I found this Sylvania 8P18-1 transistor radio at an antique store this weekend. I haven't found any information on it on ARF or Google, so they must not be very common. It's about the same size as an Emerson 888 coat pocket radio.

It uses a 9-volt Eveready 2709 battery. I temporarily connected a modern 9-volt battery and could hear a click in the speaker when I made contact, but no hiss, static, hum, or RF of any kind. It's a nice looking radio, but I don't know if the build quality is up to the Emerson or similar Zenith 500 radios. It is not as heavy as either of those radios. Cosmetically, it is in very good condition. I might just set it on a shelf for now until I find time to mess with it.

Hey Ed,

Neat radio !

I made an offer on a somewhat rough (backside) yellow one that was missing battery compartment cover awhile back on Ebay, but it was rejected.

I'd at least replace the electrolytics as most times that will bring 'em back from the clicking state---as I'm sure you know...

Thanks for the pics---always like to see the "innards" !

Let us know how it goes when you begin project !

John

Hey Ed, that's a somewhat rare set. I don't think I've seen another in that style. I've got two Sylvania 4 Transistor sets with a similar case and PCB/speaker setup. Here's one, notice the same dial arrangement;

Chassis 673-1
https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R ... 4&_sacat=0

ref: https://www.samswebsite.com/en/photofac ... sid/538_14

Nice little radio Ed.
Greg.

Greg, thanks for that eBay link. I bought the SAM's schematic for the radio

I'll see if I have the right caps on hand, John. It should be easy to work on with the large PCB. I've given up trying to fix the small shirt pocket transistor radios. It seems I do more damage than good trying to work on the small PCBs.

What kind of performance do you get on your Sylvanias, Fifties? I don't think I've run across any Sylvania radios before, tube or transistor.

Beitman published a schematic in Volume 1961
https://www.radiomuseum.org/r/sylvania_ ... _1673.html

Google Sylvania 8P18

In July 1961 your radio along with a bunch of others had their 90 day parts and labor warranties extended to Five years!
Tube radios, One year.
150 repair stations located throughout the country.

Transistor radio that carry the Five year warranty are:
TH10, 8P18, 7K10, 6P08, 6P09, 5P16, 4P15, AP05 and 4P06

Greg.
https://www.americanradiohistory.com/Beitman-Manual.htm

I have several Sylvania sets Ed, both tube and Transistor. The 4 Transistor sets perform adequately, and certainly better than the Regency TR-1 and TR-1G, but not as well as the Philco 4 Transistor radios. With 8 Transistors, your set should perform quite well once you recap and align it.

Looks like its in great condition!

Very clean and sharp radio. Always liked those crazy asymmetrical Sylvania's

Ed,

The only U.S. made Sylvania I have is their first, the Thunderbird. After carefully disabling original electrolytics and adding new beneath PCB, it is an excellent performer with very good sound for it's size. Haven't compared schematics, but do wonder how similar your circuit may be five years later ?

John

Ed - I have a Sylvania model 7P12 7 transistor radio that I got some years ago with some other radios. The 7P12 doesn't appear to have been used much and has a good sound quality, well-made and somewhat larger than a Zenith Royal 500, although the battery box is missing and I haven't replaced it yet. - Mark

Nice find Ed. I like the design of the dial pointer.

Yea! It works. After a recap, it is playing great. I was a little concerned at first because I replaced C4, the 80uF and 50uF caps in the multi-cap with no improvement. I then replaced C3, between the AF Amp and Driver. Still no change, just a click when power was applied.

Then I replaced C2, the 5uF cap between the volume control and the AF Amp, and the radio came alive (see Schematic detail below). The schematic showed C2 and C3 as 3uF caps, but 5uF caps were installed, and they appeared original. The chassis appeared undisturbed. I then replaced C1, which completed the recap. I added a 9-volt snap connector for a modern 9 volt cell.

I cleaned the dial plate and clear cover with Novus #1. I also cleaned the front of the case with Novus #1 as it was in pretty good shape. One the back of the case, I used Novus #2, which restored some shine.

The RF reception is very good. I'm getting all the local AM stations and some faint distant stations here in the late afternoon. Sound quality is also good, maybe a tad less quality than the Zenith 500's.

Glad you got it working, it’s a nice looking set.

Looks great, Ed! Of course you get what you pay for, and I'm sure this radio sold for less than the Zeniths did, so understandable that it's not quite up to their level of performance in all categories.

Yeah, the Electrolytic going to the wiper on the VC opening due to aging is usually the prime reason Transistor sets don't play.

Schematic errors are not uncommon.
Sams service information has a lot of them!

Greg.

Glad you got it goin', Ed---and it looks great !

Another neat, U.S. made set for your collection !

John

The radio was $15 in the antique shop, which surprised me as most transistors, if you can find one, seem to go for $20 and up. With no shipping, I thought it was a good buy, working or not.

Thanks, Fifties, I will have to remember to suspect and replace that cap first in the future when I encounter similar symptoms.

this is where an esr meter is handy.
mine can also be used as a signal injector.
a quick poke at each cap will let you know if they are the cause of your quiet set.
then with 1 lead on chassis ground you poke the volume tap,detector,ect to see if you can hear the tone.
http://www.bobparker.net.au/esr_meter/esrmeter.htm

Well guys, to do it right, you really do want to replace the normally 4 Electrolytic's in a 6 Transistor set. Quick 'n dirty is normally just the VC wiper cap.