The design was "inspired by" a US Zenith model.

Next chapter, unfortunately no real progress. The Astor is a model GPS. I couldn't find a suitable plug for the mains input, so I had to (very temporarily) solder a cord in. It was at this point I discovered the fact that it's transformerless, in fact it states the mains can be AC or DC. So I made sure the neutral was connected to chassis so I wouldn't fry myself. Pluging in only gave about 60 volts for the B+, so I decided to give it a rest until next week.

As always with battery sets, it's a good idea to make sure the valve filaments are all intact, the problem being that the filaments are part of various voltage dividers, and an open filament could conceivably raise other voltages to damaging levels. It was no surprise at all to find the 1R5 open-circuit... this has to be one of the most unreliable valves ever made. I decided to check my 13 spare 1R5's, and 3 of them were open too.

So, onto the last radio, the Kriesler 11-7. This was extremely mouse-chewed and the insides were filthy with droppings and the remains of capacitors. After cleaning away the mess, I could now see that the entire top of the chassis was rusted due to urine. The speaker cone and the nearby pink fabric were entirely gone. All the wax caps were chewed to some extent, one had only half left. The power transformer and choke had been damaged. So, to measurements. The speaker transformer measured ok, the power transformer has one side of the HT not working, and the choke is open-circuit.

According to the stamp at the back, the valves should have been 6AN7, 6SK7, 6SQ7, 6M5, 6X5GT but I found the output valve to be a EL33. Looks like they got the stamp wrong. I removed the valves and cleaned them. Even the upper side of the valve sockets was utterly filthy and I had to clean them all. With all the valves out I plugged it in and one dial light came on.

I still need to check the IF and other coils for continuity. I suppose I'll have to replace the 6X5GT with a solid-state rectifier in order to get enough voltage.

I got the Astor GPS to work. It needed replacement of every paper capacitor as the original Ducons all leaked to some extent. At first it didn't work until I found that one of the replacement caps measured 13 ohms! After another replacement it came good.

There's less volume than the Pacemaker, so I will check all the resistors in the amplifier stages.

When I went to clean the case, I found that there were some extra bits of paper under the dial paper. Upon examination, it was found they were spare dial papers for the various states. Four papers, covering all the states. So it seems the radio was made for all states and it's only a matter of bringing the correct dial to the front.

Upon examination, it was found they were spare dial papers for the various states.

Interesting. I haven't encountered that method.

Is this the one?

http://www.radiomuseum.org/images/radio/astor/gps_1415844.jpg

I have a couple of Astor portables that use the paper dials of different states. Quite smart when you think about it.

Is this the one?

Yes, although mine is a dark brown. Like that one, mine had the Victorian dial, even though I purchased it in QLD. Now I changed it to NSW.

I checked the resistors, and almost all were way out of tolerance. I changed just 2 of them, as the rest didn't seem to matter that much.

Next was to make it safe, so I removed the mains prongs and put a plastic clamp in its place (internally). So the mains cord comes in through one of the prong holes, is held in place by the clamp, and then soldered onto the existing 2 wires.

After that the case was put together, tuned to 2CH and a photo taken.

When I previewed the photo, the case appeared black instead of the colour of dark chocolate. We'll see how it shows up here.

So, the last radio left (and the one requiring the most work), is the ratted 11-7.

Photo uploaded to Post 22.

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A valve a day keeps the transistor away...

Thanks, less than 5 minutes! Very fast.

That's come up well. Nice unit indeed.

Thats a beauty! Boy I like that Radio very much ! Yep that would fit into my 50s house just fine

Pete

The last radio, the Kriesler, has been identified as Model 11-7G. A few small components have been replaced, but not much else done. The power transformer, choke, and speaker all need replacing, which is why not much has happened.

The Astor stopped working already, tapping it in the dark produces tiny flashes at the top just under the cover. I'll look at it next week.

The mouse-eaten 11-7 has now had the speaker replaced, a new speaker transformer (one of the Jaycar mods) added, and the choke replaced. I used the worn-out 6X5GT from the other 11-7 (recently repaired) as a sacrifice. In fact it produced 250 volts unloaded, which became 82 volts loaded. Despite the low voltage, sound came out and the radio seemed to work quite well. I then replaced the 6X5 with another, and this produced 212 volts loaded, and more volume. Short wave works, and for the first time ever I heard Radio France International.

You'd never know that one half of the HT winding is open circuit. I was expecting loads of hum, but it works quite normally.

Looking back, the radio's components were all in top shape (apart from the usual around the power supply and output valve), and all the valves at 100%. The reason it was fed to the rats, I suspect, is because someone mucked up the dial cord, with the result that it mostly slips, and also the drum is fouling the front of the chassis. This will also be looked at next week.

Replaced the dial cord and it seemed to work quite well - until I put it back in the case. Then the cord jammed - oh, well, I'll look at it later.

The problem with the Astor is an intermittent undetectable leak in the transformer between the RF amp and the 1R5. It puts a variable voltage onto the AGC line of up to 45 volts. I'm no longer interested in this radio - if Vintage Pete (or anyone) wants it, you can pick it up for free.