Видео

You’re very welcome 😊 ! I would like to pinpoint the source of the crackling noise. Does it happen on only PLAY, on PLAY, FAST FORWARD, and REWIND? Does it happen with and without a tape? Does it happen when the radio function is being used? Does the volume control change the volume or frequency of the crackling noise?

@@Mr.BrownsBasement I’m disassembled now and noise coming from DC 3-phase motor. Noise like tractor working.

Check for a bad filter capacitor across the motor. My first guess is that motor noise may not be suppressed. Also, sometimes motor noise becomes audible when the batteries are low. Are you using fresh batteries?

Thank you for your kind comment. 😊

Thank you for commenting. I've read that Hyperion computers had a number of problem areas, with flaky disk floppy drives being near or at the top of the list. I'm wondering if you know anything about a weird video problem. The picture width is normal but is about ⅔ the correct height. The video is not readable and it looks like the linearity is way off. Brightness is way down too. It looked like the printed circuit board traces to the 4-pin video connector were not making contact with the connector because I could wiggle it and I would intermittently get a picture. I ran 4-bodge wires to the connector from the 74LS244 and that hasn't really helped. Does this sound familiar? Thanks…

You're right about the noise caused by some power supplies. Broadcast band (AM) radio reception becomes impossible. I haven't tested these power supplies to see how noisy they are. Yet.

Thank you for the suggestion. A thermal camera and a better solder sucker gun are both on my wish list. The last thermal camera I was looking at was about $400 USD. Sadly, it’s not on the shopping list for the near future. Until then I’m going to have to rely on more primitive methods (e.g., alcohol evaporation). But you’re 100% right, a thermal camera will identify a shorted component quickly every time.

@@Mr.BrownsBasement Leave the machine running for a while. Place your fingertip against the memory circuits. With a little luck you can diagnose which one it is (cold or hot compared to the others)

@RandomerFellow Fortunately, there were no shorts on this board. With a board of this vintage, I would be more concerned about a capacitor shorted rather than a chip shorted as dead tantalums are almost routine. At 1.25v, a shorted tantalum will dissipate a watt or more. If it isn’t turning brown or beginning to stink it will eventually pop and take itself out of the circuit. I want to get it before it pops or starts spitting.

@@Mr.BrownsBasement Not sure if you're aware but FLiR makes a smartphone connected camera. New, they go for about $200 but after a cursory ebay search I saw they were going for about $150. Still expensive but it might be more palatable.

Thank you for the information. No, I wasn’t aware of that. But I was hoping to get a premium quality infrared camera so it would be both the first and last camera I would have to buy. I wouldn’t mind a feature like HDMI out as it would make it easier when I making videos. At this point, I’m saving my pennies for a good camera but I’m not there yet.

Did I confuse my printed circuits, progressive conservatives, or politically correct president’s choice personal computers? These things happen.

Thanks for your comment love, @@Mr.BrownsBasement But no, @Mr.BrownsBasement , I mean that since you said "PCs and portable PCs," that didn't make sense, because portable PCs *ARE* PCs. It's like saying "PCs and PCs."

I guess I was trying to distinguish between the 1st IBM PC compatible,(MPC 1600, June 1982) and the 1st portable IBM PC compatible (Hyperion, January 1983). The first portable computer (not a IBM 5150 compatible) may have been the Epson HX20 (July 1982) which ran a proprietary operating system, had a built-in LCD display, thermal printer and microcassette drive, and wouldn’t crush you if you put it in your lap.

@@Mr.BrownsBasement: Then in a case like that, the word "other" is your friend.

While working on the next Hyperion video, the monitor developed a new fault. Now all my “best friend” words have only 4 letters.

I never noticed that before! I think the illusion is caused by the lighting colour in the room (2700K at the time) contrasting with the portrait monitor's white phosphor colour (probably >5000K). There were colour portrait monitors made for the Mac in the 1990s. Radius made one but Apple did not.

Thanks for the info on the switching power supply. Tantalum’s as squibs? 😂

You’re right. Butchered. But worth trying to repair anyway.

