The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Ok...I am thinking enough is enough....Since 2015, I have experienced some strange things. At first I dismissed it, but I restored my Columbia Q and the next thing you know a loose governor bracket, the next time it was a broken gear on the shaft. Then the next thing it was the Columbia B Eagle that would experience problems from misbehaving feedscews to half nuts and even a loose governor spring which I know that it was tightened when I repaired it.

I started having problems with my Victor VV-IV tabletop last year, lo and behold the governor was sliding on the shaft, so I had to tighten down the set screw. Today, it was my VV-VI which had a slipping crank, come to find out the bracket was loose from the casting, tightened it up and it works like a charm.

Could it be the room temperature that causes these changes? I have no idea. Has anyone else dealt with this type of problem. I am not a believer in ghosts etc. But its like maybe the climate causes things to contract and expand and makes these things happen...or maybe its just the age of the parts that are starting to fail.

It's definitely ghosts. That's the only logical explanation.

Hmmm.... phonograph gremlins? The spirit of Eldridge Johnson? John Kruesi's ghost, since they are not Edison machines? We may never know!

I had a car for several years and it ran well. All of a sudden it seemed something was breaking and had to be fixed each month for five or six months. I was disgusted the final time it broke down for me and pawned it off on a friend. He replaced one more part and said it was a good car I had sold him. Did it have a gremlin or ghost that left it who knows. I think it was a chain of events that were put in that sequence. Maybe I hit a couple of bumps and loosened up stuff. All I know is I screwed myself by getting pissed over the breakdowns. It has not happened again to my machines or vehicles but it happens to me as I get older. I had one knee replaced twice which was not nice. I think age does affect a lot of things differently with the temperature changing,vibrations,humidity, sunlight,and other environmental forces in play. Tighten the nut,replace the part,repair it and hope you live as long as your machines. Tom B

It's your wife. She is trying to hijack what sanity you so desparately cling to...in an attempt to suede you to sell it all!!

Who knows what evil lurks under Victrola lids I was standing next to my big Pathé Actuelle one day, not playing it just standing there, and bang -- motor spring left go. I don't let anything wound up anymore.


Bill K