Sangamo / Pressley 2
Rick’s Sangamo / Pressley number two of two. This radio needs a complete restoration.
July 13, 2023 Update:
History & Restoration
These are two eBay photos that I was able to save of this radio from February 2013. The cabinet is in excellent condition with a perfectly flat lid and the chassis binding posts are present. The two audio transformers are missing.
Here are two more eBay photos of the same radio that I saved from March 2013. Basically the same radio, but the binding posts are missing and replaced with phillips head screws. The buyer from February took the binding posts and resold the radio within one month. This is when Rick purchased the radio. Note that the wire on the oscillator coupler has been damaged.
This is how the radio looked when I picked it up from Bob Lutz. It is tied up with two ropes to keep it from falling apart. If you look close you can see that the base molding is splitting in the front right corner. The lid has had some dark crap spilled on it and the lid has warped. The oscillator coupler is damaged more from the chassis constantly falling out of the cabinet (I know, it fell out a couple of times on me).
This is how the set looks today. I tried to get the warp out of the lid but was not 100% successful.
The front panel had extra screw holes and some holes that were not placed correctly. When I had the front panel stripped of parts I was trying to decide if I should replaced the panel or not. I would decide after cleaning it. Well, after cleaning in the sink with some warm water and Dawn dishwashing soap I was horrified to find out that it had eroded much of the surface of the panel! I had never seen that reaction to soap before! Lesson learned! It also solved the question of whether or not to replace the panel.
I liked the ERLA 3” dials with the metal skirts, but the silvering had problems that would be difficult to fix. Therefore I replaced the dials with some brown mottled NOS dials.
Inside view of the restored radio. I replaced the missing binding posts and audio transformers. The oscillator coupler was rewound with new wire. All the parts were inspected, cleaned, and where needed, polished.
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