Tutorial Fix Your '48 - '50 SS TTO Knob (pic heavy)

Discussion in 'Tutorials' started by stingraysrock, Mar 19, 2011.

  1. stingraysrock

    stingraysrock PIF'd away his custom title

    Happy Saturday From Florida!

    As you know, the 1948 to 1950 Super Speeds tend to develop a TTO knob problem where the knob does not screw in all the way without pushing the knob in first.

    In the spirit of Greg's Roll's Restoration thread, I am posting a similar thread for the droopy TTO problem in the Super Speed, and just like Greg, will be PIF-ing this razor to celebrate PIF Month at TSD.

    Oblio13 / Brad posted a thread asking about a fix awhile back. I told Brad that I did not know how to fix it, but I did have a decent '48 - '50 SS that needed doors and that I would swap them on to his razor for him. later on in the thread, there was a fix posted where you take a tubing cutter, dull the blade and then use the tubing cutter to re-crimp the handle, causing the TTO knob to return to its factory position.

    Flash forward two months and AnB_Daddy / Tony posted in The Haul thread about how he had fixed a droopy TTO on a Black Handle Adjustable using a vise and the handle of a binder clip.

    I have both a tubing cutter and a binder clip, but no vise. I did not want to damage my tubing cutter, so I decided to try the binder clip route that Tony had posted but using a pair of channel lock pliers.

    Here is the process:

    Here is a pic of the problem areas. As you can see, the razor on the top is the one having the droopy TTO problem.

    [​IMG]

    Before we get started with the repair, let's go ahead and clean the TTO shaft while we can. Grab your cleaner of choice, for our house, Kaboom! wins over Scrubbing Bubbles because it seems to work better, and the color changes from blue to white when it is done. Gimicky? Yeah, maybe, but it works for me.

    [​IMG]

    Give the razor a good spritz of the cleaner and let it work. Then scrub away with the toothbrush until clean. This is pretty standard stuff for cleaning most razor finds.

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]


    Also consider using silicone or WD-40 to clear out any water that gets inside of the shaft.

    [​IMG]


    The silicone or WD-40 will also lube the parts, but I throw a few drops of oil in them using a toothpick anyway.


    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    Now that we are cleaned and oiled, let's get to the fix! I am pointing a the target spot with a toothpick in this picture. This is where we will direct the pressure of the binder clip and pliers.

    [​IMG]

    Push the TTO knob and shaft up and screw the silo doors closed. Twist the TTO knob just enough to close the door snug, but do not crank down super hard on the knob.

    In his Black Adjustable thread, Tony said he used a large binder clip for his fix. To me, the large clip is the jumbo two-inch clip, which was too large, so I used the handle from a one-inch clip. Just squeeze the base of the handle together and wiggle it free from the clip. Take the handle and place it on the Super Speed in the target area as shown.

    [​IMG]

    Next, grab the two sides of the handle with the pliers and squeeze them together. Don't go and get all He-Man grip on the pliers just yet; just squeeze enough to make the two handles meet.

    [​IMG]

    Next, grab the head of the razor and at the same time increase your grip a little on the pliers and start turning the razor head. You will feel a bit of resistance at first, but after a few turns the resistance will go away.

    [​IMG]

    Next, move the pliers from clamping the binder clip handles at the base of the handles to clamping the binder clip on either side of the razor like this:

    [​IMG]

    Give the pliers another squeeze, but not too hard, and twist the razor again until you feel the resistance subside.

    Remove the pliers and binder clip and inspect your razor. Operate the TTO knob and see that it now opens and closes properly. If you did not get all He-Man with your grip on the pliers, your knob should operate smoothly and not drop, just like it did from the factory.

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    If for some reason you are still getting a little bit of drop, go ahead and repeat the re-crimping process using a little more grip on the pliers, but be careful; if you get carried away with your grip and over crimp, your knob will be frozen shut and I am not sure that you will be able to reverse the damage.

    Here is the fixed razor side by side with the same razor from the first picture.

    [​IMG]

    So there you have it folks; you do not have to put up with a droopy TTO knob if you do not want to.

    I am going to see about polishing this razor up and figure out what kind of PIF contest to run. Any ideas?

    Have a great weekend Ya'll!
     
