Has anyone ever found a GE 3-5259A cassette door?

[BoxBeats]

New project: I have a parts box coming and I’m thinking of giving it a makeover. It’s missing a few knobs and of course the elusive missing cassette door. It is coming today around Noon and I’ve already found some Realistic SCR 8 knobs that will work and some other GE boombox knobs that looked nice and could fit (I’ll sell the ones I don’t choose).

Now for the cassette door: I’ve scoured around everywhere for a friend that has a missing door in the past and never found one and now I’m missing one and they are nowhere to be found.

Sooo, I have a cassette door from a GE 3-5455B coming my way that my creativity thinks I can make work. The measurements are close and I plan to sculpt one from the donor cassette door, removing the plastic structure in the back with either a Dremel tool or soldering iron (plastic welding anyone?). I was thinking I could fashion the hook fasteners I need from the left over plastic since they are a basic shape. If I had a 3D printer that would be easy enough for me to make.

I’m calling the Project - The R2D2 Boombox Project and I am gonna have some fun!

I’ve learned some boombox skills I wanna flex —- Stay tuned!

G-

 

[BoxBeats]

Meh…

Parts box showed up and it was buried in grease with some heavy dirty gray Chewbacca hair inside. Spindle gear was also cracked, heads mount is toast, antenna missing, knobs missing, cassette door gone. Buuuuuttt, working meters!!! The front cover of the box is also in better shape than one of my other Blockbusters so a swap is in order. I am still removing layers of crud and grease from inside the box like its an archeology dig. I think the former owner was a mechanic or a hobo that slept with it in a barn.

I don’t think this is a R2D2 project anymore but a parts salvage endeavor. I’m polishing up the parts I can save but remarkably it powers on and the radio works so its hard for me not to try to revive it but I’m already out on some parts I had ordered for it.

Cue the theme song for Sanford & Son, I’m out…

G-

 

[Tinman]

I've refurbished 1 blockbuster and 3 SCR-8s which have the same cassette player as the GE.
All four had the bad spring retainers for the heads but none had the cracked gear you're having problems with.
I currently have another SCR-8 waiting to be refurbed.
I know the spring retainer is broken but hopefully it doesn't have the cracked gear.

 

[BoxBeats]

Tinman, I now have 3 Blockbusters with hairline cracks in the spindle gear. Today, my go to box bit the ghost on the spindle gear. It is a very fine hairline crack that pulls a section of the gear out of alignment because it becomes wider. I tried plastic welding, JB Weld and Super Glue nothing fixes it. Tonight I expect my 3D printed gear in the mail that I guesstimated on when I created it. Finger crossed!

 

[BoxBeats]

I just got the delivery of the 3D printed spindle gears I made and they look like they may work. I am too exhausted tonight to work on it but first thing tomorrow I’ll let you know if they work.

 

[BoxBeats]

Update on the 3D printed spindle gear I made:

I made two prototypes with the same dimensions with different sized aperture holes in the center, one is 1.5mm diameter and the other is 2mm diameter.

I am happy to report that the 2mm diameter version fits with a slight boring of the hole with a drill bit (3/32”) by hand without the drill ever so gently.

It works!!!

I just made a part!!!

I need to adjust the speed and azimuth since I replaced the head mount with a 3D printed version and investigate the spindle pulley which also has some fine hairline cracks ( I might see if i swap this pulley from my parts box if this makes a difference).

I listened to some Wham! playing through the headphones and I was floored!

Chalk one of for The Force and The Jedi! I will update this with links to the 3D model so anyone can have it printed ( I had it printed in Nylon plastic which is stronger for 3D gears).

May The Force Be With You!

G-

 

[BoxBeats]

Here is the 3D model for the Spindle Gear - share it and please don’t sell it.

G-

 

[BoxBeats]

I am looking on the Goodwill website to see if there is a castaway 3D printer I could buy that could handle the parts I want to make. I don’t want to upset the wife with my deliveries .

G-

 

[BoxBeats]

Sorry, I had to delete the 3D model for the spindle gear because I think someone has intentions of trying to profit off it. Just shoot me a private message if you need it and I know you are not going to sell it. The other side of The Force is bad.

G-

 

[BoxBeats]

If you suddenly see my part for sale you’ll know immediately who it is.

G-

 

[BoxBeats]

While the gear will work I realized that it is not perfect, there is something I need to tweak and only I know what it is. The revision won’t be posted because of someone’s greed and like I said if I know you won’t sell it I’ll share.

Just learned some hard lessons!

G-

 

[BoxBeats]

While the gear will work I realized that it is not perfect, there is something I need to tweak and only I know what it is. The revision won’t be posted because of someone’s greed and like I said if I know you won’t sell it I’ll share.

Just learned some hard lessons!

G-

Thanks Tinman! Let me know if you need one.