Here's a Neat little Zenith AM All American 5 Radio I bought from a local business The tag says it needs repair. Let's see what it will take to get it working again.
On restringing the dial I have super glue at the ready. When I have the string at the right tension with a half knot I put a small drop of super glue on it and in a few second I can finish the knot with out loosing the tension. Then a small drop on the completed knot. Try it, it works great.
I worked part time for a Zenith dealer, in the mid-to-late 1970's, which had been with Zenith, since 1934. I'd read several corporate-to-dealer bulletins from that era, where Zenith was promoting the edict that 'fidelity comes in small packages with Zenith'. It may have been a response to Motorola's "Golden Voice" speaker program. They added 'extra filtering and buoyancy' to the audio circuitry, and some of the AlNiCo speakers had rods of tungsten pressed into the magnet. That "Chicago School of Electronics" was awesome! This was a damn nice save, thanks for sharing.
The one good thing about cigarette residue on a radio cabinet is that it seems to act like a protective coating. When you clean it off the cabinet underneath looks like new as does yours. Another Zenith saved from the landfill. Well done.
Nicotine residue is a great preservative, its probably saved many old unused wooden cased electronics and furniture. People didn't live nearly as long back then though and many of these radios only had a few years use before being put away, instead of thrown away. My grandparents house use to be littered with old TV,s, radios etc put in the garage or a cupboard, people didn't throw so much away back then, today people have more things so need to get rid of old stuff to make room for new. Plus electronics are much cheaper now than they were decades ago
Really enjoyed this video. I haven’t seen one like this before and really like the big sweep hand in the front. When you first showed the inside the first thing that went through my head was where was the capacitor can. Most people that just glob onto the existing connections don’t seem to take the trouble to remove the can. It sure cleaned up nicely and it’s a really great radio 📻. Nice job.
You did a wonderful job on that one! ! That is a neat looking art deco radio, and it receives good too, it is truly a long distance AM receiver. Neat to say the least.
Definitely not one of the common Zenith models from that era that you constantly see. Never seen one of these before. Looks like a big 6x8 speaker too, nice radio!
My first visit. Very well presented information. On the edge of my seat! Enjoyed watching I bought an old tube radio 10 years ago. It’s now time (I’m retired now) to fix it. YEP! Bob. KQ2Q. Danielsville GA
..great restoration. I m so envious of your knowledge and ability.the most I know about electronics is how to plug them in..usually..keep up the great work and excellent videos!!...
Yep... definitely an awesome radio... great restore and cool scene-transition at time 15:22 when the old parts suddenly change into new ones... lol :-D That was pretty cool :-) ... thanks for sharing.
It's really an AA6. I'd take it an RF amp stage and a 35C5 (or B5) audio output, not so powerful but much more sensitive than the normal AA5. The big speaker helps with volume.
Great video, but you changed the station too fast and now i will never know what happened after the guy didnt follow the instructions on his mattress, then it came alive! i'll just assume there is a man eating mattress out there devouring people who dont follow the instructions. :)
Back in the 50s 60s and 70s they didn't recycle electronics so there are probably hundreds of vintage radios at the bottom of land fills around America. It has a little dark humor but with all the cigarette tar the owner probably passed years ago from lung cancer.
I always enjoy watching you test the tubes, im guessing you did that on this radio too? I enjoy your repair vids but could you please show the tube testing? Love your work. Cheers, Mark in Australia
Hi, If you don't mind, I've got a couple of questions for you. When you reattached the two antenna wires, does it matter which wire goes where? By that I mean would the antenna be just as effective if the two wires were reversed? I've got a General Electric clock radio from 1954 where the antenna wires were broken as well. I replaced them with longer wires that were about twice as long to minimize the possibility of them breaking again. I hope that extra length didn't hurt the performance. I only guessed which way was right when I hooked them up. Also, the dial string only appeared to have wear in one small place. Could it have been rubbing against something? Thanks a lot, Tom
Tom It shouldn't matter if the antenna is a loop so each end should be the same. I've only run into one radio where it mattered. The leads should be fine. These old circuits aren't to fussy. You might check the area where your dial string is with the chassis "test fitted" see if anything is rubbing. Nothing worse than having to fool with a dial string more than once than you have to.
I used to do e.v.p. on that radio, I know I must be lying but no I was way ahead of my time no one did it at that time, not on t.v. or any of my friends, my radio like that was white same radio this was about 1973 when w.k.b.w. was music Trish madimore,d.j. that radio was extremely strong reception.
Hello from new subscriber...Heard Shango mention you and was surprised I had never seen you before? TH-cam must have useless software - never got a recommendation, ever..
Also, note in the close-up views that the tuning capacitor has 3 sections instead of the AA5's 2. That allows the RF amp to be tuned for maximum performance across the dial.
