The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

epigramophone wrote: Fri Oct 14, 2022 8:51 am The feet are not domed but are slightly rounded at the edges. Of all my 102's these are the best preserved :

Thanks.

Mine are not quite as nice. I assumed that mine had become squashed and worn flat. They are as hard as rock now and quite brittle looking. They are bluish but with a grey chalky patina, and the edges are a bit cauliflowered.

If the feet ever extended out over the rexine it was probably less than 1/16". The best of my existing feet measures about ⅝" at its widest point.

I just noticed that I have lost another one, fallen out somewhere no doubt. It may already be in the vacuum cleaner or garbage since the wife cleaned up the other day.

½" x ¼" is a common size for screw-on feet. These might work with a ½" metal or rubber washer beneath them.

https://www.rubberfeetwarehouse.com/col ... ubber-feet

If you use screw on feet the screw heads will be visible unless you fill the recesses with sealant.

epigramophone wrote: Sat Oct 15, 2022 4:36 am If you use screw on feet the screw heads will be visible unless you fill the recesses with sealant.

Very true.

At present I am torn between restoration to a semblance of original appearance (something that few of my options above would accomplish) and restoration to improved functionality.

The original feet in their current condition do little to stabilise my 102 during winding as they are quite slippery in a dry sort of way. And my 102, while in not bad condition, is nowhere near a show-stopping, drool-worthy perfect specimen. Whatever I do to it (within reason) is unlikely to alter its value significantly. It has no GREAT value as a collector's item, despite being a blue model.

It's value is in its functional mechanical condition. It plays well. It sounds great. The great value is in the enjoyment it provides.

These blue bumper feet, now found only as ghostly images and dead links, would be very cool. They are ½" tall and ⅞" in diameter and could probably be milled down to fit while leaving a flange to cover the rexine at the edges of the hole.

Another option might be to fabricate new feet from a mouldable silicon rubber compound.

https://sugru.com/what-is-sugru

Sugru lists the making of rubber feet as one of their suggested uses.
Their options in pre-mixed colours are limited. Their red and green might pass but the blue is a little too light.

Then there is Oogoo, a DYI mix your own substitute for Sugru. It can apparently be tinted with linseed-based oil paint to get a greater range of colours. It is less durable than Sugaru, though.

https://www.instructables.com/How-To-Ma ... ubstitute/

Interesting.

Independent review of Sugru:

https://www.consumerreports.org/cro/new ... /index.htm

The major problem here is that it is expensive. Individual packets are small. And unless you are buying black or white, you cannot buy multiple packets. Green, red, and blue only come as single packets in a larger multi-colour package, one small packet each per. To get enough material to make a number of coloured feet, you would have to buy a lot of multi-colour packages.

This is my first and botched attempt at fabricating a OoGoo foot for my HMV 102.

The mould is made using paraffin wax. It is -6 C here and my workshop is unheated. It was a bit challenging cutting the paraffin as it was quite brittle.

What went wrong?

1.
I used an inappropriate silicone. All tutorials say that clear Silicone I (100% silicone) is absolutely necessary. I could not find this in stores near me. I used something that said it was Pure Silicone. It was also white. It sort of worked but not all that well. It had a very slow curing time, and the result is a bit too crumbly.

Also with a white base, it was hard to get a darker colour density.

I used acrylic paint. Some tutorials say you cannot use acrylic paint, only enamel. Others say it is OK. Others say to use food colouring. The acrylic paint, if it was a problem, was the least of my problems here.

2.
Also in my haste and uncertainty, I put the top of the mould on upside down. The top is made from the first cut I took off the paraffin block. Its base and sides are roughly square with each other. Its top which is the factory end of the block is not. Putting the top on upside down resulted in the shank of the foot being out of alignment/centre.

Conclusion
Anyway ... this serves well enough for a proof of concept exercise. Next time ....

I shaved the prototype foot down to compensate for the shank being off centre, so the finish is a bit rough.

I need to get the consistency and colour better.

I also need to redo the bottom of the mould so that side of the foot is steeper, the top is flatter (less domed), and the flange edge over the rexine is smaller.

The feet did not protrude over the rexine, they were a straight solid cylinder with a rounded edge where they protruded from the case. I have made dozens with SUGRU, mixing the various shade to get a perfect match. I simply made a solid cylinder that slid fairly easily into the hole, and protruded about ⅜" above the case, then let it harden for a day. Removed it from the case, rounded the top edge with fine sandpaper, then trimmed the bottom to give the desired length, and glued it back in the case using an epoxy resin. Haven't had any problems yet!

Barry

Phono48 wrote: Sat Dec 03, 2022 2:16 pm The feet did not protrude over the rexine, they were a straight solid cylinder with a rounded edge where they protruded from the case.

Thanks.

Interesting. I just assumed that the feet did extend over the rexine, because mine sort of do now, having been squashed flat for 80 years or so.

Phono48 wrote: Sat Dec 03, 2022 2:16 pm I have made dozens with SUGRU, mixing the various shade to get a perfect match. I simply made a solid cylinder that slid fairly easily into the hole, and protruded about ⅜" above the case, then let it harden for a day. Removed it from the case, rounded the top edge with fine sandpaper, then trimmed the bottom to give the desired length, and glued it back in the case using an epoxy resin. Haven't had any problems yet!

Barry

Also interesting. Particularly the mixing of colours. Sugru only comes in white, grey, black, red, and blue, at least as far as I know.

A quick online search shows that only black seems to be carried anywhere here.

I may just redo all my 102 feet in black rather than trying to get a blue to match. Path of least resistance. It is not a show piece machine, at least not externally.

Lah Ca wrote: Sat Dec 03, 2022 6:19 pm Sugru only comes in white, grey, black, red, and blue, at least as far as I know.

It also comes in yellow, so that mixed with blue, it makes a very acceptable green.

Barry