The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area The Electrical Bay AD Radio Substitute

I have been looking for the period radio for my 51 GMC. It turns out that they are fairly rare, and the ones that are available cost a bundle.

On Friday, I picked up a 1953 Olds radio which is physically very similar except that the controls are spaced at 6 1/2 instead of 7 1/2 inches. However, because of the way that the Olds radio was designed, it is possible to relocate the controls to fit perfectly into the dash opening for the AD truck. It turns out that my "new" radio works and I had forgotten what a great sound these old radios produced!

Its great to search the AM side of the radio band.
No problem finding oldies stations. When conditions are right [ during " skip " phases ] you can pull in AM stations from thousands of miles away !!!!

MT, I like the AM band also.I search the dial and usually can find some 40's big band music or a talk show.Tony can't stand AM, he calls it "Amplified Manure".

I am an AM fan too. When I was getting this radio to work the other day, I tuned into a local station that plays 40s and 50s music all day long. I thought how appropriate. With all the modern electronics these days, I don't think anything beats the sound that booms from an old 50s radio in one of the old cars.

Joy,,, some people do not know how to enjoy ALL the finer things in life
Tony does like old trucks and he is still with you so he can`t be all that bad :p
Have you heard of Al or Patty Hendrickson?

I guess I'm going to have to get a radio, I can't stand my own singing any more. Do you think thats why nobody will ride with me? :confused:

Trucknix,

I have a '47 Olds radio which is also a pretty close match for knobs and speaker but the face is wrong. I would need to hack up the dash board so I didn't use it.

Radio Bill on another web page gave me some advice. If you use an old radio without having it checked over and parts replaced, use the minimum amperage fuse which will keep it going. There's still a chance that it will catch on fire!

Wally,
the fuse idea is a good one. There is quite a variety of living things that sometimes nest in these radios as they wait for a new owner. My Olds radio has a face which is on a different angle than the chassis. Because of this, they used a flexible drive on the tuner and this will allow me to relocate the tuner control 1/2 inch to the right. Relocating the volume/tone control is simple.

yall know yall want that fm converter i got in my attic.

No,I haven't heard of them (Al or Patty Hendrickson). I listen to AM740 out of Canada. When it was real hot yesterday they said it was a record 34 degrees.... LOL I guess thats hot. around 97? Love the simple, slow,fun they have. No shockjocks here. Tony can have his Brother Wease and the Nerve! In my trucks Am is all ready to go. To answer the question, isn't there cool radios forsale in Hemmings,even JC Whitney, brand new that will fit in AD trucks?I might get one of those some day. I must admit I have a modern radio hooked up under the dash. Then I can listen to The Shadow and old Amos and Andys when we are on a trip.

Truckernix you must have been listening to 1050 CHUM As CHUM AM is back after 18 months, and yes those old tube radios do have a different sound than the new transistor ones.

Albert,
isn't it great that CHUM 1050 came to their senses ? I was actually listening to AM 740. I agree with you, these old boxes sound great!

I have restored 3 of the lunch box radios for my old car 2 push button an a wonderbar, and have had it playing while i have been prepping it for painting, and had quit a few comments about the sound. I was lucky that one of my other hobbies in electronics, and also that i managed to pick up two good tube tester for checking them out..

Albert,
I have been looking for the circuit for the solid state vibrator. I think it would be a waste of time for me to design one from scratch. Would you have the circuit for it ?

We will have to touch basis. I don't have a lot of new equipment but I do have a signal generator and scope, all tube of course !

Fred

If it hasn't been checked out but it works fine, can it still catch fire? If it doesn't work, what should I check for? Just curious, I don't want mine to catch fire. Also what is the best speaker(s) to hook up to the AM radio?

Chevyboy62

Check out www.tubesandmore.com for plug-in solid state vibrators. They are $30.

Jason,
thanks for the link. I wouldn't start building one for that money !

Chevyboy62,
the fire thing is sort of a general precaution. All these tube type radios use a highvoltage supply inside of about 200V or more. If there is some kind of conductive dirt or something inside, it could be a problem. I would open it up and clean it out with an artist brush, compressed air and then contact cleaner or rubbing alchohol. Tip it over to let it run out. You can use swaps too. Don't try and pull the tubes out unless you need to because the glass can separate from the base.

I have seen modern solid state stereos do a pretty good job of smoking too!

Y'all got me starting another project. I've always wanted to listen to the oldies station, or a game while driving. Never had the privilage. I've had listened to talkshows while at work. Someone mentioned that the old radio tubes sounds different than todays radios? Which one is better?

Chevyboy62

In reality, the modern electronics gives you about as close to perfect reproduction as is possible. In an old truck though, that is probably irrelevant. A funny thing happened when CD technology came out. Many people didn't like the sound because they weren't used to such a pure reproduction. They were actually used to coloured sound, that is sound that was actually altered by the old technology. When I listen to my old radios, nostalgic enjoyment overrides any shortcomings of the technology.

One thing to remember about the old radios also is that the sound quality of the recording equipment was not as it is today. The tube radios seem to have a warmer sound than the transistor ones. The main problem I have had with the older car radios is the old paper capactors have dried out, which takes about an hour or so to replace the 7 or 8 of them at cost of maybe $5 or $6 and yes make sure there is an inline fuse.

I have no knowledge of old radios but have had experience with guitar amplifiers and I'll take a tube amp over a tranny amp everytime. The sound is 'warmer' and once those valves get hot man do they sing. Wish I still had the Mesa Boogie. Love that old original sound.