Tony Duell wrote: Have you tried asking on the UK Vintage Radio Repair and Restoration website? They have a vintage tape recorder section at http://www.vintage-radio.net/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.pl?board=tape_recorder Cheers, Dave.

That was a farily standard connector on Philips tape recorders. The middle pin is a locator only -- the real reason for it was to stop the plug going into European mains scoksts (!). One of the outside pins should be martked with an earth symbol, the other is (of course) the signal pin. The original plug was unpolarised, but carried a red dot to indictate the signal pin. That was the convention. A flat locator on inputs, a round one on outputs. My Philips (I forget the model number, I can look it up) uses those for the speaker outputs. The inputs, line-level output (on the same connector as the radio 'diode' input) are DIN sockets. Said machine is Stereo, 4 speed (including 15/16 ips [1]), can copy one mono track to the other while mixing in the microphone input, and so on. The speakers are somewhat Heath-Robinson. There's one in the case, used for mono playback and the left stereo channel. And another in the lid. For Stereo playback you uncoil a lead from a slot inside the lid and plug it into the RH extension speaker socket. Then put the lid on the right side of the machine, about 2m away. Of course you can also connect up a pair of speakers or a stereo amplifer/speaker system... [1] Yes, the quality is lousy. It's useful in the same way that the HP82161 [2] is useful. In case some swine gives me a tape recorded at that speed. [2[] On-topic at last. The 82161 is an HPIL mini-cassette drive used with the hP41, HP71, etc. It works, but it's fairly slow, and the tapes are essentially unobtaium (and they are not the same as any normal audio tape cassette). I use a 9114 disk drive with my HP calculators, that uses 3.5" DD disks whioch are much easier to obtain, faster, and store about 5 times as much. But I keep the 82161 going because I sometimes have to copy tapes for other HPCC members, etc. It's not in Poole and Molloy, at least on that I can find. Can you give me more description, so I can see if I can identify the Philips equivalent. In particular : It's 4 track, does it have a Stereo socket [3]? What's the cabinet made of (most were rexine-covered plywood, a few later ones were plastic) How many speeds, what are they What controls and connectors do you have? [3] Another odd idea of Philips. On some later 4 track machines there was a 3 pin DIN socket, the connections being the lower (track 3) head winding, ground, and +16V (normally obtained by potting down the HT+ line). You could connect a special Philips pre-amplifier there and : a) play back steereo tapes (LH channel throug hte machine, RH channel through the pre-amplidier and the pickup input of your radio set!) b) Monitor track 3 on headphones (the pre-amp could drive the Philips headphones) while recording on track 1 c) Copy track 3 to track 1 (link output of the pre-amp to the input of the recorder) while mixing in another signal (these models had separate recordign level controls for the microphoen and radio/pickup input, thus giving a simple mixer). I will see what I can do.... -tony

If it required a dummy pin to prevent its use in European mains sockets, then a European mains plug should be a workable substitute, I would think.... Or was the "dummy" pin actually used to carry something? /~\ The ASCII der Mouse \ / Ribbon Campaign X Against HTML mouse(a)rodents.montreal.qc.ca / \ Email! 7D C8 61 52 5D E7 2D 39 4E F1 31 3E E8 B3 27 4B

OK, I think I've traced it. A 3rd party user guioe ('The Philips Tape Recorder Book', 1st edition) states that the ST454 is equivalent to the Philips EL3541 and the Cossor CR1602. As luck would have it, the Philips model is one of the few not in Poole and Molloy, but the Cossor one is. It seems to have undergone several revisions over the years, the changes being : 1) The superimpose swtich (turns off the erase head) became a parallel play button (plaus tracks 1 and 3 together). 2) The 2 pin pickup/radio input became a DIN socket (radio input and line level ouptu) and, believe-it-or-not an IEC 5 pin pickup input. 3) THere ware circit changes, some quite significant. I've checked the appropate volumes of Poole and Molloy, and the valves match up with the ones you state. To answer my questions : It should do. Left side of the machine. Early models didn't provide the 16V for the pre-amp here, though. I think it's rexine-covered wood, at least for the Philips EL3541. But I can't be sure, and this is something that may differ between Philips/Cossor/Stella versions. Only one (the EL3542 is essentially the 3 speed model). Presumably 3+3/4 ips As you stanted foor connectors (2 pin radio input, 2 pin monittor headphones, 2 pin estension speaker, DIN microphone, DIN stereo socket, mechanical remote control). Controls look to be conventional Philips, apart from the strainght-through amplifier switch near the connector panel. -tony

