Peter Pan Radio puzzle

[wireful3]

I have just acquired a mystery Peter Pan Radio and wonder if anyone has any information on it. It is not the American radio but is made by Peter Pan Radio Ltd Leamington Spa, Model 472U . Looking through the usual references I can find no sign of this company. Superficially the set looks similar to the American midgets of the early 40s and is very reminiscent of the Little Maestro but bakelite. It has a Truvox speaker and the valve line-up is KTW61, 6J7, 25A66, U51. It uses line cord with 230v mains.

The company puzzles me and I am wondering whether it was an opportunist company building on the US midgets after the war or whether it tried to build on this at the end of the 30s but got absorbed with war work and vanished.

These speculations are entertaining but the reality might be even more interesting so I hope someone can help.

[murphyv310]

Hi John.
Any chance of a picture as you know a photo tells all.

[thermionic]

Hi John & Trevor.


I too have a Peter Pan set as described - shall be interested if any information turns up!

Fingers crossed!


SimonT.

[wireful3]

Hi Simon and Trevor,

I never have much success in making my photos compatible but I will try. If I fail miserably the nearest illustration I found is the Dulci MSU4 in "Radio Radio" 3rd edition p176 Fig 686.In my Peter Pan the speaker grille has white coloured louvres but I am not sure wwhether or not these were painted by some previous owner.

I suppose that one of the American Peter Pans would be more exciting but searching the story of this could be more interesting. It is nice to know it is not alone !

[Herald1360]

If you really can't size the photos to fit the forum limits, how about uploading to a photo host and giving a link?

[AlanBeckett]

Originally Posted by Herald1360

If you really can't size the photos to fit the forum limits ......

Isn't that automatic these days?
I don't bother any more and it works fine.
Alan

[wireful3]

I haven't tried since the improved facilities but here goes. looks as if it worked (magic)

[thermionic]

Hello John.


That looks almost identical to mine. I will dig it out from under all the rest and post a few pics also.

Cheers. SimonT.

[wireful3]

I have just looked at the dial and it is clearly not a pre-war set It has the Third Programme marked on the MW dial but there is only one station and this is at the LF end of the dial. At the HF end of the dial there is a station marked Light and Light also marked on LW along with Luxembourg.

It is my guess that it dates from about 1946. I suppose there were many small companies that hoped to build on radio or radar experience gained with the services, along with the shortage of radio sets, it would look like a good opportunity. I can imagine that most wood vanish without trace.

Again it is entertaining speculation. I hope the reality is not a let-down.

[thermionic]

Well, it took a bit of digging out, but here are a few pictures of my 'Peter Pan'. Interesting to note a different tuning arrangment, but the chassis looks about the same.
The loudspeaker is missing in mine, also the output valve. My valve line up is - KTW63, 6J7G, U31.


Cheers. SimonT.

[thermionic]

Here are a few of the inside & underside.



I hope somebody can shed some light on this company, and their sets.


SimonT.

[wireful3]

They are as you say more or less identical. I haven't taken mine out of the case yet. I want to get a replacement knob before taking it any further.

Incidentally there seems to have been a rather nonchalant approach to safety. The shaft for the knob that is missing on mine protrudes through the case. At least it is not a pull-off knob.

Interesting about the change in tuning drive and it looks as if that would protrude also.

I am intrigued my the mixture of manufacturing standards. The back is quite respectable and well printed but on mine the dial looks as if it has been hand marked as the set was aligned.

[bargaboy]

hi guys
several month ago i won at a local auction a peter pan radio (£14) identical to the photos on this radio puzzle.
i have tried till now to find some information

my valve line up is ktw63, 6j7, 25a6, u31 with a rola speaker, i hope someone can find information on it, as i would like to have drawing before i tinker with it

no one in this forum has mentioned if they have got them working.

Mario

[newlite4]

Just re-booting this one in light of recent discussions. I saw one of these at the NVCF with its original box. It clearly stated on the box that it was a "complete kit of parts" and was not a factory finished item. The price was £125 - far too much for a kit TRF set. I have a later 1947 Peter Pan set which also appears to be a kit TRF with a similar chassis layout. Lovely cabinets though with the black and white contrast, I have also seen one in speckled "beetle" bakelite with black bars.
Neil

[Sideband]

It definately has a 'kit' look about it so your comments Neil would probably back this up. It would also tie in with Wireful 3's comments about the dial being hand marked as it was aligned. There may have been a circuit in that 'complete kit of parts' but you're right...far too much to pay for a TRF kit.

Best thing is to trace the circuit out. Being a simple set, it should be quite easy.


SB

[G8KBG Tony]

I know this thread is quite old, but I found some information in some ancient service sheets that I hope will be useful.

Tony

[murphyv310]

Hi.
I recently got Bargaboy's Peter Pan up and running. He had been given a mod sheet to remove the line cord and modify the valve line up etc. I fitted a PZ30 as an HT rectifier and fitted a run cap as a heater dropper. Due to the very low HT current it was impractical to use an HT dropper resistor so another cap was fitted prior to the PZ30 anode. I eventually settled for 170v HT when the set was warmed up and the overall result was excellent, the little set works amazingly well for a TRF. The only issue in the mod sheet was switching neutral so a DP volume is really important along with a 500ma fuse for the mains at the very minimum.

[Herald1360]

In the spirit of "any chance of a picture" could a circuit of the new power feed arrangements be offered? A mental picture of a capacitor in series with the rectifier doesn't make much sense. Is some sort of capacitive potential divider involved?

The circuit posted earlier suggests that the HT was taken at mains voltage, which would mean that the capacitor only has to deal with the heater circuit- a simple enough scenario. Did the higher HT cause problems?

[murphyv310]

In this Peter Pan the smoothing caps were only rated at 200v and being honest I was unaware of the thread at the time nor did I have a diagram. Using 270 ohms before the PZ30 anode resulted in 240v HT, so I decided that the HT would have been lower and rightly or wrongly assumed that due to the low HT current this was taken from the heter side of the line cord, it had been cut off and some of the supply side had been removed so I had no idea how it was done originally.
A small value of .68uf is sufficient to supply the anode of the new PZ30 and result in 170v HT once the set stabilizes after 15 minutes.

[Herald1360]

Still don't get it- the only way I can see a series 0.68u capacitor working with a rectifier is if a voltage doubler is used, and then only if the 0.68u is fed from the mains side.