PHILIPS 170A thanks to Ron & Jay - UK Vintage Radio Repair and Restoration Discussion Forum

PJL · 13th Jan 2007, 7:16 pm

PHILIPS 170A 4 VALVE + RECTIFIER + TI SUPERHET

This came from a forum member via ebay and was a bit of a bargain…thanks for you help as well Ron.

It was in a bit of a sad state from water/damp damage, bakelite a little rippled, a fair bit of rust here and there, speaker baffle delaminated, back distorted and the dial paint would have fallen off in a light breeze. However, it was all there and the only previous work was a replacement RS output transformer which floated around on the top of the chassis.

This was a major restoration including extensive rust removal using naval jelly, painting, rebuild of speaker baffle and repairs to back panel, new speaker dust cover, replacement of all wax capacitors and rebuild of wet electrolytic, rubber sleeve replacement as well as the usual cabinet finishing. A near perfect dial and a few small parts were obtained from Jay via the forum and the set was completely realigned.

It worked first time but MW was not up to scratch. The 330pF oscillator tracker capacitor, C20, had been damaged by a chassis screw and a replacement dramatically improved sensitivity. Looking around I also discovered the circuit varied significantly from the trader sheet around the gram switch and IF transformers.

Some tips from all this effort. I resorted to painting some chassis parts as the plating was stripped and hand painting with silver enamel proved the best match. Respraying the glass diffuser plate under the dial was far more successful than expected. Scratching noises from the speaker were cleared with paper pushed through the spider and into the gap surrounding the voice coil to clean debris/rust then vacuuming.

A lot of work but equally rewarding as the 170A now works a treat with strong MW reception on just the plate aerial and great tone. It’s not exactly pristine but it should now be good for a fair few more years.

johnn · 13th Jan 2007, 7:59 pm

What a good job!
I hope to obtain one of these sometime, so might consult about what you said about circuit diagram differences.
How does it go on LW, is the volume level OK?

PJL · 15th Jan 2007, 12:20 am

LW and SW are a little weak on the internal plate aerial but a 2 metre wire is all that is needed. These sets have an RF stage but use an EBL31 output/detector so miss the usual AF triode.

batterymaker1 · 15th Jan 2007, 2:49 am

Wow--cabinet shines like a new penny.

Great job!

13th Jan 2007, 7:16 pm	#1
PJL Dekatron Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Seaford, East Sussex, UK. Posts: 5,997	PHILIPS 170A thanks to Ron & Jay PHILIPS 170A 4 VALVE + RECTIFIER + TI SUPERHET This came from a forum member via ebay and was a bit of a bargain…thanks for you help as well Ron. It was in a bit of a sad state from water/damp damage, bakelite a little rippled, a fair bit of rust here and there, speaker baffle delaminated, back distorted and the dial paint would have fallen off in a light breeze. However, it was all there and the only previous work was a replacement RS output transformer which floated around on the top of the chassis. This was a major restoration including extensive rust removal using naval jelly, painting, rebuild of speaker baffle and repairs to back panel, new speaker dust cover, replacement of all wax capacitors and rebuild of wet electrolytic, rubber sleeve replacement as well as the usual cabinet finishing. A near perfect dial and a few small parts were obtained from Jay via the forum and the set was completely realigned. It worked first time but MW was not up to scratch. The 330pF oscillator tracker capacitor, C20, had been damaged by a chassis screw and a replacement dramatically improved sensitivity. Looking around I also discovered the circuit varied significantly from the trader sheet around the gram switch and IF transformers. Some tips from all this effort. I resorted to painting some chassis parts as the plating was stripped and hand painting with silver enamel proved the best match. Respraying the glass diffuser plate under the dial was far more successful than expected. Scratching noises from the speaker were cleared with paper pushed through the spider and into the gap surrounding the voice coil to clean debris/rust then vacuuming. A lot of work but equally rewarding as the 170A now works a treat with strong MW reception on just the plate aerial and great tone. It’s not exactly pristine but it should now be good for a fair few more years. Attached Thumbnails

13th Jan 2007, 7:59 pm	#2
johnn Retired Dormant Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Scunthorpe, UK Posts: 154	Re: PHILIPS 170A thanks to Ron & Jay What a good job! I hope to obtain one of these sometime, so might consult about what you said about circuit diagram differences. How does it go on LW, is the volume level OK?

15th Jan 2007, 12:20 am	#3
PJL Dekatron Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Seaford, East Sussex, UK. Posts: 5,997	Re: PHILIPS 170A thanks to Ron & Jay LW and SW are a little weak on the internal plate aerial but a 2 metre wire is all that is needed. These sets have an RF stage but use an EBL31 output/detector so miss the usual AF triode.

15th Jan 2007, 2:49 am	#4
batterymaker1 Heptode Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Indianapolis, Indiana, USA. Posts: 674	Re: PHILIPS 170A thanks to Ron & Jay Wow--cabinet shines like a new penny. Great job! __________________ Just playing with high voltage....