The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

I was lucky enough to find a cherry Victor I at a swap meet for cheap. Imagine my surprise when the seller then pulled out a box of original 7-inch Victor records and said "this goes with it." The machine just needed a crank and reproducer. Sold.

I am using a Victor Exhibition reproducer on the machine, but when I try to play a 7" disc, the weight of the reproducer bogs the record down, sometimes to the point that the record will stop and the needle will drag the record along while the platter is still turning. I obviously don't want to be treating these records this way. Am I using an incorrect reproducer for this early machine? Suggestions?

Thanks - Mike

The reproducer is adequate for the machine, the problem may be due to a combination of worn out disc (that increases the drag) and weakened spring. However, if you are concerned with preserving the discs, then play them on a modern turntable, these old gramophones will impart excessive wear in any case.

Mike- Has your Exhibition reproducer been overhauled?

The reproducer is correct for the records and should play without problems. It could be either or more likely a combination of the following: dirty and worn records, hardened gaskets in the reproducer, dirt and lack of lubrication of the motor gears, old and hardened grease in the main spring barrel. If all that has been resolved and you still experience these issues it may be a weakened main spring, but I would replace that as a very last resort. I trust that you are using a new needle for every record? Steel needles should only been used once and then discarded. It also helps to use soft tone needles, they produce less wear and drag on the records.

Good luck
Andreas

alang wrote:The reproducer is correct for the records and should play without problems. It could be either or more likely a combination of the following: dirty and worn records, hardened gaskets in the reproducer, dirt and lack of lubrication of the motor gears, old and hardened grease in the main spring barrel. If all that has been resolved and you still experience these issues it may be a weakened main spring, but I would replace that as a very last resort. I trust that you are using a new needle for every record? Steel needles should only been used once and then discarded. It also helps to use soft tone needles, they produce less wear and drag on the records.

Good luck
Andreas

Mike says in the OP that the record stops even as the platter continues to turn, so it doesn't sound like a spring issue.

Mike- Stupid question... but the turntable does have felt glued to it, correct?

Thanks everyone. Yes, the turntable has felt. I rebuilt the reproducer. New needles. The machine will play a 10-inch disc, but sometimes it is slow to get going at the beginning of the record. The 7-inch discs are very worn, so I suspect that this may have a lot to do with it. Also, the smaller discs are much lighter than the 10-inch ones, so I wonder if this may be contributing to the needle "pinning down" the record.

gramophone-georg wrote:
Mike says in the OP that the record stops even as the platter continues to turn, so it doesn't sound like a spring issue.

I guess I should read more carefully what was written

Some of the older machines like the early Victor R had screw-on record hold downs to avoid the records being dragged along. That was not available on the Victor 1 anymore, but it looks like the problem still existed. Maybe your solution could be as simple as putting some round weight in the middle of the record?

Andreas

Hi Mike:

Since, as you say, the sound box has been overhauled properly, and motor issues are not the culprit, I'd guess that the record is play-worn to the point where it's groove will not allow the needle to track it properly. Try using a soft tone needle, but if that doesn't work, another "fix" might be to use a counterweight when you play the record, or other similarly worn records.

You can easily make one yourself using a cut and bent wire coat hanger and an appropriate weight. Some people I know have used a putty filled cardboard tube for the weight. It basically looks like and works like this:
The weight should weigh about ⅓ to ½ of the sound box's weight. The closer the weight is to the end (away from the sound box), the more lifting power it has.

HTH,
OrthoFan

OrthoFan wrote:I'd guess that the record is play-worn to the point where it's groove will not allow the needle to track it properly.

I completely agree. I had this same thing happen to me years ago when I tried playing a few 10 inch Victor Monarch records that I had recently purchased. The records had quite a lot of play and handling wear.

I think your home made counterweight device pictured and described above is simply brilliant and I would like to try making one like it.

May I ask what you actually used to make yours (the one seen in the picture)? Please respond here or feel free to send me a PM. Thanks.

Doug

If the problem is the record slipping instead of the motor bogging down, I would cut a sheet of thin soft vinyl or rubber as a friction pad between turntable and record. My Victor I has plenty of torque to play a 10" record completely through.