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Old 15th Nov 2019, 3:57 pm   #1
David Simpson
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Default British Radiophone Ltd

Folks, just recently been given a box of bits, loudspeaker & an RF unit made by British Radiophone Ltd. No cabinet, no chassis or baseboard & no front panel.
The green & gold label on the RF Unit says :-
SUPERHET RADIOPAK
4 loose valves :- PM12A, PM12M, PM2DX, PEN220A

Grace's Guide says that the company wound up in 1926, but also reveals a poster from Sept. 1933.
Freq dial has a LW display which just goes from 1000 to 1900m & a MW display from 200 to 550m. Both viewed through, I reckon, the wee bronze/brown metallic aperture which was just loose in the box.
Any ideas, guidance or advice most welcome, please ?

Regards, David
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Old 15th Nov 2019, 4:18 pm   #2
Ed_Dinning
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Default Re: British Radiophone Ltd

Hi David, the RF unit looks like the sort of coilpack made by Colvern and the likes and advertised in PW etc in the 30's.

Ed
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Old 15th Nov 2019, 7:10 pm   #3
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Default Re: British Radiophone Ltd

If it is a superhet, I bet it'll be one of the early kind that had a low IF of 120-150KHz rather than the more-traditional 450-470KHz.
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Old 16th Nov 2019, 1:37 am   #4
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Default Re: British Radiophone Ltd

Another advertisement (PW was weekly then I think) which appears to feature the coilpack in question, but not in detail.
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Old 16th Nov 2019, 2:32 am   #5
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Default Re: British Radiophone Ltd

See my post No. 11 about the Riviera Radio:

https://www.vintage-radio.net/forum/...d.php?t=159110

Also: https://www.gracesguide.co.uk/British_Radiophone_Co

DFWB.
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Old 17th Nov 2019, 10:47 am   #6
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Default Re: British Radiophone Ltd

Thanks to Bill & Fernseh for the links. Yep, I'd already seen the Grace's info on the company's director's later links with Plessey. Thus Plessey may have used the name for some of their products in the 1930's. I also wonder if Colvern also became a member of the Plessey Group back then ?
In the picture of a handful of BR's products, one can just about see a similar RF Unit to mine. All the wee terminals down the sides have corresponding lettering &/or numbering on the paxolin strips . I suspect that these would be shown on the circuit diagram for the set, should I be able to locate one. Hopefully, eventually, a Forum member might recognise the tuning display & associate it with an old set lying on a shelf, or in a loft somewhere.
So far, my experiences with sets from 1922 to 1930-ish have just been with crystal sets, a wavemeter, and TRF's. A very early superhet will be a new experience for me.

Regards, David
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Old 17th Nov 2019, 11:49 am   #7
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Default Re: British Radiophone Ltd

I suspect it is not a superhet as there are no I.F. transformers to be seen.
Could it be an add-on unit for the hobbyist to add to an already constructed audio amplifier? It has screw terminal connections, which suggests to me that it is not part of an all-in-one receiver. Tony.
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Old 17th Nov 2019, 11:54 am   #8
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Default Re: British Radiophone Ltd

More info :-
Have spread out everything that was in the box. A huge AMPLION M.C.22 8" Speaker. Two separate RF Coils(IF?). A lovely FERRANTI AF6 AF T/F. Three Term strips on veneered ebonite. 5 Benjamin valve holders (4 x B4, & 1 B5). Couple of TCC capacitors. Wee box of resistors & capacitors. That's it.
A Battery Set, going by the ident markings on the terminals, plus a pair of terminals marked "Pick-Up". So, a 5 valve Battery Superhet, by the look of things. Have had a quick look in my edition of "Radio Radio", but can't match anything up yet.

Regards, David
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Old 17th Nov 2019, 12:20 pm   #9
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Default Re: British Radiophone Ltd

It's a tuner coil pack head probably designed to feed an IF of 110kHz.

Amongst others the W.W. Everyman AC Super receiver (1933) used a Radiophone unit.

Full details can be found in W.W. Dec. 1933:

https://www.americanradiohistory.com...ld-1933-12.pdf

Mag page 464 for the parts list.

Mag page 474 for the start of the article (including schematic)

Continued on mag page 488.

Lawrence.

Last edited by ms660; 17th Nov 2019 at 12:42 pm. Reason: missed word plus couple of additions
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Old 17th Nov 2019, 3:51 pm   #10
David Simpson
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Default Re: British Radiophone Ltd

Many thanks Lawrence for that link. Right enough, the EVERYMAN A.C. SUPER uses the same S/Het RF Unit(mine marked 117.6 Mc/s), but certainly a different valve line-up with no mains T/F or rectifier circuit,& certainly no Heptode mixer, as my valve holders are just B4 or B5( for Filament valves, not separate heaters). But we're drawing close to the suspect - possibly a basic battery "EVERYMAN" S/Het ? From '30 or '31 maybe ? This earlier version might well be contained in a similar tall cabinet - to enclose the big heavy AMPLION loudspeaker.
My two IF Coil enclosures have no maker's ident on them.
By the way, does one have to join or log-on, or what, to access www.americanradiohistory.com ? I wonder if they have any info on my ALLSCOTT TRF, must get back to that soon.

Regards, David
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Old 17th Nov 2019, 3:59 pm   #11
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Default Re: British Radiophone Ltd

Those IF transformers in your photo look like British Radiophone jobs, an example here:

https://americanradiohistory.com/hd2...2radiophone%22

I never had to register for that site, here's the link for the W.W. archives, either browse by edition or do a search, for search click on the "Search Wireless World" icon then either tick "All" or just the decade(s) of interest:

https://www.americanradiohistory.com...d_Magazine.htm

Lawrence.

