After talking to a couple of ham operators over the last week,
they think it's a lost cause, so I tossed it and got this one to work on:

 

This pic is a little earlier, but the "shrine" is also in progress...

 

have a look here to see if your chassis is listed..

 

Thnaks mate, one of the locals had the schematic

 

Speaking of vintage things, while I was over on the radio forum,
I noticed their rotary dial phones face obsoletion (Australia).

There is a device called RotaTone that converts the dial pulses to DTMF tones,
so I reproduced that:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zyB8MtNg_6I
It's illegal to connect it to a phone network in my country.
Is there anywhere it can be connected legally
(a modified, or unapproved telephone) ?

I'll try to at least have fun breaking commercial potential for
the commercial product

 

As MrChips said, both early UK and N.A. installations did not have an appliance grounding system in place for outlets etc, the Radio in question is isolated from the mains AC via the input transformer.
Max.

Aussie radios often had only 2 core "figure 8" cables,for many years after earthed outlets were universal--don't really know why,although some early radios were run off light sockets.

There were even models with moulded 3 pin connectors,with only "fig 8"cable.
When you think about it,there was very little danger,as the only connections at Mains potential were those to the on/off switch,& to the transformer primary.

Transformers were a mature technology with massive over design as far as insulation between primary & core is concerned,so that was not a major drama.

Oz never went down the route of "transformerless" design as in the USA,although there were a small number made that way,as well as American & a few British radios of that type,which made their way into the country with migrants & suchlike..

 

I suppose I just found it difficult to accept.
Good to hear about the transformers, it's the only thing I haven't tested
(leakage to earth, and power), and a dud Xformer might be the only show stopper.

I hated ditching the original cable, but not considering nibbling an IEC socket into the
back of the chassis for a high temp kettle type IEC cord.

 

l--don't really know why,although some early radios were run off light sockets.

.

There were many example in the UK pre/post-war where people ran appliances such as irons, radios and other appliances off of the light socket, they had no choice as the place they lived did not have any sockets at all!.
Grounded or otherwise!.
Max.

 

As a kid growing up there were no sockets on the wall. You had to screw an adapter into the socket to attached two plugs and a bulb.

 

Sux to be them!

I got my zap from fiddling in an upright arcade machine when I was about 20,
and I knew much better... must have slipped onto something in another area while
working in a low voltage area of it, and there must have been a reason I wanted it powered.

It didn't really hurt too much, just a big "kick" I describe it (it really is a shock),
but I started shaking about 30 seconds afterwards.

I hated ditching the original cable, but not considering nibbling an IEC socket into the
back of the chassis

That was actually "Now" considering nibbling an IEC socket...
but another option is to drill a hole in the top of the cabinet it's sitting on,
and feeding the cord from underneath the radio, through the hole, all out of sight.

I'm only 39.. wasn't around for this. I think I am an exception to the rule.
I don't think a vintage radio hobby (on a broad scale) can really last beyond the generation sadly.
Anyone posting here under age 39 raise your hand..

 

In the early days of electrification, the primary (and often only) use was for lighting. Hence many building that were originally built (or modified) to have wiring, which is hy you see so many old building with the switches mounted on the walls and not in them and with the wiring run on the wall and not interior to it. As electric appliances starting becoming available, the path of least resistance was to make adaptors to screw into an Edison base.

Of course, that's just asking for trouble as people bought more and more appliances and ran cords all over the house. Especially since some early installations didn't have fuses at all or were Edison fuses that people put pennies behind to keep them from blowing because they got tired of having to constantly replace fuses.

 

I never thought to biuld an AM transmitter to feed external source to it without modification

 

You won't need to do that for a few years,as there are still plenty of AM Stations in Oz.
About the power lead--don't butcher it with an IEC socket,just cut the IEC end off & connect as before,making sure to make a proper Earth connection to the chassis as well.

It should have a lug on the end of the Earth conductor,& use an special star washer which digs into the lug & the next washer.

You should be able to Google for a picture of what is required.
Obviously,there are other ways to connect the Earth wire,but this is the approved method in Australia.
The "bold" type is because other countries may have different methods.

 

Dick Smith taught me that, I got the DSE Video Enhancer
I think our cords have the lug on the Earth lead already when you buy them
pre-prepared as power cords like that.

 

Bummer! Went up in smoke
It was the power transformer. It smells bad too.
New one is worth more than the radio.

 

It has come time to choose between the schematic,
or follow what was in the radio.
There's only a swapped capacitor value difference between the two!

The pink dot in the radio diagram is the 8uF electrolytic that was shot in the original radio.
It was leaky, and discoloured like it was hot at some stage.
I'm not saying it's the difference in wiring that damaged it.

Any favour one over the other?

 

Well the future of radio for me, is this lovely item sitting on top of a 1U cabinet
that has a cutout on top, inside a rack mount cabinet with glass door,
with some new audio sources

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HeVlHtfaIo8

 

Well the future of radio for me, is this lovely item sitting on top of a 1U cabinet
that has a cutout on top, inside a rack mount cabinet with glass door,
with some new audio sources

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HeVlHtfaIo8

Somehow, I can't get past the thought of electrocution.

 

It is earthed, but I didn't initially trust it.
I have now at least determined there is no lethal potential on the chassis!

 

Repurposed a 60's stereophonic tonight

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M6PuP8fir9o