1939 Detrola Model 282 Pee-Wee Portable Radio

[batterymaker1]

In October, I bought this prewar portable because of the unique dual 45-volt HT battery it used. Only a couple of manufacturers made batteries for this set, and production ceased a few years after the war. As a result, all of these sets have sat silent for over 60 years.

Earlier, I found pictures of a pristine 282, its original Detrola-brand batteries intact, and I asked the new owner to scan copies of them. Shortly after that, I built up a pair of replica batteries.

The LT battery was a standard 742-style common to the era, and my replica runs on one to four C cells in parallel.

The HT battery was more of a challenge. It's a 90 volt package split into 45 volt halves. Once I completed the box, I figured the easiest way to distribute the load would be to assemble two sets of five PP3's and stack them one on top of the other.

There's nothing unique electronically with the Detrola 282--it's one of many portables built around the then-new 1.5 volt battery tubes. This particular chassis was untouched, still sporting its 1939-style G series tubes. All paper caps were replaced along with the electrolytic.

I switched it on--and was greeted by Silent Sam. Zilch.

To my surprise, every &$^#%@ tube--was blown.

So, for the first time in a VERY long time, I had to rummage through my stash and find a new set of tubes. Most of them are the shorter GT types, but because of the shield styling, the 1A7 had to use the tall G type. Fortunately I had one.

Second switch-on, the radio sprang to life. Speaker is a little strangled due to an off-center cone, but otherwise it plays and has average sensitivity.

[Robert Darwent]

Hello Bill

Very nice, I like that one! Did you have to do much cleaning to the cloth covered case, it looks to be in a good condition? The batteries are first class as well

Originally Posted by batterymaker1

The HT battery was more of a challenge. It's a 90 volt package split into 45 volt halves.

Very unusual having two 45v batteries in the same box. What was the purpose or reasoning behind that arrangement then? Was it made that way so you could have a choice of using the two halves in parallel or series depending upon the set you used it in?

Originally Posted by batterymaker1

To my surprise, every &$^#%@ tube--was blown.

I'd have been surprised too! I've never (so far) found a set with all the valves blown. Looks like someone at sometime has been careless with the LT supply!

[KEITHW]

More fantastic work Bill! The speaker looks quite modern in the photograph, is it less obvious in the flesh?

I wonder if someone has tried connecting up various power supplies to get it to work and blown the valves.

Regards,
Keith

[batterymaker1]

Originally Posted by rrdmpb

Very nice, I like that one! Did you have to do much cleaning to the cloth covered case, it looks to be in a good condition? The batteries are first class as well

Thanks. The radio was in the condition you see here, and that was a blessing. Airplane cloth can either look really good or terrible, depending on how it's treated.

Very unusual having two 45v batteries in the same box. What was the purpose or reasoning behind that arrangement then? Was it made that way so you could have a choice of using the two halves in parallel or series depending upon the set you used it in?

I suspect that Detrola was trying to produce a radio smaller in size to everyone else's, hence the name Pee-Wee. Most of the 1.5 volt radios were designed to use 90 volts HT. The smallest HT battery at the time was the 45-volt 738, and two of them wouldn't fit in the cabinet along with the 742. So, a single custom pack was created. Only Burgess, Ray O Vac and Detrola (who probably had Burgess manufacture their own brand) made it, and what you see in the pictures is what the original looked like.

I'd have been surprised too! I've never (so far) found a set with all the valves blown. Looks like someone at sometime has been careless with the LT supply!

That's what I'm suspecting happened. A pity too, since G style battery tubes are hard to find.

More fantastic work Bill! The speaker looks quite modern in the photograph, is it less obvious in the flesh?

The speaker is a standard PM common to the time, and it's the original one, scratchy and all....

[geofy]

Hi Batterymaker

Curiously I though the speaker looked a modern type with a metallic speech-coil cover! If it is the original then usually the magnet can be removed and the coil cleaned if there is grit or rust, a tiny amount of WD or Servisol does no harm, and then re-centering the magnet as it is put back on. Some early speakers have a flat spacer that can make putting the magnet back on a bit more tricky as it has to be held central while tightening the main magnet body.

Geof