Wireless Set No. 52 Canadian - Project

[David Dunlop]

Thought I had better document this little bit of information before moving on, as it relates to the countersunk rivets used in the 52-Set, which are not catalogued in the Parts Listings.

I had initially hoped to be able to salvage the AE Terminal Board from the front of the parts receiver I have available and cut it down to make the replacement for the broken board on the Sender front panel. I knew the AE Terminal Board on the receiver was fastened with countersunk rivets, which I was going to need specs for in any event, as the same rivets were used to mount the Airloc Cowl Fastener Receptacles on the receiver, and the right side one on my Main Set Receiver was broken.

Removing the panel holding the Receiver AE Terminal Board was easy enough, as was drilling out the four rivets holding the board to the panel. It was at this point, however, I confirmed the board would not work at all on the Sender front panel, even if a correctly sized piece could be cut from it. The rivet spacing on the receiver board was on 1-inch centres. The Sender board needed only 7/8-inch centres. Also, the board on the receiver is subject to a lot more stress and strain than the Sender board. The receiver board holds a Gas Discharge Tube clip on the upper terminal and the large conventional aerial socket on the lower terminal that requires a lot of direct in and out push/pull force. Hence, a 3/16 inch thick board was used here, rather than the 1/16 inch thick board on the Sender.

The good news out of all this, however, was that the four countersunk rivets were retrieved and spec’d out.

These turned out to also be mild steel with a 1/8-inch diameter shank. The countersink is 90 degrees, and the head diameter of the rivet at the flat is 0.220 inches. The length for these would have been ¼-inch, but other lengths were used due to differing thicknesses of material things were fastened to on the set.

David