Reply To: Philco People's Set 444

[Don Henschel]

Thanks Phil
Yes i had already found that site before I “boldly went where no man has gone before”
This Philco and the Volksempfanger most certainly contain many strange critters including the “valves” and I have to get used to referring to tubes as valves!
First of all the resistors look like those old ceramic tubular capacitors except they look like a round dowel with wires wrapped onto on each end so hopefully they are all good because I just bought a bunch of the NOS brown carbon resistors from a fellow in Ontario on ePay which look a bit period correct for my “newer” radios instead of the modern film resistors that look like they come from the J.A.Pan company and in my opinion look Streng verboten im Volksempfänger. He was open to offers on the 60 and 100 resistor grab assortments so I cleaned him out after he accepted my offers. I almost crapped a table spoon full when I saw what the usual suspects wanted for the common metal film or carbon film resistors that can be purchased from China for $5-8 plus free shipping for 100’s, 1000, to 1500 in an assortment consisting of over 100 values or more and I would strongly suspect the vendors that we all know about in Canada and United States most likely get their components from the same places and jack em up. Many Polypropolene yeller fellers out there for capacitors but I have yet to find any selling an assortment. Only the green dip mylars and low voltage electrolytic and many many disc ceramic which I have a bushel of! Now I have to locate some modern reproduction cotton covered wire even though much of the wire in both of these “People’s Sets” is in amazing shape for 1933 and 36 but just a bit faded. Anybody know of any sources? The usual suspects only have capacitors and modern resistros and uggggg vinyl wiring. Fine for late 50’s and up but simply looks out of place in the older radios. It is quite amazing what is available in Germany for the correct brown cloth covered cords and other reproduced parts for the Fangers.