So, the Craigslist Discolite from the threads below is now 90%. I have to say...It cleaned up WAY better than I thought it would...
First Thread
Second Thread
Here we go...
As you could see in the first pictures, it was dirty and sad looking....
It opened up pretty easy. I could tell the box had never been opened. It had that Virginal SNAP on the twist of the screw driver. Thats the BEST!
FILTHY INSIDE! I found one loose screw floating around (hey, don't we all). I also found 2 more EQ sliders and many spider legs, dirt and dust.
Do you see it? The broken wire? It's the brown one. It should be soldered the the green PCB center left. That's why the lights in the center of the speakers weren't working. Now every single light on the box works!
Into the garage sink for a good scrubbing. Used a plastic bristle brush, going with the lines in the back of the case to scrub all the dirt out. Then with a much smaller brush on the workbench and a spray bottle. Took about 20 minutes. Got it clean.
Re-assembly of the back case, solder wire for lights, deoxit switches and buttons.
Cleaned up the wiring, tied stuff down to eliminate rattles
Disassembly of the speaker's. I had to unsolder the pizo tweeters and all the woofers.
Got to keep track of what goes where...
By far, the front of the case was the worst. big time dust bunnies, grime, 25 years of splattered soda's, spilled beer, sneezes and road grime. There was no shine in this disco!
I didn't dunk this in the sink because of the lighting rig. I cleaned it carefully with a towel, small brush, spray bottle of water and a microfiber cloth.
It started cleaning up real nice. A little elbow grease...
Reassemble speaker's and light rings. Resolder everything.
Almost back together....
Tested...Working!
Sound CHECK
Speaker Rim Lights CHECK
Speaker Center Lights CHECK
All sliders, buttons, knob! CHECK
Some quick Glam Shots!
Thanks to our TOP NOTCH Member THAFUZZ, I now have a battery door on the way to replace my wod of electrical tape.
What I find interesting about this radio is that over the years I have heard the worst things about the build quality and I think a big percentage of that is perceived right from the handle. The handle is just the worst and it relays a mind set that the whole box it crap. After this full rebuild, I don't feel that way at all. I have other radio's that are way bigger pieces of crap! I have also heard many say the sound is no good. I think it sounds GREAT! I was expecting something that was totally unusable. Something so cheaply made that the sound is so poor you would never use it.
It's 180 degrees from that. With a solid handle, I would use this box regularly.
Speaking of handles, I have a handle coming with metal ends that I will fab in and see if I can raise the confidence level.
As for the functionality...
Every light bulb works as it should.
Deck 1 is missing a tiny "C" clip that holds one of the drive gears in contact with the other gear. I need to measure it and buy one. Deck two had the door that comes off. Turns out the plastic pivot points are busted off, but it's a supper easy fix. More on that later. Deck 2 plays perfectly. Even the counter works!
The radio works across all 4 bands, AM,FM,SW1,SW2. But it needs an antenna and base washers.
Line in works perfect.
All eq sliders, balance and volume are clean and clear with no crackle.
I am also missing the "Discolite" name tag on the right front grill...ANYONE?
To think, two days ago this radio was in a junk car potentially ready to be smashed!
Today it has been restored to it's former glory. Just imagine the story this radio could tell. 25 plus years of first being cherished and then being loved to death and finally abandoned. How many parties? How many loosened panties because of this box? How many beer's toasted and Bong Hit's Coughed into it?
She's still got her battle scars, those aren't going away....and I wouldn't want it any other way!
Yep, if this radio could talk.....
First Thread
Second Thread
Here we go...
As you could see in the first pictures, it was dirty and sad looking....
It opened up pretty easy. I could tell the box had never been opened. It had that Virginal SNAP on the twist of the screw driver. Thats the BEST!
FILTHY INSIDE! I found one loose screw floating around (hey, don't we all). I also found 2 more EQ sliders and many spider legs, dirt and dust.
Do you see it? The broken wire? It's the brown one. It should be soldered the the green PCB center left. That's why the lights in the center of the speakers weren't working. Now every single light on the box works!
Into the garage sink for a good scrubbing. Used a plastic bristle brush, going with the lines in the back of the case to scrub all the dirt out. Then with a much smaller brush on the workbench and a spray bottle. Took about 20 minutes. Got it clean.
Re-assembly of the back case, solder wire for lights, deoxit switches and buttons.
Cleaned up the wiring, tied stuff down to eliminate rattles
Disassembly of the speaker's. I had to unsolder the pizo tweeters and all the woofers.
Got to keep track of what goes where...
By far, the front of the case was the worst. big time dust bunnies, grime, 25 years of splattered soda's, spilled beer, sneezes and road grime. There was no shine in this disco!
I didn't dunk this in the sink because of the lighting rig. I cleaned it carefully with a towel, small brush, spray bottle of water and a microfiber cloth.
It started cleaning up real nice. A little elbow grease...
Reassemble speaker's and light rings. Resolder everything.
Almost back together....
Tested...Working!
Sound CHECK
Speaker Rim Lights CHECK
Speaker Center Lights CHECK
All sliders, buttons, knob! CHECK
Some quick Glam Shots!
Thanks to our TOP NOTCH Member THAFUZZ, I now have a battery door on the way to replace my wod of electrical tape.
What I find interesting about this radio is that over the years I have heard the worst things about the build quality and I think a big percentage of that is perceived right from the handle. The handle is just the worst and it relays a mind set that the whole box it crap. After this full rebuild, I don't feel that way at all. I have other radio's that are way bigger pieces of crap! I have also heard many say the sound is no good. I think it sounds GREAT! I was expecting something that was totally unusable. Something so cheaply made that the sound is so poor you would never use it.
It's 180 degrees from that. With a solid handle, I would use this box regularly.
Speaking of handles, I have a handle coming with metal ends that I will fab in and see if I can raise the confidence level.
As for the functionality...
Every light bulb works as it should.
Deck 1 is missing a tiny "C" clip that holds one of the drive gears in contact with the other gear. I need to measure it and buy one. Deck two had the door that comes off. Turns out the plastic pivot points are busted off, but it's a supper easy fix. More on that later. Deck 2 plays perfectly. Even the counter works!
The radio works across all 4 bands, AM,FM,SW1,SW2. But it needs an antenna and base washers.
Line in works perfect.
All eq sliders, balance and volume are clean and clear with no crackle.
I am also missing the "Discolite" name tag on the right front grill...ANYONE?
To think, two days ago this radio was in a junk car potentially ready to be smashed!
Today it has been restored to it's former glory. Just imagine the story this radio could tell. 25 plus years of first being cherished and then being loved to death and finally abandoned. How many parties? How many loosened panties because of this box? How many beer's toasted and Bong Hit's Coughed into it?
She's still got her battle scars, those aren't going away....and I wouldn't want it any other way!
Yep, if this radio could talk.....
