Phonoland

I was wondering if anyone knows where I can buy the green plastic intermediate drive gear for my Magnavox model K600? For future reference DON'T LET CARB CLEANER GET ON THIS GEAR!!! I found out the hard way that trying to clean off old grease with carb cleaner will melt this plastic gear.

Carb cleaner?
LOL!
Live and learn.

Find a changer on epray or similar, and try again.
Or let the pro's do the job.

Yeah that's what I figured. I always learn the hard way it seems but at least I learn. Pros weren't always pros. They had to learn what they know somehow and I love to learn. If I had a Pro nearby I would pay him to teach me everything he knows, but if there is one, I don't know where he is or how to reach him. It's becoming a lost art. I refuse to give up and I will keep searching and learning. I appreciate the reply though. If anyone has a graveyard with a gear, please let me buy it from you. I will not throw this turntable away but I will buy another one somewhat similar off of ebay to use until I get this one repaired and reinstalled.

Ok new plan to fix my screw up here. I plan to make myself a new gear. I'll let everyone know how it turns out.

Have a friend who is a machinist? That would be my first choice.

I have never seen that part broken before.

I would find one that has something else wrong with it (such as a broken or missing overarm, or the top of the spindle broken off) on eBay and use parts from that.

Note that that same gear is in ALL of the Collaro/Magnavox units that have the odd record size capability (made 1955 to 1967).

I have found a few things that do tend to break, and sources for replacements:

- I used two guitar picks to replace the mica sheets in the muting switch after they turned to dust.

- The spring on the arm raising lever broke. I found a spring available at Ace Hardware that I cut down and formed on a vice.

- The steel springs in the control knobs get brittle and break. I used metal straps used on shipping pallets and my blacksmithing skills to make new ones. But they go all around the knob bosses, rather than hooking into the backs of the bosses. I soldered the ends of the straps together.

I've been reading up on how to make plastic pieces and it's not that complicated. There are products you buy to form a silicone mould and pour the epoxy mix into the mould. All I need is a good gear to make the mould from and I will make a dozen or so gears to sell on eBay to recoup my investment cost. I plan to buy a unit to get the gear to make the mould then get mine up and going and resell the donor unit with it's gear back in place and eventually move the extra gears on eBay recouping all money invested. I'm sure that I'm not the only one to make this stupid mistake and they will be happy to see a replacement gear for sale.

We have an entrepreneur in our midsts. Go for it.

I found a donor turntable on eBay for $40 total. I decided to go ahead and take the gear out of it and use it in mine because I just don't want to have mine down long enough to make the mould right now. I might do it after I get my cobramatic up and running (just needs the idler refurbished). I just don't like being without a turntable downstairs that long. After installing the replacement plastic gear and a good cleaning/regreasing/adjusting (all without a service manual! lol), my old magnavox is sounding and playing like new. I've also ordered the two replacement stylus' for the flip over cartridge (using the donor single one for now) so it will be all correct and original.

Wat to go.

Stop using carb cleaner. it is death to plastic parts.

Use Caig DeOxIt or another cleaner made for electronics. Isopropyl alcohol can remove grease, but you have to take things apart.

I used to work on carburetors for a living, we never used carb cleaner unless milder solvents failed to do the job, and then we carefully took all rubber and plastic parts off first, its nasty stuff!! Especially if you have an older can, the newer stuff has been reformulated to meet california emissions regs.I saw many carburetors that had melted gaskets and o-rings because somebody squirted carb cleaner in them. Guess what, thats not coverd under warranty...

Non-working changers pulled from consoles can be obtained cheaply, look on ebay. Nice to have a parts unit, or a guinea pig to learn on before you tackle a family heirloom. Its also nice to have one thats fully assembled to look at wwhen your putting a dissassembled one back together.