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New-to-me Wurlitzer 200 questions

Started by tlustek, September 28, 2023, 10:10:47 AM

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tlustek

I recently came into possession of a Wurlitzer 200! It's been a lifelong dream of mine to own a keyboard like this one, and I'm so excited to use it on my upcoming shows. Thing is, it has just a few too many glitches that need to be fixed before it's truly gig-ready... with the closest Wurlitzer service shop hours away, I would like to try and service the keyboard myself before I make the long commutes to bring it in and get it back from the shop.

1) The amplifier is very noisy with a persistent hiss and 60 cycle hum, and occasional bursts of quiet but noticeable squeals. I was recommended to pick up the the Warneck Research EP200 + Varivibe, but thru my research, found that Vintage Vibe offers an amplifier with a similar variable vibrato mod. Any points of comparison between these two? Looking between most online retailers (Ken Rich, Retrolinear, Reverb, etc), the Warneck is currently not available - any ideas on if/when it'll be restocked?

2) The vibrato doesn't work at all. I assume this would be fixed with a new amplifier.

3) There's a funky issue with the sustain pedal, wherein if I hold down a bunch of keys and then hold the sustain pedal, half of those held keys STAY DOWN or otherwise don't allow for more presses until the sustain is released. Looking inside the piano, I notice that the affected hammers move very slowly thru this process.

4) The action overall feels great! There's a couple sticky keys that are still usable, they just don't reup as fast as other keys. I was able to somewhat unstick these by adjusting the action screws at the very back of the mechanism (please bear with me, I don't know any of the technical terms!), but they are still a little sticky.  No complaints at all re. tuning.

5) The highest B has a very short but piercing sound, my assumption is an issue with the pickup. Does the pickup need to be cleaned or something?

Any advice that can be offered on any of these points would be greatly appreciated! I am happy to provide more info or video of the Wurli if that helps.

EDIT: Here's a youtube video of some of these issues, namely the loud amplifier, sticky keys (not with sustain pedal) and the piercing B.

pianotuner steveo

It sounds like issues 3 and 4 are related. Probably needs cleaning and lubing with Protek. The balance rail pins is where I would start.
Issue 5 sounds like either that Reed is installed crooked, or something is in there causing the Reed to short. NEVER file the pickup to make the slot wider. It will cause the Reed to be quieter than the rest and it is not reversible!

It sounds like you answered your own questions 1 & 2. A new amp would likely solve that.
1960 Wurlitzer model 700 EP
1968 Gibson G101 Combo organ
1975 Rhodes Piano Bass
1979 Wurlitzer 206A EP
2009 73A Rhodes Mark 7
2009 Korg SV-1 73
2017 Yamaha P255
2020 Kawai CA99
....and a few guitars...

tlustek

Thank you Steveo! I notice there's a few different types of Protek, is 1406 the type that would work best in a Wurli? Also, are the rail pins the metal bars directly below the amplifier/speaker board? I can see that the board can be unscrewed and removed, so I figure I'll start there once I get some Protek.

Per the amplifier, any recommendations on the best 200 amp?

pianotuner steveo

#3
What do you mean by there are different types of Protek? Protek comes in a black and white bottle. I don't know of different types... 1406 you apply with a syringe, 1408 is a spray bottle, but it's the same thing. The spray bottle is wasteful, I don't recommend it.

There is a light grease type but that's not called CLP, and I've never tried it. It's likely more helpful for pedal squeaks for example.
1960 Wurlitzer model 700 EP
1968 Gibson G101 Combo organ
1975 Rhodes Piano Bass
1979 Wurlitzer 206A EP
2009 73A Rhodes Mark 7
2009 Korg SV-1 73
2017 Yamaha P255
2020 Kawai CA99
....and a few guitars...

pianotuner steveo

The balance rail pins are the pins that the keys pivot on. You do need to remove the amp assembly to access.
1960 Wurlitzer model 700 EP
1968 Gibson G101 Combo organ
1975 Rhodes Piano Bass
1979 Wurlitzer 206A EP
2009 73A Rhodes Mark 7
2009 Korg SV-1 73
2017 Yamaha P255
2020 Kawai CA99
....and a few guitars...