Crank Hard to Turn

[Granby]

Greetings -

Feel free to link me to a previous thread if this has been discussed in the past. I have a floor model Victrola (or two) that feature motors that have been serviced in the past few years. However, the cranks are very hard to turn. Seriously, you have to put some strength into it... My other Victrolas wind easily with little effort.

I am a history guy.... not too mechanically inclined. So, is this a pretty simple fix? Or, should I just ask my friends and family to stand back while I use some raw strength to crank these things up.... Again, the funny thing is it is only the Victrolas that have been serviced or had new springs.

Thanks!!!

[gramophoneshane]

Something somewhere must be binding, so first think I'd do is remove the motor and motor board from the cabinet and try winding it.
This should tell you if you can eliminate the crank binding on the cabinet as the cause.
If it's still hard to wind out of the cabinet I'd look for any signs of wear or improper contact between the motor and board, then remove the motor from the board then try winding it again.

It's basically a process of illumination so you can rule out certain possible causes, and with good observations you'll pin pointing the problem so it can be rectified

If you pull down the motor, remove the spring barrel and reassemble it and check everything runs smoothly when rotating gears by hand. If not replace the barrel and remote another part and test it again.
While it's in pieces try winding it to see if the ratchet operates easily.
Sometimes something as simple as a washer under the wrong bearing side, or a missing ball bearing, will throw everything out of wack enough so gears don't mesh as they should causing pressure somewhere it shouldn't

[Hoodoo]

Perhaps the winding mechanism just needs a bit of oil and/or grease???

[JerryVan]

I have always felt that some of the new springs are/were just way too strong! I have a little Victor 1, with frail little winding gears and a new spring, that I'm fearful of winding up.

[alang]

I have always felt that some of the new springs are/were just way too strong! I have a little Victor 1, with frail little winding gears and a new spring, that I'm fearful of winding up.

Yes, I have the same experience. Some combination of strong new springs and maybe a short crank lever makes some freshly serviced machines harder to wind than others with original springs. At some point I doubted myself and went through the process of elimination that Shane described, but always ended up with the same result. I believe the metal of some new springs is thicker than old originals, which may be part of the reason.

Andreas

[Granby]

I appreciate the input, everyone! I am glad some others have experienced the same thing....

[Phono48]

I believe the metal of some new springs is thicker than old originals, which may be part of the reason.

Andreas

I agree, having recently bought a new spring for my HMV 99 portable. There was no way it was going behind the rivet head on the drum, so I had to grind some of the thickness off before it caught the rivet securely.

Barry