I understand the issues with ectopic signal reception in these sets. I have that problem with a Model 37 (but only if the lid isn't on the set), and I'm pretty sure that the situation with my Model 42 is different.
I'm not sure how I accomplished this, but I got all of the voltages OK at the power supply and at the tube sockets. After I was sure that problem was fixed, I spent a lot of hours checking continuity, resistances, and capacitances throughout the set. But I still have the same issues--reception only when the antenna is connected to my earth ground and barely perceptible volume control. Good quality audio, though.
(My "earth ground" is 10 feet of bare braided copper wire running down the side of the house, buried 2 feet deep [where the soil is always wet] with the strands splayed out over an area of about 2 square feet, which I hope is enough to ground a radio signal.)
Also, I get the strongest reception when I hold the ground wire (attached to the antenna post) and put a finger directly over the 2nd RF tube. And putting the metal lid on the cabinet changes nothing. Except, of course if I forget to take my hand away from the 2nd RF tube--the lid is pretty heavy, so I get bruising on my wrist.
So, the signal is either bypassing the volume control, coupling transformer, and 1st RF tube (?); or the volume control is somehow screwed up (?). I'm posting this now to see if someone has a suggestion other than to pull the chassis again to disassemble the volume control.
I don't understand how this is supposed to work. Here are two diagrams of the same thing except the right diagram doesn't show the shielding on the antenna lead.
With the volume control set up like this, I get resistance between the antenna post and the 1st RF grid from 16 ohms to 230 ohms and then back to sixteen.
I have a Model 37, which is set up like this. This works pretty well with no external ground.