That’s very kind of you to lend your expertise. There is something strange about the sweep: The lines look too far apart. In the video (part 5) I had adjusted brightness and contrast for the best picture. Back to the vertical oscillator! I do have to measure the AGC though. There are no adjustments for it, so if it’s way off something else is going on. There are very few electrolytics in this set: I think there is only one which is not for supply rail decoupling. That one is in the Ratio Detector. All the potentiometers seem to be alright. The resistance elements are not open and there are no dead spots. But it is possible that I messed up a decimal point and installed the wrong size capacitor somewhere. It happens! That is something that I’m going to have to check very carefully. But I’m also going to go back and start looking at the capacitors I did not check, i.e., the mica capacitors. I think there’s more than one thing going on. I’ll report back to you once I’ve had a chance to do some tracing & measuring. Thanks again…!

I’m familiar with heater-cathode shorts but have never - at least not that I’m aware of- encountered a partially shorted heater. But your suggestion is a good one. I’m out of town at this moment but when I get back I’ll run the heater at 6.3v and watch the current. Hopefully, 0.6A ±10% as it should be. I’ll let you know what I find. If it is partially shorted then I suppose I could partially shunt it with a resistor to reduce the current through it though that would reduce the brightness too. A CRT issue like this would be a real bummer considering all the work done so far (see part 2, part 3, part 4 and part 5). If I had known it was going to be such a time & money pit I would probably have taken a pass on this set.

@@Mr.BrownsBasement its very common overehere (Europe)... i always encounter that fault on the aw 43-80 or aw 53-80 picture tubes (european) so i guess american/canadian tubes are built similarly. They usually work just fine if you power them with a separate transformer with a voltage of your choice while eyeballing the brightness of the glow. a 5v powerbrick should do the trick...of course the emission will be affected, its a matter of playing with the voltage until you get a satisfactory result.....i would choose a transformer and not a SMPS, because SMPS may introduce interference on the tv, it could leak to the cathode and mess up the picture.. resistor would also work but beware, if that tv is a series string set and the heater is shorted to itself , the tube will not glow at all during operation of the set because of the high current draw, in that case you MUST use a transformer or youll grow white hairs trying to play with resistors... if the set has a transformer for the filaments then its easy, because it always gets 6.3v regardless of the current draw, thats why they glow so bright when theyre shorted... (sorry for my poor English).. in this hobby money is not very important i think, its about the satisfaction we get when we complete a step so dont give up on the tv, it looks really cool, would love to have it on my collection and BW crts are very easy to adapt, i have a british tv with a broken 70º crt with magnetic focus, unobtainable and i retrofitted a 90º tube with electrostatic focus, you cant even tell...mechanical part was easy and wiring was easy too. But i wouldnt worry, i have some tvs with that problem and they work fine, of course i only plug them once in a while to watch a movie and thats it, theyre mostly display pieces

I just put the CRT on the bench power supply set to 6.3 V. After settling, the filament is pulling 0.51A. That’s a little bit low (15%) but not indicative of a partially shorted filament. At least I ducked that bullet!

Thanks. 😊 This set’s sucking the life out of me!

Thank you for your kind words. The tinted plastic "visor" clips into slots in the white case by the springiness of the visor. Plus, the left and right ends of the visor are shaped like hooks and want to stay captive in those slots. You must release the hooks by gently flexing the hooked ends and they will slip out of the slots. Be careful when cleaning; it's a soft plastic. If the plastic is scratched you will need a very fine plastic polish to restore it.

My apologies for the delayed response. For some reason RUclips flagged your comment as inappropriate. When I approved it, it disappeared from Google Studio. I watched your video. Please find my e-mail in the channel info or description. Shoot me an e-mail and I can send you photos from my Verbena.

Thank you so much for this information! My apologies for the delayed response. For some reason RUclips flagged your comment as inappropriate. When I approved it, it disappeared from Google Studio and I couldn't reply. Yes, I went to eBay thanks to your suggestion and I ordered 10 pieces.

It’s been a challenge … and 4 videos so far in this TV. I should be able to finish it off in one more video unless it reveals additional issues. Thanks for the kind words.

Thank you for the kind words. I can't wait to get a decent picture on it! Greetings from Ontario, CANADA!

@@Mr.BrownsBasement Liverpudlians have great respect for Canadians.

@WOFFY-qc9te I am humbled. 🙏🏾

In this case, I think the smoke was mine. 😤 My annoying neighbour can be very annoying. And I still don't have my Tube Tester back from the last video! 😤

This toy was my first experience with Andy Gard. I don’t think they had a big presence here in Canada. I hope you enjoyed the video!

