Electrohome Catalina Stereo from 1954

[John Ernst]

Hi Im new to the group. I have very limited knowledge on electronics but Im hoping I can get some information on my ELectrohome Catalina Stereo. Its been in the family since new and hasnt been turned on for about 15 years or so. I would like to get it running again. I plugged it in today and several of the tubes lit up but thats about all. The Garrard turntable doesnt do anything. Im looking for schematics as there used to be several lightbulbs that backlit the AM dial that are all missing. I think it needs speakers as well last time i heard it playing. Im enclosing some pics. Im ok with mechanical things so if theres parts that need replacing I can do that but I suspect I will need someone in the Edmonton area who specializes in vintage electronic to check that part of it out. Thanks for any help or information you may have
John Ernst

Attachments:

1. 

   IMG_8028-Small.jpeg
   

2. 

   IMG_8026-Small.jpeg
   

3. 

   IMG_8027-Small.jpeg
   

4. 

   IMG_8026-Small-1.jpeg
   

5. 

   IMG_8025-Small.jpeg
   

6. 

   IMG_8030-Small.jpeg
   

7. 

   IMG_8029-Small.jpeg
   

[Les Dickson]

It’s possible this schematic is the one for your stereo. It’s hard to read the tubes in the diagram you posted but I think they match .
https://www.radiomuseum.org/r/electrohom_catalina_am.html
Be careful about powering up a vintage device, you might cause serious damage by doing so. The most common failures are in the capacitors. My advice is to do some searching here in our resources and online about restoring vintage radios before you dive in.

[johngillespie]

Hi John
It’s fairly common from my experience that a turntable that hasn’t run for a decade or more can have enough dried lubrication and even enough slight corrosion (oxidation) that it can bind up the movement pretty tight. Usually, I remove the turntable from the console and gently and sparingly wash the underside cams and levers with a degreaser like Varsol, WD40 or similar and I’ve even used gas very sparingly until everything starts to move again. But, be very gentle, you can easily bend the cams and plates if you get too aggressive. I’ve found the best way is to manually operate the turntable after washing everything with the degreaser is by selecting play, then gently rotating the turntable until it starts to function again. The ideal is to be able to get the full function of reject manually from start to reset. If the turntable won’t budge there can be corrosion between the center spindle and the turntable as well. Once everything functions again manually, relubricate the works. Vaseline or a light grease is good for the main cam and a light oil like 3-in-1 or sewing machine oil for everything else. Also, you may find the drive tire is hard or has flat spots and will need to be replaced. There are sources for new online. Cartridges and needles can be found on eBay.
Good luck John

[Author]

Posts