ge wildcat motor repair or cleaning

[timhawk]

Hi, I have a GE wildcat record player from the 70s. The turntable is driven by a wheel that is turned by a shaft that also controls the speed (idoler shaft?).
The player seems to work fine for a while then it stops turning or slows down and when I take the platter off and manual turn the idoler shaft connected to the motor it turns and takes off again for a while. Does this sound like the motors dying a slow death or is in need of cleaning? Tim

[gayler]

Hello Timhawk! I'm a little confused. Is the little wheel mounted to the drive motor that turns the platter or is there a second shaft between the two? The drive motor could very well need lubed or be dying, or if the wheel is rubber and has grease or oil on it it could slip and not turn the platter. You might try cleaning the wheel with rubbing alcohol and see if it helps.

[Enzo]

Motor shaft, idler wheel.

Does your platter spin freely? I mean other than when it has to crack the reject mechanism. The motor is not strong, so resistance there will stall it. You platter is probably held down with a C-ring or an E-ring. Pop the platter off, clean out the old lube and relube with light oil.

The motor is likely mounted with three studs sitting in spongy grommets. Turntable motor grommets, or just motor grommets, can still be had. if yours are breaking down, the motor can drop below the proper height. This can cause poor contact between idler and shaft.

Make sure the inside of the platter is clean where the idler bears.

With platter off, pull the idler hub way from the motor shaft. Does the idler wheel spin freely? If not, clean out the old lube, and a drop of light oil on the idler shaft.

DOn;t use 3-in-1 oil, it turns to gum. I'd rather see WD40 in there if you have no light machine oil.

Turn the motor on. How hard is it to stall with your fingers? Probably OK, but if it is super wimpy, it may need its bushings cleaned and lubed.

And the idler wheel itself. Is the rubber tire hard and glazed, or is there still some rubbery grip to it? If hard, you can try to rejuve it with mineral spirits. WIpe on and wipe off, no soaking. Gasoline actually works well too, but is far more dangerous to have open on your work bench.

[timhawk]

ge wildcat record player

Hi Gaylor
The rubber wheel is not part of the motor. It's attached to the mechanism that allows one to change the rpm. The shaft is a small part that extends from the motor and is what spins. The rubber wheel pushes against the shaft and the inside of the platter turning it.
The wheel is okay, not greasy or worn. It's the shaft that stops turning and as soon as I take the platter off and just give it a little turn manually it starts again.
I am actually playing records now to see how long it plays, so far 30 minutes and counting. I greased the motor in case it was gummed up or something.
Thanks for responding and let me know if you have any more ideas. Tim

[timhawk]

Thanks Enzo

I pretty much did what you sugggested what you said to do a little while ago and it is working now so I'm letting it play for a while. The speed sounds right with no slipping. Thanks. Tim

[Enzo]

I have repaired a ton of basic record players, and most times what it needs are the things I described. SO pretty much when one comes in, I take it apart, clean out the old lube and relube it.

[certainlydo]

I have repaired a ton of basic record players, and most times what it needs are the things I described. SO pretty much when one comes in, I take it apart, clean out the old lube and relube it.

Hi,

Sounds like you know what you're doing w/old turntables so hopefully you (or anybody else who can help) will see this on this old thread.

I also have a GE Wildcat I bought dirt cheap recently. When I got it, the record wouldn't drop until after the tone arm was over to the platter and it ran a tad fast. I have repaired both those issues by cleaning and re-lubing. The only thing that's still wrong with it is more often than not, at the end of a record, instead of rejecting and stopping, it will replay the record. This is on the last record if there's a stack. Any way to fix this?

Thanks!
cd

[52 Bill]

The only thing that's still wrong with it is more often than not, at the end of a record, instead of rejecting and stopping, it will replay the record. This is on the last record if there's a stack. Any way to fix this?

That usually is a problem with the top control arm (the arm that holds the records down while they are stacked to drop) not triggering the shutoff mechanism. Clean and relube the control arm pivot points and the shutoff lever.

[certainlydo]

That usually is a problem with the top control arm (the arm that holds the records down while they are stacked to drop) not triggering the shutoff mechanism. Clean and relube the control arm pivot points and the shutoff lever.

Super fantastic! Just tried it and it now works. Thank you very much!

CD