I need some help. I just finished recapping the Philco I have been working on for a while and I am having an issue.

I can get the reception to be very very good, unfortunately the stations are no where near where they should be. For instance, with the tuning gang almost completely open, i am getting WBAL 1090 when I should be up in the 1600's. When I am about in the middle of the gang I am getting our local on 610. I figure in the middle of the gang I should be around the 1100's.

If I try to walk everything back down, i completely lose reception.

Any ideas??? Thanks, Chris

Chris,
The alignment data for that radio shows the first adjustment to make is to set the generator freq at 455kc, bandswitch at BROADCAST, and the tuner set all the way to one end to the index mark (plates fully meshed), then adjust 6 components as listed for maximum output. I think that if this first step is not followed your dial will be way of calibration.

Dennis

:I need some help. I just finished recapping the Philco I have been working on for a while and I am having an issue.
:
:I can get the reception to be very very good, unfortunately the stations are no where near where they should be. For instance, with the tuning gang almost completely open, i am getting WBAL 1090 when I should be up in the 1600's. When I am about in the middle of the gang I am getting our local on 610. I figure in the middle of the gang I should be around the 1100's.
:
:If I try to walk everything back down, i completely lose reception.
:
:Any ideas??? Thanks, Chris

Thanks for the response. I have been strugling with this and thought I have been aligning it right following that procedure.

2 questions - how critical is it for me to use the acual antenna for that unit? I am using a length of wire right now.

2 - in the alignment directions there is the following: " Connect the signal generator to the standard Hazeltine loop model 1150 " - What the heck is that ???

It seems like when I get anywhere near the antenna section of this radio with my signal generator the signal just blows right through and I get strong signal from one end the gang to the other with no change while turning the gang.

I also noticed that the C83 trimmer screw on the first IF is having no effect no matter how far I turn it in either direction. Could this be my problem and what could possibly be wrong with that trimmer and how do I fix it?

:Chris,
:The alignment data for that radio shows the first adjustment to make is to set the generator freq at 455kc, bandswitch at BROADCAST, and the tuner set all the way to one end to the index mark (plates fully meshed), then adjust 6 components as listed for maximum output. I think that if this first step is not followed your dial will be way of calibration.
:
:Dennis
:
::I need some help. I just finished recapping the Philco I have been working on for a while and I am having an issue.
::
::I can get the reception to be very very good, unfortunately the stations are no where near where they should be. For instance, with the tuning gang almost completely open, i am getting WBAL 1090 when I should be up in the 1600's. When I am about in the middle of the gang I am getting our local on 610. I figure in the middle of the gang I should be around the 1100's.
::
::If I try to walk everything back down, i completely lose reception.
::
::Any ideas??? Thanks, Chris

First of all, I am going to have to print out the schematic for your radio so I can have a good look at it. Maybe we can figure out what is going on....and perhaps one of the more knowledgeable guys on this forum will jump in with some advice. I must keep an appointment soon and will spend some time on this this evening. As far as that Hazeltine loop goes....I would think that it is a piece of test gear used by techs of that era (30'3 - 40's). But, I simply have several homemade loops of my own to use when a "loose-coupling" of the generator to the receiver is called for. The one that seems to work the best is about 7 or 8 turns of solid wire wrapped around a cardboard tube and hot glued in place. (a toilet-paper roll works great for this LOL). I then connect the ends of that coil to the generator using alligator clips and position the coil near the radio for the best location.
If you have a gain control on your generator keep it as low as possible yet still get a deflection on your meter. Good luck.........I'll get back to you later tonight to see how things are going.

Dennis

:Thanks for the response. I have been strugling with this and thought I have been aligning it right following that procedure.
:
:2 questions - how critical is it for me to use the acual antenna for that unit? I am using a length of wire right now.
:
:2 - in the alignment directions there is the following: " Connect the signal generator to the standard Hazeltine loop model 1150 " - What the heck is that ???
:
:It seems like when I get anywhere near the antenna section of this radio with my signal generator the signal just blows right through and I get strong signal from one end the gang to the other with no change while turning the gang.
:
:I also noticed that the C83 trimmer screw on the first IF is having no effect no matter how far I turn it in either direction. Could this be my problem and what could possibly be wrong with that trimmer and how do I fix it?
:
::Chris,
::The alignment data for that radio shows the first adjustment to make is to set the generator freq at 455kc, bandswitch at BROADCAST, and the tuner set all the way to one end to the index mark (plates fully meshed), then adjust 6 components as listed for maximum output. I think that if this first step is not followed your dial will be way of calibration.
::
::Dennis
::
:::I need some help. I just finished recapping the Philco I have been working on for a while and I am having an issue.
:::
:::I can get the reception to be very very good, unfortunately the stations are no where near where they should be. For instance, with the tuning gang almost completely open, i am getting WBAL 1090 when I should be up in the 1600's. When I am about in the middle of the gang I am getting our local on 610. I figure in the middle of the gang I should be around the 1100's.
:::
:::If I try to walk everything back down, i completely lose reception.
:::
:::Any ideas??? Thanks, Chris

Also, is your generator in a metal box, and is the generator lead shielded? The generator must be in a metal box, which is connected to ground by some means, though don't connect directly when connecting the generator to an AC-DC radio. The lead must be shielded, and the shield must be connected to the generator's metal chassis. If neither of these precautions are undertaken, the generator will radiate badly no matter where the output control is set.

