[GreenKeys] Teletype 33-ASR Paper Feed Issues

[teletypeparts at comcast.net]

Rick, 
  
Sending the platen out for restoration is the best fix.  First make sure your platen roller is rolling freely.  You can lay a rag in the printer under the small roller and sand it down with some fine sandpaper.  Do the same on the platen.  Then clean with 409 or solvent.  
  
There are lots of rubber restorer chemicals that you can use to lightly restore the spindle yourself without removing it.  
  
Also make sure your paper is loose on the spindle, not just on the ends where it lays in the cover.  The paper should feed from the bottom of the roll.  Paper tape feeds from the top of the roll.  There is a reason for both.  
  
Lots of older paper has swelled a bit and the ends of the cardboard center are enlarged.  Carefully take your spindle and insert it an inch or so and rotate the spindle to enlarge the cardboard holes.  If the whole inside of the paper has swelled, use a PVC sub for the spindle.  The closest size will be a little smaller than the original spindle.  
  
  

----- Original Message -----

From: "Rick Bensene" <rickb at bensene.com> 
To: greenkeys at mailman.qth.net 
Sent: Saturday, January 16, 2016 6:11:34 PM 
Subject: [GreenKeys] Teletype 33-ASR Paper Feed Issues 

Greetings, all, 

Some time ago, I acquired a very nice 33-ASR teletype that was in mostly 
working condition. 

With useful hints, and a few parts from generous donors on this list, I 
was able to get it 100% functioning, and have been enjoying using this 
wonderful old terminal on my Altair, PDP 8/e, and hooked up to a more 
modern computer running an emulation of HP 2000/Access Timeshared BASIC. 

Recently, the machine has been not feeding paper reliably.  I thought at 
first that the problem might be in the linefeed mechanism, but as it 
turns out, it is working perfectly.  The platen advances one position 
reliably every time a linefeed is received (in LINE mode), or when the 
LINE FEED key is pressed in LOCAL mode. 

It turns out that the paper is actually slipping...like the platen and 
roller's grip on the paper is not good enough to pull/push the paper 
through the paper path when a linefeed occurs.   I've also been able to 
observe this when manually advancing the paper with the knob. 

The platen itself is in nice shape...however, it seems kind of 
"polished".  It has a somewhat dense surface.  I seem to remember that 
the 33's I used in school had platens that seemed softer, and had a more 
textured surface.   The rollers also seem to be somewhat hardened. 

I suspect that this probably means that I have to send the platen off 
and have it redone.  I have seen reports here from a number of folks who 
have sent their platens off for rebuilding, with very good results.   

However, I'm wondering if there is any kind of temporary thing that I 
can do to make the platen grip the paper more reliably until I can get a 
time when I can tear the thing down and send the platen off for rework. 

Also, I foolishly didn't stash the postings to the forum that had 
information about the places that folks have sent their platens off to 
for rework that have had good results. 

Any suggestions on any of this would be most appreciated. 

Best to all, 
Rick Bensene 
The Old Calculator Museum 
http://oldcalculatormuseum.com 



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