Equipment to Begin Repairs Part 1: Multimeters and Soldering Stations

I have been spending a ton of time researching and waiting for various pieces of equipment to arrive so that I can begin replacing the old capacitors inside my Zenith 2560. While we continue to wait, I thought it would be helpful to provide a list of some of the equipment I have purchased and some things that are still on my wishlist (or that I need to create).

1. Soldering Station. I read countless reviews and evaluated my budget over and over again to find the right station for where I am right now in my ability. It seems that the vintage radio restoration crowd loves their Hakko and Weller Stations. The Hakko FX-888D and the Weller WE1010NA are on my list for a little further down the road. I ended up deciding that a digital station was a good place to start and wanted to keep my cost under $75.00 for the time being. So I purchased the X-Tronic 3060-Pro. X-Tronic has been adding a lot to their soldering stations lately, so I think this model is constantly evolving with new add-ons like helping hands, magnification lamps, and extra tips. My model didn't come with the magnification lamp, but the extra tips and cleaning station will be very handy. I believe this will keep me going until I decide that this is something I want to spend my time doing on a more frequent basis.
2. Digital Multimeter. Another tool that I spent a long time reading reviews. Most folks immediately recommend multimeters by Fluke, they seem like they would be marvelous tools, but the price point is just a bit steep for me getting started. The tool of choice on various forums that I read was the Fluke 115 or the Fluke 117. Sticking with Fluke a lot of folks recommended scouring online for used sales of the Fluke 27fm, they are ex-military and have been taken out of service. These apparently can withstand quite a beating, but I was too impatient to stalk eBay for a cheap enough version. I ended up purchasing the AstroAI Digital Multimeter TRMS 4000 that was packaged with extra test leads. At $23.99 when I purchased it, this should be able to teach me a lot at a minimal price. A key factor is that I wanted to make sure that whatever multimeter I purchased could measure capacitance. There are a lot of cheap multimeters out there that don't so be sure to be on the lookout.
   
   
   

Opening the Turntable

Perhaps the most frustrating piece of getting started on this was discovering how much damage has been done by the little critter that took up residence in the stereo console. A peek inside the record player chassis and I could tell that is where the mouse had made its home. There were giant balls of fluff everywhere and the worst part is I couldn't figure out how to remove the top of the turntable. I spent a lot of time trying to remove the rails that hold the turntable onto the console, but I couldn't get my tools into the narrow space where the bolts were holding the metal turntable body to the rails. I tried removing the screws holding the rails down to the wood, but I quickly discovered that some of the screws holding the rails on were nearly inaccessible due to the position of the rails. I forced it a bit and managed to remove the metal turntable and the rails from the console. Then I had to spend some time getting inside the turntable into the mouse home. I found the latches that hold the sprung top down and opened it up. It was a wreck. See the photos for evidence.

That fluffball was the former mouse home

Finally, I was inside and could see that this Zenith Cobra-Matic was a Voice of Music turntable manufactured for Zenith in Benton Harbor, Michigan. The model number is stamped on the metal. Model 1201-339. I am pretty happy to learn this as there is a ton of information on Voice of Music turntables and there are great sources for parts over at Voice of Music Enthusiasts. I am grateful that Gary Stork had the wherewithal and the means to save the inventory as the company was going out of business in 1998 and that he is still able to keep a great source open for folks who are just getting into this mess of a hobby.

There is a super helpful post at Antique Radio Forums that will help me dive into the restoration process. V-M 1200 Changer Step-by-Step Restoration. I am amazed at all the resources out there for someone just diving in.

Here are a few other photos of the insides of the record player. I am super happy that there were no mouse remains to deal with, clearly, this little critter decided to move out before I took ownership of the Zenith.

Here is the ink-stamped code on the underside of the turntable. 857 941 1201 339. "857" is the Electronics Industry Association's identification number for Voice of Music Corporation. "941" is the date code (changer built 41st week of 1959) and 1201-339 is the actual V-M model number of the changer.

Here is the destruction caused by the rodent that called this record player its home. I plan to take a hose to this and will probably repaint the interior to get it back to its shine (and cover up the residual smell of nicotine and mouse that is lingering). 

Opening up the Zenith 2560

As I was about to move the Zenith console into my house, I noticed that there was an awful lot of junk falling out of the back of the radio from my journey home... a quick inspection revealed evidence that mice had moved into the console at some point. So instead of bringing it into the basement, it moved into the garage for a while. I began to open it up and snap some various pictures so I can evaluate things from afar and remember how it was all together before tearing it apart.
Here are some of the pictures.

An inside view of the tuner and the record changer.  

Left Speaker, super clean and nice!

The Amp. A 7D31 with all the pretty tubes. Pretty dusty... Notice the broken 12-inch speaker. 

The Zenith Cobra-Matic. I need to find out what model number this is...

A label from inside.

Model 2560 R. You could barely read this from the dust, I had to wash it off. 

Speaker Terminals. Oddly only red, black and white are connected.

Terminal connections for the bulb that lights up on the front of the console. 

I believe these terminals connect up to the remote speaker inputs. 

And So It Begins... Restoring a Zenith SFD2560 Zenith Stereophonic High Fidelity Radio Phonograph

Just a few days ago I picked up a Zenith Stereophonic High Fidelity Radio Phonograph off of Craigslist. I probably overpaid a bit, but it was exactly the type of console stereo I have been searching for to put real music back in our home. We have shifted to mostly streaming music from various smart speakers, but have really missed the days where we could pick out an album and listen to it from front to back without having to yell at a speaker. Two years ago I read the story of this awesome little homemade digital jukebox made by Chris Patty for a Christmas gift for his father. The idea of having an analog interaction with digital music excited me. I realized I was missing the ritual behind flipping through records, tapes, and compact discs. There are tons of tutorials on how to develop something similar to what Chris developed using a Raspberry Pi and various card readers. I built a little proof of concept and it worked. Now, I needed something to drop it into. I love the idea of console stereos, so I picked up a Truetone D-1645 off of Craigslist and thought I would dive in to restoring it. I figure I could wire the Raspberry Pi in with the radio and use the existing amplifier and speaker.  I started reading about recapping old stereos on various forums, then I wondered about making that record player work... and what about the radio... what if I could make that work too... but it is only AM and Shortwave, that would be fun, but a nice FM stereo might be good. Also, the Truetone was mono, and while retro is fun, I don't want to give up all the sound quality. So I started searching for a good console stereo that is from a newer vintage.

I wanted a stereo that would open on the front so we could set stuff on top, ideally one that had a record player, and an RCA jack to connect in to the stereo. It had to have an FM radio and ideally would be from a recognizable name. I came across this listing that seemed perfect.

The Craigslist Ad that won me over

The second photo you could make out an owner's manual an extra tube in the box, and the "cobra-matic" record player still had the paper on top. It looked like it was in good shape, clearly had some issues that seemed repairable, and I was willing to take the risk. I made an offer and drove about an hour away, met some guy in an old garage who was drinking beer and building something out of 2x4s and picked it up. Now I am starting to tear into it and learn how to do a restoration. This blog will be the chronicles of this adventure. I'll try to post as I remember and link out to some decent information because there is not a lot of data out there on the specifics of tearing this thing to pieces and putting it back together again. So, enjoy if you will. My adventures in restoring this beast of a radio.