Amberola from craigslist! not really working

[amberolafromcl]

I got this Amberola recently off craigslist and noticed that it would not play a complete cylinder without slowing down a couple of seconds into the cylinder, i followed a really good Youtube lubrication tutorial and it still persisted, it seems to only occur after the needle makes contact with the cylinder.



After inspecting the Reproducer i noticed something that just did not look right, please check out pictures. It looks like there is a plate that was installed backwards, making any needle height adjustment impossible. Do you think this could be causing my symptoms? Could there be any good reason that it was assembled in this manner?


Any info or ideas you might have would be greatly appreciated

[lucius1958]

OK, I have an Amberola 30 of the same vintage as yours.

The pivot block is definitely installed backwards, most likely by the last person who tinkered with the reproducer. There should be a third hole on the block, where that pin in the second photo fits. After you've got that block back in place, check the stylus (not "needle") height. That can be adjusted by the screw and nut just below the weight.

If the machine is still slowing down, it may be that the half nut is bearing down too hard on the feed screw (the threaded shaft under the mandrel). There are a couple of screws holding the half nut bracket in place: raising the bracket a tiny bit will ease the pressure. It takes a bit of fiddling to get to the "sweet spot", where the stylus is neither too high or too low: adjusting the pivot screw on the reproducer will also help the movement of the weight.

A couple of other tips: make sure the stylus is not worn or chipped, as that can damage cylinders. Get a good jeweler's loupe (preferably double lens), and look carefully for any flat spots on the diamond. If you find any damage, your best recourse is to send the reproducer to Steve Medved, to be replaced with the "Bruce" stylus (the best replacement around these days). He can also rebuild the reproducer, replacing the gaskets (and the diaphragm, if need be).

A couple of other tips for best reproduction from your machine: coat the neck of the reproducer with vaseline, where it goes into the horn, to better seal the joint; and insulate the connections between the horn and the rest of the machine. This means putting felt or leather washers between the pin at the bottom of the horn, the slotted piece in which it fits, and the nut that secures it; and covering the hook where the suspension spring attaches to the horn with rubber tubing. The spring itself ought ideally to be sheathed in rubber to kill any resonances: the results are quite satisfying.

I hope you find this information useful.

- BillS

[nefaurora]

Bill S is correct.... Any updates??

)

Tony K.