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  #31  
Old 06-10-2012, 12:49 PM
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Tom Albrecht Tom Albrecht is offline
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The length of leads depends on where you buy the capacitors. The 0.22 uF cap in one of my pictures above has unusually short leads. That one came from radioantiques.com, and although their price was very good, I probably won't get more from there because of the short wires. For C129, I could tell from the length of the wires on the original that I needed to add to the length. I did in fact splice some extra wire on one side of C129, which you can see in the picture of the finished cap. It is the second one from the top in this picture:


Last edited by Tom Albrecht; 02-09-2017 at 01:36 AM.
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  #32  
Old 06-10-2012, 01:20 PM
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I think I will restuff the caps on mt CTC-5. i would like to keep it as original looking as possible. Where did you buy the brown stick glue?
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  #33  
Old 06-10-2012, 01:51 PM
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These are the brown glue sticks I got:

http://www.gluesticksdirect.com/serv...-Sticks/Detail

These are a bit of a pain, since thy are "mini" glue sticks about 1/4" diameter. To feed them in my glue gun, I have to push them in manually, and then use a normal glue stick behind them to serve as a plunger.

You can buy normal 7/16" diameter colored glue sticks, but I could only find them in larger quantities than I wanted. If anybody finds a good source for 7/16" brown glue sticks in small quantities, please let us know.

Likewise, if some finds a better color, like tan or grey, it would be great to hear about it.
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  #34  
Old 06-10-2012, 01:57 PM
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Ok, thanks!
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  #35  
Old 06-10-2012, 02:04 PM
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Nice job I picked up a mini glue gun for the mini sticks at Jo Anne Fabrics for a few bucks.
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  #36  
Old 06-10-2012, 02:08 PM
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They do have brown 7/16' STICKS but you have to buy the 5lb box for $65.
http://www.gluesticksdirect.com/serv...-Sticks/Detail
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  #37  
Old 06-11-2012, 12:35 AM
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Sounds like I should go get a mini glue gun for a few bucks next time I need to do this, unless someone finds a better source (or a better color).

I dipped them all in hot beeswax today. Here's the setup:



I bought a package of beeswax from Michaels. Full price is $17, so use one of their "50% off one item" coupons and you're in business. I cut off a piece about the size of a large bar of soap, and heated it in a kitty food can on a hot plate (the kitchen stove would also work; this stuff does not have a bad odor at all).

What I found worked best for a nice smooth coating of about the right thickness was the following:

1. Bend the wires "up" so that wax will run down them toward the capacitor body when you pull the cap out.

2. Holding buy one of the leads with a needlenose pliers, submerge the cap for about 15 seconds. This allows the wax to penetrate the paper just a little bit.

3. Pull the cap out quickly, and tilt downward to one side. Rub off a couple of drops quickly on the edge of the kitty food can.

4. Immediately submerge in water (that's what's in the small "pail" in the picture above). This prevents the wax from running, and also hardens the wax so you can set it down without it sticking to the surface.

Here's the end result:



I'm pretty happy with the results. The caps look "new" but I imagine their appearance will age gracefully over time. Coating with wax is definitely worth it if you want a nice appearance on the finished restuffed caps.

Tomorrow we'll put them back in the set and go after a few remaining minor electronics issues in the set.

Last edited by Tom Albrecht; 02-09-2017 at 01:38 AM.
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  #38  
Old 06-11-2012, 05:27 AM
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Great looking "old" caps! It would be a good idea to put a label under the chassis explaining that these caps and the 'lytics have been restuffed, for the next guy.
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  #39  
Old 06-11-2012, 06:04 AM
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I definitely like the brown color for the glue sticks the best. I'll have to pick up some of those for my next set. I found that if I took a rag and wiped off the old caps with it before I took them apart I was left with a "seasoned" rag that I could use to sort of buff an aged appearance onto the newly wax dipped caps. It's going to the Nth degree obsessing over minute details but when you pay that much attention to the littlest of things your result is one fantastic set.
Tom- Thanks for sharing your pictures, it's like a bit of methadone for me as I wait to find a new house and set up my workshop again.
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  #40  
Old 06-11-2012, 06:59 AM
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Nice work Tom. When I finish my move to Florida, I will have to be patient and try that method. I have an old hot plate and 4 cats so you know I have the supplies. I also bought a chunk of bees wax from Hobby Lobby when I was in Colorado. They didn't have one near me until just a few years ago. I think it was about $10 but don't know the size comparison. I was wondering if we could add some kind of candle color in brown if they make it to darken the bees wax a little?