@@Mr.BrownsBasement Andy Gard actually did have a pretty strong presence in Canada! However, they went by Carzal Canada instead. In fact, Andy Gard actually originated in Canada but when came over here, in the US of A, it became Andy Gard.

@captaincobratgaming718 Carzal sounds familiar!

@@Mr.BrownsBasement If your interested in anything about Andy Gard, I have a bunch of there toys and even some catalogs.

@captaincobratgaming718 I’m always interested in learning new things. Do you have a RUclips channel?

Thank you. Approximately where are you located?

@@Mr.BrownsBasement Colorado.

@DaveW-kb3nd Oh my, that’s a little far away!

I'm so glad you liked it! 😊

Thank you 🙏🏾 😊

Yes, people really do this. They are not satisfied with just making their radio or TV look authentic on the outside outside but it also must look authentic on the inside too. Some of them also assert that what they do is _restoration_ while everyone else only does _repair_. 🤷🏽‍♂️ There's no milage to be gained by arguing with them, but I think I made I made the point that stuffing capacitors is usually a waste of time. Of course, it's their time to waste…

A failed coil is possible but rare. A more likely failure is a marginal solder joint on one leg. Have you checked it for continuity? I don’t have the schematic with me (I’m out of town at this moment) but it’s odd that your collector voltage is less than the base voltage. I’d still suspect a bad transistor before an open coil. Let me know how it turns out.

Check the information in About This Channel.

Generally speaking, contact e-mail for RUclips creators is usually found in About This Channel. Some creators do not make this information available; I do. At least for now.

I did do some research on the set before buying it. I did quite a bit of research before making the videos. But would not consider myself an expert on the 3240. Is there anything important I missed?

Absolutely not, but I'm about to open one up and tinker around but a little apprehensive!

I.mean ro say that your video is very helpful to give me a sense of what I'm getting into.

@SquidLemon Best of luck but I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised how easy it will be. Essentially a regular cube-shaped chassis & CRT in a spherical package. Give yourself lots of work space and time. Use plenty of light so you can’t miss anything. Work with the easily scratched items on a soft pad. Don’t hesitate to reach out with questions. Once the TV is open, just be careful around the CRT’s neck (easy to break) and if the TV is/was recently on, beware of high voltage at the CRT’s final anode.

I forgot to mention earlier: some of the plastic pieces may be brittle; be gentle and take your time!

Yes, true. Thank you for the clarification. 😊

I have a queue of repair projects that will probably take years to complete. But just wondering, where are you located?

Gotcha. You def seem to know what to do ro get these working properly again. I am in New Hampshire

I think I’m a little too far. I’m in Ontario, Canada.

I’m so happy that you found my video helpful. Thank you for the kind words.

@@Mr.BrownsBasement i want to ask you something... what does the screw adj. by the tone arm pivot do.. i know the one closest to the cartridge adj'st the record land start point .. but the other one does what...?? Thanks in advance Prof Jeff..

On my RP-168, the adjustment by the tone arm pivot is the pickup arm height adjustment. I will quote from the manual: "Set the mechanism in cycle. Turn the turntable by hand, until the pickup arm has reached its maximum height. By means of a screwdriver turn the height adjustment stud until the distance between the top of the turntable and the sapphire point is ¾". Use that position of the eccentric stud which causes the pickup arm to rise during the clockwise adjustment of the stud." The adjustment screw next to the midpoint of the tonearm is the landing adjustment. It is also eccentric.

Please keep me posted with your progress! It’s very satisfying to make something work. Best of luck.

@@Mr.BrownsBasement It really is, and i started with old toys and now do pre 1970 arcade games!!!!!! and also toys still I cant pass one up if i see it doesnt work.......I am going to check out your other vids.

Thank you. I hope my videos are both helpful & entertaining. I already have so many things I want to do videos on. I could stop accumulating stuff now and still have enough computers, toys, TVs, radios and tape machines to repair for at least the next few years! Toys are a unique challenge because there are no diagrams, tear downs or manuals to help. In some cases there are RUclips videos, but more often than not there are no resources except Trial and Error.

