I have been asked to restore my Daughter in Law's 1950s Carlson Stromberg Radiogram a legacy from her Gram.
The cabinet I can manage, and I have done the necessary safety checks on the electrics before energising it.
The deck works; sounds a bit noisy, but seems reasonably smooth. Probably need new stylus's
However the heater in one of the five valves does not glow like the ones in other four, hence this "Wanted" request!!
I am looking for a replacement for the defective valve.

The Valve Description:-
Glass 28 mm Diameter (Dia) 40mm high.

Black plastic? Base 30 mm Dia 21mm high plus connection pin

7 (Qty) pins spaced as for eight in a circle 18mm round a central locating pin 6mm Dia.

On the bottom of the base, around the location pin, is "FRB" and "4H" printed in white
.
Much of the printing around the side of the base is smudged, but I can see:-

"P" "M36" and what looks like a "tick" & what might be "Lips" & "nuwale".
( last bit is almost rubbed out) .

Looking on the side of the chassis where the valves are all in a line the valve is the 2nd
one from the left

Is there anybody out there who can help me please ? I'm out of my depth here!!

Petdimad

There were quite a few of those Stromberg-Carlson radiograms!

And quite a few 8 pin valves only use 7 pins.

Let us know the other valve types in the set so that we have a chance of identifying the particular model. Hopefully you will see valve type numbers like 6X5GT, 6V6GT.

When removing such valves, always do so by holding the black base, never the glass envelope.

Also, some photos of the radiogram, inside and out, would be handy as well.

Thanks for your interest,

I have just found a chassis number:- 84074 red numbers on a yellow label at the centre of the edge in front of the line of valves,
and some photos are on their way.

The large valve at the RH end if the chassis has the number 18, and 6X5 in an octagon on the Glass
GT

and Radiotron A 1/4 E5
W

6 X 5 - G made in Australia on the glass

The 3rd valve from the (Ist small valve has 6AV6 in an octagon)

& under it Minuall




Best Regards,
petdimad



made K20
in Australia


The 4th small valve is badly smudged with only A6 just above the bottom bit of an octagon I think.


The 5th small valve is also badly smudged with only an egg shape with a squiggle in it

& an "M" in half a square on the left LH bottom section of another octagon.

The photos are a bit blurred, taken with a phone I presume.

Not sure of the first valve, could be 7 or 9 pin (if 7 pin then 6BE6), the next one will be 6BA6, then 6AV6, then the missing one (most likely a 6V6GT), then a 6X5GT.

Do you have a photo of the broken valve? Also, how do you know it is defective? Does the heater glow at all?

My guess:

Model 5A50 (from 1950) -- 6X5GT (8 pin base, not all pins present), 6BE6 (7 pins), 6BA6 (7 pins), 6AV6 (7 pins), 6V6GT (8 pin base, one pin not used)

Agree that the dead valve is probably a 6V6GT.

By the way, we have seen a similar-looking set here before: https://vintage-radio.com.au/default.asp?f=2&th=258

Caution: It is unwise in the extreme to power up an old set like that unless it has been in constant use. Doing so can cause otherwise avoidable damage to parts that may no longer be obtainable. Let an experienced radio technician power it up only after it's been carefully checked over by him.

I'd agree with that caution. An old radiogram like that will need a number of parts replaced, simply because they have gone bad over the intervening years. Trying to fix it by swapping a valve is likely to only cause damage to irreplaceable parts. Let an expert fix it for you.

I live just out of Maitland and happy to look at your radio if you can bring it here, either in cabinet or chassis and speaker only if easier.
I'm sure I can identify your missing valve and probably have a dozen or so on hand.
Email me, (click on my header) and we can discuss how and when.

Harold

My thanks to all you members who have contributed advice re the radio bit of my daughter-in-law's radiogram.

In the last week I've learned a little, but the most important thing was that I know next to nothing about radios, and that I should leave them to the real experts!
I contacted Ganshn and we arranged that I deliver my problem to him yesterday. He is a real gentleman & most certainly an expert radio man. I watched him fit a safer power cord and then he replaced a number of dodgy capacitors (& the valve that didn't glow) and had almost finished the job before we ran out of time, so I left it with him.

I decided to do something more appropriate to my skill level today. I cleaned and polished the radiogram case!!

Now I need to turn my attention to the record deck. The motor runs when powered up but the deck has a .sort of a knock about once per rev of the turntable, so I will remount it in a wooden frame that lets me see the mechanism in motion and hopefully find the cause.
I have a feeling I may be asking for help with that too.

Thanks again,
petdimad

The usual cause of knocking is a dent in the rubber idler wheel.

I'd guess there's a small lump stuck on the inside of the rotating turntable that hits something (maybe the idler) once a turn. Or maybe something caught up in the central cog teeth. Whatever it is, you should be able to find it without too much trouble.

If your deck has auto pickup of the cartridge at the end of the record, this is checked once a turn, and maybe something in there needs cleaning or oiling.

As GTC said: "There were quite a few of those Stromberg-Carlson radiograms!"

I have one (working) in my garage!

I'd be interested in selling it if anyone is interested.

^ Suggest starting a separate thread in Wanted and For Sale with a description of the set (model number if known) and some good photos.