Sounds like silver mica disease on this little set. A surgical strike on the IF cans and replacing the caps in there should quiet the static during tuning.
On restringing the dial I have super glue at the ready. When I have the string at the right tension with a half knot I put a small drop of super glue on it and in a few second I can finish the knot with out loosing the tension. Then a small drop on the completed knot. Try it, it works great.
Wow! So simple I've never thought of that great idea.
Pro trick : you can watch series at KaldroStream. I've been using them for watching lots of of movies these days.
@Jack Morgan Yup, I've been watching on kaldroStream for since december myself :)
@Jack Morgan definitely, I have been using KaldroStream for since november myself :)
@Jack Morgan definitely, have been using kaldroStream for years myself :D
I worked part time for a Zenith dealer, in the mid-to-late 1970's, which had been with Zenith, since 1934. I'd read several corporate-to-dealer bulletins from that era, where Zenith was promoting the edict that 'fidelity comes in small packages with Zenith'. It may have been a response to Motorola's "Golden Voice" speaker program. They added 'extra filtering and buoyancy' to the audio circuitry, and some of the AlNiCo speakers had rods of tungsten pressed into the magnet. That "Chicago School of Electronics" was awesome! This was a damn nice save, thanks for sharing.
Cool information there! Thanks for sharing that.
I have that exact radio and it's a great performer. My friend likes to call it the 'tissue box.'
HAHA! Never thought of that! It does look like a tissue box on the front!
The one good thing about cigarette residue on a radio cabinet is that it seems to act like a protective coating. When you clean it off the cabinet underneath looks like new as does yours. Another Zenith saved from the landfill. Well done.
Nicotine residue is a great preservative, its probably saved many old unused wooden cased electronics and furniture.
People didn't live nearly as long back then though and many of these radios only had a few years use before being put away, instead of thrown away.
My grandparents house use to be littered with old TV,s, radios etc put in the garage or a cupboard, people didn't throw so much away back then, today people have more things so need to get rid of old stuff to make room for new.
Plus electronics are much cheaper now than they were decades ago
That is an interesting and nice looking Zenith radio. That of-course is why the price was higher, but I'm glad you bought it.
I liked the zenith designs of this era. They always seem to be built a little bit better and they were generous with there speaker designs.
Better than average 6 tube model with what looks like a 6X9 auto type speaker
Nice radio, the cabinet design gives it a lot of character. Looks great all cleaned up.
Great restore. The front looks like the eye of robot in the movie "The Day the Earth Stood Still"
I love those 6 x 9" loudspeakers Zenith put in their radios.
Really enjoyed this video. I haven’t seen one like this before and really like the big sweep hand in the front. When you first showed the inside the first thing that went through my head was where was the capacitor can. Most people that just glob onto the existing connections don’t seem to take the trouble to remove the can. It sure cleaned up nicely and it’s a really great radio 📻. Nice job.
Cool looking little radio. I bet that has some great sound coming from that 6×9 inch speaker. Looks great. Excellent job. 😅
I love the look of this set. Was doing a better than average job picking up stations across the dial. Sounds good too with that nice big speaker.
I very much like your restored radios , Saw more than my share of old tube radios , wish I snagged a few when , I could .
You have a lot of interesting radios that I enjoy watching you repair
You did a wonderful job on that one! ! That is a neat looking art deco radio, and it receives good too, it is truly a long distance AM receiver. Neat to say the least.
Definitely not one of the common Zenith models from that era that you constantly see. Never seen one of these before. Looks like a big 6x8 speaker too, nice radio!
Good job on that radio and case!!! Looks like a new radio. I put ammonia solution in a spray bottle. It dissolves the cigarette paste instantly
My first visit. Very well presented information. On the edge of my seat!
Enjoyed watching
I bought an old tube radio 10 years ago. It’s now time (I’m retired now) to fix it. YEP!
Bob. KQ2Q. Danielsville GA
That's a nice looking radio.
..great restoration. I m so envious of your knowledge and ability.the most I know about electronics is how to plug them in..usually..keep up the great work and excellent videos!!...
Another video from Radio Rescue. Thanks for the upload!
Awesome radio! I have just started getting into tube electronics repair and discovered your channel, so glad I did! Thanks for the upload!
Welcome to the channel!
Thank you! I love these old radios!
Yep... definitely an awesome radio... great restore and cool scene-transition at time 15:22 when the old parts suddenly change into new ones... lol :-D That was pretty cool :-) ... thanks for sharing.
Next time I'll have to snap my fingers. Only if it were that easy in real life LOL!
Right on :-)
Always enjoy your videos. Keep 'em coming!!!!
Cool little radio, great repair. Interesting design.
Another great rescue, love the bigger speaker versus the 3-5" we usually see.
Even a simple AM radio 📻 had style back then.
