[loosecannon]

thanks for the replies.

i wish i would have messed up the wiring to the bucking coil because that would have been an easy fix, but alas, i had it right the first time.

i started poking around the chassis, moving parts a bit to see what i could change, and i temporarily put a .01uF cap from the non-switched wire of the AC cord to chassis ground and the hum instantly cut almost in half.
still there but much better.

essentially, i added cap #32 back in to the circuit.

feeling hopeful, i added another .01uF cap from the other AC cord wire (at the switch) to the chassis, and it cut the hum down even more.

i really have no frame of reference as to what an acceptable amount of hum is in a 1937 radio, as im only 39 years old and have never heard one. LOL

all i can say is that the hum is there, but once you turn the volume up your ears can start to dismiss it when you are paying attention to what the radio announcer is saying.

i only have about a three foot piece of wire connected as an antenna right now, and it is obvious by touching the end of the wire that a better antenna would only help matters.

i will try attaching a wire to the chassis and then touching it to various parts of the radio that should be grounded and see if that helps.

still open to more ideas, but at this point i think the radio is listenable and thats the real point.
LC