Walthers Turntable

[Anonymous]

I am looking for any one out there who has had the misstep of buying the Walthers # 933-3171 Turntable, so that we might compare notes. The turntable has one fatal design flaw, it cannot work properly due to the use of a washer through which the shaft passes, instead of a ballbearing pressed into the turntable. This causes it to yaw and pitch to the point, that even with the new motor they put out for it, the gear teath are too small to engage enough to force it around when the bridge assembly yaws and pitches..???

ken

[falk55]

Hello Ken
Well you have found another sucker who purchased that kit.I too had a lot of trouble in getting it to work.I must say that while trying to make it work I had quite a few words with the Lord.I do not know about the new motor you mentioned,but your problem sounds similar to mine.to get it to work I added weights to the inside of the bridge,making sure it was in balance.I then got a plastic set of gears with a 1/2" face width,and also got a Hankscraft motor.This whole assembly makes the table rotate at a very slow speed,which is what you want.The rails are lined up by eye.I know this may sound complicated but it works.The question is --would I buy this kit again--HELL NO.Asis out of the box it's a piece of junk,but I was determined to make it work.Good luck.
Gil.

[Anonymous]

Ken and Gil,
I also purchased a Walther's turntable a couple years ago and found it to be far less than satisfactory. Not only does it not rotate on the level with the edges of the table, but it spins at an alarming RPM and makes such a racket you wouldn't want to ever engage the motor when guests are around.
Gil, if you read this, would you mind providing more information on your remedy? Where did you get the gear set you spoke of? I'd be interested to know more about the motor you used as well. Also, how did you mount the stuff to the curved underside and make it all work smoothly? Mine has been laying at one end of my benchwork for months collecting dust because I haven't figured out how to rework it. If you don't mind sharing the information, I'd sure appreciate learning more. Thanks.

[Anonymous]

The new motor Walthers sent me - the same one used on their new Bacule bridge, is a huge improvement over the former motor - the mounting is positive and the motor is very slow turning if you use the variable DC on a power pack.. But, the same problem exists with the basic design of the turntable itself - terrible. Check the base to see if it is out of round, causing the bridge to bind at spots (if so, a dremel tool at those points will solve it.. The bridge shaft is the real problem... the design is flawed - that is why it will not turn properly, and pitches and yaws. As to the noice - I thought of laying a long rubber band inside the space on the base where the bridge wheels run over the ties (cause of noice) so the wheels run contact the rubber rather than the ties.. Or cover the ties with silicone...

Ken