Hello relocated folks -
Working on an SX-62 that is in pretty good cosmetic shape. Most of the knobs are there and will be doing a recap (no restuff) and check for out of spec resistors etc... 40 or 50 caps that I can see. Weee!

Anyway, on to my question. I haven't come near to powering it up on a variac yet. Still just poking and smelling and cleaning around the chassis and testing the tubes. The usual spider webs and dust. No mice!

The power supply choke or audio choke have a pretty good amount of wax deposited beneath them on the chassis. I recall this being a problem common to sx-42's and sx-62's. Any advice or forewarning on what might have caused this wax leak?

Thanks!

This is very common with the SX-62 and SX-42. Like any vintage radio, leaky caps will cause more B+ current to flow and overheat the power supply components. Additional current passing through the output transformer primary on it's way to the incorrectly biased 6V6's will cause it to overheat and possibly open. I understand that many output transformers and filter chokes don't survive this trauma in these sets. I was lucky to find that mine was still good in my SX-42.

Dave

Thank you Dave. I had a feeling it was that sort of trauma.
I'll be be on the lookout for open windings. Should the OT be fried, I have a smallish 6V6 output transformer that may do the trick. With all those caps being replaced, this an attempt to hide the resto anyway. Thanks again!

My very first boatanchor was an SX-62 found in a local dump site on the crest of a hill just outside a small village in upstate NY where I live after graduating from a 2-year college. Apparently the college was cleaning out a store room and dumped it there. There was some weather damage to the dial paint which was flaking off but I had a ball getting it to work and then doing lots of SW DX. This was in the late '60's so the radio was not that old. It just looked old with it's missing dial bezel and incorrect knobs. But it inspired my love for boatcanchor radios of which I have way too many now. That radio has become a parts donor in case my daily/nightly driver SX-42 takes a nose dive.

Good luck with your restore!

Dave

Yep, the SX-62 is a fine SWL radio, I use a pair regularly and also have a SX-42. They are certainly fun to recap!

I wouldnt even take a chance with a variac until the buried caps under the bandswitch are changed plus any associated with the audio stages, along with the electrolytics. B+ goes thru the bandswitch with the bypass on the other side and you just dont want to have to replace a fried wafer.

The 42/62 are notorious for taking out the power and audio transformers due to leaky eletrolytic and paper caps, if they are good then so is likely the choke...OTOH...

After a couple of dozen overhauls of both models combined Ive pretty much seen it all with those beasts

Carl