National NC-183D (#2)
Welcome to the National NC-183D page. In last three years I have got two of these nice receivers but both share a common thing: they were bought in very bad condition.
All that back goo is some tar used to protect the power transformer. When it gets too hot, due to a filter capacitor failure or any other cause which increases secondary current, it leaks all around. And, trust me, it is really hard to get rid of that.
Eventually, I did it, and this is the result:
Not as shinny as I would like but lots better than when it was covered with tar!
Cabinet was polished and it became better than I expected. Of course, scratches could not be removed but, well, this gives the set some 'character':
Due to the power transformer damage, I left that project stopped for some time.
It was the first BA I saw there in about two years!. So I fastly grabbed it although preliminary inspection revealed it had also leaked some tar. Once at home, I found that tar was all around also underchassis. All wiring seemed black!
RF coils were also covered by a dust layer:
Outside, looking was not better than inside:
Are you sure there is an S-meter there?
Yes, some cleaning could get good results:
Using some cotton swabs and lots of patience, coils were revealed:
I found that power transformer was still fine, despite all the tar leak. All the tubes were checked in my TV-7C/U and most were fine. I replaced bad ones. Set was getting ready for a first power check :-)!
Now you could see the S-meter and dials!
First checkings were not too bad. Receiver was not completely deaf but it got out of oscillation easily. I need to work on it.
NC-183D (#1)
First unit had no tubes, was missing S-meter, some knobs and bottom cover, had some broken rear panel connections and, what was worst, a fried power transformer. These are some pictures of the unit as I got it:
NC-183D (#2)
I was really impressed when I found this unit in a local Sunday fleamarket. Appearance was far from good, though:
Needed parts
By now, this is the end of the story... I will add more information as I work more on the Nationals. Thanks for reading!
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