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Ain't I A Woman? newspapers, June 1970-July 1971
1971-03-12 "Ain't I a Woman?" Page 10
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SISTERS SMASH SEXISM, TECHNOCRACY & PLANNED OBSOLESCENCE Good Words A phillips screw has a cris-cross groove; you need a special screwdriver with a pointy end to remove them. Phillips screwdrivers are cheap & you can get one at a hardware store. These notes are from experience & watching & asking questions. They apply to "portable" under $100-type record players, not component sets like KLH, Garrard, Sony, etc. Those seem to have different problems than cheap sets like I have. Portable stereos are made to wear out & fuck up & be hard to take apart. I keep remembering how electronics is a very male thing - all those screws & sockets... The repairs listed here are mostly mechanical & you don't have to understand much electronic shit (I don't.) You learn it by doing it.... [hand drawing] TROUBLE Scratchy sound WHERE/WHAT PART Needle underside tone arm wires cartridge TROUBLE Scratchy buzzing sound WHERE/WHAT PART Speaker inside, lying on its front black paper screws wire TROUBLE Only one speaker working WHERE/WHAT PART Wires connection plug cartridge TROUBLE Static or hum WHERE/WHAT PART power supply TROUBLE Skipping WHERE/WHAT PART Turntable TROUBLE Too fast WHERE/WHAT PART Turntable: speed switch TROUBLE Too slow and/or Whirring sound and/or squeaking at regular intervals WHERE/WHAT PART Turntable inside HOW TO FIX CHEAP STEREOS TRY DOING THIS: Buy a new needle. Don't be pressured into buying a whole cartridge it it's just the needle that's bad. Dust records with lightly damp un-linty cloth. Much-used records: Wash them (really!) in lukewarm water and very 1 little soap with cloth or un-scratchy sponge. Speakers are made of paper and they can be punctured or torn. You can tape the tear with thin, preferably paper, tape. Scotch Magic tape is ok; best is thin paper or plastic tape which you rip off at a hospital. Take the back of the speaker off: some have regular screws; some you need a phillips screwdriver; some have hexnuts so you need pliers. Usually 2 or 4 screws hold the speaker to the box; take it off& turn over and look for the holes in the black paper to tape up. Put back together & make sure everything is tight or you will hear unpleasant vibration of loose parts. Check wires in speaker and into amplifier; you may have to have them soldered if they've broken off, but tape could do. Tighten parts of plug with pliers. If the cartridge is bummed out, there is static, or very low volume on either or both speakers. You have to get a new one. Look under the arm & get the numbers on the cartridge. Unplug the stereo and reverse the plug, like put it back in upside down. Or unplug another appliance in the room. Heating appliances especially can interfere. See if the turntable is level; if it isn't then prop up one corner by sticking a matchbook under it. Try each corner. It could be that the tone arm is too light. Tape a weight on top, like a dime or a penny -- it should be right above the needle. See that the switch is exactly on 33 1/3 or whatever. It should click into place. Turntable needs cleaning and new lubrication. This is a big deal. Do not stop, do not pass go, continue to "Taking apart the turntable" [hand drawing of turntable] wood platform screws metal platform tone arm washer TAKING APART THE TURNTABLE Tools: you need small pliers, screwdrivers with short handles, (one regular, one Phillips-type), rags, and some very light machine oil -- jewelers' oil is best, but 3-in-1 oil will do. Time: allow yourself at least 11/2 hours. And take notes as you work; lay down parts on a piece of paper and label them or trace around them. Things have to go back together in order. The metal platform "floats" on springs over a base of wood or fibreboard. There are usually 2 phillips screws kitty-corner from each other. Loosen them and the metal and wood platforms will come together. If there is no wood base, find a hole near one of the 2 screws (there should be one on the right side) reach in & find an anchor holding the screw, horizontally. Snap the anchor up vertically & push the side of the turntable up. Also press the tone arm down on its armrest so it won't dangle. If there is a wood base, there are 4, 6 or 8 screws, usually phillips, holding the base to the cabinet. Remove these and pry a little at the wood edge & slowly lift the whole platform up about 5 inches. Be careful. There are wires from the amplifier to the turntable which are soldered and it's a hassle if you break the connection on either end. Determine how far you can lift without straining the wires, and prop up the platform at that point with a piece of wood or something. Page Ten Volume 1 Number 13 Ain't I
