The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Hi Since I'm new here,can someone tell me how much to wind the spring on a Plaza Model 509 to play the phonograph?I don't want to over do it.Thanks

Bob

As long as you don't wind it past the stopping point it should be fine. Having said that, I seldom wind a spring all the way up. Usually ⅔ full is good. You can always wind it a little more. Experience will tell you when it is wound enough. There is no formula or magic amount. Winding a spring more fully pushes fresh grease (if the spring has been cleaned and re-lubricated) through the coil and towards the barrel. Letting it unwind all the way pushes the grease back toward the center. This keeps the spring coils lubricated to ensure maximum power is being delivered by the spring, and prevents coil grabbing and slippage that can cause noisy 'chugging' of the springs and at worst, cause the spring to break because of a sudden release of energy.

Hi John

Thanks for your reply.

Bob

Hi John

Thanks for your reply.

Bob

It's hard to over-wind unless you really lean on it at the obvious "stop" point. Allthat can let go are the attachments to the barrel and the spindle, and they shouldn't let go unless they're weak - and if that's the case, you're probably better off having them let go, and repairing them.

That said, I like to leave my machines pretty far wound down, if I'm not going to be running them for a while. I let them run down, then take a few turns, just to keep a little tension. So far, so good!

Good luck!

Like I say when someone asks how tight a bolt should be: just until it breaks, than back off a little bit!

Happy new year everybody!