Nice little radio!
Nice radio, sounds great.
nice job as always!!! feel bad for you almost every set you post needs a dial string replaesement.!!! but this is a sweet radio!!
Great 👍 👌 👍 Radio 📻 Zenith Radio and television 📺 👌 was the very best 👌 !!!!
Pretty hot receiver for a table radio and it's got the looks too. Thanks fro the great save and great video.
Nice repair!
A classic mid century modern looking radio!
780 out of Chicago is WBBM as in Whoppin Big Bowel Movement
Nice radio ,great job on repair.
Good Job
At least they gave you a hefty sized speaker. You can remove cigarette paste with household ammonia
It would be awful wearied to turn on of those old radios and receive a broadcast from the the 40's or 50's. A pure Twilight moment.😱😱🇺🇸
Verdaderamente un lujo
Verdaderamente un lujo tenerlo en casa.
Nice little radio! I just sent you an email. Thanks for what you do.
Hopefully there won't be another 3 week wait between videos.
It's really an AA6. I'd take it an RF amp stage and a 35C5 (or B5) audio output, not so powerful but much more sensitive than the normal AA5. The big speaker helps with volume.
Great video, but you changed the station too fast and now i will never know what happened after the guy didnt follow the instructions on his mattress, then it came alive! i'll just assume there is a man eating mattress out there devouring people who dont follow the instructions. :)
I think that front dial string had a spring on it where the knot was, which would keep it taute....
Back in the 50s 60s and 70s they didn't recycle electronics so there are probably hundreds of vintage radios at the bottom of land fills around America. It has a little dark humor but with all the cigarette tar the owner probably passed years ago from lung cancer.
I always enjoy watching you test the tubes, im guessing you did that on this radio too? I enjoy your repair vids but could you please show the tube testing? Love your work. Cheers, Mark in Australia
Hi,
If you don't mind, I've got a couple of questions for you.
When you reattached the two antenna wires, does it matter which wire goes where? By that I mean would the antenna be just as effective if the two wires were reversed? I've got a General Electric clock radio from 1954 where the antenna wires were broken as well. I replaced them with longer wires that were about twice as long to minimize the possibility of them breaking again. I hope that extra length didn't hurt the performance. I only guessed which way was right when I hooked them up.
Also, the dial string only appeared to have wear in one small place. Could it have been rubbing against something?
Thanks a lot, Tom
Tom It shouldn't matter if the antenna is a loop so each end should be the same. I've only run into one radio where it mattered. The leads should be fine. These old circuits aren't to fussy. You might check the area where your dial string is with the chassis "test fitted" see if anything is rubbing. Nothing worse than having to fool with a dial string more than once than you have to.
Thanks very much for the quick reply. Very helpful information.
Very nice radio ! Did I notice a phono input on the back of the chassis ? Would sound decent since it has that 6X9 speaker ! Love it ! D. in Michigan
I used to do e.v.p. on that radio, I know I must be lying but no I was way ahead of my time no one did it at that time, not on t.v. or any of my friends, my radio like that was white same radio this was about 1973 when w.k.b.w. was music Trish madimore,d.j. that radio was extremely strong reception.
Hello from new subscriber...Heard Shango mention you and was surprised I had never seen you before? TH-cam must have useless software - never got a recommendation, ever..
Sounds like it may have a small amount of SMD? Another great video!!!
Very nice fix :)
isnt that a 6 tube radio not a 5 tube?
More of an AA6 wouldn't you say?
All American Five is more a type of design, not necessarily the amount of tubes used.
What part of the circuit is the extra tube used in?
It adds an RF amp (Radio Frequency Amplifier) to things. It boosts the signal before it goes to the regular circuit.
Also, note in the close-up views that the tuning capacitor has 3 sections instead of the AA5's 2. That allows the RF amp to be tuned for maximum performance across the dial.
Thanks, that explains why it seems to pick up so well. What a great old radio!
📻🙂
Where did you say WPTF was located?
Do you ever sale anything you buy and repair? I have a hard time letting stuff go lol
Zenith ..seems to be a much like brand ?
Great video!! Ps do you sell these and where?
Not often but, sometimes on Ebay when i feel the need.
Radio Rescue okay, yeah, I don't usually sell radios I collect and restore ether
Do you have a certain brand radio ,that you like ,when it comes to repairs ?
That replacement Cap/Can looks to be replaced with an older "used"? compound cap yanked from an older radio. Yes, some morons did that years ago.
Restring the dial cord with 60 lb test fishing line You will never have to replace that dial cord again!!!
UV exposure on some plastics will turn green to blue .. we’ll hmm cigarette chemistry …
Sounds like silver mica disease on this little set. A surgical strike on the IF cans and replacing the caps in there should quiet the static during tuning.
15G
cap time