Has you ever seen one like this before

[Nigel Higgins]

Anyone ever seen a worm gear like this before

[Nigel Higgins]

This is on a tq3

[Martin Davey]

Could be mistaken but I believe that is the remains, or core, of the worm gear, with the actual gear striped and fallen away.

[Brian Fretwell]

It certainly looks like that. It would grip the molding of the worm gear well but not function as a one.

[Nigel Higgins]

Thanks.ive never seen anything like it .strange thing is the machine is like new inside and out and no evidence or remains of the worm .maybe it got missed off in production as this machine looks like its never been used the previous owner told me it was stored over 30 years unused and new .so very strange.

[Martin Davey]

The worm gear would have been made from a white nylon material which over time cracks and falls off the metal spindle. All B & H's TQ1 -3 get this and need to be replaced with a new gear, so it is not strange at all. Most sellers don't understand about that. I suspect if you can't find evidence of the remains on the bottom of the case means that the evidence has been swept away, and then sold to you!

[Nick Regan]

What a new type wormgear looks like.


What an old breaking worm gear looks like



Recognise anything?

Nick

[Nick Regan]

The answer to your question "Anyone ever seen a worm gear like this before?" is yes. The problem is caused not so much by use, but by the storage and care of the unit. The plastic on the old gears heats up and contracts, when the unit is being used and with regular servicing, the gear recieves some air cooling and some oil, maybe a bit of grease, giving some flexability to the plastic, however if this was a new unused unit (and there are some out there still!) dependent of where and how it was stored for the last 30 years the plastic would dry out completely, shrink and develope the hairline cracks it has become notorious for. All it needs then if for either the motor to turn once or the even inched forward and the plastic will fail, in this case falling off completely. (Glue failed for same reason?)

There is a lot of "Missinformation" doing the rounds on the Bell & Howell worm gears, as a engineer who services and referishes these machines as a business, allow me to state catagorically that " There are more Bell and Howel Machines out there with perfectly servicable worm gears, even at this age, than ones will cracked worm gears" The problem is when one does fail everyone hears about it, if it is fine nodody mentions it.

I will admit it adds more value to the the projector to replace the wormgear when servicing the projector as the the cost is not much, about £25-30 for a gear and maybe an hour tops to do the job. Less if you are working on the machine anyway. So this is what we now do. If offers security to the end user and is a selling point for the finished unit although it does tend to put the price up.

(I would like to point out though that we tend not to offer this as a service to customers direct as we have too much of our own stock coming throught the workshop for referbishment to have the time.)

I would also point out that although it is not perhaps the easiest gear to change it certainly is not the hardest and is definately "do able" by a reasonally competent person.

Anyway here ends the first rant of the day....

Nick

[Martin Davey]

Nigel - KB cine repairs up in Nottingham would be able to replace the gear and do a full service. I had one done recently and was pleased with the result and care taken. Could be worth it if its in good condition as you describe.

[Maurice Leakey]

If a Bell & Howell is quite old and needs an overall service it's always a good idea to replace the worm whilst everything else has probably been removed for adjustment, cleaning and lubricating.
It does save having the worm replaced at a later date.
The two-piece originals will not last for ever.

[Nigel Higgins]

Nick regan.please check your inbox ive messeged you regarding this.
tjanks .nigel

[Nick Regan]

Got it Nigel