Radio & Speaker Repairs

[VCG]

Hello, I have been meaning to get my Smiths radio repaired and the speakers re-coned for years and years but never got around to it, does anyone have a recommendation? The power pack disappeared before we got the car so hopefully this can be dealt with, but as it's U/S anyway it might be sensible to simply put modern electronics in the box whilst keeping the appearance.

Thanks in advance for any help.

Vincent

[POR68]

Vincent - what model is the radio? Any chance of an image?

[VCG]

Sorry can't do that at the moment, as I don't have a photo of it & it's out of the car stored, but it's a bog standard Smiths Industries UK supplied and fitted in 1960.

V

[POR68]

OK Vincent. I have heard of most of the old radios on these cars, but not all the dealer fitted ones of course. That 'bog standard' Smith unit seems quite unusual. We know the company for their clocks, gauges, plugs and other components in the UK and Europe, but cannot see any info on their radios at the time at all. They had a radio made as a joint venture for a while. So yours may be not worth the effort of repair if you have lost the power pack (suggests a valve unit?) and as they were not a Porsche factory fitting it seems, it maybe best to look for a year-matched, factory option, German radio (e.g., Blaupunkt) for the same cost http://derwhites356literature.com/DerWh ... adios.html

[Ashley James]

Didn’t Smiths become Radiomobile or get sold to them?

[POR68]

Could be Ashley. Although HMV seemed to be the main input. Some radio models are shown here: http://www.bobine.nl/jaguar/13-electric ... 48-to1961/

[VCG]

What little knowledge I have also points to Radiomobile and Smiths being one and the same and it's a transistor/valve combo. I will dig it out when I get a bit of time and post as much info as I can, I might even manage to post a photo!!
My understanding is that a lot of radios were fitted at the dealership, in my case AFN, and maybe simple expediency of cost and availability was used over a Blaupunkt. I'm sure the 'oracle' Mike Smith of PR Services (can't praise them highly enough) will be able to clarify whether dealer fitted radios were the norm.
As far as finding and using a Blaupunkt we try and use what we believe to be original so at some stage we'd like to get this repaired but worst case scenario is modern 'guts' in the old box. So does anyone have any recommendations?
V

[POR68]

The link above has quite a few images of Radiomobile radios that were around then in the UK. The radios fitted as originally by Porsche were mostly Blaupunkts. My 62 model is a green-dial valve transistor combination with AM/FM. Dealer or after market fitted radios greatly varied by country of course. These guys do some modern mods on older face plates http://www.soundlabsgroup.com.au/c/Retr ... d-Porsche/