Hi!  Just read the letter about a member needing a comb for a Thorens
4.5" box.   Just about all the parts for the 4.5" disc box mechanism are
still available!   Reuge is still making those movements, now calling
them "Romance".  I sell 99% of the parts you'd ever need for them!  The
replacement parts I stock are:

  Combs: $62.00
  Springs:  $18.00
  Worm gear (the white nylon on a pinion): $18.50
  Dampers: $34.00
  Star Wheel Gantry: $62.00
  
Note that the new Star Wheel Gantry has a post for attaching the pressure
arm.  That post is just a bit too high and has to be filed a bit shorter
to make the pressure arm the correct height.

A note about the older movements:   I've come across many of the 4.5"
movements in which the star wheel gantry has 'expanded' over time.
These units are made from what I call 'junk metal' and can change shape
and size, depending upon how/where they are stored.  Check your alignment
of the star wheels to the tooth tips....make sure they line up!  If they
don't, the gantry has, more than likely, expanded or bent out of shape
and must be replaced.

Another note:  for some reason, in the making of the _new_ discs, Reuge
has offset the projection spacing about 1/2 a projection width.  This
leads to possible problems when trying to play a new disc on an old
machine and vise-versa.  By shifting the star wheel gantry a tad to
strike a happy medium, this problem can be overcome.

Just one more note:  Somewhere, presumably in the 1950-60's Thorens
started using a white nylon worm gear.  The hole for the pinion was
drilled too small, the pinion was force fitted into the hole, and the
result was, after a period of time, the nylon wheel cracked.  The
replacement gears are still made of white nylon, but the hole has been
enlarged (so they tell me) and this should not be a problem in the
future.

I usually have a small stock of _old_ discs on hand for the 4.5" Thorens
boxes.  I can send a list to anyone interested.  They are $8.50 each.

These are nice little movements, affordable, and easy to 'build your own
box around'.  Some have a sweeter sound than others, depending upon the
setup of the comb.

Nancy Fratti
MusicBoxLady@Juno.com