• LIttle cheap readido is dead. Thermal fuse?

    From micky@3:633/10 to All on Thursday, March 12, 2026 01:00:56
    I have a cheap little radio that runs on AC or batteries, a Jensen
    MR-550, fwiw. The voltage coming out of the power transformer is zero.
    Between the prongs on the AC plug it has 580 ohms. It also says it has
    a "thermal fuse fitted D 125 0" (I think the last digit is a zero.) But
    I haven't foudn the fuse yet. Would the fuse be in the secondary
    circuit? I thought it would be in the primary but there is ocntinuity
    there, 580 ohms. My friend says it wroked fine for the first 2 months
    and then went dead.


    --- PyGate Linux v1.5.12
    * Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)
  • From legg@3:633/10 to All on Thursday, March 12, 2026 09:24:59
    On Thu, 12 Mar 2026 01:00:56 -0400, micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com>
    wrote:

    I have a cheap little radio that runs on AC or batteries, a Jensen
    MR-550, fwiw. The voltage coming out of the power transformer is zero. >Between the prongs on the AC plug it has 580 ohms. It also says it has
    a "thermal fuse fitted D 125 0" (I think the last digit is a zero.) But
    I haven't foudn the fuse yet. Would the fuse be in the secondary
    circuit? I thought it would be in the primary but there is ocntinuity
    there, 580 ohms. My friend says it wroked fine for the first 2 months
    and then went dead.

    You can measure the impedance of the transformer output, but thermal
    fuses are normally placed in the primary.

    Check for dry solder joints on the transformer pins.

    RL

    --- PyGate Linux v1.5.12
    * Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)
  • From micky@3:633/10 to All on Friday, March 13, 2026 22:44:36
    In sci.electronics.repair, on Thu, 12 Mar 2026 09:24:59 -0400, legg <legg@nospam.magma.ca> wrote:

    On Thu, 12 Mar 2026 01:00:56 -0400, micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com>
    wrote:

    I have a cheap little radio that runs on AC or batteries, a Jensen
    MR-550, fwiw. The voltage coming out of the power transformer is zero. >>Between the prongs on the AC plug it has 580 ohms. It also says it has
    a "thermal fuse fitted D 125 0" (I think the last digit is a zero.) But
    I haven't foudn the fuse yet. Would the fuse be in the secondary
    circuit? I thought it would be in the primary but there is ocntinuity >>there, 580 ohms. My friend says it wroked fine for the first 2 months
    and then went dead.

    I'm making progress.

    You can measure the impedance of the transformer output,

    It is infinite.

    but thermal
    fuses are normally placed in the primary.

    That's what I thought.

    Check for dry solder joints on the transformer pins.

    No pins. Primary wires connected to line cord and covered with
    heatshink tubing. 580 ohma between them.
    Secondary wire straight to little circuit board, which has diodes on it.
    I took out the transformer and I don't see where the fuse would be.
    Maybe next to the windings.

    It also runs on 4 C-batteries. My friend says that doesn't work either,
    but things don't usually break in two ways at once, especially a Jensen
    radio, even if cheap. Maybe one of his batteries was dead. If the 4 batteries put out 6v DC, what should the AC output voltage of the
    transformer be to get 6 volts for the radio?

    Or I could assume it's the fuse, take the current one apart, find the
    fuse, bypass it, on the theory that the fuse should have been in the
    primary anyhow. ??????

    RL

    --- PyGate Linux v1.5.13
    * Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)
  • From micky@3:633/10 to All on Friday, March 13, 2026 23:10:07
    In sci.electronics.repair, on Fri, 13 Mar 2026 22:44:36 -0400, micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com> wrote:

    In sci.electronics.repair, on Thu, 12 Mar 2026 09:24:59 -0400, legg ><legg@nospam.magma.ca> wrote:

    On Thu, 12 Mar 2026 01:00:56 -0400, micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com>
    wrote:

    I have a cheap little radio that runs on AC or batteries, a Jensen >>>MR-550, fwiw. The voltage coming out of the power transformer is zero. >>>Between the prongs on the AC plug it has 580 ohms. It also says it has
    a "thermal fuse fitted D 125 0" (I think the last digit is a zero.) But >>>I haven't foudn the fuse yet. Would the fuse be in the secondary >>>circuit? I thought it would be in the primary but there is ocntinuity >>>there, 580 ohms. My friend says it wroked fine for the first 2 months >>>and then went dead.

