once I was satisfied the Connector Socket assembly was safely out of the way of the two valve sockets and no exposed contacts on the assembly were touching anything they should not be, I turned the Remote Supply Unit back on. No Pilot Lamp and no Low Tension showing on the meter. My first thought was I had broken one of the wires on the Connector Socket, so carefully checked them all. They were fine. Then I remembered, the ground for the socket is through its backing plate being mounted to the receiver chassis. A quick addition of a jumper cable between the chassis and the backing plate and on came the Pilot Lamp and 12 volts showed on the meter. Data collection from the Remote Receiver for Table 7 has now been completed.

David

[Rod Salter]

David,

I once discovered the "No Earth" problem as yours was, by this method

Imagine if you will, late in the evening hot and sweaty in a cramped area

set is powered on, after market power supply

Probing with a meter

decide to turn the thing over

one sweaty hand on the chassis, reach the other sweaty hand to support the connecting cable

"WACK"

full HT through the chest and both arms

Problem diagnosed

The outer shielding had become detached from the plug

I can't remember what the set was, maybe some sort of drive in theater audio amplifier
but I remember the incident vividly!

Side note - the particular drive-in had all 110 volt equipment, patched to 240 volt operation
It was a steep learning curve
How did I come to be there - apparently one look and no one else would touch it, this I was told much later, and here I was all bright and innocent thinking "How lucky I was to get the job"

cheers rod ps no laughing please

[David Dunlop]

Thought I had better document this bit of information while I am researching the construction of the LEADS, Aerial 25-3/4 inches long, No. C1, that fits between the Receiver and Sender sections of the 52-Set.

On both components of the 52-Set, the terminal pins on each end of the LEADS, fit into the TERMINALS, Aerial, No. C1 mounted on the upper portion of the front panels of the Receiver and Sender units. Figures 1 and 2 in the WORKING INSTRUCTIONS for the Wireless Set No. 52 show the LEADS properly installed and are worth a close look.

“Paragraph 2.1.2 Interconnections”: comments on this LEADS assembly noting that the insulated terminal end of the LEADS is the Receiver end of the LEADS. It will be noted, this is also the end of the LEADS where the yellow ID sleeve is fitted over the LEADS. The addition of the insulation over the terminal pin sleeve at this end, along with the extra thickness of the yellow ID sleeve, probably make the LEADS less flexible at this end and the insulated terminal may not even be able to pass through the eyebolts along the top panels of the Supply Unit and Sender. I have yet to see a real LEADS to know for certain, but the comments in the manual suggest this is quite possible. The LEADS come off the TERMINALS, Aerial assembly on the Receiver in a large gentle clockwise curve before heading through the partition holes and eyebolts. At the Sender end of the 52-Set, the LEADS feed out the last eyebolt and angle at a “10 - 4” line, straight into the TERMINALS, Aerial.

The insulation on the Receiver end of the LEADS puzzled me at first, until I realized the LEADS is not a modern coax cable. It is a classic single conductor cable and the pin terminals at each end are one-piece items. Once the pin terminals are soldered on, they become charged when the 52-Set is in use. No big deal at all at the Sender as no controls come close to the TERMINALS. Aerial to put the Operators pinkies at risk. It is a different matter at the Receiver end of the LEADS.

On the Receiver, the TERMINALS, Aerial is fitted just to the right of the FREQ. ADJ. dial, right where an Operator’s fingers would have a really good chance of making contact if using the FREQ ADJ.

I mentioned above that the LEADS comes out of the eyebolt on the Sender and heads straight towards the TERMINALS, Aerial assembly in a “10 -4” line, if one is looking at the face of a clock, centered over the TERMINALS Aerial. The slot in the TERMINALS, Aerial must also be turned to line up in a “10 – 4” orientation for this connection to be made. Something to be aware of.

The attached photos show in order:

A: Remote Receiver sitting at "12 - 6" (To be adjusted.)
B: Main Set Receiver at “11 – 5” (to be adjusted.)
C: Spare Parts Receiver at a correct “10 – 4” position.
D: Sender slightly beyond “12 – 6”. (To be adjusted.)
E: This is a reference view of the rear mounting on the receivers for the TERMINALS, Aerial. As you can see, it also serves as the mounting for the right side retaining clip for the ARRESTORS, Protecting, Gas Gap.


David

[David Dunlop]

Rod.

I was about 4 years old when I first introduced myself to the exciting world of electricity.

My parents had given me a Punkinhead desk lamp for my room, which always had to be on when I went to bed. For some long lost reason one day, I decided I wanted to cut the plug off the end of the cord. I knew enough that the cord would be a tough cut but I was sure Mum's prized Sheffield Steel Dress Making Shears would be up to the task. I also figured I would need both hands on the shears to be successful, so leaving the plug in the wall socket seemed a logical thing to free up both hands. I had also thought through that since I was making sure the lamp was turned off, no electricity could possibly be involved in the activity.

The flash and the bang were spectacular! A funny tingling raced up my arms and the shears went flying to the back of the room and a scorched metal smell lingered in the air. When I retrieved Mum's shears, a neat arc had been burned out of one of the blades, the same diameter as one of the cord conductors. Needless to say, putting them back where they belonged and playing dumb and stupid didn't work.

Cheers,

David

PS: I am betting that lamp would be worth a fortune today in original condition.

[David Dunlop]

I found this 7mm rubber cased HT ignition cable on line and ordered 10 feet of it to fabricate one of these LEADS. It has the correct stranded copper core and a nice high heat rating. The silver ID labelling along the cable also comes off nicely with a solvent I have, so a little progress on that part of the project now.

David