Dual 505-2 resurection.

[The Alchemist]

Is there anyone who can help me get my old 505 working again? I confess I haven't used it for many years but would like to get it going if at all possible. No great surprise that the drive belt needs replacing but before I get a new one there is another issue to address. When I powered it up and tried to get it working it was completely deado. A little internet reserach suggested that the most likely candidate would be the microswitch. I cleaned the switch with switch cleaner and the drive spindle started to spin so I thought I had cracked it. After a few minutes I noticed that R1 on the circuit board was starting to smoke! I checked the resistance and it read 5K Ohms which is as it should be. If anyone has any thoughts or advice for me I would be very grateful.
Richard.

[JimC]

It's usually the grease on the levers which actuate the Micro-Switch that goes hard. Squirting with Contact Cleaner will only be a temporary fix, the levers need to come off and the old grease removed and replaced with new.

I think you'll find it was the Motor which was smoking. I believe it is close to the PCB so the source is not obvious.
It's because it hasn't been used for ages.
Get it going and leave it running, obviously not unattended in case I'm wrong and eventually the smoke will disappear. I've never had them apart to investigate the cause but suspect it's some build up which gathers on the commutator and bushes which with use gets hot and smokes.

Let us know how you get on.

James.

[The Alchemist]

Hi James,
Many thanks for your prompt reply. I am sure that the motor could do with some lubrication however I am equally sure that it is R1 which is getting hot. After running for a short time it gets hot enough to burn a finger! Maybe if the motor is "dry" it causes too much current to be drawn which in turn is causing R1 to overheat. Is this plausible?
Richard.

[DSJR]

I've had this overheating resistor issue before, but the decks were junked before I ever had the chance to check further. From memory, there is a cap or two on the board where the resistors are and these should be changed. This may sort it for you.

Dual mechs don't suffer in the UK anything like the glued up Garrards made in the 60's and 70's, and of course the 505's are dead simple. PLEASE don't go spraying WD40 here there and everywhere, as the trip pawls and slider (for auto-switch-off and lift) need to be dry and contaminant free.

[The Alchemist]

Hi Dave,

Many thanks for your reply. There are 3 mains suppression capacitors on the power board and I could change them easily if I knew where to get replacements from. Unfortunately my electronic knowledge is not great (my passion is speaker building).

The values are 0.01 uF Y 565-1HMF/SH
0.33 uF FX2MKT/ SH
0.068 uF FX2MKT/SH all 250V rated

If you could suggest suitable replacements and tell me where to obtain them I would be very grateful.
Cheers,
Richard.

[DSJR]

Try CPC or Rapid Electronics for a start. CPC is an 'edited' form of Farnell Element 14, which has a huge stock...

[The Alchemist]

Have just ordered some replacemants from Farnell. While I am about it does the motor need any lubrication or is it best left alone?
Thanks,
Richard.