Also when I got the small glue sticks too, I went to one of the notions stores and got the small glue gun. My concern with the brown that I got was that it was a little too red. But certainly looks better than the skim milk color that I used first.
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  #41  
Old 06-11-2012, 11:16 AM
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Make sure that you leave a note in the chassis that the capacitors were replaced and when. Your restuffing looks so original that a future repairer/ restorer will think that the capacitors are all original paper dielectric and replace them!
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  #42  
Old 06-11-2012, 12:12 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by vts1134 View Post
I definitely like the brown color for the glue sticks the best. I'll have to pick up some of those for my next set. I found that if I took a rag and wiped off the old caps with it before I took them apart I was left with a "seasoned" rag that I could use to sort of buff an aged appearance onto the newly wax dipped caps. It's going to the Nth degree obsessing over minute details but when you pay that much attention to the littlest of things your result is one fantastic set.
Tom- Thanks for sharing your pictures, it's like a bit of methadone for me as I wait to find a new house and set up my workshop again.
Just had a thought on how to get the seasoned look you described. Would it be possible to use some of the surface wax from a paper wrapped cap that one was intending to discard anyway from a different set and rub that on the surface of the recapped cap. I'm basically repeating what you've said but just adding that you could get the was from any old wax cap. I don't think the beeswax changes color due to heat. The darkening is due to the bits of other materials that float around under the chassis and just gets stuck in the warm wax over time. the word patina comes to mind.

Last edited by charokeeroad; 06-11-2012 at 12:55 PM.
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  #43  
Old 06-12-2012, 01:27 AM
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The restuffed caps are now all in place under the chassis. Take a look at the before and after pictures.

BEFORE:



AFTER:



At least one change is obvious -- the big 0.047 uF grey "Bumblebee" cap in the center has been replaced with a more normal looking paper cap. I don't think the Bumblebee was original, and those molded caps are not particularly amenable to restuffing.

Other than that, each cap is pretty much right back where it started, with the same orientation.

I've never paid much attention to how the manufacturers chose which end to use for the outside foil. In this set, it is obvious that RCA didn't care at all. Caps which have one side grounded often don't have the outside foil on the grounded end, even in critical places like the first audio amp. There is a cap from the grid to ground which has the outside foil on the grid end. Just goes to show that it never mattered much, and these days they don't bother to mark it.

The set is working pretty well, except for very weak audio. I traced the problem to a broken connection within the 6AT6 first audio amp socket. If I bridge the broken connection, the audio is loud and clear. I'll have to think a bit about how to repair that with the least cosmetic damage. I have plenty of identical replacement sockets, but I'm not too keen to remove the rivets and put the new socket in with screws. Maybe I'll break the old socket out in a way that preserves the rivets, and attach the new socket with well-hidden epoxy right around the old rivets. From the top, that should be undetectable.

Last edited by Tom Albrecht; 02-09-2017 at 01:45 AM.
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  #44  
Old 06-12-2012, 05:27 AM
kvflyer kvflyer is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Tom Albrecht View Post
...

I'll have to think a bit about how to repair that with the least cosmetic damage. I have plenty of identical replacement sockets, but I'm not too keen to remove the rivets and put the new socket in with screws. Maybe I'll break the old socket out in a way that preserves the rivets, and attach the new socket with well-hidden epoxy right around the old rivets. From the top, that should be undetectable.
Tom,

I agree, it would be nice to not have to replace the socket with screws. That brings up something that I have been thinking about for quite some time. I agree that if one wishes to keep originality, those rivets would be nice to have. So, does anyone know where or who makes the old style rivets? Surely someone knows where to get them? That would make replacing a socket a lot easier.
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  #45  
Old 06-12-2012, 08:28 AM
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Sandy G Sandy G is offline
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Ha ! I'd like to see those chumps from "Restoration" take the time/painstaking care that you fellers do...Not bloody likely....
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