Right.... It's not suprising things like the case colour and trim changed.... I think the electronics is much the same... I think that makes it a first-series unit. Which means you'll not have the 16V supply on the Stereo socket. THe book mentions 'This can be easily modified by any Philips dealer'. Poole and Molloy gives all the circuits (but spread over 3 books...), it appears to be just a matter of adding 2 resistors. Do you have access to Poole and Molloy (say in a good public library [1])? You'd get a schematic from there, but the official service mnaual would be worth getting since it'll cover the mechanical side too. I am glad I got the manual for my stereo machine, some of the things, like setting up the swtich linkages, are not at all obvious... I got said manual from Mauritron back when they sold manuals on paper. Now that they only sell them on CD-ROM, I don't bother with them -- I am not going to pay out good money for a manual and then have to spend a few days printing the darn thing out! [1] At one time main libraries kept said books -- the complete set from 1952 onwards. But based on the number of volumes I've bought in libary sales, I guess they no longer do... Quitel likely. A normal 3 pin DIN plug will fit, and only the normal 3 pins are electricallly used. Quite likely. I think origianlly there was a foam pad over each spool turntable. The idea was you could leave spools on the machine and put the lid on when you'd finished using it and the foam would keep them in place. If it is polystyrent then dichloromethane will stick it. -tony

If al lelse fails, I have a shelf of Poole and Molloy from 1952 to 1981, missing about 2 volumes. I certainly have the 3 that cover this machine (hint!) Lighter fluid is often a good solvent for removing adhesive residue... Well I get it from a _good_ model shop under the name 'Plastic Weld'. It makes a much stronger bond than normal polystyrene cement. And you only use a couple of drops of it at a time. The trick is to put the parts together and run a bush dipped in the solvent down the crack. Then, if you want a really strong reapir and don't care what one side of the part looks like, put a piece of cotton fabric over the back of the crack, 'paint' the solvent onto that and force it into the softened plastic. That's how I fixed the keyboard bezel on my HP9830, which was shattered by the postal 'service'... To be honest, I feel that a lot of these safety warnings are intended for people who use the material every day, probably in quite large quantities. I don't worry at all about using a few drops every other month or so. You may find one of the car seat repair kits is of use... Normally you put a patch under the tear and stick the edges down to it (the rexine was not nromally stuck the wood all over, so sticking bits of it down to the wood is no the right thing to do). -tony

On Sat, 4 Dec 2004, William Maddox wrote: TIP: Apply it to the cloth, not the item being cleaned ;) -- Sellam Ismail Vintage Computer Festival ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ International Man of Intrigue and Danger http://www.vintage.org [ Old computing resources for business || Buy/Sell/Trade Vintage Computers ] [ and academia at www.VintageTech.com || at http://marketplace.vintage.org ]

On Sat, 4 Dec 2004, Joe R. wrote: Ok, but don't rub it briskly expecting it to work better. If you do, expect your plastics to start deforming. -- Sellam Ismail Vintage Computer Festival ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ International Man of Intrigue and Danger http://www.vintage.org [ Old computing resources for business || Buy/Sell/Trade Vintage Computers ] [ and academia at www.VintageTech.com || at http://marketplace.vintage.org ]

