The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Newbie here, slowly refurbishing my Standard A.

I’ve taken apart the upper works to clean them. When reassembling, the filister head set screw that holds the mandrel gear in place won’t tighten when the mandrel shaft is in place. It will tighten otherwise. Is it stripped? Any tips to get it to tight or does it need to be replaced?

See photo. Thanks for the help!

Not that it's terribly important, but that's the wrong style of screw. It should have a slotted, headless set screw. The fact that it's been changed leads me to wonder if the thread has been enlarged due to being stripped. When the screw threads in without the mandrel shaft in place, is it a nice fit, or is the screw kind of wobbly? Show a close up of the end of the screw. The screw itself may be partially stripped near it's end, with the better threads above engaging when the shaft is out. Also, notice if the screw tends to slip into the hole significantly before the threads seem to engage. If so, then something is stripped, (the screw, the hole, or both).

Thanks! Where can I get replacements? I guess it’d be safest to replace the gear and the set screw. I also need the screw for the top middle of the end gate…