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Vintage Radio (domestic) Domestic vintage radio (wireless) receivers only. |
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#1 |
Tetrode
Join Date: Sep 2019
Location: Porto, Portugal
Posts: 94
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Dear members of the forum
I know that some valve holders on the DAC90A have a holding spring that must forcibly be removed prior to thinking about removing the valves. In my example below there doesn't seem to be any spring, either because the sockets are springless, or a previous owner removed them already. I believe I can remove the valves safely, but would like to know your opinion prior to forcing or breaking anything. Helder |
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#2 |
Octode
Join Date: Oct 2017
Location: Bristol, UK.
Posts: 1,206
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Hi Helder, from what I can see yours doesn't have any springs fitted. If you look at this thread https://www.vintage-radio.net/forum/...=160632&page=2 Post #33 has an image of the type of valveholder with springs, which looks different to yours. You shouldn't do any damage removing the valves, but my advice to you is if you don't need to remove them, then don't! Cheers, Jerry
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#3 | |
Tetrode
Join Date: Sep 2019
Location: Porto, Portugal
Posts: 94
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#4 |
Dekatron
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: Lynton, N. Devon, UK.
Posts: 5,565
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Yes these look like springless B8A valveholders (I have seen a few).
Kinder to the valves... But take care all the same! |
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#5 |
Tetrode
Join Date: Sep 2019
Location: Porto, Portugal
Posts: 94
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Thanks kalee20. In the post pointed out by Jerry there are photos of both types. They're clearly different by eye. As for care, I usually do my best, but this is all new to me, so some damage is expected along the way (so far so good though).
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#6 |
Rest in Peace
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: N.W. Oxfordshire(Chipping Norton)
Posts: 7,307
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One of my 'jobs in progress' is a DAC90A. This has the springless valve holders, too. I wonder if, at some point production was switched to that type.
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#7 |
Octode
Join Date: Aug 2015
Location: Glasgow, UK.
Posts: 1,149
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In the Thread referenced by Jerry there are indeed photos of both types.
Post #32 shows Graham's DAC90A WITH NO springs. Post #33 shows my own DAC90A WITH springs. Here are my springs which I have retained, just in case ...! ![]() https://www.vintage-radio.net/forum/...5&d=1526205390 Remember to pull the valves straight out of their holders - don't force them and don't wiggle!
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#8 |
Tetrode
Join Date: Sep 2019
Location: Porto, Portugal
Posts: 94
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Could be. Mine is a later production model, with the perspex-backed front knobs. Although I've seen similar sockets in an older DAC90A (chassis could have been swapped with a later one though).
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#9 | |
Tetrode
Join Date: Sep 2019
Location: Porto, Portugal
Posts: 94
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#10 |
Dekatron
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: W.Butterwick, near Doncaster UK.
Posts: 7,716
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And of course pull the valves out straight up.
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#11 |
Rest in Peace
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: N.W. Oxfordshire(Chipping Norton)
Posts: 7,307
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I removed all the valves in my DAC90A without any problems, and did so in order to be able to clean the valve pins and the sockets, besides which I was, and am, in the process of repairing the radio-replacing all the waxies, out of tolerance resistors, the o/p transformer and some of the wiring, so I thought it better to remove all the valves before undertaking what amounts to at least a partial rebuid.
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#12 |
Dekatron
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: Lincolnshire, UK.
Posts: 3,514
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Everyone seems to be absolutely obsessed with replacing all the wax capacitors in these sets - why?
At this very moment as I type this post I'm actually listening to my own DAC90A radio which has been on for most of the evening and I've only ever needed to replace one single capacitor in this particular set to make it work faultlessly and reliably. Of course that particular capacitor is the "that" capacitor, ie, the output valve grid coupling capacitor, which must ALWAYS be replaced. All the other capacitors in the set are the original wax ones. I accept that different radios sometimes need more or less capacitors replacing to get them to top performance and the amount that need replacing may also be connected with how the set has been stored over the years. Just thought I'd better add - I've also lifted one end of the mains filter capacitor to save it from going bang, but that's it. |
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#13 |
Rest in Peace
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: N.W. Oxfordshire(Chipping Norton)
Posts: 7,307
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Each to their own, Techman, but I've long regarded waxed paper capacitors in any vintage radio, etc., as 'change on sight', along with Hunts 'Moldseals', and those Black Philips things. These days I seldom check waxies, but when I do they're almost always leaky, so a blanket changes minimises the risk of a later failure, IMHO.
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#14 |
Dekatron
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: Leominster, Herefordshire, UK.
Posts: 14,995
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The only places I'd leave old waxies are where the circuit impedances are low enough that dc conditions are not affected. Cathode bypass is about the only such in a DAC90(A).
This isn't very spring related! I wonder whether the spring design went with the early metal base valves where it wouldn't do any harm and may have been a nod to high vibration applications. When the bean counters decided that all that metal was expensive, it took a while for the sockets to follow suit? Presumably sockets were never manufactured by the valve makers anyway. Except maybe Philips?
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....__________ ....|____||__|__\_____ .=.| _---\__|__|_---_|. .........O..Chris....O Last edited by Herald1360; 3rd Nov 2019 at 9:58 am. |
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#15 | |
Dekatron
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: Lincolnshire, UK.
Posts: 3,514
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As has just been mentioned, this thread is specifically about valve holder springs in these sets. I think my set had these springs, which, I of course, would have left in place as an original item fitted by the manufacturer. As I say, each to their own with these sets. They're not a rare set so in the grand scheme of things it probably doesn't really matter what you do to your own set, as there's still going to be some mint condition examples around for those in the future to preserve as examples. At the end of the day, it's a two band AM only set, so you have to ask yourself what you're actually going to do with your set and what you're going to listen to on it after you've flooded the innards with yellow. In several years time there may not be anything left to receive on AM unless you feed it with a signal from something else, so is a total 'modernisation' of the innards really necessary, unless you just enjoy doing it of course, and who can fault you for that. I've found a picture of my 'conservation' method of replacing the grid coupling capacitor in a DAC90A radio, just hiding behind the original, but not so far behind that it could be missed by a future restorer - shown below:- Last edited by Techman; 3rd Nov 2019 at 1:15 pm. |
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#16 |
Dekatron
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Wiltshire, UK.
Posts: 9,416
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I just ease the springs out of their grooves and push them a bit up the length of the metal shroud before attempting to remove the valve.
As well as the 2 styles of base referred to, I come across a third - used by Philips - which doesn't have a spring or a 'split' in the shroud for the locating pip but instead has a raised channel the length of the shroud to accomodate the pip (which therefore only provides indexing) and punched tabs around it, which are sprung inwards to grip the flared part of the valve's glass. As to the logic for fitting the springs - I must admit I've never heard of B8 valves working loose - if anything the various retention mechanisms are sometimes a bit too over-zealous leaving me in fear of damaging a valve when trying to remove it. At least with the old metal-shell bases used on the likes of the B8B Loctals and the B9G valves you could usually slip a screwdriver in between the base and the metal shell to ease things a bit. |
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