Bush SRG142 Stereogram

[Colourstar]

This stereogram had been on display in the, ahem, 'retro' section of a local Sue Ryder charity shop. It looked shabby but was priced at an eye-watering £80. I was taking a few donations in and got chatting to the manageress. I asked if the stereogram was a runner and she said they'd never tried it!

I'm not a big fan of these later models (the radiogram, not the woman ) but out of curiostiy we plugged it in. Switching on produced an audible pop through the speakers, but no dial lights and no other signs of life- no crackles from the rotary controls and no pops from the buttons. The record deck ran, so it seemed like something was amiss with the tuner/amp itself. Faced with this less-than-saleable result, the manageress concluded that they'd have to take it off sale and dump it. You can probably guess what happened next. Let's just say it involved a donation of a couple of quid and my estate car reversing up to their goods entrance.

Back home, having wrestled the thing in from the car and wondering why on earth I'd lumbered myself with it I decided to power it up again. This time as soon as the knob was clicked on I (and the neighbours) were nearly deafened by MW radio, loud and clear. I've no idea why it wouldn't work in the shop, but it was certainly a goer now and no amount of prodding and poking would induce it to play up again. Maybe it was nervous in front of crowds.

As mentioned, these later stereograms I can take or leave, but nevertheless I thought the best course of action would be to give it a quick once-over. The Garrard 2025 record deck had a seized auto-trip pawl, so the arm would play about half an LP before sticking fast. This sort of fault is typical on players like this that haven't been used in years. With that freed up and the auto mechanism re-greased, all was fine in that department. A rummage underneath the deck revealed the errant single play plastic spindle which was duly returned to it's clip on the deck plinth.

The tuner/amp was suffering crackly pots and buttons, both cured with a squirt of Servisol. The tuning pointer was nowhere to be seen on the scale. I feared the drive cord had snapped, but it turned out the blob of resin that bonded the pointer assembly to the cord had merely parted company, leaving the drive cord to sail past the stranded pointer. The track it ran along was sticky with old grease which just needed cleaning off to allow it to slide easily along the length of the scale. Another easy fix. Both scale lamps and the red pilot light on the front were out, but these were all down to poor contacts rather than blown bulbs. It all now lit up like a Christmas tree.

Finally the cabinet had acquired myriad dings and the top and sides were completely dried out and rough to the touch, probably the result of being baked under a window for years. I lightly sanded these areas (not too much- it's only veneered chip board) and applied several coats of Danish oil to produce a really lustrous finish. Scratch Cover smartened up the remaining panels.

So now this 1971 Bush looks pretty good again and works well. To conclude the story, as Sue Ryder are a very worthwhile charity, I've decided to re-donate the rejuvenated stereogram to the branch from whence it came. It's still not worth eighty quid though...

Steve
PS- The top looks a little marked in the photo, but it's fine in reality, being silky smooth to the touch and with a nice depth of finish.

[Colourstar]

Here's a rather more flattering picture of the cabinet!

[Colourstar]

I'm pleased to say the charity shop were duly grateful to take it back. I was getting very slightly attached to it, but having just acquired two Pye Slimline Trios (TV/stereograms) it was getting mighty crowded so something had to give.

Steve

[Nickthedentist]

Well done from me too Steve.

Originally Posted by Colourstar

I'm pleased to say the charity shop were duly grateful to take it back.

Good to hear that, it so easily could have been a case of "not that *&$+£@ thing back that again!". This type of thing has become collectable amongst non-techie types recently, so I'm sure it will find an appreciative home.

Nick.

[af024]

Well done that man! Rather interestingly (for me at least), the amp/tuner layout looks just like one I've seen in a Ferranti radiogram. I wonder if it has Mullard modules in it and the dreaded AF117s?

[Colourstar]

Originally Posted by af024

I wonder if it has Mullard modules in it and the dreaded AF117s?

Thanks Andy. You may be right on the above score- were AF117s still in use in 1971? That may account for the Bush not working in the shop, but performing OK once it had been jolted around a bit on the way home in the car, perhaps shaking loose those creeping fibres that grow in the transistors. It did cross my mind.

Steve