@@Mr.BrownsBasement I wish I had the knowledge that you have on the schematic figuring and resistors and such on knowing what is what and what to use were etc., im trying to learn that part etc.

@markwhip9241 You will. It takes time.

Possibly. But we’ll never know. 😊

I’m very happy my video was helpful to you.

You should definitely plan to attend! The Evil Scientist and Kara (a recent immigrant from Sigma Draconis 6) are getting married at that party. He’s Morg, she’s iMorg. They share common interests. It’s a couple made for TV! I’m sure it will last at least a couple of seasons.

@@Mr.BrownsBasement My iMorg cousin married a Borg. It was a troubled marriage but, the wedding cake was awesome.

@123QuoFan I hear the guests did their best to assimilate the food. The dessert was something very special. Resistance was futile.

I don’t even know how many vintage televisions I own at this point. I’m going to venture a guess close to 20. I don’t recall the last time I watched more than 15 consecutive minutes of a program on any of them! However, I really enjoy the challenge of getting my hands into tube TVs and (hopefully) the thrill of success. Maybe this TV (#21?) will give me a reason to watch a whole 30-minute program with its huge 17”, expansive, panoramic screen.

I would enjoy getting my hands dirty much more in a 65-year-old tv than getting out a microscope and probing around in a modern HDTV. At least at this point. Ask me again in 20 or 30 years. I may be bored with tube TVs by then. I have the most interesting and varied neighbours!

It's possible your Anton Model 5 has a different transformer and doesn't need C8. C8 wold help smooth the sharp pulses from the feedback winding (Red/Green) before going to the base of the oscillator transistor. Given that they use a 1.4kV capacitor, that's a hint that the designers expected pulses from the winding to be big. If I were designing a simple 1-transistor oscillator, I'd probably put a cap there to protect the transistor. But if it works reliably and it doesn't look like someone pulled it, I guess you can leave it alone. If the PCB has holes for the capacitor you could tack one in place and see if it makes any difference, possibly making the oscillator run more smoothly. With respect to the capacitors, you're 100% right. You deserve a prize for noticing something that escaped mention by the other 2.4K viewers! Yes, at 22:58 it looks like I replaced 4 paper capacitors and 1 electrolytic. According to my written notes, I only replaced 3 papers capacitors. I am going to give you an honest "I don't know". Maybe the tooth fairy left another capacitor under my pillow? :) Seriously, I would have replaced all paper capacitors and electrolytics so there must have been one more. For sure there were 3 meter range capacitors (paper) and the electrolytic (across the meter). It's bothering me now- but I am out of Town right now so I can't grab the Model 5 to open it up.

⁠@@Mr.BrownsBasement Well don’t stress too much while your out. I did a little digging. Apparently my Anton 5 came with the upgraded capacitor across V4s collector and base, which I had somehow missed and wasn’t on the schematic. There was an errata sheet inside the owners manual I hadn’t been able to find. I’ve had this meter since I was a kid and never noticed the errata sheet. The only change was adding C8, changing R14 from 1M to 6.8M, and reversing T1 leads 2 & 3. I assume my unit was upgraded by the factory based on the ages of the errata sheet and the manual. Always helpful to have a new set of eyes! I have a hunch C6 (0.1 uF 100V) was the other capacitor you replaced…I counted a total of 5 in mine that looked like paper/electrolytic: 1 electrolytic (C5), 3 “GoodAll 623’s” (C3,C4,C6), and one unknown type (C2). Upon further research, sounds like these “Good Alls” are actually metallized film caps. Which I have a feeling are pretty durable. Don’t know if you’ve ever heard of them?

Changing R14 to 6.8M will increase the voltage across the G-M tube (probably increase sensitivity) and reduce load on the power supply. This would only be a problem if the Corotron wasn't working and the voltage exceeded the breakdown of the tube. My Anton has the 6.8M resistor already. You're probably right about C6 (0.1µF) being the last capacitor that I replaced. I will check as soon as I can, but I'm not sweating it! If your range capacitors are "Good All 623"'s they are likely to be Mylar (polyester) film which should be fine even after almost 60 years. If in doubt, sacrifice one by cutting it open. I've done this more than once with mystery capacitors. The caps to be suspicious of are "Micamold"; they're moulded but they're not Mica.

