Just bought a Cornell Dubilier Capacitor Analyer Model BF-50

[Tube TV]

Yeah that's a tricky on to get. It'll be a mix and match of .01 and a .0015 to get it.
You've got the value incorrect. It's .0115 MFD 2% 200 VOLT

I was checking through my caps and it's going to be a crapshoot of selecting caps that are that close, and I have to question how accurate my capacity meter is on my DMM getting that close of detail.

It's inportant to get it as accurate as possible as it is used in the bridge and I believe this is used on the low side of the scale for measuring small caps.

[vortalexfan]

Originally Posted by Tube TV

Yeah that's a tricky on to get. It'll be a mix and match of .01 and a .0015 to get it.
You've got the value incorrect. It's .0115 MFD 2% 200 VOLT

I was checking through my caps and it's going to be a crapshoot of selecting caps that are that close, and I have to question how accurate my capacity meter is on my DMM getting that close of detail.

It's inportant to get it as accurate as possible as it is used in the bridge and I believe this is used on the low side of the scale for measuring small caps.

Ok, yeah sorry, I was trying to remember the value off the top of my head as I didn't have the schematic in front of me at the moment, but either way, that's still going to be a tricky capacitor to replicate.

I'm assuming that the voltage of the capacitors doesn't matter in this case and I could go with 630 V capacitors and it would be fine, just the capacitance is what matters?

[Tube TV]

I think you're good with anything above around 50 volt.

[vortalexfan]

Originally Posted by Tube TV

I think you're good with anything above around 50 volt.

that's what I figured but I wanted to be on the safe side and ask anyways because I didn't want to mess up the accuracy of the device.

[vortalexfan]

I got my capacitor checker in the mail today, and it was packed really well, they even wrapped the box in paper just like how they used to do it years ago!

This sucker is much bigger than it looks in the pictures (and its heavy!)

this thing from what I can see looks like its never been touched except for that old power resistor and an unmarked capacitor, all of the rest of the capacitors in this thing are the original Cornell-Dubilier capacitors.

The control panel on this unit has a couple of patent dates from 1931 on it.

the rivets that held the control panel plate to the rear cover plate were all sheared off, so I'm gonna have to re-pop rivet the control panel board to the back cover and grind the rivet heads flush like the originals were.

Some of these capacitors are going to be tricky to get to unfortunately and its kind of cramped inside this thing.

[jr_tech]

The mysterious 21377 part, which looks like a capacitor:

https://antiqueradios.com/forums/vie...p?f=8&t=357126

jr

[vortalexfan]

Originally Posted by jr_tech

The mysterious 21377 part, which looks like a capacitor:

https://antiqueradios.com/forums/vie...p?f=8&t=357126

jr

Ok, so it looks to be a flasher device of some sort...

I'll leave that part alone.

[Tube TV]

Mine has alligator clips and banana plugs. Leads are about 2 foot long.

I think the shroud is someones add on, mine doesn't have one.


Edit. I seen the pics Yeah I also think this is a capacitor. No clue on the ratings though. If I recall, when it's working the eye will open and close if there's leakage. If the leakage is slight it would pulse once every second or so, and if it was very leaky it would pulse rapidly. I think mine was working on the leakage test. It's a shame I don't have it in front of me or I would take some measurments off it.

Heathkit's early C1 and C2 testers had much the same idea using a neon bulb.

[vortalexfan]

Originally Posted by Tube TV

Mine has alligator clips and banana plugs. Leads are about 2 foot long.

I think the shroud is someones add on, mine doesn't have one.


Edit. I seen the pics Yeah I also think this is a capacitor. No clue on the ratings though. If I recall, when it's working the eye will open and close if there's leakage. If the leakage is slight it would pulse once every second or so, and if it was very leaky it would pulse rapidly. I think mine was working on the leakage test. It's a shame I don't have it in front of me or I would take some measurments off it.

Heathkit's early C1 and C2 testers had much the same idea using a neon bulb.

Ok, thanks, I'll just have to make up some of my own test leads using hookup wire, a couple of banana plugs and some alligator clips.

As for the C-D Part 21377, according to a thread on the ARF that Jr. had posted a link to in here, they were saying that that part was some sort of flasher module that utilized a neon bulb or some sort of gas discharge tube assembly that had to be sealed in a dark tube because of it being a "light dependent" circuit, but the person that was explaining that on there had admitted that it was just a guess on his part since the service/owners manual doesn't give any additional information about that part other than a part number, making me wonder if it wasn't some sort of proprietary part that Cornell-Dubilier didn't want others to duplicate.

[Tube TV]

You'd think if it was a cap that they would have just listed it, but they kept it kind of cryptic as to what it is, and don't have it listed on the parts list for resistors and capacitors, just on the schematic.

I'm trying to remember how mine worked on leakage and it seemed like the eye flashed open and closed. If this was the case, a gas discharge tube, or a neon bulb would make sense.

[vortalexfan]

Originally Posted by Tube TV

You'd think if it was a cap that they would have just listed it, but they kept it kind of cryptic as to what it is, and don't have it listed on the parts list for resistors and capacitors, just on the schematic.

I'm trying to remember how mine worked on leakage and it seemed like the eye flashed open and closed. If this was the case, a gas discharge tube, or a neon bulb would make sense.

I'm guessing that's what it is, because like I said the ARF forum thread linked to here by Jr. suggested that might of been what it was.

But like I said when I was testing some capacitors I had on hand (including some of the ones I took out of the cap checker itself) it didn't seem like it was working like it should of...

Although like I said, it doesn't help matters any that my selection of eye tubes I have on hand are crap (they are very weak and don't glow very bright and aren't very responsive.)

[vortalexfan]

I was able to source from a friend of mine (a fellow antique radio collector who lives locally) a NOS 6E5 Eye Tube for my capacitor checker and now its working as it should.
I checked several capacitors (new and old ones) and the cap checker worked just like its supposed to.

[Tube TV]

Right on glad it's working. Was I correct that the eye flashes with leakage?

[vortalexfan]

Originally Posted by Tube TV

Right on glad it's working. Was I correct that the eye flashes with leakage?

Yes it does, but not a flash like in the sense of like flashing Christmas lights, but more like the eye tube flashes open and shut depending on how much leakage there is.

[Tube TV]

That's what I remember mine doing too. Glad you got it going.
I'll have to ge mine going. I should have all the caps to replace the wax papers now, and I think I've got enough Electrolytics on hand.