Signal 601 pocket clock radio Leningrad 1975

[howard]

Hello,
Most of the transistor radios which were imported into Western Europe from the Soviet Union were built in Minsk Belarus, and in Riga Latvia on the Baltic coast, but a few hundred miles further north east up the Baltic one arrives at the city of St. Petersburg in Russia, known as Leningrad during the Soviet period, where this little Signal 601 radio originated. It was built from 1975 in the Leningrad Radio Devices Works and was known as the Neiva 402 in Russia, and imported into the UK by the Soviet Export organisation Mashpriborintorg via their Technical and Optical Equipment (London) Ltd outlet and renamed the Signal 601. I think it's an excellent design with it's clockwork analogue clock and tiny matching tuning dial and one of the best looking sets originating from the Soviet Union. However it's beauty is only skin deep as the plastic cases on these radios are really fragile, particularly the back, even pocket radios made in Hong Kong have more robust cases than these But if kept in their superbly made leather cases I guess they should survive OK.

I bought a pair of these together, one damaged and working, the other slightly damaged but not working so I have built one nice one from the two. As all radios this size (5.1 x 3.3 x 1.5 inch ), it's fiddly to work on but none of the parts in this set are glued or welded together so one can dismantle it completely. The back comes off after removal of two screws, and removal of the earphone socket (threaded circular ring) allows it's complete removal. Inside, undo several tiny screws and a brass pillar which hold the PCB in place (make a note of them cos they're all different lengths!), undo two screws which hold the alarm switch, two screws which secure the volume pot, three screws and a brass threaded pillar which secure the loudspeaker, unsolder two wires to the back of the clock and the chassis is then free of its case. I took off the handle (a screw and square washer and a threaded nylon pillar) and then the grille and chrome surround (straighten the four tabs and they pull off).

Two of the flimsy plastic pillars which support the PCB and alarm switch were broken inside the better case so I stuck those back with superglue and allowed them to dry overnight. The better grille had a dent in it so I pushed that out. I cleaned the plastic case and the better leather case (with paint specks all over it) with upholstery cleaner. I squirted a little switch cleaner into the off/on/vol pot and alarm switch and then reassembled the set. Finally the plastic case and leather carry case were polished with Mr. Sheen.

Despite it's flimsy case, this is a lovely little radio. The PCB with it's complement of 7 germanium transistors is well put together and despite it's relatively small loudspeaker it sounds very good for such a small set and picks up everything on both MW and LW. The clock works well after one has wound it up and given the set a shake, keeping quite good time but not quite as well as my Telefunken Ticcolo.

The Signal 601 is a very welcome addition to my collection of radios built in the former Soviet Union

Howard

[Sideband]

Hi Howard.

Your expertise in these Russian sets is unsurpassed!! What a great looking little set. Never seen anything quite like it in British or European offerings. I presume it acts as an alarm/radio with a mechanical bell?


Rich.

[howard]

Hello Richard,

I haven't heard an alarm go off but the radio switches itself on at the appointed time.

It is a good looking little set and looks even better I think when tucked up safely in its leather case.

They're surprisingly not that uncommon on that well known online fleamarket, I've seen several there over the past year.

Howard

[Superhet Si]

I don't go much of these type of radios, but this looks a classy one.
Nice restoration Howard.

[joe]

Howard

I have a very similar one but MW only. Its makers name is "Vega" which somebody told me is Russian for "bird".

I bought it, brand new, for about £6 in the late 60s/early 70s when my late mother was in hospital, and just popped round the corner to Tottenham Court Road (see another thread).

The clock was replaced once under warranty, but apart from that it still works well and sounds better than many of its far Eastern contemporaries.

Joe

[howard]

Hello Si,

Yes it is a super design and very appealing.

Joe,

I looked up 'Vega' ('Bera' in Russian cyrillic) in several Russian-English online dictionaries and none listed it so I'll take your word for it that it's a bird. If you're interested in finding out the origins of your clock radio ie: the factory in the Soviet Union in which it was built, post a small pic of it here or send me a pic via a PM and I'll find out for you.

Howard

[Mike Phelan]

Howard
Looks fantastic - there is a great appeal with the clean lines of most of these USSR sets.

Richard
It will not have a bell - there is not enough room, and there would have to be a spring-driven alarm train to power it.

[Sideband]

Originally Posted by Mike Phelan

It will not have a bell - there is not enough room, and there would have to be a spring-driven alarm train to power it.

Hi Mike.

Yes I thought that was probably the case but then some old pocket watches had chimes so I thought...!

Rich.

[Tom_I]

Originally Posted by joe

Its makers name is "Vega" which somebody told me is Russian for "bird".

As Howard says, it doesn't seem to be. And judging by the logo below from a Selena B212, I would think the reference is to Vega in the constellation Lyra, the fifth brightest of the stars.

Tom

[Tom_I]

Further to that, from a brief cast around, it seems that the name Vega derives from an Arabic phrase which is variously translated as "swooping eagle", "falling eagle", "swooping vulture", "stone eagle", etc. So I guess there is a bird connection after all.

Tom

[Dave Moll]

The chambers Dictionary gives the Arabic as "al waqi' (al nasr)" for "the falling (vulture)". The vega (al waqi') bit presumably simply means "falling/swooping".

There is also a Spanish word "vega" meaning a meadow - the origin of the name "Las Vegas" (the meadows), although it is unlikely to be the origin of the name of this radio.

[Darren-UK]

That looks a nice little thing Howard, well done. I've had a few of those over the years; most - but not all - have carried the Signal name. I was once told the watches fitted to these radios were made by Sekonda, but I never did confirm that for certain.

One weak point on these is the alarm/radio activating mechanism which is, obviously, driven by the watch movement. Also, it's not uncommon for the watch hands, particularly the minute hand, to fall off their arbors and rattle around behind the glass

[joe]

I've attached a couple of extremely poor pictures of mine.

It does have the "Vega" logo followed by what I guess is the model name "Ruby".

BTW I seem to remember the guy who told me that Vega meant "bird" - he was Polish & not Russian

Joe

[howard]

Hello,

Thanks Darren, I can well believe that bits fall off these Russian built sets, these were not considered 'high class' Soviet sets like the RRRs built in Latvia as the Russian versions did not bear the CCCP Quality Rosette. Nevertheless its a great design and it works well.

Joe, I have sent your pic to a collector in Lithuania for identification, I will let you know when I hear from him.

Howard

[howard]

Originally Posted by darren-uk

I was once told the watches fitted to these radios were made by Sekonda, but I never did confirm that for certain.

Hello Darren,

I correspond with a chap who was once an area manager for Mashpriborintorg who well remembers dealing with these Signal radios, and yes, the clock in this radio was almost certainly made by Sekonda. The Soviets were keen to acquire foriegn currency and to provide employment to their workers, so profit was of secondary importance.
Interestingly, at the Technical and Optical (Supplies) Ltd head office in London, over a hundred Russian technicians were employed to carefully check and calibrate all the cameras, telescopes and radios arriving in the UK from the USSR.

Howard