Automatic reproducer: How much weight can I safely add?

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Stephen_Heatherly
Victor I
Posts: 170
Joined: Tue Sep 19, 2017 10:30 am

Automatic reproducer: How much weight can I safely add?

Post by Stephen_Heatherly »

I bought a reproduction automatic reproducer on ebay a few months ago to play the very few brown wax records I have. The weight, however is so light that it blasts and crackles even when playing the quietest brown wax records. I've narrowed the issue down to the reproducer weight by installing both the glass diaphragm and automatic stylus bar in a c reproducer to see how they would perform with a heavier weight. The difference is truly amazing and I'm certain the weight is simply too light to play satisfactorily. Obviously, I did not perform this experiment with a brown wax record. I used an indestructible cylinder. I would like to increase the weight slightly so that the reproducer is listenable, but not to the point that it will wear my brown wax records out, although I pretty much never play them. So, the question is how heavy can the weight be without causing damage to brown wax cylinders? My plan is to get a thin brass washer, cut clearence in it for the stylus, then silver solder it to the bottom of the origional weight and adjust the weight by removing material with a file. So, does anybody know how much the total weight can be without negative side effects? Any other tips or suggestions?

Thank you,
Stephen

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Chuck
Victor III
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Re: Automatic reproducer: How much weight can I safely add?

Post by Chuck »

I've so far never yet gotten to experiment with
an automatic reproducer. However, I do own and use
(2) automatic recorders. Have fooled around with adding
extra weight to those. Here is what I did:

I took some eighth-inch thick lead sheet and cut off
a few small small rectangles. Then hammered them
to a thickness which eyeballed as about correct
for what I wanted to try.

One was about.040 inch thick, and the other
heavier one maybe .060. Cut and filed those
to the rough outline of the end of the weight.
Then filed a semicircle in the end to clear the
limit-screw of the recorder.

Then used double-sided clear scotch tape to
fasten my extra lead weight to the recorder weight.

The heavy one is a bit too heavy. It weighs about
7 grams. The lighter one is about 2.7 grams, and
it really seems to help the automatic recorder to
cut a nice consistent, rather deep but not too deep
groove.

One important point here is that I made sure
to use a method that does not affect nor permanently
alter any part of the original recorder.

A little bit of residual sticky glue left over
from some scotch tape can easily be removed with
a rag soaked in a bit of gasoline.

All of my experiments with the old Edison
equipment are made so that no original parts
are harmed nor altered in any way. Totally reversible.
Non-invasive.
"Sustained success depends on searching
for, and gaining, fundamental understanding"

-Bell System Credo

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