Bill, Glad you are still focused on fixing that 9-40! Additive manufacturing, the generic term for 3D printing might be the answer. I have one to use as a pattern but think I will try the conventional investment cast process in bronze of brass rather than the resin 3D printed part. Investment casting maintains tight tolerances and requires less final finishing than most other casting methods plus you will end up with a metal part more similar to the original. I had some 10-50 shift levers made this way and the results were very good. I'll let you know what the estimated cost would be. The last time I pursued the project, in 2002, I was thinking final finishing and gold plating but the cost was high, this time I'll ask for a less finished and un plated. If it still looks out of range I'll send you the sample. What kind of prices do you expect?
Mark Sent from my iPad On Apr 18, 2014, at 6:00 PM, William Zucca <[email protected]> wrote: > Dear Fellow Phono-Listers: > > > > I am restoring a Victor VE-9-40E and have found that the weakest part of > this magnificent machine to be the side arm which holds the electric > pick-up. As you probably know, it is made of an alloy of low-melting point > metals such as zinc, lead, copper, and tin and is commonly known as “white > metal,” “die cast zinc,” and especially “POT METAL.” As a result, this > piece is most often found to be misshapen, swollen, and/or cracked. I have > searched, without positive result, for a replacement for the side arm on my > VE-9-40E. > > > > But, there is a solution to this problem that will solve it > once-and-for-all and is the result of a new technology that has the > potential of making spare parts available for historic devices where none > now exists. The process is called “rapid prototyping” or “3-D printing.” The > process begins with a non-destructive scan of an original part (or computer > drawing of the part). Next, a duplicate of the part is created by a > 3-printer in plastic (or newer metalized plastic composite) which is used > as a prototype. The prototype is checked for accuracy and similarity to > the original part and the drawing created from the scan of the original > part is tweaked to fix any inaccuracies found in the duplicate part. Finally, > a fully-functional duplicate part is made from the updated drawing file. The > resulting part may be painted or plated and then would need to have an > original electric reproducer socket installed from one of the many broken > side arms available. > > > > This long explanation is the introduction to a request that I am making > here on the ANTIQUE PHONOGRAPH LIST. I would like to borrow a good, > original side arm from a Victor VE-9-40E to use as a pattern for the > process described above. As I have already mentioned, it is a > non-destructive process and I can guarantee the safety of your precious > part during the effort. > > > > If you have such a side-arm that might be available for this purpose, > please contact me at [email protected]. > > > > Best Regards, > > William Zucca > > Rochester, Vermont > > > > NOTES: > > --The side arm used on the Victor Borgia I and II are NOT the same as the > one used on the VE-9-40E and are not suitable for this project. > > > > --I have photos of the VE-9-40E tone arm and side arms available upon > request. > _______________________________________________ > Phono-L mailing list > http://phono-l.org _______________________________________________ Phono-L mailing list http://phono-l.org
