Brunswick 5KR restoration

[Reece]

Boy, that's a project. They kept it going at least through the thirties per the ST type tubes that replaced the globes along the way. That's one hulking rheostat, too; big wattage. I think the frame of that condenser is steel so should be OK; the pulley may be potmetal but it looks good from my house.

[bandersen]

Originally Posted by Nick_the_'Nole

That's actually pretty decent condition for a radio of that era. It may look bad, but it's mostly just looks.

There's a lot of dirt, but the wood is in good shape. Scrub it down and hit it with some Howard's, and you should be good to go. The rust on the chassis seems mostly superficial, and as for the wiring, a lot of it still seems reasonably intact, so you're better off than you would be if it were the '30s rubber-covered stuff. And perhaps most importantly, it doesn't look like anybody has screwed with it too much... I see a few repairs, but not the decades' worth of hack-jobs that you'd usually find.

I tried that, but due to the damp environment it was stored in, a lot of the old finish had flaked off. What was left was barely hanging on. So I ended up refinishing it as you'll see shortly.

The wiring is indeed in very good condition.

Originally Posted by old_coot88

Very nice cable lacing. Wonder if there's any pot metal issues with the tuning condenser.

Once I cleaned and lubed it, it starting turning freely .

Originally Posted by Reece

Boy, that's a project. They kept it going at least through the thirties per the ST type tubes that replaced the globes along the way. That's one hulking rheostat, too; big wattage. I think the frame of that condenser is steel so should be OK; the pulley may be potmetal but it looks good from my house.

The rheostat is open, but I hear that's a common problem. I put a little back mark where the break is I think I can bridge it with a little gold plated copper foil.


As for the power transformer, it's good.
So are all the filter chokes and power resistors


All the caps are very leaky though.