Wireless Set No. 52 Canadian - Project

[David Dunlop]

While getting into this part of the project, my brain apparently morphed totally into the model hobby world. I was chatting with a friend last evening about my concern in getting the decals to fit smoothly over the paint pads and blend in. The Micro Set product apparently does a pretty good job of doing this in most situations but according to what I have been reading, if one is dealing with a very complex surface, it is best to add a second step to the decal mounting process by giving them a coat of Micro Sol which really gets the decal to blend onto the surface it was applied to. This product seems to be a bit of an aggressive one to work with, for lack of a better term.

My friend calmly advised I step back a bit and realize I am not applying decals to a model at all, where making them look less like a stuck on item and more like a full scale paint applied item is absolutely not important.

For a wireless restoration, the point is actually replicating decals that everybody and their dogs know are simply decals. They are supposed to look like decals if done properly. The only other consideration is that like the original decals, they need an overcoat of something clear to protect them from unnecessary damage. When I took another look at all the decals on my wireless equipment, that point really struck home. They all look exactly like decals, just as they should be.

So no more overthinking this. Just a bit more time and careful work.


David

[David Dunlop]

In retrospect, I overthought this decal work way too much.

I set some time aside earlier today to trim the two decals needed for the Coil assembly front panel and organize ll the tools etc I would need on my bench to get the job done. As I got into it, all the learning from model work 50 years ago came flooding back like the last decals were worked on yesterday. The only two real differences were hand cutting the decals to size and the added step of MICRO SET. and it all worked.

The decals look terrific finally in place and most important they work: glowing the correct luminous green in the dark. I will have to wait a bit to prove that last point. My Canon DSLR has been acting up lately when it comes to "BULB" Time Exposures. One day it works and two days later with the same setup, I get nothing at ll.

I will be letting the decals cure for the recommended 24 hours and then do a top coat over them of satin clear coat.


David

[David Dunlop]

This amazing piece of equipment arrived safe and sound in this mornings Post, complete with its cotton bag of mounting hardware. Its a heck of a lot larger and heavier than I expected. I have only ever seen photographs of one in various wireless manuals over the years with absolutely no reference of scale to go by.

A number of interesting questions have arisen since its arrival, however.

I know production of this item did not start in Canada until sometime in 1941 and it was probably a direct copy of the British version. I have only ever seen photos of Canadian ones made by RCA Canada Limited and either bearing no date, or any of 1942 to 1944. This one is dated 1944, which ties in nicely with my 52-Set, but it was manufactured by Rogers Majestic Limited, which I believe was based in Montreal. It shows a Product Code of “R M SA 3897” and a Serial Number “C253”. So the first question is whether Rogers Majestic was brought onboard to augment the production of these switchboards, or did they take over completely from RCA Canada to allow them to focus on other wartime production?

Second puzzle is this switchboard is identified as:

SW/BD CHARGING NO5C MK I

I never knew a Mk I ever existed until now and am now wondering what exactly changed in the design to warrant the Mk I status?

The other interesting bits are a 1/4-inch C-Broad Arrow stamp and possible part number stamp for the wooden frame on the lower right mounting post and the larger 3/4-inch C-BroadArrow stamp on the centre bottom of the wooden frame.

There is the remains of a piece of tape that was once over the ID info for the two Charger No. 2 terminals on the lower right and the panel markings areall stencils in either white or yellow paint. The yellow seems to focus on the four main switches, the rest being white.

Lastly, the cotton bag for the mounting hardware was made by The Canadian Bag Company Limited in Montreal.


David

[David Dunlop]

Last evening, I did a quick test on the glue residue left on the lower right side of the front panel and it look like it will remove OK with a little careful work and soaking with a glue solvent I have on hand.

I also started some online research on anything I could find about these switchboards, and in particular anything about the MK I Model. Surprisingly, I got a hit from the MLU Forum regarding the Week 37 Wireless of the Week Series Bruce Parker had put together several years ago. Week 37 covered the Switchboard Charging 5C Canadian and in it was a post from Jordan Baker who had run across a photo of a 5C MK I, Serial Number C183, also a 1944 product of Rogers Majestic. The comments back then suggest this variation was intended for the 19-Set HP and the 52-Set as both were rather power hungry wireless sets, and it was noted a new inboard pair of terminal posts were added on the upper portion of each side. The left set are marked, BATT, NO 1, CHARGE. The pair on the right BATT, NO 2, CHARGE. Upon a closer inspection of my switchboard, I now noticed where these additions were located, but the upper terminal post on each side is missing. Clearly the next step will have to be removing the plywood rear cover to see what has been going on with the wiring. I am hoping the terminals were simply removed, but not the related wiring.