@@Mr.BrownsBasementAwesome thank you! In process of upgrading my meter now. One more quick question, R-9….the 3K resistor….in my actual manual it says it’s actually a thermistor (3K +/- 10%). You ever messed with that or have experience with it? I got replacement resistors for everything….but didn’t notice R9 was supposedly a thermistor.

@XJ290 Resistor R9 is indeed a thermistor to do temperature compensation, possibly for the transistors whose gain may vary by temperature. I honestly don’t know for sure because R9 isn’t physically close to anything in particular so it’s hard to say what it’s measuring the temperature of. I haven’t measured R9 to determine whether it is a negative temperature coefficient (NTC) or positive temperature coefficient (PTC) thermistor. At 3KΩ it wouldn’t make a huge difference across the meter because it’s in series with R8 (10KΩ). I don’t think I’d worry about replacing that device.

Recapping is inexpensive, easy and will improve the accuracy of the meter measurements. But more important is replacing the dead Corotron regulator tube. It will save your new probe from potentially being cooked. I’m so happy you got something out of watching my video!! 😊 thanks.

I don’t think so. The power cord would be the first thing to become worn and potentially dangerous. I always recommend that old power cords be replaced, which is what I did in the video. Inside there is a motor with a well-insulated field coil (stator). If that coil became shorted it would probably go open and that would be the end of it. If the rotor became jammed the coil would just get slightly warm. I believe they’re impedance protected so they can’t overheat. Clock motors like this are a simple, reliable, well-tested design. I suppose if it fell into a sink or bathtub it would be an electrical hazard… but that’s what GFCI (ground fault circuit interrupter) receptacles are for in your bathroom and probably in your kitchen too. What made you think they might be dangerous?

@@Mr.BrownsBasement What made me think that they could be potentially dangerous? Just age, perhaps some of the items that you discussed. There are a couple of clocks I'm always looking at on eBay such as a Seth Thomas Speed-Read. As you noted, a new electoral cord would be the first thing to change.

@kennixox262 Always inspect the electrical components for damage or deterioration. You can always add an over-current device (e.g., a fuse or a PTC thermistor) to the circuit if that makes you more comfortable. I always add a line fuse to the radios and TVs I repair as much more power is involved and they are much more electrically complex than a clock with much more that could go wrong. I am much more concerned about the short and long term safety of modern electrical gear that arrives at our borders without any 3rd party safety certification (e.g., UL, ETL, CSA). Some of it is extremely dangerous. You may want to watch @bigclivedotcom who buys electronics off eBay and takes it apart to show the design flaws. Some defects are just scary.

Is that a good “Oh dear” or a bad “Oh dear”?

To me black is negative and red is positive no matter whether it’s PMOS or NMOS. Whether the colour code was nefarious or not is debatable but I’m sure many chips were damaged by unwittingly connecting power in reverse.

​@@Mr.BrownsBasement No doubt. BTW if you want a little fun with your -55, see my article on RSKEY dawt aurg.

@ClausB252 Do you have a link?

@@Mr.BrownsBasement yes but YT won't let me post it. Go to that site and click The Library at left, then scroll down to Articles.

Oh. I’m sorry. I’ll check it out. Thanks.

Thank you, and I’m happy you enjoyed the video. I did the video a long time ago, but if I recall the lamps were special order from Mouser. If I were to do another one, I’d probably consider LEDs though there’s probably not enough voltage for warm-white ones or blue ones. The TTL chip could handle 5v so you could probably make it work. I didn’t want to stray too far from the original design, but of course you’re free to experiment and make improvements. Keep me posted on your progress!

@@Mr.BrownsBasement Thank you very much for the advice, I am learning electronics step by step, the obvious idea is not to damage it, I have two Simons, one seems to be one of the first with the Texas CPU and the other is already a more simplified version, I think it is a little more modern but not as much as the reissues. I loved the video because of the didactics and the explanation of the diodes, I would have thought that a single diode would be enough, I didn't know that effect on the batteries.Greetings from Argentina

@nopochoclos thanks again. Greetings from Ontario, Canada.

So glad you enjoyed it! 😊

The ring on the Geiger tube does rotate, exposing the tube. Is this to detect alpha particles that wouldn’t penetrate the metal shield?

