I've just taken delivery of my eighth radio purchased since the Christmas break began about two weeks ago. An AWA Radiola from the mid-1930s has come back home to where it belongs and I must give much credit to its safe arrival to the NZ-based Ebay seller I purchased it from. This radio was so well packed that I spent a good twenty minutes unwrapping it and that isn't a bad thing, it's definitely a good thing when it comes to old valve radios. I couldn't be happier if I tried.

I hope everyone else here has had a merry Christmas and I would like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a happy and prosperous 2014. In the first three months of this year I have some plans for upgrade work to this site. Realising that a totally brand new website is beyond me for the time being due to work commitments, and the fact that I start a new and probably busier job on the 7th January, I am instead going to commit to another major upgrade to the current site which will include the following:-

1. A new look. The layout of links and where to find things will remain much the same so no-one is thrown off and asking questions but the look and feel will be fresh, crisp and pleasing to the eye.

2. Hopefully I can finally get image uploading going. I am looking forward to seeing something like that come back to the site after being absent for most of its life.

3. Thousands of circuit diagrams will be uploaded and made available to members free of charge. This is something I have long wanted to do but again, time has been a big problem.

So the future looks bright for a site that reflects so well on our broadcasting heritage. New content and some new features are the best way of ensuring that is the case.

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A valve a day keeps the transistor away...

Eight radios in the Christmas break? Lucky for your bank account it only comes around once a year!

The changes sound good, especially the circuit diagrams. You might find space in the same area for owners manuals. They are few and far between but they are out there. You won't be stepping on Kevin's turf by including this although you did mention members only.

Happy New Year to all

There's a few sites out there that offer circuit diagrams. Not all of them are free either (...points at Radio Museum). Whilst I realise it takes some work to convert a piece of paper to a PDF file and keeping it presentable in the process I don't think people should have to pay for it. Offering circuit diagrams here just makes sense really and makes this site more of a one-stop-shop.

As for spending money, tell me about it, some of the radios were anything but cheap but I am happy with the result so far and I plan on getting some more. I sold about 55 radios in the first three months of 2013 and banked the cash so there is a little left to spend on acquisitions.

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A valve a day keeps the transistor away...

I have heard about the particular seller, and how he packages things

A little gripe I have with Radio Museum is you have to pay to join to download anything,
but they will happily accept your uploads.
It would all sound fine to me if you got some download credit for providing something they don't have.


Happy New Year everyone

This is the item I had sent out here.

I know better than to drive into town because parking is extortionate and too many grey bombers with fine quotas to fill.

I got off the train at Wynyard and walked across the road to where the GPO boxes are these days and collected the radio. It was almost like carrying a bar fridge out of the joint. Walking it on my shoulder down the concourse to Wynyard Station again was also a new experience. If you've ever used one of Sydney's underground railway stations you'll remember that no-one moves for you and certain lots even seem to go out of their way to just walk directly toward you and that is before we even discuss those who think their hearts will stop beating unless they have their mobile phone in both hands just bumping into everything they pass.

Still, the effort was worth it.

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A valve a day keeps the transistor away...

Nice Especially if the speaker is ok, looks like a field coil speaker still in good condition.

That's a very clean radio. Cabinet looks to have been restored, or at least lacquered.

I don't miss the daily train commute to the city. I used to get on and off at Town Hall which is way worse that Wynyard.

Happy New Year to members!

Town Hall is Australia's second busiest railway station after Central. The narrow platforms are the biggest problem and how more people aren't pushed onto the tracks I don't know. A lot of people use Town Hall to change lines too instead of using Central for that and this just makes matters worse.

Still, on an otherwise very well designed system (by that I mean the work involving the City Circle and Sydney Harbour Bridge), they probably didn't believe it would be used by so many people back in 1922 when the plans were drawn up.

They had a chance to correct mistakes relating to capacity and ease of access when they build the Chatswood-Epping line. Two escalators up and only one going down, and located near each end of the platforms instead of in the middle, is good for crowd control and the platforms are much wider.

Photos are uploaded too.

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A valve a day keeps the transistor away...

A lovely batch of radios Brad which makes me most envious.

I don't know where I would put eight extra radios.

Thanks for all your efforts with the forum, I'm glad I don't have to use the city railway network on a daily basis.

Best Wishes to all for the new year.

I reckon my aim for 2014 will be to get some more of the Healing 401Es. They were made in numerous colours.

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A valve a day keeps the transistor away...

If you see a Healing 502B battery portable in your travels would be obliged for a shout.

Hanging out for one.....

A very nice lot of new arrivals!

Looking forward to the planned upgrades. In particular the news that you will be hosting a very large collection of circuits for members. I agree they should be free as it is a historical resource that should be publicly available. I also understand the amount of work that is involved, I've been scanning my manuals bit by bit for the last 3 years and still have a LOT more to go before I'm finished.
I'm more than happy to share this as a public resource. While I have a lot of TV manuals I also have quite a lot of radio stuff as well.

Happy New Year from last year. That is, it's still 2013 in the USA where I'm sitting right now, and Australia is already in next year. A little like "Back to the Future"

Happy New Year everyone! Nice haul there Brad! There are quite some beauties there for sure. Your plans for the site sound awesome, especially the ability to upload images and hosting circuit diagrams - both of which will be immensely helpful.

Good luck, and fingers crossed for a 2014 full of valves, radios and picture tubes!

Chris

Brad, Can you tell me the model number of the AWA Radiola in the first photo? I have just purchased the same looking set with the 5x knobs. Some of these early AWA sets seem a bit elusive when it comes to information and schematics.
Thanks in advance.
Dave