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How to adjust speed on Viva Tonal Columbia.
Posted: Fri Jan 24, 2020 2:59 am
by marcapra
I was asked to inform a recent buyer of an 810 Columbia Viva Tonal machine how to make an adjustment on the speed control when the speed control does not increase or decrease the speed of the turntable. When you remove the turntable, there is a cam nut that can be turned that makes the speed control on the left get closer or further away from the governor. The cam nut is in the center of the picture. The pics are from my 800 model. If you don't see any movement of the lever on the governor when you turn the cam nut, you may not have the cam nut in the right place, which was the problem in my case.
Re: How to adjust speed on Viva Tonal Columbia.
Posted: Sun Feb 02, 2020 4:37 pm
by mattrx
Originally, I had asked for help adjusting the speed control on this motor. Unfortunately, I sill have not figured out the correct way to do this. I've included photos below of the motor and speed control mech. It seems to me, that for the speed control to work properly, there should be some tension on the governor pad saddle pulling it away from the governor's disc. Then, when the speed control arm is moved to decrease speed, it would move the saddle closer to the disc, or away from the disc to increase speed.
On the machine in question, when the speed control arm is moved, there is no movement whatsoever of the governor pad saddle. You can reach in and move it with your finger, but moving the control arm has no effect. Can someone tell me if there is a spring missing (from my photos)? Or, is it just so far out of adjustment that the control arm has no effect.
Right now, the motor spins very quietly at 55rmp and the control arm does nothing to speed this up, or slow it down.
Re: How to adjust speed on Viva Tonal Columbia.
Posted: Sun Feb 02, 2020 4:49 pm
by marcapra
The close up you show in your first pic shows the start stop lever, not the speed control. Did you read my instructions above. You didn't even mention what happens when you turn the cam nut. Did you turn it like I said?
Re: How to adjust speed on Viva Tonal Columbia.
Posted: Sun Feb 02, 2020 5:18 pm
by mattrx
Yes, the first pic is the start/stop as labeled. I had turned the wrong nut and it had no effect. That nut turned out to to be the one on the start stop arm and actually looked like a nut.
Today, after your response, I went back and turned the slotted bolt head in the center of your photos and that did make a change in speed. It is now spinning at 78.2 per my tachometer. THANK YOU for the help.
When the cam nut/slotted bolt is turned, it moves the speed control arm in an eccentric curve moving it first toward and then away from the curved piece that is actually attached to the governor pad saddle. Once I got that set correctly, I was able to adjust the speed properly, so again, thank you!
Re: How to adjust speed on Viva Tonal Columbia.
Posted: Wed Feb 05, 2020 1:00 am
by marcapra
Matt that's great that I could help you out! I'm glad I could help and transfer knowledge that I got from my phono tech and pass it on to you! Columbias are a different animal if you're used to working on Victrolas or Edisons. I need to learn how to draw on my pics to point an arrow to the cam nut. On my machine the cam nut wasn't even on at the right place and he had to figure it out by examining it, as someone had previously had it apart and didn't put it back right.