Amberola 30 question

[JerryVan]

Most likely, your mandrel is sagging. Try loosening the nut that holds the mandrel in place. Rotate the mandrel shaft 180 degrees and see what happens. That might not fix it, but if it at least makes it different, then you're on the right track. My guess is that during the horn swap, you inadvertently leaned on the mandrel and bent the shaft downwards.

[dzavracky]

Most likely, your mandrel is sagging. Try loosening the nut that holds the mandrel in place. Rotate the mandrel shaft 180 degrees and see what happens. That might not fix it, but if it at least makes it different, then you're on the right track. My guess is that during the horn swap, you inadvertently leaned on the mandrel and bent the shaft downwards.

Actually Jerry... you are correct. I bought this Amberola as a box of parts and after a lot of cleaning, I got it to run. The one thing that struck me as odd from the get go was that the mandrel shaft seemed to be bend downward. But as it is machined into the casting I was afraid to touch it for fear of breaking the casting. (After the Edison home fiasco )
I knew nothing about Amberola's at the time and just assumed it was that way for a reason! How should I go about bending it back up?

David

[Marc Hildebrant]

With regard to 4 Minute cylinders that would not fit...When I was a teenager in the 1960's, I would but a piece of Emery Cloth around my fingers, insert into the cylinder, and turn to scrape away some plaster of Paris.

Seemed to work O.K.

Marc

[JerryVan]

Most likely, your mandrel is sagging. Try loosening the nut that holds the mandrel in place. Rotate the mandrel shaft 180 degrees and see what happens. That might not fix it, but if it at least makes it different, then you're on the right track. My guess is that during the horn swap, you inadvertently leaned on the mandrel and bent the shaft downwards.

Actually Jerry... you are correct. I bought this Amberola as a box of parts and after a lot of cleaning, I got it to run. The one thing that struck me as odd from the get go was that the mandrel shaft seemed to be bend downward. But as it is machined into the casting I was afraid to touch it for fear of breaking the casting. (After the Edison home fiasco )
I knew nothing about Amberola's at the time and just assumed it was that way for a reason! How should I go about bending it back up?

David

David,

Rather than bending/straightening it, try loosening the retaining nut and rotating the shaft maybe an ⅛ of a turn at a time. Then tighten up the nut and try it out. If a some point you have "swung" the bend upwards a bit, to where its distortion is now "fore & aft", versus "up & down", then the reproducer will likely track well. Yes, the shaft will still be bent, but the mandrel being "off" in a fore & aft direction, will have far less effect on tracking than when bent up & down. This way, you won't have to stress the casting by pulling up on the shaft in an attempt to straighten it, (which might also result in a broken shaft).

[dzavracky]

Most likely, your mandrel is sagging. Try loosening the nut that holds the mandrel in place. Rotate the mandrel shaft 180 degrees and see what happens. That might not fix it, but if it at least makes it different, then you're on the right track. My guess is that during the horn swap, you inadvertently leaned on the mandrel and bent the shaft downwards.

Actually Jerry... you are correct. I bought this Amberola as a box of parts and after a lot of cleaning, I got it to run. The one thing that struck me as odd from the get go was that the mandrel shaft seemed to be bend downward. But as it is machined into the casting I was afraid to touch it for fear of breaking the casting. (After the Edison home fiasco )
I knew nothing about Amberola's at the time and just assumed it was that way for a reason! How should I go about bending it back up?

David

David,

Rather than bending/straightening it, try loosening the retaining nut and rotating the shaft maybe an ⅛ of a turn at a time. Then tighten up the nut and try it out. If a some point you have "swung" the bend upwards a bit, to where its distortion is now "fore & aft", versus "up & down", then the reproducer will likely track well. Yes, the shaft will still be bent, but the mandrel being "off" in a fore & aft direction, will have far less effect on tracking than when bent up & down. This way, you won't have to stress the casting by pulling up on the shaft in an attempt to straighten it, (which might also result in a broken shaft).

Okay I'll try my best to bend it little by little until I can get it correct. Thanks Jerry!

David