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Hi all, I've been clearing out an Grand-parents house and came across an old box which turned out to be a portable gramophone. I never knew such things existed. So upon opening I saw it was in pretty bad shape and after a bit of googling I found this place. I'm really wanting to get my Grandads old machine working again (if its possible) so here's some photos.
http://i43.tinypic.com/acbm95.jpg
http://i39.tinypic.com/2v36g68.jpg
http://i44.tinypic.com/wb30g0.jpg
http://i43.tinypic.com/2lky1vr.jpg
http://i44.tinypic.com/kxk0p.jpg
The arm is obviously a wreck, but I have no idea where to start on it. The table turns and the brake do it's job other than that I'm stumped.
A Broken Columbia
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Phono48
- Victor IV
- Posts: 1314
- Joined: Sun May 27, 2012 2:38 pm
- Location: United Kingdom
Re: A Broken Columbia
Your gramophone is a Columbia 201, and is suffering from a problem very common in this model, and also in it's big brother, the 202. The piece that's broken is made of pot metal, which, over the years, disintegrates and breaks up. It probably can be repaired, (I've done quite a few) but before going into a very lengthy explanation, can you post a picture of the remaining bits, please? There should be, apart from the arm and sounbox (which holds the needle),a steel tube that sits inside the part you photographed, and a quantity of ball bearings, offhand, I think, about fourteen. With luck,the tube and the ball bearings may still be attached to the rest of the arm.
Barry
Barry
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Mr Burns
- Victor Jr
- Posts: 2
- Joined: Wed Jul 10, 2013 12:18 pm
Re: A Broken Columbia
Thanks for your reply!
The steel tube is still with the arm as are the ball bearing, I'll post a picture when I am home this evening.
The steel tube is still with the arm as are the ball bearing, I'll post a picture when I am home this evening.
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Phono48
- Victor IV
- Posts: 1314
- Joined: Sun May 27, 2012 2:38 pm
- Location: United Kingdom
Re: A Broken Columbia
Sorry, didn't look at all the pictures before leaping in!
Thats an easy repair. You need:
A pack of brass strips about five eighths wide (from model shops)
Araldite adhesive (not the quick-setting one)
Car body filler
Assorted sheets of wet and dry abrasive paper
(Possibly) paint stripper
First, remove the internal horn. There are two screws at the rear of the cabinet, and two in the base. Remove the soundbox (the round bit that holds the needle, by turning anti-clockwise until it stops, then pushing it off from the back. Don't pull it from the front, you'll damage the rubber gasket.
Loosen the clip in the centre of the pick-up arm, slide it aside, and unscrew and remove the front piece. Put that and soundbox aside.Take one of the brass strips, and using something smaller than the broken shaft, bend the strip into a circle. You'll have to play around to get the size right, because the brass is springy. Aim for a tight fit on the broken shaft. It doesn't really matter if it's not a complete circle, any gaps can be filled later. Cut off the excess with tinsnips and smooth the edges, they will be sharp!
Now strip off all the black paint from the two broken halves. Use the coarse abrasive paper, if you leave scratches, so much the better, it will give a key for the adhesive. Clean off any old adhesive on the broken edges with paint stripper, if necessary. Now comes the awkward bit! Clamp the internal horn to a piece of board, and drop the brass ring over the broken edge, so that it's loose, but below the break. Smear the broken edges with the Araldite, and bring the two together. Now you have to support the arm in exactly that position for 24hrs, until the join can be handled. I use a pile of books, but whatever you use, the join must not be allowed to open up in the slightest.
When the adhesive has cured (24hrs) the join will still be fragile, so handle with care. This is where things get messy! Smear a generous amount of Araldite round the repair area. You need to put enough on so that when you put the brass ring on, the Araldite will coat the inside of the ring, so be generous with it. Now gently pull the cut ends of the brass ring apart, and slide it up to cover the repaired join. Wipe of the excess Araldite that has been squeezed out, and wrap the whole thing tightly with strong tape. Leave for 24hrs, then peel off the tape. Fill the sharp edges between the edges of the ring and the original casting with car body filler, so that there is a gradual slope, rather than a sudden step. Clean up and imperfections, and repaint with satin finish black enamel. Reassemble arm and soundbox, job done! Anything not clear?
Thats an easy repair. You need:
A pack of brass strips about five eighths wide (from model shops)
Araldite adhesive (not the quick-setting one)
Car body filler
Assorted sheets of wet and dry abrasive paper
(Possibly) paint stripper
First, remove the internal horn. There are two screws at the rear of the cabinet, and two in the base. Remove the soundbox (the round bit that holds the needle, by turning anti-clockwise until it stops, then pushing it off from the back. Don't pull it from the front, you'll damage the rubber gasket.
Loosen the clip in the centre of the pick-up arm, slide it aside, and unscrew and remove the front piece. Put that and soundbox aside.Take one of the brass strips, and using something smaller than the broken shaft, bend the strip into a circle. You'll have to play around to get the size right, because the brass is springy. Aim for a tight fit on the broken shaft. It doesn't really matter if it's not a complete circle, any gaps can be filled later. Cut off the excess with tinsnips and smooth the edges, they will be sharp!
Now strip off all the black paint from the two broken halves. Use the coarse abrasive paper, if you leave scratches, so much the better, it will give a key for the adhesive. Clean off any old adhesive on the broken edges with paint stripper, if necessary. Now comes the awkward bit! Clamp the internal horn to a piece of board, and drop the brass ring over the broken edge, so that it's loose, but below the break. Smear the broken edges with the Araldite, and bring the two together. Now you have to support the arm in exactly that position for 24hrs, until the join can be handled. I use a pile of books, but whatever you use, the join must not be allowed to open up in the slightest.
When the adhesive has cured (24hrs) the join will still be fragile, so handle with care. This is where things get messy! Smear a generous amount of Araldite round the repair area. You need to put enough on so that when you put the brass ring on, the Araldite will coat the inside of the ring, so be generous with it. Now gently pull the cut ends of the brass ring apart, and slide it up to cover the repaired join. Wipe of the excess Araldite that has been squeezed out, and wrap the whole thing tightly with strong tape. Leave for 24hrs, then peel off the tape. Fill the sharp edges between the edges of the ring and the original casting with car body filler, so that there is a gradual slope, rather than a sudden step. Clean up and imperfections, and repaint with satin finish black enamel. Reassemble arm and soundbox, job done! Anything not clear?