If the above are satisfied, as Dennis said, keep your output as low as possible. If the 1st IF condenser has no affect on signal strength, it may actually be faulty, though you are probably simply radiating past this point.

Thomas

Thanks Thomas. I am using an almost brand new B+K 2005B signal generator. It plugs in via a 3 prong plug so it should be grounded well.

My test lead is made from an RG6 coax so it should be fairly well shielded. I will go back and check all my connection points again.

So even if using a loop of wire between the 2 leads, I should still have the shield connected to the chassis?

Thanks

:Also, is your generator in a metal box, and is the generator lead shielded? The generator must be in a metal box, which is connected to ground by some means, though don't connect directly when connecting the generator to an AC-DC radio. The lead must be shielded, and the shield must be connected to the generator's metal chassis. If neither of these precautions are undertaken, the generator will radiate badly no matter where the output control is set.
:
:If the above are satisfied, as Dennis said, keep your output as low as possible. If the 1st IF condenser has no affect on signal strength, it may actually be faulty, though you are probably simply radiating past this point.
:
:Thomas

Well, your RF cable should be shielded. Using a loop on the end of the cable is going to radiate all over the place, though. If your IF transformers are in cans (which it seems like), then you shouldn't have too much radiation getting into stray places.

I'm not going to butt in too much here. Make sure that you're turning the correct screws--not the FM for AM. Make sure that you're adjusting C6 properly. If it is too tight, stations will be sent up the dial. You should not have to adjust it so loose, though, that the screw is just about ready to fall off. Normal trimmer adjustment is usually from four turns to tight--somewhere in between there. When you adjust C6, you will have to re-adjust C8, as stated in the literature. If your generator is working properly and you're adjusting the IF transformers properly, the AM band should line up after you play around with C6 and C8 a few times. If you cannot get 560 to come in at 560, no matter what you do with C6, then you either have coil trouble or someone replaced one of your coils with the wrong part.

You may want to check that IF trimmer which doesn't seem to be doing anything. If you open up the transformer (after carefully removing it), you can carefully remove the coil leads from the trimmer (and note how they were connected). Test the trimmer for continuity--it should have NONE. Test the coil for continuity. It should have continuity anywhere from about 6 to 80 ohms, and should match the resistance given in the schematic, if a resistance is given. However.......even if this coil or trimmer is faulty, it would seem odd that the radio wouldn't track properly simply because of this. If you are able to set all of the other IF coils to frequency, they would do enough band narrowing to allow fairly accurate station tracking. This is assuming that even though this coil is faulty (if it is), signals are able to pass on to the secondary of this transformer and on to other circuits, which seems to be happening (if this coil is in fact at fault, which I doubt), since you are able to receive stations. Again, I am not saying that the primary coil or trimmer is at fault. I'm just saying that if it is, signals are obviously making it through to the successive stages.

Thomas

Thanks Thomas. I will go through the whole alignment again with you suggestions before I go digging that can out. It is in a reall tough spot to get at from underneath so if I can avoid it I will. I will let you know how it goes.

Chris

Chris,
I sure can't add anything to what Thomas has told you. He is much more knowledgeable than I on this topic and has contributed some very useful detail to guide you. Good luck.......keep us informed on your progress.
Dennis

:Thanks Thomas. I will go through the whole alignment again with you suggestions before I go digging that can out. It is in a reall tough spot to get at from underneath so if I can avoid it I will. I will let you know how it goes.
:
:Chris

Well I went through the alignment again and seem to have it tracking better now. I need to get it in to the cabinet and see how close I am on the scale.

Now I just need to figure out why I have no shortwave or FM. Arrrrgggghhhhh

If the AM was out of alignment, someone may have played around with the short wave and FM, too. Alignment may be all that is needed. I did not look at the schematic closely enough, and I'm not going to now because I'm tired, but the FM in your radio may be the old FM. I think that the old FM is around 45 MC (somewhere plus or minus 45 MC). If you have low numbers for your FM band or have strange channel numbers (won't get into that for now), you may have the old FM band.

Thomas

It is definately the current FM band. I figured that one out though. Burned out heater in the FM1000 tube. Have another one on the way....

Thanks, Chris

:If the AM was out of alignment, someone may have played around with the short wave and FM, too. Alignment may be all that is needed. I did not look at the schematic closely enough, and I'm not going to now because I'm tired, but the FM in your radio may be the old FM. I think that the old FM is around 45 MC (somewhere plus or minus 45 MC). If you have low numbers for your FM band or have strange channel numbers (won't get into that for now), you may have the old FM band.
:
:Thomas

I try, but I doubt that I'm more knowledgable than everyone else here.

Thanks, though.

T.