Oh bloody hell...I've gone 4-pin

[Sam Cogley]

I got amazingly lucky and a set of the original fluted Bakelite knobs popped up on eBay last week, they should be here soon. I guess then it will be time to pull the chassis and get to work.

I don't know anything about vintage radio external speakers, so I could use any advice there.

Does anyone have any good suggestions for getting the proper two-tone finish on the front plate? I'm going to have to make a new one as the original has tons of excess holes drilled in it. I think the veneer is Mahogany, though I'm not certain (and if anyone has a positive ID, please let me know!). It needs a new back plate made, too, but that's far less important from a cosmetic standpoint.

What do I need to know about those big oil caps? Do they need work, or do they stay good like ceramics? Are they polarized or not, or did they come in both forms? Can they be replaced with modern electrolytic or film caps? If so, is it possible (or advisable) to open them up and replace the guts like is often done with multi-section electrolytics?