The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Number 1, I have ordered a new governor replacement gear from Wyatt's Musical and I would like to know if there is any special trick or tip to putting it in and Number 2, I have removed the old damaged felt from the turn table and I would like to know the best paper to use under the felt so the holes don't show thru. I would like to say that reading thru the posts I have learned a few things. Thanking you in advance.

What I did.
To replace the felt on the turn table I used a razor blade to scrap the paper off the turn table. I went to Michaels and bought a white 12 x 12 sketch pad which is the right size to cut out for an underlayment for the felt cover. I used Elmer's spray adhesive, it worked perfectly. I found a few hints on other forums. As to the fiber gear I put on a flat surface and used a small hammer to tap it on into place. It worked ok. I still don't know how tight the gears should be. I tried the record player and it was not playing very well as the needle would slow the record down, even full wound up. With this I figured the motor need rebuilt. I am willing to try anything. I saw some really high prices for a rebuild jobs. I will say it is a great challenge and should be only done if you are good with your hands. I took pictures as I took the motor apart which helped. To clean the motor I took 4 days. Its slow yes but I did one spring a day and put it together on the 4th. I did get the shaft in wrong and had to turn it around. The shaft had little hook like on it to catch the spring. I bought a large plastic bucket and pried the spring out into it. This worked well. I photo'd the unwound spring to show winding direction which was clockwise on all 3 springs. The edges were rounded so the cut factor is low. The Vaseline and graphite had hardened and I had to scrape it out and off the springs. I used paint thinner to clean the springs and enclosures. AS to repacking the springs it take a little strength to hold it with one hand and push it in with the other. I used White Lithium Grease and greased each spring before repacking it. I used gloves from Home Depot. $4.00 for 10 light weight rubberized gloves did a good job to hold the spring. To clean up with paint thinner. You could use a lot of things like kerosene or mineral sprits too. It was a great experience to try this and its a messy job. No wonder the charge so much money to do the job. The new nylon gear I go from Wyatt's for $29.00. The spring motor took a few times of winding and unwinding to spared the grease and now after about 100 years it plays and can be enjoyed.

Is this your machine? http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Px0w3tudyXE
-Tom

No the one I have is a table top with the works that bolt in thru the bottom. I do have a stand up model similar to the one in the video.


http://www.ebay.com/itm/ANTIQUE-VINTAGE ... 3ce4e9c6a1

Bruce,
Good for you... you now have moved into an area where a lot of collectors are afraid to go.

You replaced your own springs, cleaned the built up 100 year old gunk off the motor, replaced a gear and brought your machine back to life. I think the accomplishment of fixing something is more rewarding than the acquiring of something that already works... but that's just me. I would venture to say that the overwhelming majority of collectors would be dubious about undertaking a motor rebuild. The knowledge that you learned is invaluable for future machines, since you know exactly how they are supposed to work and you weren't afraid of tackling a messy, somewhat dangerous job. I noticed that you mentioned using various types of solvents for cleaning, as well, and didn't get all stressed out.

Always keep this in mind: when fixing something that doesn't work, don't be afraid to take it apart... it's already broken and this isn't rocket science, it is more akin to basic machine work and woodworking.

I forgot to mention that with the motor springs being a pain to reconnect to the rivet in the spring container I used a pair of sharp nose vice grips to hold the spring in place with the rivet thru the hole in the spring, then used a screwdriver to move the spring over to the locked position. I found this easier than fighting it by hand.
Curt A. thanks for the interest and kind words. The way I did look at it is the unit didn't work so if I could not fix it I could send it away to someone better then I am. I wish I could find what the tolerance should be for the gears as to how tight they should be.