    Jim99, preidy and 178-bplatoon like this.
  2. Oldguy

    Oldguy Member

    I've fixed a couple of my older Super Speeds using the dulled tubing cutter method. The cutting wheel must be filed down so it isn't sharp any more. It works great. No problems since.

    This is the first I've heard of using the pliers and the binder clip. It seems to be a little tedious but as long as it works that's the important thing.

    Len
     
  3. Bird Lives

    Bird Lives Future Root Beer King of Turkey

    Very educational...What does that process do to the nickle plating ? It looks from the photos like it doesn't affect it at all...

    This was a great thread...even I understood this one...And now I wish I hadn't let a couple old SS's get away just because of that malady...Almost got a Ranger Tech one time but didn't because of major knob hang....Thanks...
     
  4. paydepst

    paydepst Member

    Jeff would this also work on a Sheraton and would it damage the plating?
     
  5. Dridecker

    Dridecker Sherlock

    Great pictorial Jeff! :signs107

    I did something similar last year with my Sheraton that suffered the same problem, except I used piece of coated electrical wire.

    I found a gauge of wire that fit into the groove while still leaving some exposed over the top of the groove, gave it a couple of twists to pull the wire nice and taught, then followed around the circumference of the razor handle gently and evenly squeezing down and making contact only on the wire with a pair of pliers, re-crimping the groove.

    Has worked fine ever since.
     
  6. AnB_Daddy

    AnB_Daddy Active Member

    Very nice Jeff! I am glad it worked out for you. I wanted to come up with a different way than using the tubing cutter method, since the tubing cutter can wear the knurling on the handle slightly. This seemed to be the easiest, and most economical, for anyone who would have this problem. It worked wonderfully on my Super Adjustable.

    Great job Jeff on the step by step!!!
     
  7. stingraysrock

    stingraysrock PIF'd away his custom title

    Thanks Ya'll. I cannot speak to the plating issue. I guess if it is a concern, skip the cleaning process for sure!
     
  8. paydepst

    paydepst Member

    Bill do you remember the gauge?

     
  9. Dridecker

    Dridecker Sherlock

    Sorry Mark, no I don't, it has been a while since I did the repair.


    I do remember that I used a piece of wire with a solid core, rather than one with multiple strands.
     
  10. Billr

    Billr Mix Master Mighty White!

    I had the wife pick up a can of that Kaboom for me but when I read the can it says "do not use on brass" any thoughts on that?
     
  11. stingraysrock

    stingraysrock PIF'd away his custom title

    I am not a chemist, or a label reader... but if it says do not use on brass it probably oxidizes it maybe? Causing tarnish?
     
  12. thevez2

    thevez2 uses Gillette's new Tarantula Razor - 8 blades!!

    The trick I heard a while back was to use the pipe cutter, but to replace the cutting wheel with a steel washer. No need to file the wheel down that way.
     
  13. stingraysrock

    stingraysrock PIF'd away his custom title

    Here is a quick, down and dirty video of me fixing a Fatboy that I traded to Lindyhopper66 / Robert over in this thread.




     
    Last edited: Mar 8, 2014
    Smoothy likes this.
  14. GDCarrington

    GDCarrington Burma Shave

    12 gauge wire with insulation will do the trick nicely. Just did this on a Sheraton today that I received recently. Funny I keep getting more of these. This one was in so bad of shape that it required a complete disassembly because it would not open at all. Now it opens and closes freely without dropping.

    DSCF1362 small.JPG

    This one might become a replating candidate who knows.
     
  15. stingraysrock

    stingraysrock PIF'd away his custom title

    It sure is a nice thing that these razors can be fixed and loved on again.

    I wish lives were so simple to fix...
     
  16. lindyhopper66

    lindyhopper66 Well-Known Member

    That was easy. Nice to see it being fixed.
     
  17. Oldguy

    Oldguy Member

    Another way to fix a dropped handle is to use a copper tubing cutter that has been made dull with a file. Just very lightly tighten the cutter knob and two rotations is all you need. I've fixed three Super Speeds this way. Just make sure the cutter is dull.

    [​IMG] Dropped_handle.jpg
    Len
     
  18. lindyhopper66

    lindyhopper66 Well-Known Member

    I like it.
     
  19. PatrickA51

    PatrickA51 Well-Known Member

    Thanks for the info you did a good tutorial.
     
  20. TarheelFXR

    TarheelFXR Member


    I sure would like to watch this
     

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