1956 Chrysler 844 car radio

[polaraman]

On my last trip back to Texas I decided to take the radio out of the 1956 Chrysler 300B. I was thinking that at least part of the car could be operational. It is in AR6 and also included in SAMS 348-8. I do not have either of them. Does anybody? I was surprised to see that the buffer was .01MFD 1,600 volt capacitor. The radio has 8 tubes plus the vibrator. The radio was actually made by Philco for Chrysler.

Vibrator question! It has a Radiart S-3, Base diagram DA, 12 volt 3 pin vibrator. Where can I get a replacement? Either a solid state or the real deal.

Capacitor question. The radio has to electrolytic capacitors .5MFD 100 volts. I could not find that cap anywhere. Would a 1MFD 100V be ok?

I was searching radio repair places on the internet. One place was charging $10 plus part for replacing EACH capacitor. This was on top of an initial fee. I need a whole line of folks willing to pay that!!!! You could make a killing off one television!!!


polaraman

[Tom Bavis]

I'll look for that Sams folder. If I have the vibrator, you can have it... but it's no more likely to be good than the one you have... at least you have one you can open and TRY to fix...

[Chad Hauris]

Polaraman I would go to Just Radios. We have repaired vibrator type sets and found the 1600 volt caps plus .47 mfd 600 volt caps.
http://www.justradios.com
Our Tube tester has a socket for vibrator testing, just tested one from a Motorola a few weeks ago. These radios were built to be tough so should not be too difficult of a repair.

[shrinkboy]

no wonder those things weighed 5000 lbs!! that's just the friggin' radio!!

[Randy Bassham]

I just went into the files and dug out 348-8. According to the Sams the buffer is .033 at 1000 volts and there should be a .0068 at 1000 volts between the plates of the 12AQ5's which is pin 5. There is a model 844 HR that has some additional components and a few with different values. The .5 at 100 is a bypass capacitor from the 12 volt line where it's connected to the centertap of the primary of the vibrator transformer to ground. It's just for hash and noise supression, any voltage over 100 would be fine. The B+ coming off the cathode of the 12X4 should be 240 volts. Send me your mailing address and I'll make a copy of this Sams at work tomorrow.

[polaraman]

Randy,

Thanks, I will PM you my address. The other high voltage cap must be the large black beauty. The stripes are worn off of it.

I would like to actually see if the vibrator still works. I am going to replace the capacitors and see what I get.


Shrinkboy,

The 300B weighed in at 4,145 pounds. A 300B was run at 1956 Daytona Beach flying mile. That car was clocked at over 139mph. 1,102 were made and only 211 remain in various conditions.

polaraman

[Randy Bassham]

"The other high voltage cap must be the large black beauty. "
That's the .0068 at 1000, it shows up quite well on the Photofact.

300B has a little better weight to HP ratio than my '48 Dodge Sedan.
3985 lbs dry pulled around with a 230.2 ci 102 HP Flathead Six with a
Fluid Drive coupling in front of the clutch. 3.91 final drive ratio, it's
no wonder the little flathead sounds like an attic fan with the louvers
stuck shut at 60 mph. When I was 16 I got it up to 95 according to the
speedometer but I also pounded the main bearings so bad it wouldn't hold
oil pressure and the rear main was so loose that it was pouring oil all over
the clutch. Dad made me put in the main bearings and clutch plate by
myself. That was a valuable lesson that's stuck with me.

[polaraman]

My Dad kept and still has his first car. It is a 1950 Plymouth Businessman's coupe. He paid a whoppin $50 for it used in the early 60's. He had it semi-restored(driver condition) in the mid 80's and I was able to drive it. It has a straight 6 with a three on the tree. I know the speed of those cars. Hot rodders back then would take a Chrysler 6 and put it in the Plymouth. I love the vacuum wipers. That hissing noise really drives me crazy. He gave the radio to a friend to repair and it is lost. The man had hip replacement surgery and had a person fill in for him. Everything was out of place when he got back to work. My 300B is a long term restoration project. I may have to take the Johnny Cash restoration route. One peice at a time, but it is going to cost a dime!!!


polaraman

[Kamakiri]

Originally Posted by shrinkboy

no wonder those things weighed 5000 lbs!! that's just the friggin' radio!!

You should see the radio in my '54 DeSoto. The tube chassis is mounted seperately in the right side of the dash, which is vented. Must look pretty cool driving at night

As you guessed, neither the radio or the car is currently operating

[Randy Bassham]

"You should see the radio in my '54 DeSoto. The tube chassis is mounted seperately in the right side of the dash, which is vented. Must look pretty cool driving at night"

Sounds like you've got one of the two piece models. The power supply and audio outputs are on a separate chassis, some had the speaker mounted to the power supply chassis. GM did this alot in the 50's.

My '48 was optioned up fairly well for the time, it's got two speed electric wipers, heater with defroster, turn signals, and a Motorola CR-8 radio. I've not had it started for at least 5 years now, it's up on stands in my shop. I'm planning on retiring next April and the Dodge is the first project I want to tackle. It's only got 39,800 original miles on it so it's not going to need a lot. Brakes, exhaust, and the gas tank is all crudded up from sitting so long. It's never sat outside overnight since 1970. The main problem with the old flathead six especially the smaller one that was in the Plymouth's and Dodge's was that it's capable of turning a lot more RPM's than the rods and crank can stand.

[polaraman]

Here is the cabinet for the radio. This is the location of where I found the car. Had been sitting there since the late 1960's. I have much work to do before it is ready to hit the road. Check back in 10 or 15 years.


polaraman

[skippy_ps]

Yep, it just needs a little paint. Maybe some sanding too.

Actually, it's a great find although I'm gald it's not my project.

Murray

[fujifrontier]

and who here knows anything about Highway HiFi

http://ookworld.com/hiwayhifi.html

[polaraman]

A very neat and rare toy. Uses 16 2/3 RPM records. Records can cost as much as the unit itself. Most folks would not like the 1956 music selection today. Better off getting one of the Columbia 45 rpm players. Your music selection would be much greater.

polaraman

[Chad Hauris]

We have some of the Highway Hi-Fi records but not the players...we were able to play them though on a talking book record player. The records use a very fine groove, finer than a stereo LP to get a lot of playing time on the records.