On Sat, 4 Dec 2004, Chad Fernandez wrote: Probably. I was assuming they were of similar composition, but now that I think about it, Goof Off is based on naptha and is much more caustic. Goo Gone, being citrus-based, will probably not cause any harm to the underlying plastic. Goof Off, while just as effective if not more so than Goo Gone, will (if not used properly). It also needs to be used in a well-ventilated area, and the fumes linger for hours. The nice thing about Goof Off, if used properly, is that it can remove any sort of petroleum-based substance. I used it to remove splatter paint enamel protective coat. If we didn't rub too hard, the splatter paint came off and left the original paint alone. If we were too vigourous, it dulled the finish of the shelving a little bit, but that's all. So Goo Gone != Goof Off. Sorry for confusing the issue :( -- Sellam Ismail Vintage Computer Festival ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ International Man of Intrigue and Danger http://www.vintage.org [ Old computing resources for business || Buy/Sell/Trade Vintage Computers ] [ and academia at www.VintageTech.com || at http://marketplace.vintage.org ]

At 01:46 PM 12/5/04 -0600, you wrote: damage plastic. Ha! One trick that I learned when I worked in a body shop was to take a dented or scratched bumper, fill in the dent with body puddy and then cover the damage with a larg ebumper sticker! Lots cheaper than a new or rechromed bumper! I wonder how many bumper stickers you've removed only to find a damaged bumper underneath. Joe

At 12:25 PM 12/6/2004, Roger Merchberger wrote: Yes, but Goof Off may be naptha plus something else. - John

William> Tony Duell wrote: William> By far the best stuff I've ever used is "Goo-Gone", a William> citrus-solvent/ petroleum-solvent blend. job. Then again, I usually use lacquer thinner -- which is great when the substrate is insoluble. The WD-40 is the fallback for things that don't appreciate potent solvents. paul

On Sat, 2004-12-04 at 07:14, William Maddox wrote: I've found that nearly any non-hardening adhesive will release with heat. I've removed lots of labels with a hair dryer. Once the adhesive is soft enough it will usually "follow" the more absorbtive material (the paper of the lable) rather than stay on the harder surface. Meaning it mostly comes off with the label rather than leaving glop on your article. You have to get the underlying surface hot enough so that when you remove the heat the label won't quickly re-stick as heat is pulled into the surface. If it's metal and I can get behind it I will leave the hair dryer (or a gas torch for large metal panels) on from behind as I slowly pull the sticker. If any residue is left it should be small (like around the perimeter and if you get it with a solvent while still hot it should clean easily. Before someone sues me for bodily injury please note that some solvents will break down into incredibly toxic aromatic compounds in the presence of heat (like phosgene). Printing press blanket cleaner (a fantastic solvent for stickers) will do this. This trick I learned from an autobody shop and their efforts to remove bumper stickers with gas torches.

Goo-Gone may have a limited shelf life since the two times I've tried it, off of two completely independent parties shelves, I found it vastly inferior to lighter fluid. From those two experiences I won't buy it. Im interested on a head-to-head comparison from a person on this list who has used both. John A.

On Sun, 5 Dec 2004 14:09:23 -0800 (PST), you wrote: Unless I'm mistaken, Lighter Fluid is just plain Naptha, which is far, far cheaper in a pint/quart can in the Paint thinner section of the hardware store than it is in the little squeeze bottle cans by the cigarette/pipe lighters in the Tobacco Shop. Scott

At 08:45 PM 12/6/2004, John Allain wrote: Buy low, sell high. It's the only way to fuel a habit. - John

The cr1602 , and variations, is shown to be in the 1961/62, 1962/63 &1963/64 volumes of R&tv servicing. Unfortunately , I don't have those but I know someone who might. Geoff. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Philip Pemberton" <philpem(a)dsl.pipex.com> To: <cctalk(a)classiccmp.org> Sent: Wednesday, December 01, 2004 9:41 AM Subject: Re: Reel-to-reel tape decks (was: Re: ZX81 denigrated!) the line a to have and 6GB, 2-slice, -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Anti-Virus. Version: 7.0.289 / Virus Database: 265.4.4 - Release Date: 30/11/04