I've got a giant undertaking: The repair of a model 35002 Optigan. I got it at an estate sale for the mighty price of $2 (they were just trying to get rid of it). It spent most of it's life in a garage.

Well, to my shock when I opened it there was a sea of pecan shells in the bottom and an army of silverfish in the top.
(I think squirrels had been living in it)

When I turned it on the lamp came on. Nothing else.

After looking at it for a bit I noticed that 2 wires had been severed, one of the grey "input" wires and this black and white striped wire that comes from the metal cage thingy that the idler wheel sits in. I reconnected the input wire and turned it on and the speakers now come on when it's turned on.

My problem is that I have no idea to where the black and white wire connects to. It's other end is nowhere to be found.

I'm asking anybody who owns a 35002 Optigan to take a quick look inside theirs. I'd like to know where this wire connects. I would look at the schematics on the tech part of this site but it seems that the schematics for the 35002 are unavaliable right now.

I have two other quick questions. The red light on my Optigan logo has been completely broken off. Does anybody know what kind of light is used there? Also, the black string that connects to the pedal has come off. Is there some sort of tutorial showing how to reattach it?

Thanks for any help that you guys can give me. I really like the sound of this instrument and I'd hate to just give up and throw this optigan out.

Well...

The schematic to this unit isn't showing up where it is supposed to. Here's the actual link:

http://www.optigan.com/pdfs/35002schem.tif

The only reference that I have is the 35012 I've been working on. The white wire with the black stripe is going from the Power transformer to the mains terminal strip (hits a connector and gets converted to a white wire).

Any pics or anything could help.

As you can see, the black and white striped wire has been cut short. I wasn't sure if this wire is unique to the model 35002, but I'd be grateful if you can tell me where it should go based on where it is on another model.

From what I can see in the pic, schematic, and from the one I have as reference, I think it is probably a lead to the motor. Different wiring in the one I was working on.

Unplug the unit from the walloutlet. If you look up under the drive assembly, you should see the motor windings (a "transformer" looking thing on the side of the motor). There should be a black wire and a white wire going to the motor. If there is not, then that is probably it. Also, it looks like it was cut pretty short, so there might be a bit of wire left to confirm this (attached to the motor with the white/black sheathing).

Okay then, I feel really stupid. I looked at the motor and found that that white wire coming from it was the one that was severed. I reconnected it and now something's different. The speakers are making a buzzing noise. The motor still isn't working. Is there something I could do to perhaps "jumpstart" it after over 20 years of not functioning? I really have no idea why it isn't working now.

If you have experience with a Volt-Ohm meter, I'd check all voltages. The motor assembly is fairly strange (more like a bathroom fan than anything), and the spindle attachments (where there would be a more conventional bearing assembly) seem like they would be problematic over time. Could be that the motor has siezed up in it. The only way to be certain is if you check the supply voltages, since it has a direct feed from the mains A.C. It is also good to check the resistance of the motor windings.

If the motor is siezed, then it must be completely disassembled and the spindle attachments repacked with grease, assuming there is no other greater damage. Not difficult, but it is messy.

If you are not comfortable with using a V-O meter, it is better to find someone who is who might do it for a few bucks. Nothing is worth risking your life over, and even a so-so tech should be able to troubleshoot these units quickly and easily, saving you some money and time.

By the way, what disk does it have in it?

I will look around inside and clean it up some more. Maybe I'll find some other problem that needs to be fixed.

As for disks it has something like a dozen including Nashville Country, Movin', Guitar in 3/4, the 2 Christmas discs, Polynesian Village, and some others.

Did you mean what disk it has inside of it right now? It has Nashville Country in it. I was using that one to test it.

IT'S ALIVE!!!!! (sort of...)

I finally figured it all out. Long story short I had to replace the wires that I used to connect the motor (one had a break) I removed the film over the photoreceptor that the pedal uses (because it was detached already) and now it works with a little help. I have to push the end of the shaft that holds the idler wheel gently to the left while the motor runs to get it to run. It DOES work now, but the pitch is very unstable and I have no volume control.

I may put up pics/videos for a before/after comparasion for further reference.

Things that need to be fixed (or I want to fix):

-Idler wheel needs to be resurfaced
-Silver on Optigan logo needs to be restored
-Keyboard's plastic is extremely yellowed (see Retrobright)
-Chord buttons do not function (clean contacts)
-Some of the switches are iffy (clean contacts)
-Pedal does not work (reattach string)
-Nashville Country has a chuck missing on some of the part that the wheel grips (tape perhaps?)
-Some discs have lost the red metronome thingy (red sharpie)
-Cover over empty reverb switch is missing
-Needs a really thorough cleaning.
-Might as well replace the lamp bulb

When I get a chance I'll post a YouTube video of the Optigan. It's pretty creepy for a machine that's basically been dead for 20 years to come back to life. (It's fitting for October.)