{"id":44980,"date":"2020-08-23T07:47:27","date_gmt":"2020-08-23T11:47:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/?p=44980"},"modified":"2020-08-23T19:05:08","modified_gmt":"2020-08-23T23:05:08","slug":"vlado-restores-mikes-vintage-sony-crf-160","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2020\/08\/vlado-restores-mikes-vintage-sony-crf-160\/","title":{"rendered":"Vlado restores Mike’s vintage Sony CRF-160"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Sony<\/a><\/p>\n

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Michael Schuster, who shares the following guest post:<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

\n

Vlado works his magic on my Sony CRF-160<\/h1>\n

by Michael Schuster<\/strong><\/p>\n

Back in the 1970\u2019s my grandfather gifted this solid-state portable to me as it was more than he needed. It was the first \u201creal\u201d radio I can remember owning, and it initiated my habit of scanning the dials into the wee hours of the morning. I began my serious SWLing using this set as it had excellent sensitivity, dual conversion design, big booming audio, and generous bandspread tuning for each major SW broadcast band.<\/p>\n

One of the best-known SWL programs at the time was Happy Station on Radio Nederland, and I have distinct memories of listening in our back yard one summer afternoon when the show came up on the African Service over the Madagascar relay. My family was astonished at the program coming from so far away and even more so when Tom Meijer happened to read my letter over the air during the mailbag segment!<\/p>\n

Fast forward many years (and two moves) later, it sat on a shelf until, trying it out again, I was dismayed to find both slide rule tuning dials, and the rotary drum band selector, to be frozen in place. And so there it sat until\u2026.<\/p>\n

In a few online forums I kept hearing about a magician named Vlado at Ham Radio Repair<\/a>. He specializes in restoring old sets, and has the courage and curiosity to tackle just about anything. Thinking this might be my last chance to bring this fossil back to life, and armed with a scanned copy of the service manual downloaded from the Radio Museum web site<\/a> (the Internet is a marvelous thing) I began a several months\u2019 long email exchange with Vlado entitled \u201cWould you be willing to work on\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n

He is chronically swamped with sets to work on, and has little room to store pending jobs, but was more than willing to have a look. Several months, and one pandemic later, we touched base again and I arranged to ship this monster off to him. Vlado is especially interested in the stories behind old hardware, so I shared its history with him as it adds that extra \u201chuman factor\u201d.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The radio is in great shape as he noted, but needed a total rework of the tuning dials and drum selector. He also replaced all of the electrolytic capacitors (most were leaking as pictured), replaced some tiny light bulbs with LED\u2019s, and realigned all of the circuits for maximum performance.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Unpacking and trying out the restored set was a true blast and somewhat miraculous. It performs just as I remember and now sits on the shelf, this time in use rather than in storage, booming its audio across my basement work room.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Now this set will probably outlive me as it did my grandfather; hopefully it will end up in the hands of an appreciative recipient for the next generation of radio enthusiasts.<\/p>\n