In the meantime, I remember a Forum Member a few years back was parting out a Switchboard Charging 5C. If anyone has one being parted out, please get in touch with me. I suspect even a British one will have identical terminal post assemblies.

Be nice to confirm exactly why these two new sets of terminal posts were added and how they function. I have seen wiring diagrams for the original version of these switchboards, so there must also be ones issued for the 5C MK I.


David

[Chris Suslowicz]

Originally Posted by David Dunlop

Last evening, I did a quick test on the glue residue left on the lower right side of the front panel and it look like it will remove OK with a little careful work and soaking with a glue solvent I have on hand.

I also started some online research on anything I could find about these switchboards, and in particular anything about the MK I Model. Surprisingly, I got a hit from the MLU Forum regarding the Week 37 Wireless of the Week Series Bruce Parker had put together several years ago. Week 37 covered the Switchboard Charging 5C Canadian and in it was a post from Jordan Baker who had run across a photo of a 5C MK I, Serial Number C183, also a 1944 product of Rogers Majestic. The comments back then suggest this variation was intended for the 19-Set HP and the 52-Set as both were rather power hungry wireless sets, and it was noted a new inboard pair of terminal posts were added on the upper portion of each side. The left set are marked, BATT, NO 1, CHARGE. The pair on the right BATT, NO 2, CHARGE. Upon a closer inspection of my switchboard, I now noticed where these additions were located, but the upper terminal post on each side is missing.

I suspect they were never installed. There are differences between your switchboard and the ones I've seen and yours appears to be for field use with two charging sets, rather than permanently installed in a wireless vehicle.

Clearly the next step will have to be removing the plywood rear cover to see what has been going on with the wiring. I am hoping the terminals were simply removed, but not the related wiring.

It looks as though the positive terminals for the charging (independent of the switch settings) were deleted, and the board re-marked for two charging sets rather than a single charging set when static and "Vehicle Dynamo" on the move.

None of the switchboards I have seen have a rear plywood cover - an indication that they were fitted to a vehicle with non-conducting walls perhaps, whereas this one was for use on the ground and stray bits of metal might short it out if it was unprotected?

In the meantime, I remember a Forum Member a few years back was parting out a Switchboard Charging 5C. If anyone has one being parted out, please get in touch with me. I suspect even a British one will have identical terminal post assemblies.

Almost certainly the same.

Be nice to confirm exactly why these two new sets of terminal posts were added and how they function.

My guess is they are simply wired in parallel with the battery terminals, and the positive terminals were removed (For safety?) when the design was adapted for use out of the vehicle.

I have seen wiring diagrams for the original version of these switchboards, so there must also be ones issued for the 5C MK I.

Optimist!

Best regards,
Chris.

p.s. Now I know what those bits of mounting hardware are for (and need to get some) - they probably fitted to the underside of the radio table (or to the vehicle wall) so that the "spare" switchboard could be stored out of the way when not required. (The vehicle one would be permanently wired in.)

[David Dunlop]

And the plating of hardware and reassembly begins.

Just the two easy parts back on so far but already I have discovered the need to carefully ream out excess paint from all the hardware holes before reinstallation of parts, especially the smaller items. This hardware is all brass and the smaller it is, the more likely I will damage the hardware trying to force it though holes clogged with excess paint. Drill bits work very well at this.

Also was able to get a short time exposure shot of the two new decals on the front panel glowing in the dark.


David

[David Dunlop]

I was able to get a few more pieces for the front panel zinc plated today. Hoping to get at least one put back tomorrow.


David

[David Dunlop]

Managed to get the Tuning Counter Assembly reinstalled on the front panel this morning and keep it held at the "0000" mark in the process.

Now the really frustrating part awaits my attention, getting the front panel mounted back on the chassis assembly working with stubby hardware and fingers in VERY tight quarters. I hope I have enough wine to celebrate any successes.



David

[David Dunlop]

This next reassembly step is one I did not fully understand, or appreciate , when I was disassembling this component last winter. It simply involves installing the two small screws in the first photo through their holes in the lower front panel, into the two heavy duty brackets shown in the 2nd photo. When this is done, the front panel is then held securely in place on the Coil Chassis assembly with the main mounting hardware holes (two vertical rows of three sets of hardware) are perfectly lined up Again, see the 2nd photo to see what I am referring to.

The space behind the two end angle brackets into which all this hardware fits, is extremely limited and full of other hardware. You need both hands completely free to work with each hardware set of screw, Shakeproof Washer and hex nut. See the 3rd and 4th photos in this Post. I am impressed the Designers thought of this.

