Wurlitzer Update #2: Amplifier and Speaker Rebuild

As readers will remember from the last post on my restoration project of a 1937 Wurlitzer jukebox, I had performed a smoke test on the big, rusting amplifier. Happy as I was that it didn't burst into flames, I decided that if I was going to resurrect such a mighty phoenix I might as well do it right. To that effect I stripped and repainted both the amp and the speaker, and then sent them out to some experts to be rebuilt. In the case of the amp that meant removing all of the old capacitors and soldering in new ones. Old capacitors can fail, smoke, melt, and sometimes explode so this was money well-spent. Luckily the transformers and tubes were all good. The speaker needed a new cone and wires, and the finished product looks great. Given that these two parts are the heart of the old jukebox I know that having them properly rebuilt will make it all the better when the old crate sings the old tunes again.

Currently I'm working on getting the cabinet restored, which so far involves a lot of glue and clamps. Once the outside is done I can start putting things back inside and getting all those gears and parts to start moving and meshing again.

Curb Find #33 - Cast Iron

There's this house down the street that always puts a couple old things out on trash night. I think the house was packed with junk when they bought it and they are emptying it out piecemeal. I pass it on the way to work and sometimes the junk catches my eye and I pull over to inspect it. I got the mid-century arm chair there, as well as a couple of other little things. Last week there was an old cast iron dutch oven. Having picked up a few cast iron pieces before I knew how to clean and season them, and although this one was very far gone, I saw hope gleaming off it's rust-coated shell.

Recently I got my old air compressor working, and finally got around to blasting some rusted parts on the Wurlitzer. This was the most rusted thing I tried blasting to date, but when I was done I could see (through sand-filled eyes) that it was worth the effort. Now that the sand was removed, it was time to season it. Seasoning is what gives cast iron cook wear its black color and non-stick properties. Seeing as how they are finding more and more Teflon inside people these days, you might want to consider switching to some cast iron pans. If you do, be sure to season them if they aren't already, and use the proper cleaning method. To season your cast iron, clean it well, coat it in oil and bake for an hour at 300 degrees. To clean cast iron, wash with soap and water (no dishwasher), dry, then coat the cooking surface lightly with oil and put on the burner for a few minutes, then wipe the excess. This might seem like a lot of extra work, but when you're eating pancakes and sausage off your cast iron griddle, or a burger off a well-seasoned frying pan, its worth it!

History Detectives Eat Your Heart Out

The other night while out on a family drive in a neighborhood slightly more upscale than our own humble street, we came upon a little pile of discarded things in front of a house. Our antique-loving eyes immediately honed in on the big old oak picture frame. We stopped the car and brought the treasure home.

It's a very nice antique oak frame, and although the picture it contained wasn't to our taste we decided to find out a little about it. After all, The old trash pictures we see people find on Antiques Roadshow are often valuable, and make me wish I studied art history. Upon removing the back we found a few pages of an old newspaper used as backing for the picture. The picture (a colonial scene of people drinking coffee) turned out to be an old advertisement for chocolate that someone had cut and fit into the frame...a sure sign of Yankee frugality. The newspaper, however, provided much entertainment. The pages are from the June 9, 1884 Whig and Courier from Bangor, Maine. The paper isn't in business anymore, perhaps because they kept throwing their weight behind the wrong presidential candidate. The lead story promotes James G. Blaine as the "next President of the United States." (Grover Cleveland would beat Blaine in the 1884 election, becoming the first democrat elected to the Presidency in 28 years.) There is also an interesting article, I'm not sure if it's a society article or a sports article, but it details a sculling (rowing) match between two gentlemen (or dandies, I'm not sure). Apparently one of the racers didn't show and there was a big hullabaloo. I won't spoil the story for you but will run it in its entirety in a later post.

But the real fun is in the advertisements. The majority of them are for medicinal items, although I have to wonder at the actual medicinal value of any of them. In fact, if you added the phrase "ask your doctor about..." to them and then a list of possible side effects most of the ads would be very familiar to most of the drug commercials that plague us today. Johnson's Anodyne Liniment, for example, promises to cure "influenza, bleeding at the lungs, hoarseness, hacking, cough, whooping cough, chronic diarrhea, cholera morbus, kidney troubles, and diseases of the spine." And that's with internal AND external application! Gray's Specific Medicine isn't very specific, as it promises an "unfailing cure for scminial weakness, impotency, and all diseases, as loss of memory, universal lassitude, pain in the back, dimness of vision, premature old age, and many other diseases that lead to insanity or consumption."

By the way, if you're looking for a good smoke you can get six havana cheroots for 25-cents at Tea White's. Also, if anyone wants to buy a used steamboat, lookup Dr. A. Walton, Bangor, ME.

Pictures from Aruba

Our Aruba vacation and first big trip with Keiran continued this morning with some fun in the surf. My new old camera and marine case worked perfectly at the beach across the street from the rental house. Keiran put on his new little speedo and took to the water like it was a great big bathtub. I added pictures to the CraterRanch gallery, and will post more as the trip continues.

