This portable holds a special place with me. MasterRadio, Sobell, GEC etc.. all became one and these sets sported those names in different colour cases. My Granddad “acquired” this set around 1965, I reckon. He had a luncheon shop in Leadenhall market in the City of London. Some colourful customers who could obtain all kinds of things. He came home with a Trim-phone one day, great but none of the growns ups could hear it’s stupid ring tone. I remember being allowed to play with the wireless during rainy August holidays in a caravan, as a treat for not destroying the gas mantles. I must have packet it up in a keep sake box, forgetting all about it until recently. Certainly seen better days. The poor leather case having all the stitching perished and I notice that batteries must have leaked in the past, staining he front grill. Anyway, set up a 6V supply and switched on. The familiar click from the volume control, a crackle and that was it. A check around with a wet finger and got a buzz from the detector diode, showing the amplifier section was alive. The wave-change switch produced no crackles when operated, meaning that we had total RF blackout. Bugger. Out with the scope. Could find nothing. No local oscillator, no RF fuzz, not a sausage. As I mentioned before, common germanium transistors used in those days in the RF sections were Mullard’s AF115,6,7 series. A meter check showed that DC conditions around each one (3 in all) were all over the place. So, making sure nobody was looking from the Transistor Police, I snipped off the shield leads from each transistor. Switch on again and wow, full volume, great sensitivity and selectivity, crystal clear! Even the Short Wave put in a good show. First power up in 40 years. Will it start, oh yes. Hope George is looking down on his wireless and smiling.