The last photo shows these two screw back in place and I am now psyching myself up for the big challenge ahead of installing these siz sets of hardware.


David

[David Dunlop]

The two lowermost and challenging sets of hardware to mount the front panel assembly to the Coil Chassis have now been reinstalled. The round head, slotted, machine screws in these two hardware sets are shorter than the remaining, upper four sets. With the Shakeproof washer in place, the screws will only run home about two thirds of the way into their hex head nuts.

Gravity helps get these two hardware sets installed, so I started by resting the chassis assembly on its front panel on a small 4x4 block of wood, padded with an old cloth. It is important doing this and keeping the centre of gravity of the coil assembly squarely over the wood block to avoid it tipping while you are working on it. I oriented the chassis with the bottom facing me and used a pair of small work lamps to fully illuminate the areas I needed to work in.

The first photo shows the small triangular cutouts provided to access these two mounting holes in the brass angle brackets. The Shakeproof washer is already resting around the screw hole. I dropped them in place with a small pair of needle nose pliers.

Before I started all this, I put a small drop of clear nail polish on the end of a wooden candy stick to secure the brass hex nut. The screw was then mounted on an appropriately sized slotted screw driver head and placed up through the hole and through the washer. While holding the screw in place with one hand, I used the other hand to carefully place the hex nut on the tip of the screw and turned the driver head to engage the threads. The hex nut pops free of the wooden stick as soon as the turning resistance is great enough. You can then press down on the open face of the hex nut with the flat tip of the wooden stick until the screw is flush with the front panel. I then placed a drop of red nail polish into the hole of the hex nut to lock it in place. I had found traces of red lacquer in these two hex nuts when I removed them last Spring.

So the two tricky sets of panel mounting hardware on the Coil Assembly have now been reinstalled. Four more sets to go.


David

[David Dunlop]

The six front panel screws were plated this morning and installed this evening. That now just leaves the 10 brass, round head wood screws to plate and then the wooden rear panel for the Coil case can be reinstalled.


David

[Chris Suslowicz]

Congratulations: it looks as though it has just rolled off CMC's production line!

[David Dunlop]

The 10 small wood screws for mounting the rear wood panel to the Coil Case were zinc plated this morning and allowed to dry after their alcohol rinse.

When I took the Coil Assembly apart last spring, I discovered the wood screw second from the bottom right was slightly shorter than the rest, but with an identical head size, so I left it in.

With the back panel now reinstalled, the completed Coil, Aerial Tuning No. 2A is finally completed and ready to go. Thank you Chris S for your kind comment.


David

[David Dunlop]

The Coil, Aerial Tuning No. 2A is now remounted on top of the Carriers No. 4 and for the first time in who knows how long, connected to a Sender on my 52-Set with the correct, NOS Leads, Aerial that I purchased a few weeks ago.

I may have to slide the yellow IDSleeve on the Leads up to the coil end as it keeps the cable from curving smoothly and may create a problem when the Waterproof Curtain is lowered. I will have to check service photos of the 52-Set to see if any show where this sleeve was typically located.

Next big project for the 52-Set now will be to repair/replace a few things on the Supply Unit. I need to find where 1.5 Volts DC to the Receiver is disappearing to from the 12 Volt DC Low Tension circuit and then get a number of physically defective parts replaced on the Sender side of the Supply.


David

[David Dunlop]

I decided to get a look inside the Switchboard, Charging today to see what else was missing related to the two Terminal assemblies I was already aware of from the front panel.

The back, plywood cover is held in place by 8 brass, countersunk, slot head wood screws that have been black adonized and which are 1-1/8 inch in length. One such screw was missing and another has been replaced a some point in time with a steel screw of similar specifications.Easy enough to track down replacements today.

At first glance inside, I noticed three of the switches were pretty clean and the one in the lower right corner, viewed from the rear, was absolutely filthy with dried oil or grease. This was consistent with a bit of dried oil I had to remove around this switch on the front panel. After that observation I suddenly realized there were no wires at all on the two switches on the right side, the filthy switch had no brass terminal screws fitted to it at all and the switch above it only had the lower, centre terminal screw still in place. One was also missing on the upper left switch. Then I realized all the brass hex nuts and washers had been removed from all nine terminal assemblies that had no wires fitted and that the two empty terminal holes visible from the front side actually did have terminals fitted at one time.

I decided to pull the filthy switch and see if it could be cleaned up to reasonably match the other three. After an hour of brass brush scrubbing with two different cleaners, a water rinse and a 99% isopropyl Alcohol rinse to get rid of all the water, the switch looked a pretty good match to the others and the visible terminals inside were looking brassy once again. So back it went in its position in the switchboard.

