Leslie 145 slow motor intermittent

[Guest]

I have a version 2 leslie 145 (has the 147 amp with red label) with all original parts.

The sound is awesome, both live and recorded. Couldn't be happier with the sound. Has the original Leslie branded Tung-Sols 6550 tubes.

However, the slow motor on the lower rotor doesn't spin when turning the cabinet on after sitting for a while unsused. I have to spin it up to full speed 2 or three times for a couple minutes to get the slow motor to stay turning. Once the unit has been on for about 20 minutes it works flawlessly. That's fine for working at home but it's a hassle to nurse it along when gigging.

I have tried various adjustments to belt tension; it seems to work best with the belt a bit loose. But in a 2 hour gig or recording session I end up throwing the belt at some point when it's adjusted loose enough to overcome the aforementioned problem.

Also, there is a grinding sound that it makes when going from fast back to slow (only on the lower motor stack).

Any advice from the experts here?

I have 2 replacement slow motors at hand but was hoping the fix was something a little less invasive.

[Tim_at_Jonas]

Try this adjustment.

[jsaxe]

You might want to look at this, too.

http://hammondb3organ.net/leslie.php

J

[Guest]

Thanks very much; the adjustment worked.

I'll pull this thing apart again in a while and really go through it (thoroughly clean, etc.) but for now I'm back in business.

A happy camper.

Brian Holt