\n

Thank you for sharing this repair story, Mike. I visited Vlado’s home a few weeks ago and saw the box labeled “Sony CRF-160” in-line to be repaired. As Vlado worked on it, he sent me a couple of photos, too, because I believe it was the first time he had ever worked on this particular Sony model. It is certainly a gorgeous radio–wow! And I do love your philosophy as it’s the one I adopt too: keep vintage radios alive and working beyond our generation.\u00a0<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Vlado is truly the most capable ham radio repair guy technician\/engineer you’ll ever meet. He’s also as honest as the day is long. If you have a vintage or late-model solid-state radio that needs repair or restoration, contact him.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Click here to check out Vlado’s website HamRadio.repair.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Michael Schuster, who shares the following guest post: Vlado works his magic on my Sony CRF-160 by Michael Schuster Back in the 1970\u2019s my grandfather gifted this solid-state portable to me as it was more than he needed. It was the first \u201creal\u201d radio I can remember owning, and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[3,305,43,4796],"tags":[8766,8765,7698,4547,6782,8395,8767,4073],"class_list":["post-44980","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","category-nostalgia","category-shortwave-radio","category-vintage-radio","tag-ham-radio-repair","tag-hamradio-repair","tag-mike-schuster","tag-radio-repair","tag-repair-photos","tag-sony-crf-160","tag-sony-crf-160-repair","tag-vlado"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pn3uc-bHu","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":42541,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2020\/03\/jons-sony-crf-160-should-it-stay-or-should-it-go\/","url_meta":{"origin":44980,"position":0},"title":"Jon’s Sony CRF-160: Should it stay or should it go?","author":"Thomas","date":"March 28, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Jon Helberg, who writes: Greetings! During our COVID-19 shutdown I located my old Sony CRF-160 which has been closet bound for some years now, however it has always worked as new. [...]Other than the broken toggle switch for the light, all knobs and dials\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Sony-CRF-160g-150x150.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Sony-CRF-160g-150x150.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Sony-CRF-160g-150x150.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Sony-CRF-160g-150x150.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":18708,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2016\/05\/video-repairing-restoring-and-modifying-a-sony-crf-320\/","url_meta":{"origin":44980,"position":1},"title":"Video: Repairing, restoring and modifying a Sony CRF-320","author":"Thomas","date":"May 7, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Ken\u00a0McKenzie, for sharing the most comprehensive video you'll ever find\u00a0on restoring the Sony CRF-320 receiver: https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=AlfJ1dxTuWI Click here to watch on YouTube. Make sure you check out Mr. Carlson's YouTube channel, Mr. Carlson's Lab\u00a0where you'll find repair videos ranging from solid state to tube\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "How To"","block_context":{"text":"How To","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/how-to\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Sony-CRF-320","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Sony-CRF-320.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Sony-CRF-320.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Sony-CRF-320.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Sony-CRF-320.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":20243,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2016\/08\/patrick-comments-on-his-newly-restored-sony-crf-320\/","url_meta":{"origin":44980,"position":2},"title":"Patrick comments on his newly-restored Sony CRF-320","author":"Thomas","date":"August 6, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post reader, Patrick Mason, who writes from Juneau, Alaska: I am the owner of the radio that Paul Carlson restored in the video. The serial number is 31358. I wanted to comment about a statement regarding the receiver\u2019s sensitivity. After Paul concluded his final tune-up of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Sony-CRF-320","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Sony-CRF-320.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Sony-CRF-320.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Sony-CRF-320.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Sony-CRF-320.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":48957,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2021\/05\/behold-the-epic-sony-crf-320\/","url_meta":{"origin":44980,"position":3},"title":"Behold the epic Sony CRF-320!","author":"Thomas","date":"May 19, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Phil Ewing, who highlights this tweet from @Ea4Hng: \"Testing the good old Sony CRF-320 after many years not in use. It works flawlessly in all bands\" EA4HGN's photo, above, reminds me that the Sony CRF-320 sports one of the best designs I've ever seen\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Sony-CRF-320.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Sony-CRF-320.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Sony-CRF-320.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Sony-CRF-320.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Sony-CRF-320.jpeg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Sony-CRF-320.jpeg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":25169,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2017\/04\/ebay-sighting-the-sony-crf-1\/","url_meta":{"origin":44980,"position":4},"title":"eBay sighting: The Sony CRF-1","author":"Thomas","date":"April 11, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Mark Hirst, who shares the following: This eBay item grabbed my attention primarily for its price. I see that you blogged about one in June last year. Click here to view on eBay. Thank you Mark! \u00a0While the price is quite high at 1,100\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/04\/Sony-CRF-1-1024x768.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/04\/Sony-CRF-1-1024x768.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/04\/Sony-CRF-1-1024x768.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":53673,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2022\/08\/video-vintage-sony-japan-manufacturing-plants\/","url_meta":{"origin":44980,"position":5},"title":"Video: Vintage SONY Japan Manufacturing Plants","author":"Thomas","date":"August 14, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dave Zantow, who writes: [Check out this] YouTube video : Vintage SONY JAPAN Manufacturing Plants: TRINITRON TV, Video Recorder, late 1960-1970s https:\/\/youtu.be\/OIZ8pYL1B0M Click here to view on YouTube. This very interesting near 12 minute video shows Sony manufacturing plants. At 2:10 you will see\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Sony-CRF-180-Dial.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Sony-CRF-180-Dial.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Sony-CRF-180-Dial.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Sony-CRF-180-Dial.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44980","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=44980"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44980\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=44980"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=44980"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=44980"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}