To Recap or Not

I found a nice old Pilot FM-only receiver some time ago at a garage sale. It was just before a rain and it was $5. Along with it was a Garard AII (A two) turntable for the same price. The tubes, all original, tested good, tho the outputs (EL84) were on the weak side. Problem is, I'm afraid to power it up. Should I recap it and is recapping something the average person should take on? Someone please advise...

Tubes last longer than caps.

IMO, caps are the most failure-prone components in vintage audio gear, by that matter it is common to replace all large electrolytic caps and also small paper capacitors which are very unreliable. soundt/eek4.gif

It's essential to replace the new ones of the same capacity and voltage rating, with a margin of error of roughly 20%. It’s recommended that you have at hand a copy of your radio's schematic diagram. The schematic will show you the location and value of every part in the radio, including capacitors. BTW, which is the Pilot model?

IMO,it makes no difference the caps quality you choose, because most of the time the circuitry in these vintage receivers is not sophisticated enough to respond to such caps’ subtle differences.
You can start step by step. The large electrolytic first, and later the small ones.
First, do not forget to unplug the receiver before doing anything. Electricity kills.

We at St have a nice collection of links in the DIY section; you can look for one about soldering: Video Solder Tips

http://www.sound-thinking.org/index.php?showtopic=583&st=30

Keep us posted.

"Failure-prone"? Yeah, I recall that some audio designer, in a Stereophile interview, flat out called them evil. Caps, I mean.

The model is 602MA.

Thanks for the tips!

As you might know English is not my first language....so, i really don't know if the use of that word - "failure-prone" - is the most correct...?! i remember read it somewhere and liked the sound of it and i think it means: " great percentage of failure". Am i correct?