Igranic 6 valve supersonic heterodyne receiver shed find. Value?

[Danh287]

Hi all.

I’ll start off by saying I know absolutely nothing about vintage radio sets.

I picked this up off a local sales site, it’s been stored in a shed for years. From a quick google search I can see it’s a 1920’s self build kit. I’ve looked up a few of the components and can see that they’re fairly expensive, can anyone give me an idea of value in its current untested state? The cabinet has active woodworm.

Any other info and a valuation would be greatly appreciated.

Kind regards, Dan.

[Radio Tech]

Hello Dan

That was an extremely lucky find, from what I can see from the photographs the set is in remarkable good condition, there were loads of sets built from a kit of parts and this is one of them, typical voltages are 120, 60 for the HT supplies that is if it had two, 2V derived from a lead acid accumulator, and probably around 3 different negative voltages for the Grid bias. If you search the internet there may even be some blue prints of the circuit diagram and layout used. Good luck with it

And welcome to the forum

Best wishes

Ken

[Paul_RK]

Looks to me like a Western Electric radio rather than a home-built set, but the only other images I can find of anything similar have three Indigraph dials rather than one of those and two large tuning knobs, so it may be that the unit has been significantly modified, which would have an impact on its value. Photos showing more of the interior would help, especially if anyone here has a related set to compare it with. The valves and some other parts may be valuable in themselves, but please don't think of breaking it before establishing whether or not it's a more or less complete original Western Electric model.

Paul

[Danh287]

Thanks ken & Paul for the quick replies, it’s exactly the same as the one in this link, they’ve even made the cabinet the same:

http://www.kevinchant.com/uploads/7/...rodyne_kit.pdf

I’ll try and get better photos later. It’s in great looking condition apart from the cabinet which will need woodworm treatment. Any idea of a ball park figure?

[Mr Moose]

Hello,
It looks similar to this https://www.radiomuseum.org/images/r...es_1765547.jpg ( taken from https://www.radiomuseum.org/r/igrani...eterodyne.html ) with a few modifications to the dials etc. It also implies that it could be a kit.
On the maker's plate it does say made under Western Electric Licence.
The value is difficult given the woodworm and alterations etc but at a guess £100-£300.
Yours, Richard

[Paul_RK]

Originally Posted by Mr Moose

...On the maker's plate it does say made under Western Electric Licence...

Yes: "Radio! Radio!" features a similar set, fig. 181, introduced there as a "Western Electric Co. 'Superhet Kit'". An advanced receiver for 1925, costing £21 inclusive of royalties for the chassis only, and probably to some extent a copy of an American design as the superhet principle gained acceptance rather faster there than here: Western Electric were pioneers in applying the technique to domestic radio, and Igranic will have brought the kit to market in the UK under license.

[David G4EBT]

Re the woodworm, their work is probably done - the 'frass' (dust) around the fight holes holes shows that at least some if not all, have pupated from the larval stage into beetles have left. For a set that that's getting on for ninety years old, the infestation was relatively recent, (last four years at most, which is about the life cycle from grub to beetle)unless that is, that no-one has bothered to dust away the frass from a much earlier infestation.

£21.00 in 1925 equates to £1,200 today. In that era, ordinary people on meagre wages lived hand-to-mouth and few would have enough disposable income to have bought such a thing. Then of course there would be headphones or a speaker to buy too.

The main stumbling block with such set is that over the years, they've often been tampered with or robbed of components, but at least the 25-page Igranic manual is available so that's a big help. The most likely components to have not stood the test of time are inter-valve transformers (thousands of turns of very fine wire which often suffer from 'green spot' corrosion), and the valves, but if the heaters are intact, they may still have life left in them.

It's in such good condition, that if restored it would I think add to the value rather than to detract from it, if a new cabinet was made to replicate the old one. I doubt very much whether the cabinet of the set at the RMORG link here is original. Invariably in the '20s, they favoured dark oak, which though in keeping with the era, isn't to modern tastes. his one isn't dark oak, and doesn't actually look like oak at all:

https://www.radiomuseum.org/r/igrani...eterodyne.html

[Paul_RK]

Originally Posted by David G4EBT

...I doubt very much whether the cabinet of the set at the RMORG link here is original. Invariably in the '20s, they favoured dark oak, which though in keeping with the era, isn't to modern tastes. his one isn't dark oak, and doesn't actually look like oak at all...

Oak was used, but I think walnut and, especially, mahogany, were more characteristic of the '20s, both tending to be more costly than oak. I'm not at all confident what the RM.org cabinet is.

[ms660]

With my Sawyers hat on I would say the cabinet on radiomuseum is predominately Oak, the medullary rays are just about visible on the inside of the back and the side, medullary rays are perpendicular to the growth rings and are particularly exposed when the log is quarter sawn, quarter sawing is a method of obtain wider dimensioned timber that has any shrinkage or movement more or less restricted to one direction unlike slash sawn boards (through & through)

Lawrence.

[Danh287]

Thanks for the replies. Been a bit busy over the last couple of days so sorry for not replying sooner. The original box has now turned up! Along with another mystery item! Anyone know what it is? It’s definitely home made.

[AC/HL]

Not sure about the home made, another kit perhaps. The metalwork looks too good, although attention to detail was better maybe back then. These were very expensive in real terms.

[Paul_RK]

Interesting construction on the second set, which looks considerably more sophisticated than the usual home-made set with predictable circuitry and often three or fewer valves.

The fallen valve by the row of terminals in the last photo has a large enough envelope in relation to its base that it could be an early mains triode, and worth a substantial sum if serviceable. If you want to clean the valves at all, beware of using liquids or even of rubbing at all hard around a type number or any other printing, as it might come off readily. Conversely, if you can't see a type number, one might still be readable in the condensation formed if you breathe on the glass.

[Herald1360]

That original box is probably considerably rarer than the set itself!

[Danh287]

Hi again,
Few more pics....
the valves in the last 2 pics are 2x Osram 625a and a Mullard pen4v 250v

[Herald1360]

Second pic looks like a mouse's nest!

Or should that be a rat's nest, given the context?

[Paul_RK]

Originally Posted by Danh287

...2x Osram 625a...

I think those will be P625A, and an untested one sold a few days ago for £101 - those are likely to be much the most valuable parts of the second chassis.

[Ed_Dinning]

Hi Dan, the meter looks like a Ferranti 2 range type from the 30's.
Second set looks like a fairly conventional 2, SG, Det and Op set from that period.
Any instruction leaflets with the box?

Silver foil (part of the mess) was probably stuck to the wooden case for screening, a common technique in those days.
Both sets should restore nicely.

Ed

[julie_m]

Before they became home entertainment devices, wireless sets were scientific instruments.

These "genuine Steampunk" sets are, paradoxically, often quite easy restorations as far as the electronic side of things is concerned. They don't have many bits to go wrong except the coils, and they most probably are constructed so as to be easily rewindable; and there are even NOS or CP valves still to be found. They aren't even to fussy about valve types; almost anything with gain and the right number of grids can be used.

For a temporary power supply, you can use a (large!) stack of pound-store disposable AA cells for the HT (80 * 1.5V = 120V; handle with extreme care) and a smaller stack for grid bias (6 or 8 cells,). For the filament supply, you will need either a 2V lead-acid rechargeable battery (and a suitable charger) or a well-regulated bench power supply. You can build a mains power supply later, once you have at least one of the sets working .....

[M0FYA Andy]

As is often the case, the parts sold separately will probably be worth more than assembled into a complete receiver.

[Peter.N.]

Quite a find, haven't seen anything like that since I was a kid and people were giving them away.

Peter