Hammond L-100 Motor/Run Isssue - Help!

[BlueElectricBlue]

I recently acquired a Hammond L-103 (L-100 series), initially there was a little motor/tonewheel grinding on start up, oiled it and then it was (and remained) quiet as a mouse. Organ already had Leslie hook up/switches, set up the Leslie, this and all the organ’s functions worked perfectly AND quietly (mechanical noise-wise) Awesome.

Now the trouble...

I moved the organ 10 feet from where it was, on a furniture dolly, organ was tilted slightly getting it off dolly (far less so than prior movings), noticed a little oil on the ground but otherwise nothing unusual ...

And then... Powered it up in it's new location 10 feet from where it just was..

And...

I now have HORRIBLE (and highly) audible motor / tonewheel grinding sounds???!!! Keyboard/Keys produce sound thru both organ's internal speakers and external Leslie but the grind-y motor sound is bad Bad BAD!!!

Any ideas, diagnosis etc ?????? Greatly appreciated!

Added a little oil as saw some spilled -as this cured a lighter version of this grinding sound before, doesn’t seem to help at all.

Definite bummer as this organ sounded/was working great. It really make no sense as it was barely moved????

Will try to post audio of the grinding if I can, but guessing most of you know the sound I’m referring to.

Thx.

[tpappano]

You might just need to give it a little time for the oil to travel through the tiny cotton wicks that connect the oil 'trough' to the 100 or so individual bearings. I bought an E100 that was fairly neglected. It started out running quiet, but even though I had oiled it, it took three weeks or so to finally settle down. It would go through phases where quiet ones would get noisy while noisy ones would get quiet, then eventually all were quiet. At one point during this process while it was running quietly I moved it a few inches across the floor and it threw quite a noisy little fit 8)

[BlueElectricBlue]

You might just need to give it a little time for the oil to travel through the tiny cotton wicks that connect the oil 'trough' to the 100 or so individual bearings. I bought an E100 that was fairly neglected. It started out running quiet, but even though I had oiled it, it took three weeks or so to finally settle down. It would go through phases where quiet ones would get noisy while noisy ones would get quiet, then eventually all were quiet. At one point during this process while it was running quietly I moved it a few inches across the floor and it threw quite a noisy little fit 8)

Mmm... Best case, that would be the case! You could be right, not dismilar from my situation.

As with many things, simply do nothing and it clears up! ; )

Further investigation/research: The motor and tone wheels seem to all be moving and oiled (I get oil on fingers toching motor drive and tonewheels when organ is powered down, none of the tomewheeels seem frozen). All functions on the organ work fine (keys sound, drawbars, tablet functions etc). Other than tonewheels (and possibly motor as well) being SUPER noisy'grind-y, everything else normal.

Could be a case of it just settling in as you suggest.... But it was working so well, just makes me suspect something got jostled in the move.

Thanks for your post!

Opern to ideas form others!

Thx!

[enor]

L-100s have great access to the tone generator, from underneath. I stand the instrument on end, sit down next to it, and oil each individual bearing. Since you've recently oiled it, it might spill as you up-end it so you might want to have a nice lie down on your back, oiling upwards instead.

(If it were me, I'd still up-end it and just catch whatever spillage you get)

[tpappano]

You're welcome! I guess too, since it was dry enough to start squealing, maybe give it another good dose of oil if it has been a few days since the first oiling. I don't know if you've looked into the tone generator mechanics, but that 'trough' holds a thick strip of felt that soaks up the oil and acts as a reservoir to feed the wicks, so while your first shot might have been enough to get things going, it may still want more. I also got an M3 shortly after the E100 and between the two of them I probably gave them 3 oz of oil.

[Jyvoipabo]

Hello,

I remember an L100 motor having a never crimped bearing.
The spring move outside and broke the aluminium cast of the rotor.

If the noise is very loud as broken wallnuts,
If it comes from the motor,
Check the rotor :
He must turn freely.
Have a low axial clearance.
And no lateral clearance.

J.P.

[BlueElectricBlue]

Thanks to all for their insights above : )

Here’s concise overview/update -

As I noted above:

Hammond L-100 series Organ (L-103) was oiled running fine/mechanically quiet. No issues

Organ was put on flat furniture dolly and moved 10 feet.

Organ was tilted to the side (not extreme) coming off dolly.

Organ then (and still) making loud high audible “grinding/squealing” sound when powered on.

Keys/volume/drawbars/tablet controls/internal Speakers/Leslie etc. all function and work as they should yet grinding/squealing persists and is highly audible.

Sound seems to be the tone wheels (all or most of them - certainly more than a few). Motor doesn’t seem/sound to the culprit.

When powered down, all tone wheels can be moved (so none are stuck - AND - all oily to the touch - so not a lack of oil. Watching tone wheels when powered on from below using a light and a mirror - all seem to be moving but with the grind/squeal happening.

Other than the idea of letting it sit for a few days to let the oil further permeate everything, I’m at a loss.

Again, worked fine till it was moved a simple 10 feet away. (it took a muck heavier jostling about when it was originally moved to present location.

Worked great, small move, now “squeal city”. Bummer.

I’m located somewhat in the “sticks”. If anyone has a line on a solid Hammond tech located in the Joshua Tree / Palm Springs / Greater San Bernardino County area of Southern California???

Thx!

[geoelectro]

Moving an otherwise running Hammond that may be under oiled can trigger squealing. The L-series has the easiest access to the tone wheels of any Hammond. You could even turn the organ upside down, remove the generator cover, and individually oil each bearing manually. Really not that hard if you’re strong enough or have some help to flip the organ over. Of course I would simply spray some WD-40 on the tone wheels that are exposed with that bottom cover is removed, follow up with a good normal oiling, play and enjoy.

Geo

[BlueElectricBlue]

Update - Periodically added additional oil every other day or so and let it soak in, happy to report the “Tone-wheel Squeal” I was experiencing is about 90% better. Oiled up, most of the wheels are oily to the touch and acting (and sounding quiet) like they should! I found several individual wheels that seem to be a little funky - the main culprits causing the remaining noise, they will be dealt with!

So.. looks like we’re on track with this organ!

Thanks to all who posted advice on this thread : )