Crosley Record Player Not Spinning (Troubleshooting Guide)

Crosley makes budget record players.

As a result, it is not uncommon to have problems with them.

Your Crosley record player not spinning at some point, or not turning on at all, is a likely occurrence.

Sometimes, they even have issues right out of the box, due to poor quality control.

If the unit is under warranty, I’d just get it replaced.

If not, a turntable not spinning is usually an easy fix.

Simply follow the troubleshooting steps below. Work your way through them and hopefully, you’ll be able to figure out the issue with your Crosley turntable and fix it.

 

Crosley Record Player Not Spinning

If your Crosley turntable is not spinning, there are a number of possible causes. The best way to troubleshoot this issue is to test for the various possible causes and eliminate them one by one.

The order is important here, so follow the troubleshooting steps below in the order they are presented.

 

Check If The Power Is Working Correctly

Power is the first thing to check whenever anything is not working on your record player. Turntables need power. Without it, the platter can’t spin. And nothing else can happen either. Follow these steps to check and see if the power is functioning properly in your unit or not.

Check Your Wall Outlet

You can use a small table lamp or radio or anything you have that is portable and requires power. Plug the item into the outlet and see if the outlet is working or not. If it is working then you can rule that out.

Check The Power Adapter For Your Crosley Unit

Most Crosley units come with a wall wart-style transformer that they use to convert the AC wall power to DC power inside their circuits. It is not uncommon for these power supply units to be defective straight from the factory. They can also wear out over time.

To make sure yours works follow the steps below. You will need a voltage measuring device for this, so you can verify how much voltage the adapter is putting out. You can find them at your local home improvement store in the electrical section, or on Amazon

1. Plug the adapter into a wall outlet that you are certain works. 
2. Attach the clips of the voltage meter to your adapter and see how much voltage is coming through. If the voltage you see on your device matches the voltage that is supposed to be going to your unit, you can rule out the power supply as the issue.

Check The Power Circuit On Your Unit

If you are certain that the outlet and the adapter are both working, your next step is to check the power inside the record player. This is simple to check.

Just plug the unit in and see if it turns on. If not, there is a problem inside the record player, and it needs to be repaired. Please note that before you do this step, you should have already verified that the power adapter and the outlet both work.

 

Check If The Tonearm Mechanism Is Functioning

Crosley portable players have a switch which causes the platter to start spinning when the tonearm is activated and moved onto the record. If your tonearm mechanism is broken, the platter will not spin, and you cannot use your unit.

You can only test this, once you know your power is functioning, which is why that step came first. If you have not already verified that the power is working correctly please do that first.

If you are sure that your power is working, you can test the tonearm mechanism by moving the tonearm toward the record. It should click on and the platter should start spinning.

If this does not happen, and you already fully checked the power issues, then the problem is either your tonearm switch or a belt or motor issue. We will look at those next.

 

Check If The Belt Is Too Loose

Most normal turntables use a belt and motor to spin the platter, though some do use a direct drive mechanism that does not rely on a belt. Crosley units use a belt.

Over time these belts can get stretched out and become too loose to properly grip the platter and make it turn. You can often tell if the belt being loose is the problem because the platter will budge a little bit but not fully spin

Along with this, you can sometimes hear a sound like a belt is slipping on the motor or the platter. You can unscrew the chassis and look at the belt and see if it is loose and slipping.

 

Check If The Belt Is Broken

Much like the belt being too loose, the belt being broken will also cause the record player to not work, since the platter will not spin. Broken belts are sometimes obvious,because you can hear the motor just spinning on its own, since no belt is putting any load on it.

Belts can break because of very hot climates, or they can get damaged in other ways inside the unit. If you hear the whirring noise of a motor spinning on its own, you can open the unit and verify if the belt has broken.

Replacing A Belt

You can replace a broken or stretched-out belt quite easily. Once the unit is opened up, simply clean the areas the belt moves along, like the motor and platter, with some isopropyl rubbing alcohol, and let it dry completely.

Once it is dry attach the belt to the small motor disc and wrap it up and around the platter. It can be a little difficult, but you can use a toothpick or other device to help you get the initial wrap-around done. This article details the entire process of replacing a belt.

 

Check If The Motor Is Burned Out

If you have checked everything else and your record player still won’t spin, the last possible issue is that the motor itself has burned out and is no longer functional.

You can assume this is the case, once you have checked all the other possible causes. However, if you want to be sure, you can verify it is burned out by inspecting the motor.

Burned-out motors usually have some black residue on them from a small flame, or at least have a burned odor. You may have to smell very carefully, since these motors are not big and the smell may not be evident immediately. Another way to verify is to use a voltmeter.

Clip one side on the positive ear and one side on the negative ear of the motor clips and see what the reading says. If no voltage is going through, there is a high probability the motor is broken.

Replacing A Motor

This requires soldering and you will need some skill to pull this off. But if you are comfortable doing this, it is only moderately difficult. You will need to desolder the wires from the old motor, remove it from the board, and discard it.

