Wrong brake on this Fireside?

[MikeB]

The rear of this break on this Edison Fireside A hits the governor weights if the lever is pushed all the way to the left when playing. I have had this sort of thing happen on another machine. The angles on the break don't seem quite right for the machine, and I am assuming that the break was changed at some point, and it may be from another model Edison. My other Firesides do not have this problem. Does anyone know if the breaks for the Fireside, Home and Standard were slightly different?

Thanks - Mike

[VanEpsFan1914]

With the mainspring completely run down, loosen the setscrews holding the governor pin bearings and move the governor assembly back a fraction of an inch. Re-tighten the screws, adjusting the speed control to a faster setting to allow for the new, slower positioning of the governor. Wind and start the motor, time it to 160 rpm, and enjoy.

[MikeB]

Oh! I never thought of that! So the governor is positioned too far to the left, which in turn would mean that the break cannot position correctly when on or off. That must have been the problem with the other machine that I experienced this with, but I never figured it out. I'll try it and report back...

Thanks - Mike

[recordmaker]

I was wondering what the differences were between the fireside and the standard motor were
Just did a full teardown and ultrasonic clean of an Edison Standard motor today and it is all but identical and I needed to do much the same process on reassembly.
However the standard has a screw in the governor to fix to the shaft making movement simpler and the fireside has a locking pin or similar device so the adjustment suggested is the only option on the fireside.

[MikeB]

Well, I fixed it eventually. I initially removed the governor, then I found a small set screw in the brass central part which surrounds the governor shaft. It was obscured under one of the sets of weights and springs. Once loosened, I was able to slide the outer governor assembly along the shaft. It took several tries to get it so that the break worked correctly and the speed could be set correctly as well. I found that the slightest movement could make a big difference.
Thanks - I learned something.