[NostalgiaRadioTime]

Sky, I tried your test tonight and connected a gator wire to the plate of the #36 tube (or pin 2). I was able to get several stations across the dial... though none of them local...and the squeal and motorboating mid-range on the dial disappeared as well. I clipped a second gator wire on and the length made no difference. I probably had 24 to 30" worth of wire. Now, holding the gator wire up in the air and moving it slowly would change the frequency. It was as if that wire was acting as a variable capacitor just by my moving it around! Interesting, the band switch did absolutely nothing going from broadcast to police... I got the same stations on police band too. What this all means or what it did I'd love to know

I rewound the primary of the RF coil with 32 gauge wire. Now I get .5 ohms across it. According to the schematic it should be 1.68 ohms. Wonder if that makes a major difference and how I could add more resistance if need be without rewinding?

Lastly, and this might be a good question for Ron, I have a model 89 parts chassis here I've been robbing the coils from that uses the #77 tube. The headache I'm working on uses the #36. I know the #77 tube makes the oscillator a bit more stable, but am wondering what the real advantage is to converting my #36 to a #77? Is it really worth it and what is all involved to make the conversion? Comparing the two tubes, the #36 is a 5 pin, and the #77 is a 6 pin, and it looks like the 6th pin is just an extra grid that is grounded.

Thanks for the help. It is MUCH appreciated. This is by far the most complicated radio I've ever tackled. I'm bound and determined to win the fight with it! LOL