Thank you for your kind words. You haven’t said where you are located. In Canada, generally speaking these receivers tend to command higher prices than the prices I’ve seen for similar units in the United States. I’m sure the prices there also vary by location, and local supply and demand. If I recall, I paid about $100 for mine. As you saw it didn’t need much work or materials, but be aware that you’re buying a piece of 45 year-old equipment which may develop problems or require recapping, new bulbs, etc. I would tell you that if you’re in the Greater Toronto Area, $100 seems fair. Yes, you might be able to find a comparable receiver at a garage sale for less but that would be pure luck. I just checked on Facebook marketplace and at this moment, there are two of these units for sale within 60km and the (asking) prices are $400 and $500 which I think is outrageous. The STA-78 a good-sounding decently powered receiver, and it is from the golden era of analog receivers. I would seriously consider it for $100 if you’re permitted to thoroughly test it first.

LOL. I had been stubbornly relying on my spirit level and T-square when measuring and cutting. There’s no point using these tools when the builder didn’t. I think he and his workers were more than mildly inebriated for much of the construction!

For a man who owns more vintage televisions than I can count, I also don’t watch much TV. I get much of my entertainment from RUclips or on DVD’s. In terms of TV servicing I sometimes watch Shango66 but I prefer (and would recommend) bandersentv as he is extraordinarily knowledgeable and has access to TV’s that are very rarely seen in Canada. I still have my vinyl but I must confess I don’t listen to them as much as I used to, often giving in to the convenience of digital electronics. But when I do, I don’t hear the scratches and hiss as “sonic imperfections” rather they are part of the analogue experience.

Thank you for the compliment and suggestions. I may try a warmer white lamp in the bathroom but I have to see how I feel about the 4000K for a while. All my bedrooms are 2700K and I like the warmth. Where you would suggest the grommets? I like your idea about frosting the glass. I've never done that and may give it a try. My house was built in 1864 and was originally built without bathrooms but 4 rooms in the attic (garret) for servant's quarters. Those rooms are now "galleries". If you're interested, I did two videos on one of them ("Renovation of my West Attic").

@@Mr.BrownsBasement Warm white is more comfortable the colour from Gas mantles is a higher temperature but has a nice blue/green component not match is modern lamps. I am in the UK and we stuffed the servants in the basement and the kids in the Attic nursery, there are 48 stairs between the two !. My house has only had 3 owners and is very much as was built, the Butlers pantry is still as was with call bells and huge dresser but full of detritus from items saved from destruction over the years. I will sort through it some day, the fitting you have is the style used in a porch and in some cases made of bronze. It looks more Arts and Craft than Victorian. My Lounge light originally had Gas mantles and was suspended on a counterbalance so the height could be adjusted, it had 6 jets !. It is of course converted to Electric but before LED it consumed 360 Watts but now 36 so my Electricity bill is much reduced. The house originally had 53 gas jets then mantles. I will take a nose at your other video. Best wishes from the UK

@@WOFFY-qc9te The history of old houses is fascinating and you are indeed lucky to live in one. My family is the 2nd owner of this house after the builder's with my grandparents buying it in about 1926. They threw away nothing, so I have spent literally the past 25+ years sifting through the interesting and unusual furniture, furnishings and ephemera but also stuff at the other end of the spectrum. And like your house, there are lots and lots and lots of stairs from the attic (garret) to the basement (cellar). It's a good workout going up & down. I hope you enjoy the videos. Best wishes from South / Southwestern Ontario, CANADA.

