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Success Stories If you have successfully repaired or restored a piece of equipment, why not write up what you did and post details here. Particularly if it was interesting, unusual or challenging. PLEASE DO NOT POST REQUESTS FOR HELP HERE! |
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9th Feb 2017, 8:23 pm | #1 |
Tetrode
Join Date: Nov 2014
Location: Isle of Man
Posts: 86
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Ferguson Fieldfare 3114
I received this radio in a very grubby condition with just a few crackles showing a glimmer of life in the audio section.
I suspected the Plessey, Hunts and Daly capacitors and possibly tin whiskers in the 3 AF127s. I was correct about the Plesseys, C19 which should have been 350uF measured 27pF! C12 was 170uF instead of 100uF, the others weren't too far off. The transistors were OK ( for now! ). I now had very weak stations on MW but nothing on LW. A few squirts of Servisol and a lot of working of the volume pot and MW was very loud and clear. Squirting Servisol onto the wavechange switch had no effect on LW so I had to dismantle a bit deeper to see where the problem lay. Here is the surprising fault for me, the battery +ve wire is connected directly to the wavechange switch. It had obviously been tugged too hard at some stage pulling the contact on the switch out of alignment. After adjusting, LW was also loud and clear. I secured the battery leads so another tug in future won't cause the same problem. This is quite a sensitive radio with surprisingly loud audio before distortion. |
9th Feb 2017, 10:14 pm | #2 |
Hexode
Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: Cheshire, UK.
Posts: 363
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Re: Ferguson Fieldfare 3114
What an unusual set! I've never seen one of those before. Good Work!
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9th Feb 2017, 10:18 pm | #3 |
Moderator
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: Oxford, UK
Posts: 27,947
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Re: Ferguson Fieldfare 3114
AF12x transistors don't suffer from tin whiskers - at least not yet. They were used in the factory for a few sets at the end of the Ge era, though in this case they may be later replacements.
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9th Feb 2017, 10:49 pm | #4 |
Tetrode
Join Date: Nov 2014
Location: Isle of Man
Posts: 86
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Re: Ferguson Fieldfare 3114
Thanks Wellington, I like it very much. Good solid tuning via plastic cogs rather than drive cord.
That is really good news Paul, as I used AF127s to replace AF117s that were shorting to case in a Bush TR130 then I read somewhere that 127s develop the same problem. Obviously I shouldn't believe everything I read on the internet! Without derailing the thread ( much ) what would your personal choice be for replacing AF117s in RF/IF stages like this? |
9th Feb 2017, 10:54 pm | #5 |
Moderator
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: Oxford, UK
Posts: 27,947
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Re: Ferguson Fieldfare 3114
Nothing wrong with AF127s, but just about any Ge HF transistor will work in a MW/LW set like this. The last time I did one I used some 2N1307 switching transistors I had to hand. Even silicon types normally work.
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9th Feb 2017, 11:05 pm | #6 |
Tetrode
Join Date: Nov 2014
Location: Isle of Man
Posts: 86
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Re: Ferguson Fieldfare 3114
Thanks. I am trying to build up a small stock of useful spares for radios. Dave
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9th Feb 2017, 11:31 pm | #7 |
Nonode
Join Date: May 2007
Location: Redruth, Cornwall, UK.
Posts: 2,573
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Re: Ferguson Fieldfare 3114
Hi.
That's a good result getting this radio working and it's quite an unusual set. I have several BRC/Ferguson radios but hadn't come across that particular model. Regarding the problem of tin whiskers. As has been pointed out, the AF12x transistors are not known to suffer from this problem and make good replacements for the AF11x series. I do however have an unsolved mystery with a NOS AF124 transistor in my collection. It had a short between the shield connection and the collector and I raised the possible concern that it could also be suffering from the tin whisker problem. If the inside of the can of an AF12x device is tin plated then there's a possibility of the same problem occuring with these transistors. Regards Symon. |
10th Feb 2017, 5:01 am | #8 |
Dekatron
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Worksop, Nottinghamshire, UK.
Posts: 5,553
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Re: Ferguson Fieldfare 3114
I have got one of those sets. The twidler has been in and wrecked the oscillator coil. The rest of the set looks quite good. I like the dials but am short of a coil from the period.
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10th Feb 2017, 9:20 am | #9 |
Nonode
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Milton Keynes, Bucks. UK.
Posts: 2,552
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Re: Ferguson Fieldfare 3114
Here's the MK1 model
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When I die, please don't let my Wife sell my collection for the amount I told her I paid for it! |