Hello,
I'm radio collector here in USA and I'm fortunate enough
to have the Radiola mod. R-48 in my collection.
I also have the beautiful "AWA Radiolettes" Book edited for the HRSA by Peter Hughes
which is very helpful with my restoration efforts of the R-48 however I can't see anywhere in the
schematics the placement/location of the on/off switch ? I learned that the volume control
did not combined the on/off switch. Was there ever one and where should it be mounted ?
I will greatly appreciate any help in this matter.
Best Regards,
John

The R48 was the last of the AWA Empire State model lineup and was oddly badged as a Radiola instead of Radiolette like its earlier siblings.

John Stokes, from New Zealand, provided the answer in one of his books, The Golden Age of Radio, to an age-old question as to why power switches were seldom installed on Australian radios. According to John, there was an Australian Standard at the time, which probably still exists today, which stated that a power switch shall always be on the active side of a mains circuit. Because the power cords on most radios in the 1930s and indeed many in the 1940s were fitted with bayonet lampholder adaptors instead of three-pin plugtops it was possible to allow a power switch to be on the neutral side of the mains circuit, which would have contravened the Standard in force at the time. To comply with the Standard it would have been possible to install a double-pole switch however this was generally considered a luxury subject to extra cost and thus no power switch was provided.

In some cases, usually involving smaller manufacturers, inline double-pole cord switches were provided though as the VIR insulation degraded over time the home handyman simply replaced the whole power cord with a vinyl-coated cord, leaving the inline switch out of the equation altogether.

During restoration work, many collectors find that their volume controls don't work well and they get replaced with a potentiometer combined with a double-pole power switch, providing the ability to turn off a radio safely without having to bend over to turn off the power point.

After power points became more commonplace in homes radio manufacturers stopped selling radios with the bayonet lampholder adaptors and when this happened radios started to come equipped with power switches.

The R48, as well as the earlier Radiolettes, are very much sought after. Guard that radio with your life and if you ever decide to sell it I would recommend offering it for sale worldwide - you'll get a lot of potential buyers and with this a higher selling price.

Brad,
Much thanks for this in depth information,
I learned something new again ))
The funny thing is I thought the opposite because
I notice that the volume control pot was already
replaced by someone but without the power switch
on it so I assumed he just didn't have one available
on hand, however looking at the schematics I notice
that the power switch was omitted - well now I know the whole story
behind it.
Thank you again very much,
John