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Becker Europa Radio Repair - Capacitor Adventures

Posted: Thu Nov 01, 2018 8:26 pm
by Eric Lenius
Doing a bit of repair to prepare a Becker Europa radio for reinstallation. The power supply was in typical crusty condition with a readily apparent failed filter capacitor that had leaked inside of the chassis. The axial lead capacitors in these old radios are fairly straightforward to replace. What becomes a problem is the can style (Sprague trade name was Twist-Loc" large electrolytic capacitors that attach to the chassis with twisted tabs. There usually are not direct replacements for these and scabbing in axial lead or even radial lead capacitors does not work all that well. To that end, I decided to rebuild the two capacitors of this type in the radio. Not just to be a micromaniac (which I am), rather to have a mechanically sound installation when done. Here are some pictures of the project. I unsoldered the can in the supply, pried open the crimp on the mounting end of the can. Removed the innards (you can see how funky and corroded it gets. No wonder these old electrolytic caps fail. Then cleaned up the parts, drilled a couple of holes for leads in the insulator plate. Mounted up a suitable axial lead capacitor and put it back together. Not even noticeable when reinstalled and a good solid mobile radio capacitor installation.

Re: Becker Europa Radio Repair - Capacitor Adventures

Posted: Thu Nov 01, 2018 8:28 pm
by Eric Lenius
Missed the picture showing the replacement cap that went in the can.

Re: Becker Europa Radio Repair - Capacitor Adventures

Posted: Fri Nov 02, 2018 2:49 am
by Mervyn Hyde
Excellent work Eric. My '62 Blaupunkt recently went off the 'air'. It is a hybrid (valve/transistor) unit. After disassembling it I decided that it wasn't anything obvious after checking on/off continuity and the fuses and thinking that (altho I had the circuit schematic) I needed a signal generator and more gear to find the problem location. I approached one of our many amateur classic radio clubs and there were 4 guys arguing over who would take the job on.

I can add - they wanted no payment, only any parts costs. Such enthusiasm. However, in the mean time I discovered some dirty valve pin connections and it works! At least I know next time where to take it.

Re: Becker Europa Radio Repair - Capacitor Adventures

Posted: Fri Nov 02, 2018 12:00 pm
by Wes Bender
Valve = Aussie for tube.... and Bob's your uncle.

Re: Becker Europa Radio Repair - Capacitor Adventures

Posted: Mon Nov 05, 2018 1:12 am
by Randy Cook
Many of the old Sprague can type electrolytics can be found on Antique Electronics website
https://www.tubesandmore.com
Used a lot by people repairing old tube audio and guitar amps.