Last edited by ms660; 17th Nov 2019 at 4:06 pm. Reason: addition
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Old 17th Nov 2019, 8:24 pm   #12
David Simpson
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Default Re: British Radiophone Ltd

Thanks Lawrence for the americanradiohistory info.
In the wee box of components I've now found two WESTECTOR W.4 Diodes, which would tie in with the Everyman A.C. Super's det/agc circuitry. I've flipped through all the early 1930's pages in my Radio Radio 3rd Edition, but nothing is shown regarding a 4(or5) valve Battery Superhet which looks close to the Everyman A.C. Super in the WW Dec 1933 pages. Next question - who made the "Everyman" ? Ever Ready, GEC, Marconi, Cossor ? That tall wooden cabinet shown in the WW article is pretty distinctive with its Art Deco speaker unit on the top. But something akin to that tall profile would be needed to accommodate a proper chassis(missing in my case) & the humping big speaker I have.

Regards, David
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Old 21st Nov 2019, 3:35 pm   #13
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Default Re: British Radiophone Ltd

Just acquired this 6 page booklet on BR's range of high value/high voltage capacitors. There is no publication date on it, but has a 1940's - 50's look about it. Just scanned the front & back pages.
Going back to the "SUPERHET RADIOPAK" RF Unit - the distance between the l/h on - off/vol. control and the r/h wave change switch is 8", then upwards from them both to the tuning control, at a shallow angle, it is 4". So any early 1930's "Tombstone" art-deco like table top two band superhets with those dimensions would possibly contain the same RF Unit. Very few in Radio Radio fit the bill.
Still cant find out who made the "Everyman" set. Nor if it was made in a Battery version ? Must've been a substantial cabinet to hold the 8" Amplion speaker, as it weighs about 2.5Kg.

Regards, David
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Old 21st Nov 2019, 4:06 pm   #14
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Default Re: British Radiophone Ltd

As a kit or bit's individually, Peto Scott were quite big with cabinets for home build:

https://americanradiohistory.com/hd2...ch=%22everyman peto scott%22

Lawrence.
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Old 21st Nov 2019, 5:37 pm   #15
David Simpson
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Default Re: British Radiophone Ltd

Yep, Lawrence, we're back to the WW Dec. 1933 Issue's article on the mains "Everyman AC Super". Now, thanks to your great research, we find that the Everyman kit was marketed by Peto - Scott. It also refers to the "Author" - who is he ? The WW Author perhaps ?
But again, the box of stuff I have is just for a DC Battery set. B4/5 valve holders, Veneered Ebonite terminal strips, marked LT+, LT-, HT1, HT2, etc.
So did Peto - Scott originally sell basic DC Battery Everyman Superhets prior to 1933's launch of an AC version? Guess I must delve into Peto - Scott's production of wireless kits. And, who were Peto & Scott, or is it a hyphenated surname like "Scott-Taggart" ?
Perhaps there is a Peto - Scott expert out there somewhere.

Regards, David
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Old 21st Nov 2019, 9:51 pm   #16
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Default Re: British Radiophone Ltd

"Was there a previous Everman set?" - - yes, seemingly there was. Internet info found on PAGE61 of the IEE HISTORY OF TECHNOLOGY SERIES 13 - "WIRELESS" the crucial decade 1924 - 34, by Gordon Bussey.It mentions WIRELESS WORLD'S own "NEW EVERYMAN FOUR". This set, plus Peto-Scott's "Twin De Lux Cabinet" = Attractive Table Consolette according to the latest ARH WW article from Lawrence, would seem to fit the criteria for the parts I have. The WW article also mentions using a "PLYMAX" chassis, which was Duralumin bonded to Plywood, & was used in the 30's for Airplane & Car construction. Internet info says that Plymax is still being manufactured today. Guess I should put out a "Wanted post" for an old empty Peto-Scott "Twin De Lux Cabinet", plus a chassis sized lump of Plymax.

Regards, David
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Old 22nd Nov 2019, 1:31 pm   #17
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Default Re: British Radiophone Ltd

https://www.vintage-radio.net/forum/...66&postcount=5
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Old 22nd Nov 2019, 7:43 pm   #18
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Lightbulb Re: British Radiophone Ltd

I thought I'd try a different approach and searched americanradiohistory.com using the term "superhet radiopak". I thought I was onto something when I found this page, but the 'Luxus AC Super Four' doesn't appear to be mentioned anywhere other than this advertisement.

They may have meant the 'Luxus A.C. Superhet' (here, here and here), but it's a mains set rather than battery. It certainly appears to feature the RF unit that David has, but other than that, I think it's a dead-end.

Two more pictures of the RF unit here and here.

Last edited by Wellington; 22nd Nov 2019 at 7:55 pm. Reason: added another link
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Old 22nd Nov 2019, 9:39 pm   #19
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Unhappy Re: British Radiophone Ltd

Again, I thought I was onto something, but no – mains powered, again.
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Old 22nd Nov 2019, 10:05 pm   #20
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Lightbulb Re: British Radiophone Ltd

Quote:
Originally Posted by David Simpson View Post
"Was there a previous Everman set?"
This 'modernised' version of the Everyman Four looks intriguing, David – the 'E.M. Plus 4' – a kit supplied by Ready Radio of Blackheath. It doesn't appear to use the RF unit, but it's battery powered and may have used similar valves to those you have. Interesting how the word 'consolette' appears in the last paragraph.

An advert appeared in Popular Wireless.
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