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Post by crumpybumpy on May 31, 2012 21:09:18 GMT -6
Just bought a BEAUTIFUL EDISON DISC PHONOGRAPH, MODEL B-150 from a tag sale. It has 2 reproducers..one for victor type 78's as well as the original diamond stylus reproducer. I started the machine up and put a victor 78 on and it sounded SO good...but then the turntable started to slow down. So I wound it up a little and played it and it played for a little bit and then slowed down...it seemed like the weight of the reproducer was grinding it to a halt. So I wound it more...and then the turntable stopped spinning and it seems like I wound it to the max and it seems jammed So now what do i do?
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Post by gibsonj on Jun 1, 2012 8:13:57 GMT -6
crumpybumpy
This could just be an indicator of needing a good cleaning. Over the years, the grease and grime and dust just gums things up. All the bearings, and particularly, the governor ends and shaft need attention.
Do you hear any bumps or pops from the spring barrel during playing? If you do, then probably the grease in the spring barrel has caked up and does allow the spring to expand freely. You can try adding some new grease to the barrell (I personally use Edison's original formula of Vaseline and flake graphite), but I know others use modern molybdenum grease. Adding a little new grease to the barrel, winding the spring, and allow it to run down will sometimes remix with the old grease and get things back to normal. Otherwise, you'll have to remove the spring barrel to remove, clean, and relube the spring.
One last thing I can think of is too much reproducer weight pressure, but you said you were playing 78s with an adapter. So, I would check the friction points for cleaning and relubrication first.
Hope this helps.
John
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Post by crumpybumpy on Jun 1, 2012 9:21:31 GMT -6
Thank you for the great reply John. I am a complete newbie when concerning any kind of maintenance or servicing of these machines, especially this one being in such incredibly pristine condition. I wouldn't know where to lube/how to lube/ or what to disaasemble if anything. How can I find someone in Northern New Jersey that has experience fixing/servicing these machines that could give me a lesson? Or are there books that you know of for Edison Diamond Disk phonographs that describe the maintenance steps?
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Post by phonofreak56 on Jun 1, 2012 11:14:29 GMT -6
There is a book that I strongly recommend. you can find this on ebay or Amazon.com. The book is the Complete Talking Machine by Eric Reiss. It is a great book that covers everything from repairs to restoration. Good luck with the hobby. Harvey Kravitz
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Post by gibsonj on Jun 5, 2012 10:55:41 GMT -6
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Post by crumpybumpy on Jun 17, 2012 13:19:46 GMT -6
Thank you all for replies. After a couple of days being in an overwound state, I tried turning it on again...amazingly the turntable started spinning VERY slowly...like a snail's pace. So I just left it.....and after a while, it started to slowly increase in speed to the point of looking normal......and I let it run out and now teh machine works perfectly!! I'm in the process of building a diamond disc collection and everything is great and it sounds so much better than my victrola VV-IV. Especially thanks John for the manual link!
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Post by roaring20s on Jun 17, 2012 23:04:40 GMT -6
Crumpybumpy, Those thumps and bump are indications that the old grease in the spring is sticky and it will not allow the release the spring's energy as it should. I wonder, was the temperature warmer when it slowly began to release?
I also sent you a personal message.
James.
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Post by orthophonic on Jun 18, 2012 6:50:28 GMT -6
You might be amazed if you dropped a little sewing machine oil or equivalent down beside the turntable shaft. Other things also need oiling and Edison provided oil tubes to several parts that you could oil all at once and the oil would run down the little tubes to the respective parts. Pretty neat!
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