Philips V5A

[bobhowe]

Hi been for a nice drive down to Doncaster ( See where To Get Sets & Parts ) & Bought a Philips V5A for my next project . I know this set will be a challenge & know a lot of people do not like these sets to work on but it has survived WW2 and it now nearly 90 years old so it deserves a 2nd chance. It looks original apart from the TCC 8 MFD capacitor that has replaced C 24 which should have been 32MFD but looks like its over 50 years old . It will need rewiring as the cables have perished and the tuning drive cord will need replacing as well . know this is not like a DAC90A to work on but it was made by humans and it can be fixed the bonus is the cabinet is good it has the original mains plug good back good speaker cloth good tuning dial & original speaker with cloth bag . Please can any other forum members that have one of these sets share the thoughts & experiences working on these sets kind regards Bob

[vinrads]

Hi Bob nice radio I restored one some years ago not to much trouble ,the speaker cloth on mine needed replacing due the the steel rusting behind it and staining it , as you say the wire may need to be replaced in places , good luck with it , Mick.

[Cobaltblue]

Gerry wells demonstrated how to work on these back in the 1980's when I was restoring one of mine. Restringing the dial (bowden cable) is really difficult though.

Gerry would unscrew all the big parts from inside the cabinet melt the pitch holding other parts in place then place the whole thing flat on the bench.

You needed to place a shield (the speaker) between the IF cans to prevent coupling.

You could then work on the set and then your finished fold it back into the cabinet (this set has no chassis).

Looked easy when Gerry did it, I chickened out and worked on it in situ!

I had to replace a lot of the VRI cable on mine.

Cheers

Mike T

[Mr 1936]

Hi

I seem to recall an article on these sets in a past issue of "Radio Bygones", I'll try and find the date.

I got a V5 in very good cosmetic condition a couple of years back. I must confess that I'm not exactly relishing the restoration phase though ! All the rubber wiring has gone very hard and brittle.

By all accounts, Philips "value engineering" was remarkably good, with the sets working as well as competitors at much higher prices. No thought given to servicing beyond valve replacement though. I bet a fair few ended up being flung against a wall.

[Dickie]

Originally Posted by Cobaltblue

You needed to place a shield (the speaker) between the IF cans to prevent coupling.

.....There are no cans, that's the problem!

[bobhowe]

Hi thanks for everyone for your comments i know this set is going to be different to work on & take a long time if i could have some advise i what order i should start working on it ? do the tuning dial cord 1st then the wiring then temporary replace capacitors ( then stuff them later when the set is working ) then check the speaker output transformer then the ht voltage with the output valve ( removed ) any suggestions kind regards Bob

[Tractionist]

Pay particular attention to the wave-change switches - Oh: and check for woodworm in the base too ....... !!

[bobhowe]

Hi Tractionist thanks for advise the wave - change switches look visually ok should i clean them in servisol ? just checked the base no signs o woodworm but it looks like it has been stored in good conditions as the speaker bag has not dropped to bits kind regards Bob

[FERNSEH]

Took a look at my V5A last night. Perhaps restringing the dial cord may not be too difficult after all. To gain access to the tuning system it is just a matter of removing the cabinet base, the part that carries all the power supply components.
The rubber insulated wiring in my set is perished. What is needed is silicon rubber sleeving. Such material is available from RS Components but is only offered in green, red and black. We need yellow for this set.
The green stock number is: 399-401

DFWB.

[Cobaltblue]

Originally Posted by Dickie

.....There are no cans, that's the problem!

Haha yes poor choice of words.

I should have said coils instead of can because as you quite rightly say there are no screening cans just the formers sat in mouldings in the case.

Cheers

Mike T

[FERNSEH]

In 1938 Pye didn't fit screening cans over the IF transformers in the 800 series radio receivers.

DFWB.

[Tractionist]

Originally Posted by bobhowe

Hi Tractionist thanks for advise the wave - change switches look visually ok should i clean them in servisol ? just checked the base no signs o woodworm but it looks like it has been stored in good conditions as the speaker bag has not dropped to bits kind regards Bob

Hi Bob,

I re-built mine thirty years or so ago - an intact unit with the back [and associated plug] + an undamaged scale etc. is a great start. These sets are well-made and perform pretty well - but I find that those switches tend to require regular use and/or a clean.

The pitch-coated caps are fun too .... and without a circuit diagram their values are nigh impossible to elicit.

Pay particular attention when servicing the drive cords and their associated mechanisms too - these are notorious for de-railing .... and you don't really want to re-visit them!

Cheers,

D.

[turretslug]

Fascinating set, though a (likely necessary) rewire would be quite a task. It gives the impression of being a mad idea, a prototyping lash-up put into production but it evidently worked quite well. I wonder if it was at all prone to marine-channel break-through around the IF, that unscreened horizontal one at the top (mixer output?) almost looks like an intentional aerial!

[Tractionist]

Originally Posted by turretslug

Fascinating set, though a (likely necessary) rewire would be quite a task. It gives the impression of being a mad idea, a prototyping lash-up put into production but it evidently worked quite well. I wonder if it was at all prone to marine-channel break-through around the IF, that unscreened horizontal one at the top (mixer output?) almost looks like an intentional aerial!

A re-wire is almost a certainty, or ..................... a catering pack of Systoflex [if you can source it]!!

[Dickie]

I'm confused by what the "original" colour of the loudspeaker grille ought to be. On the OP's set the fabric seems to be a uniform dark brown (image borrowed from Pasttimesradio website), whereas on most other sets on the web (including mine), the colour is a uniform (faded?) light brown with dark brown staining, sometimes patterned, sometimes random. Could the fabric be subject to selective fading, perhaps?

[Ambientnoise]

I thought the cloth was originally a dark gold colour with a foliage type weave. Mine was badly torn and stained but I got that impression from “shielded “ areas. Ben Djikman could supply a very good replica cloth.

Ken

[bobhowe]

Hi David you are right about removing the base with careful planning & component removal it should be possible to replace the drive cord . Hi Tractionist i am lucky like you that i have the back with the associated mains plug as well .Hi turretslug looking forward to the task of rewiring it ( it will keep me out of mischief ) kind regards Bob

[bobhowe]

Hi i am going to start a new thread about this set please keep this one going as well kind regards Bob

[Heatercathodeshort]

I first came across one of these when I was around 18. A customer asked me if I could repair his Philips radio. I must admit it looked more modern than it actually was [1936?] and when I took the back off I nearly had a fit!
It's a long time ago but I'm sure it was something to do with the dial cord or drive but it certainly gave a very good performance.
Like all Philips products no matter how odd they always work 100%. I have never known a Philips product to be lack lustre when it comes to performance. John.

[bobhowe]

Hi John must have been been a nightmare if you had to go on a house call do anything more than replace a valve wonder how many are left now kind regards Bob