Lafayette telstat 150 help needed. Handy andy, old tec

[Rwb]

I dug my first REAL cb out n remembered why it quit. I bought my new president grant ssb radios when the new 40 channel radios came out.
My lil brother wanted a radio in his car.he hooked it up wrong polarity,lost the box n papers n mic.
Anyhow things happen but id like it working.it did things id bet coulda got you in trouble way back when.
This radio has been in 48 states,mexico n canada a few times ridin in my red mack truck.
All help is needed to reserect my ol radio.
Seems like i got it at a discount for $175. And that was a lotta $$$ do re me back then

 

[nomadradio]

Wow, that's a stab from the past.

Seems to me we sold the 23-channel Cobra 29 for about that price in 1975

First thing I ask a customer who has a reverse-polarity problem is what size fuse was in line at the time. I'll get a puzzled look, and explain that the larger the fuse rating the more it will cost to fix.

If it had the recommended 2-Amp fuse, you should only need to replace the protection diode. We routinely use a 6-Amp rectifier diode as the replacement. Doesn't cost much more than the original 1-Amp diode, and it can't be damaged by reverse polarity so long as the fuse size is correct. The current needed to trip out a 2-Amp fuse always hammers the original 1-Amp diode so that it becomes a dead short. We wire the new protection diode directly across the power socket to minimize potential damage if someone uses a fuse that's too big before reversing the power supply polarity.

I would change the mike socket to the standard 4-pin socket found on nearly every CB sold since the mid-1980s, and wire it to match a Cobra/Galaxy radio. The original 4-pin plug with the pins in that "Y" pattern will be a tough one to track down. Any generic low-impedance dynamic mike should work with this radio.

Biggest question might be how many of the electrolytic capacitors you'll need to change. It has lots of them, and age is not kind to that type of part.

I don't think Klondike Mike has a capacitor kit for that model.

No diagram for it on CB Tricks, but the magazine ad he has posted is dated 1969.

Sams CB series for this model is volume 26.

73

 

[Rwb]

Wow, that's a stab from the past.

Seems to me we sold the 23-channel Cobra 29 for about that price in 1975

First thing I ask a customer who has a reverse-polarity problem is what size fuse was in line at the time. I'll get a puzzled look, and explain that the larger the fuse rating the more it will cost to fix.

If it had the recommended 2-Amp fuse, you should only need to replace the protection diode. We routinely use a 6-Amp rectifier diode as the replacement. Doesn't cost much more than the original 1-Amp diode, and it can't be damaged by reverse polarity so long as the fuse size is correct. The current needed to trip out a 2-Amp fuse always hammers the original 1-Amp diode so that it becomes a dead short. We wire the new protection diode directly across the power socket to minimize potential damage if someone uses a fuse that's too big before reversing the power supply polarity.

I would change the mike socket to the standard 4-pin socket found on nearly every CB sold since the mid-1980s, and wire it to match a Cobra/Galaxy radio. The original 4-pin plug with the pins in that "Y" pattern will be a tough one to track down. Any generic low-impedance dynamic mike should work with this radio.

Biggest question might be how many of the electrolytic capacitors you'll need to change. It has lots of them, and age is not kind to that type of part.

I don't think Klondike Mike has a capacitor kit for that model.

No diagram for it on CB Tricks, but the magazine ad he has posted is dated 1969.

Sams CB series for this model is volume 26.

73

i bought it in 73,might been a closeout,ihope my brother used the 3 amp fuse it was designed for.none in the holder so gonna be anybodys guess.
In its day it TALKED.i had an antenna specilist big maggie on the middle of the cab on that red mack,cant see it in photo but i made a mount n it was there many years till i traded that truck off.those as big maggies were great in their day too

 

[Rwb]

I also had a cheep antenna on another mount for the vhf,funny lots of state police ran same frequincys couple states apart.i had a list,id dial to the state i entered n monitered them,skipping back to ch 10 till we went channel 19 due to emergancy 9 bleedover. We were respectful and used judgement like that back then

 

[Hurricane145]

I'd try to find the matching mic connector before changing it. Check Ebay, ask in forums, etc before giving up. Hamfests usually have a lot of old connectors and even mics if there is one or two nearby and happening fairly soon.
From S9 magazine July 1969. Kind of a novelty radio! You could hear NOAA weather these days but probably not much more. There is still some police stuff in that range in some areas. Maybe smaller towns far away from larger cities.

 

[kopcicle]

https://www.kenselectronics.com/lists/micplug.htm
Try Ken for the mic connector.

Ken will talk to you , usually while doing three other things and occasionally while driving.
If he doesn't know usually no one else will.

 

[Rwb]

https://www.kenselectronics.com/lists/micplug.htm
Try Ken for the mic connector.

Ken will talk to you , usually while doing three other things and occasionally while driving.
If he doesn't know usually no one else will.

I was going to call him need new plug for my sears also.seen he has them.
Thank you kopcicle

 

[Chevboy0167]

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Lafayette-...464657?hash=item239ee1f851:g:7isAAOSw51Va2LGy

 

[Chevboy0167]

https://www.ebay.com/itm/LAFAYETTE-...074803?hash=item363fa5f533:g:bREAAOSwLSZb4jIN

 

[sunbulls]

You don’t need a mic plugged in to receive on that radio. It has old school relay switching. I would change the mic jack after you have the receive working. It’s a very simple conversion and definitely worth changing over to a Cobra 4 pin jack. There are only 3 wires involved on the back of that jack. The bottom two horizontal pins are tied together and are grounded. The center pin is audio and the top pin keys the relay for transmit.

 

[Rwb]

You don’t need a mic plugged in to receive on that radio. It has old school relay switching. I would change the mic jack after you have the receive working. It’s a very simple conversion and definitely worth changing over to a Cobra 4 pin jack. There are only 3 wires involved on the back of that jack. The bottom two horizontal pins are tied together and are grounded. The center pin is audio and the top pin keys the relay for transmit.
View attachment 26315

yes waking it up is first thing on the list

 

[Shadetree Mechanic]

I have one too. One of the local guys sold me an amp and before I got out the door he had ended up handing me an arm load of free stuff. I don't even know if it works. Mine might be a different version. It only has one so239 on the back.

 

[sunbulls]

I have one too. One of the local guys sold me an amp and before I got out the door he had ended up handing me an arm load of free stuff. I don't even know if it works. Mine might be a different version. It only has one so239 on the back.
View attachment 26320

The CB section between the Talsat 150 and your Talsat 50 is the same. The only difference between the two is the extra receiver on the150 covers from 147 to 175 Mhz. The Talsat 50 covers 30 -50 Mhz. The large gap between 27 Mhz and that high VHF range calls for a separate antenna for best receiver sensitivity, hence the other SO239 on the 150. Considering today’s little usage of the 30 - 50Mhz spectrum, the 150 is the preferred one of the two. With the 150 you have the option of tuning down into the 2 meter band with a little tweaking. Having a couple of weather frequency crystals installed is nice too. The 30 - 50 Mhz range was once popular for fire, but most fire stations have moved unto higher frequencies and modes.

 

[Rwb]

Yes a 50 is smaller internally but were very nice in their day.well built heavy radios.
I got to get started redoing mine. Its the second radio i owned but the 1 that worked the longest and never messed up.was working till my brother wired it wrong

 

[Rwb]

Got her to lite up,ran out of time, did get the us weather bureau n several beacons on vhf,no mic yet but she lives n breathes