@@Mr.BrownsBasement Good afternoon, what a nice description of your home, I / we are indeed fortunate to have a roof over our heads and even more blessed that they are homes with soul. I have lived here for nearly forty years at first as a tenant of a run down house and now the owner of house and land. I took it on myself to keep ahead of natures influences as the owner Peter was getting on and had no family or interest in the house just enjoying retirement with his wife, a decent chap and sadly missed. Pete left part of the house to me and I bought the remainder from the estate after many years of unnecessary games to get me out. I just didn't want to think about sorting and moving all my stuff and the house deserved a future. The basement was abandoned in WWII and was used as a workshop and a place where Pete's Father would make films. There are still DIY studio bits a pieces and Celluloid film cans ! ???? and a Morison shelter which was a kit of quart inch steel angles and plate big enough to squeeze four people in for a short time during bombing, Pete's dad used it for a work bench and it still has a belt driven lathe in place. The first casualty of the war was just up the road from me as my house was on the west to east bomb track for Cammell Laird shipbuilders Birkenhead or Liverpool docks over the river Mersey, the Luftwaffe occasionally got there maths wrong and would drop a 'stick' of bombs early especially if under attack from the 'Duck pond' gun battery up the road from me. The house opposite and the church were casualties, my roof was lifted and landed two inches out of place, now I have replaced the wooden roof plates so now sits squarely on the walls. Amazingly the original sash window glass is in place, the bedroom window is plate glass and so large that the sash has steel ropes. The walls are locally fired clay brick from the quarry that became the duck pond and has lime mortar the well fired bricks used for outside walls the weaker ones inside and for the foundations the plaster is two inches thick and now mostly back contact with the brick ?. The house has thirteen fire places not all used but most still in place, must have been a big job keeping those as the coal bunker is huge. The servants lived in the basement and the kids in the attic this house was built just when live in servants were declining but they still kept up the 'stuffy' Victorian attitudes even though they were no longer wealthy. You say your in Canada, the weather there is too say the least robust, I expect your house is brick with timber partitions and casements probably 'central air' heating (I have yet to explore your channel so behind the ball). Mine is no part hydronic but I use dehumidifiers to keep the lime plaster from drawing in moisture. The house is comfortably ventilated ha ha but dry and more healthy that the modern stock which is stuffy. Some house like mine are now double glazed with PVC, this is the worst thing you can do to a Victorian house, wood is best as for the gaps in the sash windows they get a roll of toilet paper in November. I have many photographs of things fixed and problems to be sorted, as I no longer have any family google sends me daily reminders of my companions Banjo, Cooper and Indi (English Pointers) with the occasional photograph of broken tile, leaks or damaged plaster etc etc etc ........ Back to your light fitting which you 'resurrected' without destroying its age I wish more restorers made use of wax instead of lacquer. I rebuilt the porch a few years ago, the sandstone lintels had failed and the six columns ten foot by eighteen inches with Doric/Greek Ionic capitals ! (translated from metric for you) had moved so the whole shows was succumbing to gravity. All was dismantled and rebuilt with the columns now supporting timber lintels with a slate roof and plastered ceiling. To top it of I made up a lamp fitting from scraps of bronze and and old Arts and Crafts fitting, after many adjustments to the chains I am happy with the job. One link can be too little or too much. I hope you and your commenters find this interesting, you and I know that homes like ours are full of little clues to past and I think we both feel a duty to keep things true and honest as we are just custodians of a house. Very best wishes to Canada, Liverpool have a special understanding and gratitude to the courage of those no longer here. For further information on the Battle of the Atlantic have a look at Western Approaches on You Tube. A friend of mine repainted the large convoy map.

Your house sounds spectacular and is probably much larger than mine. I am very grateful that my grandparents’ house and much of its contents stayed in the family and ultimately to me as her custodian. It was not without disasters though. In 1996 the furnace failed or the radiators couldn’t keep up with the frigid winter temperatures. The pipes froze and caused many tens of thousands of dollars’ worth of damage. The house was one step from demolition. I’m relieved we didn’t go that route. That was the end of the oil furnace and radiators, as they had all split. The scope of the damage was heart-breaking, and to add insult to injury, it was not a loss that could be covered by insurance. All that damage has since been repaired and I have gas/forced air heating now. The house is double brick construction. The brick was made locally. There were never any fireplaces. The house was originally heated by various wood-burning stoves connected to the 3 chimneys. The interior partitions are all 2x4’s or larger, and really are 2” x 4”, not the spindly 1.5” x 3.5”’s that are called “2x4’s”today. The front porch had ornate columns but they were rotted beyond repair and have been replaced by simple fluted columns. The roof was originally cedar shakes but is now asphalt. I don’t think it was designed to support slate. While my father was growing up, the cellar had an earth floor that routinely flooded. Now I have concrete floor (and sump pumps with a dehumidifier) which keep it dry and clean. I do appreciate you taking the time & care to share details of something so special to you and the steps you have taken to keep it presentable and preserved for the future.

Thanks. But I think there is an unhealthy relationship between some of the bulbs stored in the basement.