    I'm making progress.

    You can measure the impedance of the transformer output,

    It is infinite.

    but thermal
    fuses are normally placed in the primary.

    That's what I thought.

    Check for dry solder joints on the transformer pins.

    No pins. Primary wires connected to line cord and covered with
    heatshink tubing. 580 ohma between them.
    Secondary wire straight to little circuit board, which has diodes on it.
    I took out the transformer and I don't see where the fuse would be.
    Maybe next to the windings.

    It also runs on 4 C-batteries. My friend says that doesn't work either,

    And when I tried it with a universal charger, set to 6v, it didn't work,
    nor with the polarity reversed. Not a peep out of it on AM or FM across
    the whole dial.

    Oops. should I have tried 7.5 and 9 volts too?

    but things don't usually break in two ways at once, especially a Jensen >radio, even if cheap. Maybe one of his batteries was dead. If the 4 >batteries put out 6v DC, what should the AC output voltage of the
    transformer be to get 6 volts for the radio?

    Or I could assume it's the fuse, take the current one apart, find the
    fuse, bypass it, on the theory that the fuse should have been in the
    primary anyhow. ??????

    RL

    --- PyGate Linux v1.5.13
    * Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)
  • From legg@3:633/10 to All on Saturday, March 14, 2026 08:59:04
    On Fri, 13 Mar 2026 23:10:07 -0400, micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com>
    wrote:

    In sci.electronics.repair, on Fri, 13 Mar 2026 22:44:36 -0400, micky ><NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com> wrote:

    In sci.electronics.repair, on Thu, 12 Mar 2026 09:24:59 -0400, legg >><legg@nospam.magma.ca> wrote:

    On Thu, 12 Mar 2026 01:00:56 -0400, micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com>
    wrote:

    I have a cheap little radio that runs on AC or batteries, a Jensen >>>>MR-550, fwiw. The voltage coming out of the power transformer is zero. >>>>Between the prongs on the AC plug it has 580 ohms. It also says it has >>>>a "thermal fuse fitted D 125 0" (I think the last digit is a zero.) But >>>>I haven't foudn the fuse yet. Would the fuse be in the secondary >>>>circuit? I thought it would be in the primary but there is ocntinuity >>>>there, 580 ohms. My friend says it wroked fine for the first 2 months >>>>and then went dead.

    I'm making progress.

    You can measure the impedance of the transformer output,

    It is infinite.

    but thermal
    fuses are normally placed in the primary.

    That's what I thought.

    Check for dry solder joints on the transformer pins.

    No pins. Primary wires connected to line cord and covered with
    heatshink tubing. 580 ohma between them.
    Secondary wire straight to little circuit board, which has diodes on it.
    I took out the transformer and I don't see where the fuse would be.
    Maybe next to the windings.

    It also runs on 4 C-batteries. My friend says that doesn't work either,

    And when I tried it with a universal charger, set to 6v, it didn't work,
    nor with the polarity reversed. Not a peep out of it on AM or FM across
    the whole dial.

    Oops. should I have tried 7.5 and 9 volts too?

    but things don't usually break in two ways at once, especially a Jensen >>radio, even if cheap. Maybe one of his batteries was dead. If the 4 >>batteries put out 6v DC, what should the AC output voltage of the >>transformer be to get 6 volts for the radio?

    Or I could assume it's the fuse, take the current one apart, find the
    fuse, bypass it, on the theory that the fuse should have been in the >>primary anyhow. ??????


    Getting it to work with batteries would be step one.

    Check the on/off switch. Trace battery voltages.

    RL

    --- PyGate Linux v1.5.13
    * Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)
  • From legg@3:633/10 to All on Saturday, March 14, 2026 10:03:17
    On Fri, 13 Mar 2026 23:10:07 -0400, micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com>
    wrote:


    check also the battery/mains switch, or whatever is present to
    switch between the two,if only an orring diode.

    Check speaker contacts . . .you won't get any noise out
    of it (turn-on click or background static) if it's
    disconnected.

    RL

    --- PyGate Linux v1.5.13
    * Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)