[Phono-L] Capehart

[Walt Sommers]

Thanks Greg,

I stand corrected (and better educated).

Note: Maybe when they refer to "featherweight tracking" they have 
Pterodactyl feathers in view? lol...

Walt

Greg Bogantz wrote:
>    Walt, the tracking force used in the early Capehart 16-E changer 
> which used the "fan head" black pickup was very nearly the same as 
> that of the other early horseshoe-magnet magnetic pickups.  They track 
> at 120 - 150 grams or so, making the tungsten wire needles the only 
> good choice for multiple-play use.  That would include the changers 
> thru about the E or F-line Capeharts (ca. 1938 and earlier).  The 
> G-line series was about when the later, smaller brown pickup heads 
> came into use on the Capeharts.  The early versions of these were also 
> magnetic and tracked at around 100 grams or so.  The later versions of 
> the 16-E changer with the similar-looking brown pickup head were 
> fitted with the early Astatic crystal cartridges which tracked at 40 - 
> 50 grams.  Still, this is too high a force to use with a hard 
> jewel-point needle, even though this was common practice at the time. 
> As you say and as I say in my other post on this subject, jewel-point 
> needles were really never the correct choice for these cartridges that 
> tracked at anything much over 12 grams or so.
>
>    You record collectors might have noticed that the records you get 
> from the mid to late 1930s tend to be more worn, distorted, and noisy 
> than the records from the 1920s and earlier.  This is because the 
> record players made from the mid '30s to the early postwar period 
> often used jewelled needles in these crystal cartridges that tracked 
> at 30 grams or more.  The advertising of the day called this 
> "featherweight" tracking at only one ounce!  That's a pretty heavy 
> feather.  But they ground up the records mercilessly. Unfortunately, 
> this situation continued until the advent of the GE variable 
> reluctance (VR) magnetic cartridge that tracked at around 10 - 12 
> grams and which came into common use with the Capehart 41-E changer 
> and other top-end record players after WWII.  Even after the war, most 
> cheap record players continued to use crystal cartridges tracking at 
> 30 grams or so until microgroove vinyl records came into use after 
> 1948.  This brought the need and application of much better cartridges 
> that could track at 8 grams or less.
>
> Greg Bogantz
>
>
>
> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Walt Sommers" 
> <waltsommers at comcast.net>
> To: "Antique Phonograph List" <phono-l at oldcrank.org>
> Sent: Tuesday, July 14, 2009 4:06 PM
> Subject: Re: [Phono-L] Capehart
>
>
>> Bob,
>>
>> Do you know the approximate tracking mass of the Capehart pick up? I 
>> am guess it is probably 25 to 40 grams? The RCA Chromium needles 
>> would be a concern on the 10-50 or other Victor automatics that use 
>> the #5 acoustic Orthophonic reproducer (tracking at a whopping 130 
>> grams or so) but assuming that the Capehart's pickup is something 
>> like 25 to 40 grams I can't imagine the RCA Chromium needles would be 
>> an issue. I recall reading an RCA patent (which I can't specifically 
>> call to mind right now) concerning the use of chromium on the needles 
>> which briefly discussed the issue of the relatively low mass of 
>> electrical pickups versus the higher mass of the acoustic reproducers.
>>
>> The Victor Soft or Full Tungs~Tone stylus would be ideal for the 
>> Capehart as well as most of the early electrical pickups. I can't say 
>> I would recommend the Extra Loud Tungs~Tone stylus simply because 
>> they are quite aggressive. Others swear by them. Whatever you choose, 
>> I would stay as far away from jeweled styli (sapphires, diamonds, 
>> etc.) as possible. Sapphires and diamonds would be great if only the 
>> designs of the early pickups were better.
>>
>> I have a feeling I am in Dr. Bogantz's area of expertise 
>> here...Perhaps he will jump in.
>>
>> Walt
>>
>> RBaumbach wrote:
>>> Tungstone needles are probably the best choice for either the 10-50 
>>> or the Capehart, and were recommended by both manufacturers.  In the 
>>> mid-thirties Capehart recommended the RCA Chromium needles, but some 
>>> collectors feel that these are hard on records.  Both the Tungstone 
>>> and Chromium needles are still rather plentiful.  There is a more 
>>> comprehensive discussion of needles on the bonus page for the 
>>> Capehart book (see page 5).
>>>
>>> Contact me privately regarding the owner's manual and schematics.
>>>
>>> Bob
>>>
>>>
>>> On TuesdayJuly 14, 2009, at 10:11 AM, jimcip at earthlink.net wrote:
>>>
>>>> After many years, my 1937 Capehart 404G (serial number 10627E) is 
>>>> now functioning & sounds great & is fun to watch as it changes
>>>> records.   I have noticed quite a bit of "needle noise" in the 
>>>> magnetic pickup when the volume is turned down even though the pickup
>>>> has been restored.   Is this endemic to a properly performing 
>>>> Capehart as I suspect because all the doors to the record playing
>>>> compartment are sealed with rubber gaskets, presumable to contain 
>>>> mechanical noise or does the pickup need further work?   Also,
>>>> where can one obtain needles for playing large numbers of 78s 
>>>> without being changed in the Capehart or Orthophonic Victrola 1050?
>>>> I have Mr. Baumbach's excellent book on the Capeharts without which 
>>>> the repairman who usually works on 1950s & 1960s hifi gear
>>>> would have been completely at sea in working on the Capehart 
>>>> changer but would like to obtain copies of the owner's manual &
>>>> schematics of the tuner & amplifiers.
>>>>
>>>> Jim Cartwright
>>>>
>>>> Immortal Performances
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> jimcip at earthlink.net
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