HELPFUL HINTS

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LII, Issue 17158, 7 October 1926, Page 3

HELPFUL HINTS

j THE DIALS SHOULD RIJN TRUE [• A dial Ilia!' wobbles as it- rotates does not affect the working qualities of a radio receiver, but it certainly does 1 spoil its appearance. When you buy - dials .have the dealer spin them on the - shaft of a. condenser, and make sure • that they run true before you make 0 your purchase. It is often possible to 1 true-up a dial on a shaft by fitting a bit of paper or shim brass in the shaft 1 hole or by polishing the- shaft on ono side or the other with, emery paper. MAKE (IKOEND-LEAD SHORT. [ "Wherever possible, the ground-lead should he kept, us short as possible. Extended ground-leads not only broaden the tuning of a. set, but- they > add resistance to -the antennae circuit, i The. receiver should bo located as near i the ground connection as the arrange- . nient of lire furniture in a. room por- , mils. i ~ • CLEANING THE PANEL. . 1 Never use water for washing the panel or any part of ii radio receiver. If the panel gets dirty or 1 greasy dampen a. soli, cloth in alcohol, and rub if, lightly over the surface to be cleaned. This will remove the dirt and grease, "and upon drying it off with another clean cloth it will leave a beautiful smooth polish without in any way damaging the apparatus. The alcohol evaporates rapidly. TESTING LOOSE CONNECTIONS. If you have. a. loose connection in your set that makes a jarring or rattling sound in the headphones or loud speaker it would bo well to lift up the .lid and investigate each, wire to find out which one may bo loose. Use a small wooden rod , for moving the wires while you have a station tuned in. By pushing the wires with the rod slowly back and forth you will hear a loud sound when you move the ono that is loose. Then you can tighten it at the binding post, or solder it fast where it is loose. Never use a. metal screwdriver for this purpose, as you may short-circuit the *‘A” and “B” battery connections and blow out ail your tubes. Never fuss around the insides of any radio receiver with, a screwdriver when the batteries are connected. KEEP AWAY FROM POWER LINES When you install your aerial wires be careful that they do not run over or under any electric wires or cables that may be in the vicinity. Do not place them near any such wires, because the wires themselves may carry high-voltage currents, and if they fell on your aerial they anight conduct the high voltage currents down to your receiver while you were tuning in. This .might subject you to a severe shock. Keep your antennae away from such lines and prevent accidea Is. BE CAREFUL OF ’PHONE CORD. One drop of acid from the battery will ruin a ’phone or loud speaker cord. The acid eats its way into the fabric covering, and finally weakens the cord so that it, breaks af that, point-. It would not be so serious if it, ruined the ’phone cord al once, for ! a new cord does not cost .much. The ■ I rouble is that if usually causes si < ling and crackling noises and weak 1 signals for weeks before the source ' of (lie poor reception is discovered. 1 A USEFUL TABLE. 1 . The following fable will lie useful to ' all valve set owners whose memories ' are short. The power given is (lie output power, and in cases where (he in- ‘ pul power only is known, a rough estimate has been made:- ‘ Call Wavo- Power Time

1Y A V 1i ansmissions I»cin<4 at (!.];) ]i,m. mi Tuesdays anil l. ,l riflays, ami at' 7.1.1 011 every oilier evening, except Monday, when tbe station is not on tin' air. This '.station also broadcasts j, between ‘1 and 4.30 p.m. eaeli day.

Station. Sign. Length Watts. From Sydney . 2F0 442 noon 7.t'.O p.m. Sydney 2BL 5000 7.50 p.m. Melbourne :ilo 571 ."(too 7.50 p.m. Brisbane . 4Q( i :tS5 5ooo S p.m. Adelaide . . ::ri. 1500 0 p.m. A nr kin ml. . 1 YA 420 500 0.15 p.m:. Wellington 2Y K 205 40 7.5(1 p.m. Dunedin 4VA 5.so 200 7.50 p.m. Oil l ist fli Yli .TV A too 500 —