My first cylinder player...needs help! Please help!

[urchinn]

Okay...I have a few victrolas around the house, and finally got my first cylinder player at a local garage sale.  It has some problems, though.  First of all...the steel tube that holds the cylinder will not spin...it is frozen!  Second, the weights on the governor are so extended that the wood box will not close until you move the weights to a favorable position, and third, when the motor is spinning, there is a loud clacking noise.  And here is a video of that clacking noise:   vimeo.com/235254058
Any ideas, help, sarcasm, insight would be most welcome.
Thanks
First time post at this site
Tony Jonaitis

[lucius1958]

Unfortunately, the link is not working for me: it redirects me to the Vimeo home page. Perhaps some still photos would help to illustrate your issue?

If the mandrel will not turn, you most likely have a swollen pot metal bearing (The later model Edisons, which had no end gate, needed this bearing). You will have to remove that first. Remove all the screws that hold the pulley (and feed screw, etc.,if you have a Home or Triumph) to the mandrel shaft, and CAREFULLY twist and pull the mandrel out.

Now to remove the old bearing. Take out the set screw, douse the bearing liberally with penetrating oil, and let it sit for a while. Then take a wooden dowel, or soft brass rod, and GENTLY start tapping the old bearing out (you don't want to break the stanchion in which it sits). If the bearing doesn't budge after long and repeated effort, you will simply have to break it out. Insert a fine hacksaw blade, and cut the bearing into pieces which can be removed. (I believe some restorers have dripped muriatic acid on the bearing to dissolve or weaken the metal).

When you've finally got the bearing out, clean any scars or burrs from its hole, and insert a bronze replacement (available from suppliers such as APSCo, Great Lakes Antique Phonograph, or Ron Sitko). If the new bearing is still a little tight, use some rubbing compound on a smaller dowel to ease the fit.

Now for the governor. If the springs are so splayed out as to prevent you from closing the case, that's pretty extreme, and certainly explains the noise. Could someone have tried to replace the springs with untempered strips of metal or something? Your best course is to remove the governor and replace the springs and weights completely. Again, the sources mentioned above will be of great help.

If you need other tips on restoration, I suggest you get a copy of "The Compleat Talking Machine" by Eric Reiss. It is an indispensable resource for the collector and restorer.

I hope this post has been of some help. Send us some photos!

BillS