-K

Aruba Arrival

After weeks of dreading plane travel with a baby, I have to say that our two flights down to Aruba have confirmed what Heidi and I already knew: that Keiran is the best baby ever. Not only did he sleep for most of the flights, but when he was awake he was happy and charming the pants off of everyone who walked down the aisle. He didn't cry once from the time we left the house (5:00 am) to the time we got to the rental over twelve hours later. Heidi and I were very proud, and it made for a nice first Mother's Day surprise.

So, here we are in Aruba, at a very comfortable house right in front of the ocean. The weather is warm, but nothing a dip in the clear blue water can't fix. Keiran is wearing his new sun hat, and we look forward to playing with him in the water.

Radio Rises from the Dead

It's hard enough to keep myself from bringing home old furniture, tools, radios, etc. when those things are for sale, but put an antique radio out with your trash and it will inevitably wind up in our basement. Sure, if it's been stripped down to bare wood and had its parts thrown in several bags it might take me several drive-bys before I decide. But oh yeah, it's mine.

Such was the case with this Silvertone console radio, model 7046. I had just brought home the Wurlitzer, a project that is still on the to-do list, when I saw this around the corner. I could see from the car that it had been someone else's work in-progress, but they must of got fed up with it sitting in their basement, mocking them with blaring incompleteness. Lucky for me that person did a passable job removing the old finish, and carefully put all the little bits in a plastic bag. If I hadn't seen those little knobs and screws I might have left the old thing for the trashman. Still, with little Keiran around it took me until recently to get to this project. He's reached the point where he only requires 94% of my attention, instead of the full 100, so for about 30-minutes a night I was able to glue, apply wood-fill and some little pieces of veneer, and refinish the cabinet. Some smoking and sputtering capacitors were replaced with brand new ones , and the speaker and grill cloth (the only missing parts) were replaced. All-in-all it came together nicely, and served as good practice for the Wurlitzer, too. Click here for more before and after pictures.

I sold the radio this week. It feels good to have one less project going on, and now I'm re-energized to start back on the jukebox.

Tool Cache

A new acquisition to the basement workshop came last week in the form of two vintage Craftsman toolboxes and their contents. The little one has an antique set of sockets and two sets of speed wrenches. The big box is called a top box, and was meant to go on the top of a rolling tool chest. It's got a flip-up front and pull out drawers on the inside. This must have weighed about fifty pounds with all of the old tools in it, but for 20-bucks you can't go wrong.

Almost all of the tools are rusty, apparently from sitting in a damp garage for so long. But I discovered an old trick: soaking them overnight in vinegar. It eats at the rust and makes it easy to clean off with a wire brush. A little coat of oil and they stay rust-free. Check out the clean half of the tin snips in the picture compared to the rusty handles.

The boxes are another story. Those can be used as-is, but I think when the weather is nice I'll sandblast them and give them a fresh coat of paint. Look for updates on those and the clean pile of tools in the future.

Editor to Ride Pan-Mass Challenge!

Crater Ranch Editor in Chief Keith Ferguson yesterday registered to ride the Pan-Mass Challenge, that huge annual Massachusetts bicycle event that raises money for cancer research and treatment.

Each year, thousands of riders embark on a two-day ride from Sturbridge to Provincetown. The 190-mile ride is grueling to say the least, but not as grueling as raising the $4,200 donation minimum for the ride. This big wall of money has been the main reason I haven't done this ride before. This year, however, a work colleague that used to ride the PMC each year passed away from an illness, and some other folks have formed a team in his honor. With this added support, I decided this was the year to go for it. Plus, it will get me back out on the bike, which I didn't do seriously this past year, and help support a good cause.

I will post updates on my training and preparation as time goes on, but in the meantime please help get me started with a donation to the cause. The ride isn't until August, but why wait? Click here to donate via credit card. $4,200 is a lot of money, but it's for a good cause and with everyone's support I think I can get that much and more. Give till it hurts! Trust me, you won't be in as much pain as I'll feel after the first few rides on the stationary trainer.

Study Confirms: Baby Makes Three

Crater Ranch scientists, after an exhausting four month study, have confirmed the long-held belief that two parents, plus baby, makes three. The tally was complicated by the constant demand for play, naps, bottles, and drool cleanup. And then there were the baby's needs. Although the four months of late-night feedings, crying fits, and diaper containment breaches took their toll, the two parents also acknowledged that, "It could have been worse."

Keiran Frederick Ferguson is generally, and so far, a very happy, satisfied baby. He doesn't have extended crying fits, at least nothing that a bottle, a funny face, or a bounce on the yoga ball can't remedy. He smiles very easily, especially for his parents, and he eats extremely well. He has even started to grab and hold the bottle himself, although nipple placement still needs improvement (babies have trouble discerning mouths from eyes, nostrils, etc.). At the time of this report the baby's first teeth were coming in, and was soon to begin small amounts of solid food (if wet, soggy rice cereal can be considered solid).

Some of his favorite things so far include going outside in the stroller, playing with the stuffed polar bear, kicking, and shoving both hands into his mouth.