Mainspring weak?

[a12548]

I have a Victrola portable..gears all are good, well lubed, no binding...but i get very little ooommph after winding it. The record slows almost immediately and on some it will barely finish one side..tried many records, new needles, angle of reproducer fine.. im stumped. My question is this...heres a pic of the 9' ½" spring..notice how many loose rings before the tighter bands on the outside. Can that indicate a weak spring? Shouldnt they all be pushed out to the outside except for the center coil? I located a replacement coil but wanted to ask you guys before I got it.

[Orthophonic]

From the looks of it, it looks pretty normal. Here are some things to try... Make sure the record is an older one such as an acoustic Victor or an Orthophonic. Other members can tell you how to identify them but generally the older acoustic records have no lead in or starting grooves and most have no "changer" grooves in the center. Be sure not to use a later record from the fifties as these are soft and will drag down the player. A note to add is that if you have an older Columbia that is worm, it will also drag badly. On the player itself, be sure the governor is not binding. To check this, wind the machine only a turn or two from being completely wound down. If in good shape, many will start to turn without the sound box on the record. Turn the turntable back and forth to see if it binds and will not go fairly easily either way considering the small amount of spring tension you should have. Do not force, if it will not easily turn either way, the governor is binding and forcing it will result in governor damage; especially if it has a fiber governor drive gear. Right off I cannot think of any Victor machines that have fiber gears. If re-greasing the spring, use a light grade of grease; #2 is way too thick for springs and most everything else in the motor. Hope this helps!

[Player-Tone]

I agree with all that Orthophonic said above. I have a VV-50 and the spring looks a lot like this. It will easily play through a 12” hard shellac record though, like a Victor batwing or early Orthophonic scroll label. As soon as a softer or worn record is placed on like a Columbia or worn Brunswick it slows down and stops.