The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

This topic reminded me of a vhs I have in which Dennis Valente of Antique Phono Supply selects a mica diaphragm from a group of them by "plinking" them on a hard surface. I tried this with several No. 2 size micas,finger flipping them from the edge of my kitchen counter and found a couple that made a ringing sound and a few that were "dead" as if made of plastic. I never compared a ringer with a dud in use but I like to imagine that Paul Whiteman and Caruso sound better with a selected mica.

I have a dim memory (mine are all dim, lately!) of being told to paint some shellac on the first (inner) gasket before sticking the diaphragm in there. This sounds reasonable, to make it more airtight. Anyone else read this, and WHERE? I am thinking of a Victor repair manual.

Edisone wrote:I have a dim memory (mine are all dim, lately!) of being told to paint some shellac on the first (inner) gasket before sticking the diaphragm in there. This sounds reasonable, to make it more airtight. Anyone else read this, and WHERE? I am thinking of a Victor repair manual.

So your the one doing that
You probably saw it in the Victor Exhibiton repair / rebuild instructions. I don't know why Victor only wants shellac on one gasket (first one installed), they don't say. My guess is to hold the diaphragm in place for the rest of the repair / rebuild. If it was for air loss, it seems like you would do both gaskets. Myself, I do not shellac the gaskets.

Best Regards, Larry

Same here: no shellac. And yes, the Victor instructions do call for the shellac. With new soft compliant gaskets, a good diaphragm, and proper adjustment, the Exhibition will sound impressive without it.

You don't need to seal the second gasket to the diaphragm because the first gasket has already sealed the system. The second gasket is just to hold the edge of the diaphragm.

I rebuilt the reproducer using the included instructions and now it sounds great. https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=deskt ... 6iIh2rFWn0
The record was a gift from fellow forum member EdiBrunsVic.

Congrats on the rebuild!. I believe the shellac on the gaskets was not to seal it, but to hold the diaphragm in place, that is to say so that it doesn't shift an thereby causing the edges to touch the body of the sound box. This is more important if you're installing a new diaphragm with no pre-drilled hole for the needle bar screw. One doesn't want to get the diaphragm out of place while one pierces it.

Jim.

GrafonolaG50 wrote:I rebuilt the reproducer using the included instructions and now it sounds great. https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=deskt ... 6iIh2rFWn0

Glad it worked out for you... the reproducer sounds great. You are now an official phonograph repair person...

Another question, is this finish the right color, or has it darkened and if so, should I try to clean the case, and if so, with what?

If you want to clean the finish, get some "Goop" or "GoJo" hand cleaner (non-pumice). Brush on; wait a little while; gently scrub the surface with #000 steel wool (or the plastic equivalent), and wipe off the excess with a clean cloth. You should see a significant improvement...

Bill