Does anyone have stock 56 ford car radio that works? Mine never worked right ,so I took it apart to fix it and now it doesnt work at all! I just wanted the old tube radio for the novelty of it.i really dont want to send it to someone to update it and add fm ...etc. I see them on ebay and they always say “ havent been tested”. for $50 or more and shipping I would have a non working radio like I already have. l would trade someone for a 55 ford radio that works great,I have 2 of those. I have a lot of yblock and 55,56 ford parts that I would be willing to trade.

Have U considered buying One of the new AM / FM  Radios that are a direct replacement? I don't know the Situation where You are but there is only One AM Station in my Area. Or leave the non-operating AM Radio for looks in Dashboard and put an AM/FM/CD player in the Glove Box. There are replacement Speakers with 2 Speakers in original type mounting Plate replacing original Mono Speaker.

  

Give me a day or two to look in my garage I have some ford radios that work but don't remember if there is a '56.

What was the extent of your repair effort? Vintage electronics always need capacitor replacement and general power supply rebuilding. Maybe a few resistors. Most people think "I think it needs a new tube", this isn't ordinarily the case at all. Usually a few dollars worth of parts and a few hours with a soldering iron will get you a reliable good sounding radio. "Radio works" by sellers is often code for "it makes moaning sounds and spews smoke when I turn it on." For good tone, volume, and station sensitivity it will need to be gone through, either by you, or someone else. It isn't realistic to expect a 60 or 70 year old radio to work at all, not for very long anyway.

I went searching for the guys I’ve used in the past, and they will no longer repair with old components. They and others just want to convert to modern stuff in the old case. Which isn’t a bad thing. Bob’s give quite a list of what he replaces, which is what Tedster mentions. Old radios weren’t always that reliable when they were new, reception varied, etc.

Here’s the link to Bob’s. Pricing is at the bottom, and by the time you're done you can probably have a more modern unit. I’ve not had good luck with Custom Autosound, but many seem happy with them.

http://www.bobsradio.com/

miker
55 bird, 32 cabrio F code
Kent, WA
Tucson, AZ

I see that the OP doesn't want to send it off for "updating", but there are folks who will repair or restore the original. I would argue the car radios were very reliable. Televisions are probably why vacuum tubes in general got a bad reputation. They ran very hot in TVs and pushed the tubes very hard, especially in color sets. Tubes are actually pretty rugged, they used vacuum tubes in artillery round proximity fuses at one time.

Gary Tayman (Playthings of the Past, I think?) down in Florida does updating, but I'm pretty sure he would re-cap a set no problem. He used to anyway. The thing with these vintage sets, it's not possible for a tech to give an accurate estimate or flat rate on cost over the phone generally. Maybe with the rise of cell phone cameras that's changed. They really need to see it in person. If it's missing parts ... not good. What they don't do either is "just fix what's wrong, don't do anything else".

They want to do a thorough, lasting job and not half-assing it, because it will just fail right away, and then the customer starts shit talking the repairman. Might be looking at a couple bills plus shipping both ways, for a simple AM radio. That's why people recap their sets at home. Once you start talking the complex high end "Wunderbar" sets with station auto-seek or fancy dial cords and the rest of it, can get pretty spendy.

One advantage to having a pro do it, is they will perform a radio alignment using a signal generator after replacing the capacitors and components and such, this peaks up all the IF and RF tuned circuits, which tend to drift over time. This maximizes the selectivity, volume, tone, sensitivity, and the stations will line up correctly on the dial. But if you're handy with a soldering iron can probably get it running real well.

Thanks for all the replys,I know that updating my radio would be the best choice but I just wanted it to work for the novelty of it. I have a real nice Am/Fm cd cassette player I bought at a rummage sale that I was going to install under the dash someday .my grand kids have never seen a tube radio. I had an 8track player in my 56 that I took out when I painted it,it worked great and I still have a big stack of tapes ! I know that dates me,but its fun to go back to the old days sometimes.

There is a guy up my way that does restorations on radios.  If your interested, let me know. and I will look him up.


54 Victoria 312;  48 Ford Conv 302, 56 Bird 312
Forever Ford
Midland Park, NJ

I have a 56 Ford basic radio as well as a 56 Ford Town and Country radio that I could repair for you or convert to AM/FM.  If your radio is in decent shape, it would be less expensive to work on yours.  Repairs start at $175.  Been doing this for over 40 years.  See my site:

https://classiccarradiodoctor.com/

Regards,

Bill A

Bill, what would a conversion of a 1956 Ford Fairlane original radio to AM/FM Stereo run? Thanks.