Hunts Capacitor Analyzer CLR 3221

[igranic]

Could anyone help me with a circuit diagram and or handbook for this rather nice piece of pre-war test gear, purchased at Harpenden last Sunday.

Whilst the oak case is scruffy but restorable, the innards look in very good cosmetic condition. I half expected the 6E5 "magic eye" and 1V rectifier to have been robbed and replaced by duds, but they are "as new". The old pre-war Hunts capacitors look nice, but will, I suspect need re-stuffing, and there appears to be a rather early metal rectifier that is probably past its best.

Any help will be gratefully appreciated.

Eward

[Brian R Pateman]

Have a look at this thread;

https://www.vintage-radio.net/forum/...ead.php?t=3442

in the Vintage Test Equipment archive. It refers to model CRB, but it may be better than nothing.

Regards,

[igranic]

Brian,

Thank you for the quick response. I have had a look at the CRB manual, and it may give me some hints. The CLR 3221, whilst probably not particularly difficult to reverse engineer, is significantly different from the CRB. which uses a Y63 magic eye, and a metal rectifier for HT.

Any documentation for the CLR 3221 would be much appreciated. An instruction booklet certainly existed; it is referred to on the printed card fitted inside the lid.

Edward

[Simon Gittins]

http://bama.edebris.com/manuals/solar/cb

The Solar CB has 6E5 and IV; the Hunts seems to be a badge engineered version.

Simon.

[igranic]

Simon,

Brilliant! How did you discover that?

I must admit that it looked to me like a badge engineering job, but with all the capacitors replaced by Hunts own products. The cabinet and layout appear to be identical. Hunts must have shipped them in in kit form or part-complete.

Thanks for the link. I will take a closer look over the next few days.

Edward

[Simon Gittins]

I already had the link bookmarked!

I have just taken a look at my CLR 3221 and the printed card in the lid says Solar CB. There's a silver Hunts sticker on the front panel that says "Exclusive Solar agents for the UK".

It's still a very useful bit of kit.

[igranic]

Simon,

The one I have is fully badge-engineered, with the Hunts name etched / printed on the panel and inset card, and no reference to Solar whatsoever.



The circuit is identical to the Solar diagram with one minor exception, which is presumably a manufacturing short-cut, but which should not affect operation.

The valves/tubes are both RCA Radiotron, and their sockets are US made. as are the pots and special wirewound 'slab' resistors. The 6E5 even has a US-made 'Goat' brand 'mummy's sarcophagus' two-piece shielding can. The wire-ended resistors are standard carbon-rod types, and capacitors are Hunts "precision". The cabinet and metalwork both appear identical to the Solar branded product.

Having probed the components, it is clear that if the unit is to be put to useful work then all the capacitors and carbon-rod resistors will have to be replaced/restuffed - the Hunts capacitors have, typically, turned into resistors, the cardboard electrolytic is bulging, and the resistors have drifted significantly from their nominal values.

Thanks again for pointing out the similarity and the link to the handbook.

Edward

[Simon Gittins]

Edward,

Very interesting to see your version, I had assumed they were all much the same but it looks like mine is an early one.

Picture attached for comparison.

Simon.