Mark: I, too, have a 5100B and really like it. It fell into my arms at a ham garage sale down in southern New Mexico. The man who bought it new was selling everything and moving into an assisted living center with his wife. The rig had not had a screw turned on the chassis except for the addition of the 51SB-B. When he retired it, he covered it with a dust cover and kept it that way until 2000. He purchased it new in 1954 and had the matching LPA-1. LPS-1 and all manuals.
They were in such good condition, I could not pass them up and I got the whole package for a song. Not being too familiar with the rig I did not know what to expect either, but had worked on various Johnson, Collins, Heath and Globe transmitters, I was surprised, like you, at the construction throughout. As you pointed out, the modular construction is a real aid to repair and operation. In the Johnson line the weak point of the Viking series is the roller inductor that gets dirty and arcs. The Valiant series has the rear wafer of the band switch which can arc and ruin the wafer under high SWR conditions. Heath DX 100s and Apaches were good because of the large chassis with ample room to get to parts except for the audio section, and their use of small coupling caps in that section. The Apache was better laid out but does not out perform the B&W audio. I found the B&W had better components inside and the ability to remove the stages to repair them a real plus. There is one short coming of the B&W you should watch. The high voltage for the final compartment comes through the Jones plug from the chassis. If it should arc, it might ruin that part of the plug, necessitating a replacement if they can be found. Up until recently, Mouser had the 15 pin socket (which is what usually burned), and the plug, but it has been discontinued now. So if you find a chassis mount 15 pin socket and plug at a hamfest or somewhere, get it for your junk box, or do as others have done. Remove the HV from the Jones Plug and install a feed through adjacent to it for the HV. Stock the B&W beats Heath & Johnson audio. I took the liberty of replacing all electrolytics in mine because I, too, found a couple that leaked too much. The other thing about the 5100 is the mixer circuit. 5 - 6AQ5s, one for each band, so one should have replacements, if ever needed as they run them quite hot. I did not have to replace any resistors since they were all in tolerance and I get good audio reports with either a D-104 or EV 664. The rig does a very good job and should last for a long time. It is at the top of my favorites list. Have fun with it, it is one of the best 100 watt rigs ever made. 73 Jim de W5JO ----- Original Message ----- From: "Mark Foltarz" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > I just finished cleaning up the B&W 5100 I picked up > at the Butler meet last Summer. > > What strikes me the most about this radio is how well > it is designed and constructed. My only complaint > about the design is that the mode switch intereferes > with access to one of the audio input shield screws - > boo hoo. > > Other than that, this is by far the best built radio I > own in terms of construction, ease of servicing and > overall engineering. Better than my Collins, > Halicrafters, WRL, Drake, Eldico etc. The only thing > that comes close is my TMC gear or the T-368 - but > these were obviously not for the amateur market.