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SISTERS SMASH SEXISM, TECHNOCRACY & PLANNED OBSOLESCENCE Good Words A phillips screw has a cris-cross groove; you need a special screwdriver with a pointy end to remove them. Phillips screwdrivers are cheap & you can get one at a hardware store. These notes are from experience & watching & asking questions. They apply to "portable" under $100-type record players, not component sets like KLH, Garrard, Sony, etc. Those seem to have different problems than cheap sets like I have. Portable stereos are made to wear out & fuck up & be hard to take apart. I keep remembering how electronics is a very male thing - all those screws & sockets... The repairs listed here are mostly mechanical & you don't have to understand much electronic shit (I don't.) You learn it by doing it.... [hand drawing] TROUBLE Scratchy sound WHERE/WHAT PART Needle underside tone arm wires cartridge TROUBLE Scratchy buzzing sound WHERE/WHAT PART Speaker inside, lying on its front black paper screws wire TROUBLE Only one speaker working WHERE/WHAT PART Wires connection plug cartridge TROUBLE Static or hum WHERE/WHAT PART power supply TROUBLE Skipping WHERE/WHAT PART Turntable TROUBLE Too fast WHERE/WHAT PART Turntable: speed switch TROUBLE Too slow and/or Whirring sound and/or squeaking at regular intervals WHERE/WHAT PART Turntable inside HOW TO FIX CHEAP STEREOS TRY DOING THIS: Buy a new needle. Don't be pressured into buying a whole cartridge it it's just the needle that's bad. Dust records with lightly damp un-linty cloth. Much-used records: Wash them (really!) in lukewarm water and very 1 little soap with cloth or un-scratchy sponge. Speakers are made of paper and they can be punctured or torn. You can tape the tear with thin, preferably paper, tape. Scotch Magic tape is ok; best is thin paper or plastic tape which you rip off at a hospital. Take the back of the speaker off: some have regular screws; some you need a phillips screwdriver; some have hexnuts so you need pliers. Usually 2 or 4 screws hold the speaker to the box; take it off& turn over and look for the holes in the black paper to tape up. Put back together & make sure everything is tight or you will hear unpleasant vibration of loose parts. Check wires in speaker and into amplifier; you may have to have them soldered if they've broken off, but tape could do. Tighten parts of plug with pliers. If the cartridge is bummed out, there is static, or very low volume on either or both speakers. You have to get a new one. Look under the arm & get the numbers on the cartridge. Unplug the stereo and reverse the plug, like put it back in upside down. Or unplug another appliance in the room. Heating appliances especially can interfere. See if the turntable is level; if it isn't then prop up one corner by sticking a matchbook under it. Try each corner. It could be that the tone arm is too light. Tape a weight on top, like a dime or a penny -- it should be right above the needle. See that the switch is exactly on 33 1/3 or whatever. It should click into place. Turntable needs cleaning and new lubrication. This is a big deal. Do not stop, do not pass go, continue to "Taking apart the turntable" [hand drawing of turntable] wood platform screws metal platform tone arm washer TAKING APART THE TURNTABLE Tools: you need small pliers, screwdrivers with short handles, (one regular, one Phillips-type), rags, and some very light machine oil -- jewelers' oil is best, but 3-in-1 oil will do. Time: allow yourself at least 11/2 hours. And take notes as you work; lay down parts on a piece of paper and label them or trace around them. Things have to go back together in order. The metal platform "floats" on springs over a base of wood or fibreboard. There are usually 2 phillips screws kitty-corner from each other. Loosen them and the metal and wood platforms will come together. If there is no wood base, find a hole near one of the 2 screws (there should be one on the right side) reach in & find an anchor holding the screw, horizontally. Snap the anchor up vertically & push the side of the turntable up. Also press the tone arm down on its armrest so it won't dangle. If there is a wood base, there are 4, 6 or 8 screws, usually phillips, holding the base to the cabinet. Remove these and pry a little at the wood edge & slowly lift the whole platform up about 5 inches. Be careful. There are wires from the amplifier to the turntable which are soldered and it's a hassle if you break the connection on either end. Determine how far you can lift without straining the wires, and prop up the platform at that point with a piece of wood or something. Page Ten Volume 1 Number 13 Ain't I
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