Low Power

[bangster]

Thanks Martin. 70% not good enough. I need to get this done. Have bought my new spring from Ron Sysko

new spring.jpg (236.05 KiB) Viewed 1812 times

Now I need some help from y'all. I would like to get it (partway) into the barrel before removing the C-restraint, since I don't have a spring winder capable of handling this brute.
To make that happen, I need to squeeze the tongue of the spring down far enough to go into the barrel. With a clock spring, this is easy. But this one is way too stiff to manage any way I have thought of.

How do you suggest I get this spring into its barrel, so's I can put everything back together and get the machine on the road to home?

bangster

[alang]

I usually only place the spring in the barrel without connecting the end. Then I give it a whack with a piece of wood to fully move it into the barrel. Carefull, the retaining ring will jump when you do that. The spring should connect when you wind it. Make sure you install it in the correct direction.

Andreas

[tomb]

Well Andreas, I learned a nice short cut. I was afraid to do that. I watched the videos' and have done 5 or 6 with all the problems of winding it in but this seems great. I have a couple more to do after I get new springs in. I use a synthetic grease to grease them. Tom B

[edisonphonoworks]

I have never had luck just hooking up a spring by pushing it from the retainer into the barrel. I have a special gunny sack (burlap) that has been laundered, and I put the new spring in the sack and give the center coil a pull with some needle nose pliers through a small hole in the sack and it releases in it. I note the rotation direction I have to put the spring in, and start the big end on the rivet feed it in with the barrel pointed away from my face feeding it in with one hand and pushing it in the barrel with the other as I rotate it. The center sometimes is tricky and i sometimes make that center coil so it hugs the center arbor good,otherwise the rivet does not catch.

[tomb]

You might try to simplify the machine by removing items.. Take off the 2/4 gears and slip the belt tension inside the belt so it is out of play. Move the mandrel back and forth one 16 inch movement or make sure it has a little play. Oil it.. Check the feed screw has one 16 clearance and moves slightly back and forth with a little play. Without the mandrel on it and all the gears in place and oiled, spin the unit as it easily should go one or more turns. Put the belt back on it check the belt alignment clearance, and that is going straight up and down ,is aligned with the belt hole. Is it freely runs you are getting almost there. See if it will run 2 or 3 minutes. Lower the mandrel crank it up and see if you get the same 2 or 3 minutes, If it runs the time then problem solved. If not then the tension on the ½ screw needs to be lessened. Try cranking it out a lot to see if it will run, If yes than slowly turn a ⅛ tweak at a time add pressure from the feed nut to the end screw. Even with a week spring it should play at least 2 min cyl. Tom B

[martinola]

Thanks Martin. 70% not good enough. I need to get this done.

Yep, it's not for everyone. I've been working on a real shoestring budget so I try to make everything work if it is at all possible. I've got 10 Standards. Three came to me with broken springs and so have been replaced. The other seven took work but will play over two cylinders on one winding using the original springs. 7 x $35 = $245. I'm sure that a new spring will be nice and feisty. However, re-doing a spring isn't such a big deal for me versus the cash saved. Good luck with your project.

Regards,
Martin

[bangster]

Let me restate my problem, friends.
I can't get the spring even partway into the barrel, because then tongue of the spring protrudes, and I can't find a way to compress it enough to get it into the barrel with the rest of the spring. It's a stiff brute. If I could get that in, I could tap the spring down into the barrel until the C-restraint pops off, and carry on from there.

How do y'all deal with the Tongue Problem?

bangster

[Phonolair]

Personally I remove the spring from the C retainer.
Than I install the spring into the spring barrel.

Larry Crandell

[alang]

Let me restate my problem, friends.
I can't get the spring even partway into the barrel, because then tongue of the spring protrudes, and I can't find a way to compress it enough to get it into the barrel with the rest of the spring. It's a stiff brute. If I could get that in, I could tap the spring down into the barrel until the C-restraint pops off, and carry on from there.

How do y'all deal with the Tongue Problem?

bangster

Yes, I had that situation once before as well. In that case your only option is to let the spring unwind into a bucket or burlap sack and then manually install it. More work, but that's how you would install any cleaned spring. Only caution is that a new spring has a lot more power than an old one and especially Edison springs take quite a bit of muscle strength to install. Make sure you wear heavy gloves and hold the spring and barrel tightly all through the process.

Good luck!
Andreas

[bangster]

Awr! I didn't want to hear that.
I guess I'll give it a shot. and report back later.

bangster