I was expecting solid copper wiring and was not disappointed but the wire colours were a bit of a surprise. I expected classic black and red, but the red turned out to be a rather attractive looking wine colour. Should be fun trying to match that down the road when I start restoration of this switchboard.


David

[David Dunlop]

While looking at all the missing brass terminal screws on the backs of the switches, I took a spare wall receptacle I had on hand and removed one of its brass terminal screws out of curiosity. The thread, and thread length were identical to the terminal screws on the switchboard switches. The pan head on the modern receptacle is about 1/16-inch narrower in diameter and the modern one is set up for slotted, Robertson or Phillips screwdrivers. So, in a pinch, I could go that route if I can track down a source of supply for just these brass pan head screws. But then part of my brain tells me I might spend as much time looking for the modern screws as I might if I searched for the original style on line.

Food for thought, and if anybody has any ideas for finding this style of brass, pan head slotted screw, please let me know. They are an 8-32 thread.



David

[David Dunlop]

The inside face of the plywood back panel had quite an accumulation of dust and dirt on it, but I found three or four wipes with a wet cloth took it all off quite nicely. I then let the panel dry for about 20 minutes and then gave it a good rub with a cloth soaked in Lemon Oil and let that soak in.

Looks pretty good before I put the panel back in place and when I had done so, I gave the outside face a good rub with the Lemon Oil as well.

Back in Post #1203, I had commented that the small rectangular stamp from Rogers Majestic on the end on one of the wooden battens was possibly a Part Number, but I found nothing else like it anywhere inside the switchboard, so I am now suspecting this was an Inspection Stamp.



David

[Chris Suslowicz]

Originally Posted by David Dunlop

A number of interesting questions have arisen since its arrival, however.

I know production of this item did not start in Canada until sometime in 1941 and it was probably a direct copy of the British version. I have only ever seen photos of Canadian ones made by RCA Canada Limited and either bearing no date, or any of 1942 to 1944. This one is dated 1944, which ties in nicely with my 52-Set, but it was manufactured by Rogers Majestic Limited, which I believe was based in Montreal. It shows a Product Code of “R M SA 3897” and a Serial Number “C253”.

Is that SA (Sierra Alfa) or 5A (Five Alfa)?

5A is the Air Ministry stores code for "Electrical, Ground Lighting".

Second puzzle is this switchboard is identified as:

SW/BD CHARGING NO5C MK I

I never knew a Mk I ever existed until now and am now wondering what exactly changed in the design to warrant the Mk I status?
David

"Mk 1" is very rarely seen, because it's the original version of something. Later versions would be identified as Mk.2, Mk.3, etc. and there's the additional "*" marking indicating that an official modification has been applied, (as opposed to major changes or a redesign) e.g. Telephone Sets D Mark V* (or 5*), the * indicating the removal of the headband earpiece (and shorting of the "Phones" terminals) because they had switched to magneto signalling and the operator didn't need to wear a headset to hear the buzzer call.

I wonder if the "Mk 1" is a late-WW2 production of the original design, and that's why it has a plywood back cover and the extra terminals - they used the original drawings and not a later simplified (to ease production and cut costs by removing unnecessary features) version.

If I can fight my way into the shed I'll see what markings are on mine.

(I think that one has been repurposed as a switchboard for a workshop or caravan: all the charging terminals have been disconnected or removed, and the only terminals still connected are "Battery 2" "12V Output" and "Internal Lighting", the last being controlled by the switch at top right. Presumably the battery was removed for charging and there is only one battery?)

Whoops! (From a restoration thread in the HMVF forums...)

ZB/CAN/BR 0183

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.

Chris.

[David Dunlop]

Not bad news at all, Chris. Surviving documentation on this product is so slim today, every bit of information is useful.

I rechecked the front panel ID on this Switchboard and can confirm the Product Code is Definitely R M Sierra Alpha 3897.

That rear view shot of the wiring will be very helpful. I have a friend in Steinbach taking photos of his as well for me to reference. First glance comparison to the wiring remaining in mine suggests what is still there has been significantly relocated. I will have to test what is still there to see if it makes any sense at all. I see at least one red lead going to a negative terminal so I will need to tread carefully. At this point, I cannot see a drastic rework of the wiring simply to add in two new sets of terminals. What was real may be fully bodged at this point.

My goal, pending discovery of MK I documentation, will be to simply mirror wiring of a basic 5C Switchboard into this one and leave the two sets of additional terminals on the Mk I empty until how they were originally integrated can be confirmed. Need to find two extra terminals for that detail in any event, but it should be doable.


David