AC Line Voltage Controller for Atwater Kent Set Model 40 By dsen333v Fall/Winter 2011-2012 (Revision A, March 2012) Rev.

A. March 2012- Additions and edits to address recent feedback from my posting on Antique Radio Forum. ---------------------------------------------------------------The Atwater Kent Model 40 lamp socket radio should not be plugged into an AC wall outlet directly, unless you are sure the line voltage is within the range for which the model 40 set was designed. As support for this assertion, here is the relevant section from the Atwater Kent Service Manual;

See the photos of a line voltage test on the next page. In response to Forum feedback, I used both a Digital Multimeter (DMM) and a 1000/Volt Volt-Ohm-Meter (VOM) to measure our line voltage in the early afternoon of March 19, 2012. Note that the VOM measurement is essentially equal to the DMM measurement of 122.5 volts.

Southern California Edison Line Voltage is 122.5, on 3/19/2012

These measurements prove that modern-day AC line voltage often exceeds the upper limit of the 10 volt permissible range for which the Model 40 set was designed. According to the Atwater Kent Company Service Manual, this situation could shorten tube life. Today, A New-Old-Stock (NOS) UX-280 costs $100 from Antique Electronic Supply. An NOS UX-171A is $86. Therefore, I choose to use a power rheostat to reduce the applied line voltage to no more than 110 volts when the set is ON, exactly as recommended by the Atwater Kent Company. Also, an RFI filter is beneficial to stop 1) super-strong nearby stations or 2) line noise from entering the set via the AC mains. I had both of these interference problems, and the RFI filter mitigated them during my breadboard tests.

RFI FILTER CURTIS INDUSTRIES #F2700CA03 LINE 120 VOLT AC LINE INPUT GROUND NEUTRAL
FILTERED 120 VOLTS AC

FUSE (SEE TEXT)

50 RHEOSTAT OHMITE #RJS50R

LAMP SOCKET WITH SCREW-IN ADAPTER

AC VOLTMETER TEST POINT

AC LINE VOLTAGE CONTROLLER

DSEN333V
23 NOV.2011

A 1 amp fuse can protect the RFI filter, the rheostat, and the radio from damage propagation due to a short circuit. See additional fusing considerations at the end of this report. Here is a suitable front panel layout (next page);

50 40 30 60 70

20

80

10 0 100

90

VARIABLE AC TEST POINT

PANEL / HOUSING DIMENSIONS: 5 1/2 H X 10 W X AT LEAST 5 D

The lamp socket mounts nicely to the single-outlet wall plate on the right. The rheostat and RFI filter are available from various parts vendors, such as Digi-Key, Newark, Calco, etc. I fabricated the test point terminals using a thick wood block, 5 mil brass shim stock, solder lugs, and wood screw fasteners. Drill the test point holes in the wood block such that the multimeter probes are held with reasonable tension, and engage the brass terminals when fully inserted. A panel drill template is shown below;
10"
3/4"

1 1/8"

DIAL PLATE IS 3 X 3

2" 2 3/4"
CUTOUT 3/8DIA

1 3/4"

2 1/2"
CUTOUT 3/16DIA

5 1/2"

2 3/4"

3 1/4"

2 3/8"

1 1/8"

2 1/2" 3/4" 1" 3/4" 1 7/8"

1 7/8" 1 1/4"
5/8 DIAMETER

3 3/4"

A dial for the rheostat is shown below. Its printed dimension should be exactly 4 x 4, including the flaps.
FOLDOVER FLAP

50 40 30 60 70

20

80

10 0 100

90

FOLDOVER FLAP

Make a 3 square dial plate from a piece of sheet metal, (tinplate, aluminum, copper, etc.). Install the dial cutout after drilling the rheostat mounting holes and the corner holes. Fold over and tape the flaps to rear of dial plate. My homemade test point terminal block is fashioned from a 1 x 3 x 5/8 thick wooden block, two #6 x 3/8 sheet metal screws, and 5 mil brass shim stock. I designed it to accept the probes of my Fluke model 79 multimeter. Use two 1 long #8-32 machine screws and nuts for panel mounting.
3" 1"

1" 3/4" 1" 3/4"

I cut the front panel and dial plate from soft steel sheet stock using tin snips. In the photo below the drill template is attached to the front panel piece. I made a separate drill template for the dial plate.

I fashioned an enclosure using 5 poplar hobby board and square doweling from Home Depot.

Adjustment for 110 Volts at Radio Set Start with the rheostat set to maximum resistance (full counterclockwise for my wiring). Plug radio into the lamp socket. After turning on the radio, the voltage at the test point should quickly drop below 110 volts (for Model 40 set). Slowly turn up the rheostat to bring the test point voltage up to 110 volts. My Model 40 set draws about 34 watts at 110 volts. It is normal that the rheostat and front panel of the controller will get quite warm after a while, because they are dissipating approximately 3 watts after the rheostat has been properly set. Additional fusing considerations The RFI filter is rated at 3 amperes maximum, so be careful to not exceed 3 amps total continuous load (dual AC outlet plus lamp socket). The rheostat is rated at 1 ampere continuous maximum. The minimum short circuit current at the lamp socket, 2.4 amps, occurs when the rheostat is set to 50 (120 volts across the rheostat). According to the data sheet a 1 amp fuse should then blow within 150 milliseconds. --While researching for this update, I came across a photo of an antique light socket wall outlet and plug. The Atwater Kent Parts List Manual has photos of several models with this Edison-type plug on their power cord. It would be fun to have such a plug for my set.

THE END