Place the new motor in the same spot and re-attach it to the board. Once it is attached, you will need to solder the power leads to the motor power clips. Silver or lead-based solder will do the job just fine. Be careful not to use too much solder, because messy solder joints can cause issues later.

Once the motor is replaced you should be able to click the tonearm on and verify it starts spinning. If it does, go ahead and put the chassis back together the same way you got it apart.

 

Check If The Platter Is Jammed

This is not common, but it can happen. Something can become lodged between the platter and the unit. This is simple to diagnose by closely inspecting the outer edge of the platter where it meets the rest of the record player. If nothing is visible, there may be a jam inside.

The platter spins freely on a spindle that comes from a motor. If one of the moving parts of this assembly becomes jammed or dried out, or mucked up somehow, the platter can stop spinning.

The only way to confirm that this is the issue causing the problem is to open the unit and visually inspect every moving part of the platter assembly.

If you find something stuck, you can lubricate it with some sewing machine oil and it will usually work itself out. If you find something is dirty and covered in muck, you can safely clean it off with a Q-Tip and some isopropyl alcohol.

Once you have removed the lodged object or lubricated the necessary areas, you can reassemble the record player and test it.

 

Check If The Circuit Board Is Bad

Every electronic device has some kind of circuit board. There can be issues from time to time on these boards where a circuit is not properly connected to the other circuits and it will cause the device to not work correctly.

How It Works

Circuit boards are a series of solder joints and small devices like capacitors, resistors, diodes, etc. All these things need to be connected with conductive material or they will not be able to communicate or work together.

When one part of this system is cut off from the rest, or a part simply fails, it can cause the unit to stop working, and the platter will not spin.

If you have checked every other possible issue on this list and still have not found the problem, the circuit board may have some issues. Or a small piece connected to it does.

Diagnosing

Diagnosing what small part of a circuit board is not working takes a lot of time and some skill, so I will assume you are not going to try that yourself. If you think the board is the issue, you should get it repaired professionally. This repair will most likely cost more than the unit, so you may be better off just buying another one.

 

Crosley Record Player Won’t Turn On: Causes And Fixes

If your Crosley player will not turn on, you are most likely dealing with either a power supply issue, a fuse issue, or a power switch issue.

Before you start trying to diagnose and test any of these things, first verify that your wall outlet is working by using a table lamp to plug it in and switch it on.

 

Power Supply Issue

Most Crosleys use a power supply adapter. These are small black plastic squares that plug into your wall and have a male end that plugs into your unit on the back. Most units have a 9-volt adapter though some of the bigger ones use a 12-volt adapter.

It is common for these power supplies to burn out or become damaged, so do not be surprised if this is the case with yours. You can test your power supply adapter by using a voltmeter, as described further above.

If you do not have a voltmeter, there is no way for you to test your power supply properly. Luckily, it only costs around twelve dollars to buy a replacement.

If you do have a voltmeter, you can easily test your power supply. You can find voltmeters on Amazon or your local hardware store. You can get a decent one for around $10.

Your voltmeter will have two prongs: a black one and a red one. Take the black one and touch it to the side of the barrel plug (the part that plugs into your record player). Then, while the black one is touching the barrel, take the red prong and stick it in the hole of the barrel plug.

Once the black and red are both in place you have created a short circuit, which will register as a reading of voltage on your voltmeter. If you see a reading somewhere around 9v or 12v, depending on the voltage your adapter puts out, your power supply is working and the issue must be something else.

 

Blown Fuse

Fuses blow all the time and are easy to test and fix. Locate the fuse and take it out. Visually inspect it and see if the filament inside is broken. If you can’t tell, you will need to use the voltmeter.

Take each prong of the voltmeter and touch either side of the fuse simultaneously. You should see a continuity reading on the voltmeter or hear a beep coming from it. This means the fuse is working. If you do not see a reading or hear a sound then your fuse is blown and you need to replace it.

 

Power Switch

You use the power switch every time you use your record player, so it gets a lot of play. As a result, the switch can sometimes become worn out or gunked up, or the contacts inside the switch can become too oxidized to make contact.

You can clean out a switch by getting some DeOxit spray. This spray will safely remove any oxidation or gunk inside the power switch.

To use the spray, take your unit outdoors and point the straw of the spray into the power switch and press the button to allow a small blast of spray to come out.

Move the switch back and forth until it starts to feel smoother. If nothing changes you can try spraying a bit more and repeat the process.

If DeOxit spray does not work, you will need to have your switch replaced. This repair will likely cost more than the unit. Once again, it is better to just buy a new player, in that case.

 

Crosley Record Player Troubleshooting: Final Thoughts

Most of the time, a Crosley record player not spinning or not turning on is an easy fix. The hardest part is figuring out what is causing the issue. And even that is not actually difficult.

IF you follow the troubleshooting guide above from top to bottom, chances are you will figure out which component is causing the problem and be able to fix or replace it.

If you have gone through the entire guide step by step and your Crosley turntable is still not working, you will need to have it checked out by a professional.

However, this often costs more than a new record player would, assuming we are talking about another budget model, like a Crosley or a Victrola turntable. For that reason, you’re generally better off just buying a new one, if you are unable to repair it yourself at home.