Seeburg LPC1 transfer arm issues

I am a Newbie but worked on this Seeburg LPC1 over the years. Was working (mostly) but at times, the records would not get pushed all the way out, so the clamp arm closed just missing the record. I read the manual, removed the Tormat, slightly adjusted the alignment of the transfer arm, and no help--maybe worse.

The records to the right (6,7,8 numbers) worked better than low numbers. Seems like the transfer arm stops too soon, or the timing is off slightly.

I cannot find anything in the manual specific to this? It plays great if the record gets to the turntable!

Any suggestions are appreciated--thank you.

Hi,
I have 2 "suggestions"--
1. Read "Attn Newbies", posted above, in the informational -sticky topics
2. Read "jukebox lubrication" also posted above. (you need to- -properly --oil the lift arm, and segment gear)
Ron Rich

Thanks Ron, I will try to lube--and I had read the Newbie sticky--thought I followed it

Joe, what you are describing is one of the signs of clutch member wear. Another sign is that the mach will occasionally "buck" when going into scan from play.

Careful and repeated oiling will sometimes help as well as going through the four clutch setup steps. The clutches take a hit on these machines from the late 50's and early 60's that used a ten-ton mech cover. By 1965 Seeburg finally figured that out and went to the lightweight sectional cover.

If you can get a good look at the clutch member,(use light and magnifier) look at the notches that the roll pins fit into when the member shifts up or down. The edges will develop a sort of rounding mostly toward the center of the member in each notch.

Hopefully oil will do the trick. Rebuilding a clutch is not the most fun I've had in that business.

Rob/NYC

Thanks so much Rob--I will dig in--and hope oil helps.

Rob,
Watcha smokin ?? This problem has nothing to do with the clutch ?
As far as "adjusting" the clutch--( like all adjustments) I recommend it NEVER be done, unless one changes a part in it--
Ron Rich

I'm going with the lubrication--frankly a bit afraid to mess with the clutch! I hope to get to it in the next few days--will post how it goes if you like--thanks again.

Joe,
Please read your PM from me--
Ron Rich

Ron, this is what I took from the symptom description:

....at times, the records would not get pushed all the way out, so the clamp arm closed just missing the record.

A failing clutch will cause the loading process to just stop at various points, often this results in the clamp partially closing and grinding the record against the turntable. Granted, the lift arm would risen thoroughly if (if not impeded) if the clamp has closed but, we are dealing with a description and, well, observations get a bit jumbled at times.

Whenever I've had a problem of partially clamped records the causes were:

-Worn clutch. things just stop at some random point during handling and sit 'n spin. Gummy oil in the yoke pin causes this too (as I found out too late to avoid an on-location replacement).

-Misaligned lift arm. Only if someone has tampered and not reset things properly. I did have a weird case where the lift "fork" was worn almost gone at one side and records just slipped off and fell backwards. Nice scratches due to the retracting lift.

- Someone has bent the record ramp and records sometimes slip between the stripper and ramp. Guaranteed to ruin the disk. Seeburg should have put a small guide there to prevent this. I set the ramp to be as close to the rotating disk as possible.

I've had the pleasure of dealing with all those problems on more then one occasion.

Rob

You guys are good!

Rob,
I still dis-agree--can't see how a failing clutch can cause this--
Even if it should stall ( IMHO, not likely in this operation), the segment gear/lift arm cam follower, is TOTALLY released, long before the clamp arm follower is released.
Remember that the lift arm is spring loaded when "pushing a record up"--positive cam action when going down----( but the record relies on gravity to fall back into the rack) Ron Rich

I lubricated the transfer arm and things got better. Now many of the records load up / pick up just fine--Numbers in the 4 to 6 range work well , but low numbers 1-3 or high 7-8 do not. Transfer arm still does not quite push them far enough--but seems close. I noticed that often after failing to load, when I hit the reject, the record "flings" out to the turntable before falling back into its slot--as if timing is off maybe ? Thanks in advance for any further suggestions.

You still have "lubrication problems", or the lift arm has been bent, or is out of alignment.
Did you oil the segment gear "pin" with 20 wt ??
The mechanism does not have any "idea" as to what number it has stopped on for that purpose !
Ron Rich

Finally had some time to work on the Seeburg LPC1today, and looks like the arm was bent or out of adjustment--because now 99 out of 100 times the records come out all the way and play. Thanks to all who helped me. It plays so well now I encountered a new issue--after about 30 plays, the mechanism started slowing down. After letting it sit a while it's back to correct speed -- just a 1961 motor? I suppose most of the time we won't play 30 records back-to-back anyway. Again--thanks!

...........after about 30 plays, the mechanism started slowing down. After letting it sit a while it's back to correct speed -- just a 1961 motor? I suppose most of the time we won't play 30 records back-to-back anyway. Again--thanks!

Joe, I -strongly- suggest that you not use the phono until you find and fix the cause of this problem.

These machines may start slightly slow but a machine that slows down after it has warmed up indicates a possibly dangerous problem with the speed unit in the form of leaky capacitors

On this schematic: http://s1192.photobucket.com/user/Rob-N ... rt=2&o=119 Pay particular attention to heating and/or voltage shifts in caps C751-C752 and C753

Seeburg did their usual "frugal fusing" -meaning; none on this unit. Two of the units I inherited from the op's on tenth avenue had trans that had burned-up leads and melted diodes due to a shorted filter cap. They were non-repairable. I suggest replacing at least the first two caps.

Rob-NYC