maybe not quite antique: Heathkit 6-transistor AM portable

[mhardy6647]

Yesterday's dump find. Uses 6 C-cells. Works (not too much output, though,with new batteries)... needs alignment or...?

[Celt]

Nice. I remember those from when I was a kid (and I'm staring 50 straight in the face!). I would venture that an alignment and cap replacement are probably in order. Simple 6 transistor SuperHet circuit...ought to be a piece of cake! Mmmmmm...Cake! ~(_8^(|)

[Paula]

That radio brings back memories for me too.

[Celt]

Jeez...that picture brings back fond memories. Nothing was more exciting than getting that Knight Kit from Allied or a Heathkit in the mail knowing that there was a bit of adventure laying ahead in it's assembly!

[mhardy6647]

The holo -kit package is exceptionally cool looking! Indeed, this one has the 6 "C" battery adaptor. As I said, tried it with new batteries and got low volume signal from WBZ in Boston (50 kW clear channel... 'bout the best daytime AM signal in my deep-suburban MA location).

BTW, I built a number of Heathkits (mostly the 400 VDC power supplies... we used them for protein gel electrophoresis in college and grad school). Also an early digital clock for my father and even disk drives for the early H-89 8 bit Z-80 PC. Never a radio or hi-fi though.

[Ode2Pops]

Wow! What a trip down memory lane!

I assembled one of these when I was 11 years old (1964). The first time I turned it on after assembly it didn't work; however, it was only because of a sloppy solder connection that bridged a couple of tracings on the circuit board. I corrected it and the radio worked like a champ. I was living in San Mateo, CA at the time and it pulled in a ton Bay Area stations.

You're right. It used a large 9-volt battery. I've tried searching for these things on the web and they seem to have dissapeared from the face of the globe. I can see why Heathkit opted to go with "C" cells, rather than that odd 9-volt battery.

I don't have the radio anymore and, frankly, I can't even remember what happened to it. I've seen these for sale on ebay every once in awhile and I've been tempted to get one, just for old time's sake.

O2P

As old as this set is, the low output is probably due to dried-out electrolytic capacitors, which are big troublemakers in old transistor radios. Try replacing the coupling and bypass capacitors in the audio circuit A realignment job would be the next step.

[mhardy6647]

Good advice; will do.

A schematic would come in handy... anyone got one?

[LBPete]

That sure is a nice looking kit. Its no wonder you couldn’t afford it. The CPI inflation calculator pegs $24.95 1967 dollars as $141.26 2004 dollars! That’s a lot of cash for any AM radio.

The Heathkit reminder brings back fond memories though. I built a VTVM around that time. I would have been in 8th or 9th grade. I think it cost $29.95. Tossed a lot of newspapers to earn that kind of money. I still have the VTVM, but haven’t looked at it in years.

- Pete

[Reece]

That's a nice Heathkit. Actually, they brought out their first version of this radio about 1958: that's when I built mine, and I still have it.

Over on the Antique Radio Forum, Radio Clubhouse Forum, "July Finds and Losses," Izzy found this version I'm talking about from 1959, unbuilt. You can see the leather case is the same form but differently designed, and the controls are on the sides. Mine is like this, except mine has the 4 x 6 speaker, so there must have been a running change. Mine also takes the flashlight batteries.

This is just like opening up a time capsule!

Reece

http://IzzyWeird.com/temp/HeathXR-1a.jpg
http://IzzyWeird.com/temp/HeathXR-1b.jpg
http://IzzyWeird.com/temp/HeathXR-1c.jpg
http://IzzyWeird.com/temp/HeathXR-1d.jpg
http://IzzyWeird.com/temp/HeathXR-1e.jpg
http://IzzyWeird.com/temp/HeathXR-1sch.jpg

[Paula]

Hi Reece,

Thanks for posting the links to those pictures - that old kit is quite a find!

I have a question about the first picture: it looks like right next to the volume control/on-off switch there is some kind of a rotary switch. What would this have been used for on a single-band receiver? It doesn't show up in either of the two assembled chassis pictures -- maybe it got into the kit by accident, and this Izzy hasn't noticed it yet?

Paula

[Reece]

Izzy noted that there was a "mystery switch" with the kit. It's just there by mistake as the radio just has tuning and on/off volume controls, and covers the AM band only.

Reece

[Paula]

Alright, so it's not an antique radio.

Paula

[Celt]

Yup, like the unassembled McIntosh MC-30 kit in an earlier thread, more cool and more valuable left as is!

[Paula]

Ooops...

When I edited my Heathkit post, my picture somehow went bye-bye.