When a spindle hole is too small...

crazy-in-az

crazy-in-az

Uhhhh....
...what do you do? I bought a copy of Ted Nugent's first album, and when I went to play it the other day it wouldn't fit on the spindle of my Sony PS-T22. Whats the best way to enlarge the hole without destroying the vinyl?
 
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multi step drill bit by hand. Don't go crazy here as you don't need your records to match that table or any table.

unibit-step-drill-sets-496.jpg
 
I've seen a lot of those lately, plus my TT-15 spindle seems just a little tiny bit larger than the Denon, so I've done some old ones, too.

I just use a sharp but otherwise regular drill bit a few sizes smaller than the hole, held in the hand, and shave off a little bit using the sides of the drill bit. It doesn't usually take much - don't over-enlarge it. Sometimes just concentrating on the "corners" and trimming label excess does it.

Edit:

However, given that particular artist's utterly reprehensible public persona, I would consider enlarging the spindle hole to the full 12" diameter...
 
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Just stick the end of a wooden pencil in the hole and give it a few spins from each side. No need to get more violent than that.
 
That happens alot with Thotens spindles. Two things to do; 1) press the record down gently, usually it slides on, then twist it back and forth to remove. If that doesn't work, or you feel like you'll do damage, use a circular, rat-tail file. Rotate the file a couple of times and it should be good.
 
I use the pencil method, or if more is needed, just run a sharp #11 X-Acto around the inside of the hole to deburr it. IMO, files and drill bits are way overkill, and a step bit is definitely the wrong tool for the job.
 
Often the problem is caused by a bit of flash from the manufacturing process. If you examine the spindle hole, and find a spot or two that project inward, it is usually a simple matter to deburr the hole, and make it fit.
 
Sam Cogley said:
Just stick the end of a wooden pencil in the hole and give it a few spins from each side. No need to get more violent than that.
Click to expand...

Yes, that works well for me. Sometimes though if a pencil doesn't come to hand easily I grab a pair of small scissors and with them closed I rotate that in the hole but again don't be aggressive.
 
Wow, I guess there are several ways to do it. I wasn't sure if there was a "tried and true" method or not. I'll try a pencil first, since that seems less damaging (I have a tendency to overdo things).:nono:
 
I've got a small tapered awl or file type thing that I can use to gently ream out spindle holes. Usually, I've found, a bit of coaxing gets them on and off with a minimum of fuss.
 
depends how picky you wish to be. I've used scissors, pencils and screwdrivers, usually whatever is at hand most readily. The other end of the spectrum is a precision drill bit or reamer of whatever the official size for record holes is.
 
On reflection I take back my 'drill baby drill' recommendation. Too much chance of an out-of-round or oversize hole. Though the real problem ones that I drilled seemed to turn out OK, no point in tempting fate when the non-threatening pencil trick is available.
 
I believe there were 3 camps or groups of spindle OD ranges found
when it comes to vintage TTs.

The Germans, Japanese and another group stayed within their proffered
range leading to some records holes being fine on one TT but tight on another.

Add to this the occasional flashing not fully removed required having
an implement of some nature handy.
 
crazy-in-az said:
...what do you do? I bought a copy of Ted Nugent's first album, and when I went to play it the other day it wouldn't fit on the spindle of my Sony PS-T22. Whats the best way to enlarge the hole without destroying the vinyl?
Click to expand...

Personally, I would throw out any and all Ted Nugent records based solely on his politics. Shoving a pencil into a Ted Nugent record defiles a perfectly good pencil.
 
My solution is to use a medical hemostat to enlarge the hole. It doesn't take a lot of pressure, just a gentle insertion on both sides to open the flashing. The hemostat is also very useful for putting on and removing the leads on your cartridge and lots of other uses in turntable repairs. I believe they are fairly cheap too. Regards
 
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