The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Do y'all run your motors on your machines down when you're not using them? Or do you leave them wherever they are at when you're finished with them? I was just thinking today that I haven't played a few of my machines in a while and the thought just came to me.

Mine stay at about a half winding. Enough to relieve some tension, but I can still play a record at a moment's notice.

It is recommended to not leave them fully wound. It could hurt the springs in long storage. Tom B

Wind them down - but then (at least with disc machines) turn the crank a couple of times, to keep the center coil on the spring arbor.

Bill

I always let mine run all the way down. With disc machines, I remove the turntable, so that the inertia of the spinning turntable doesn't end up driving the mainsprings backwards, possibly causing damage to the spring(s).

Best,
Fran

I allow all of my phonographs (both cylinder and disc) as well as my music boxes to wind down completely after play. I've never had a problem with spring detachment from the arbor in many years of collecting and playing them.

Doug

My methods: CYLINDER AND DISC MACHINES: play them until they don't have enough spring tension to play. If you let a disc machine run without playing, you risk the flywheel effect of the turntable unhooking the center arbor from the spring inside the barrel.

Interesting observations regarding disc machines and releasing the main spring tension.

Personally, I don't agree that any special attention be made to a disc machine relative to winding down completely under any circumstances (after play or not after play). That said, however, I sincerely respect all of the aforementioned comments.

If a spring is installed correctly on the arbor(s) of any spring motor phonograph there should never be a risk or problem with inertia unhooking the spring. In the original Victor owner manuals that I have here (see example below) there is no mention of concern about the mainspring(s) becoming unhooked from the arbor. And age or use of the machine should have no bearing on that. From personal experience owning and playing hundreds of different cylinder and disc phonographs and music boxes I've never experienced a spring becoming unhooked after winding down completely with or without playing any record. Even the early cast iron turntables which generate considerable inertia should never become unhooked on winding down completely.

In fact, the Victor instruction manuals I've read, for example, encourage the owner to "wind up the motor and permit it to run down completely two or three times. Repeat this occasionally."

Perhaps I've been fortunate but it seems to me that if any main spring becomes unhooked from any spring motor resulting from the process of winding down completely under any circumstances then the main spring was likely not installed on the arbor properly.

Doug

I let all my machines wind down.
Harvey Kravitz

I'm a newbie but I like to wind mine down because it helps me sleep better at night knowing that my springs aren't being held back by any pressure. I guess in my case its really a moot point though because both of my machines are broken