Help Please! Multiple 1994 Franklin D10 lowers have started moving with raise

[Glenn Demichele]

I was moving a couple rods on my E9 to time things, and I noticed several lowers were coming off their zero point when I would raise that string. This was happening on several strings on E9, and even a few on the C6 - This wasn't happening before.

Now I really have to crank up the tension on the lower return springs to keep them in place, and I don't like the way that feels. Two of them are even maxxed out and it's still not enough (E9 string 1 is maxxed out, and when I raise F# to G#, the lower still pulls away).
I rinsed the changer out with naptha, and re-lubed with Tri-Flow (no wax). (That I've done maybe twice before in the past 15 years.) I've been using Tri-flow exclusively for maybe 12 years. I think the fingers felt lubed (moved freeley) after that, but when all loaded with springs and strings, they seem sticky - like you can move the pull with your finger against the spring, let go, and it just sort of stays there. Any ideas?

[Jim Pitman]

Did you change locations for the pulls at the changer or the pullers or both?

[Glenn Demichele]

Thanks Jim:
Yes, on E9 I did, but not on C6, where one raise developed the problem.
(Thankfully I did make a sheet so I know where they were, but I feel if I put them back I still might see the problem.)
Given that for a desired pitch raise, the finger top has to rotate a fixed number of degrees regardless of which raise hole I use in the changer. One could put the rod in R1 (closest to axle), R2 or R3 and get that same angular rotation, but of course the length of the pull must be greater with the rod in R3 versus R1.
Question: Does the choice of raise hole affect the tension required of the lower return spring to keep the lower from moving?

[Bobby D. Jones]

Never worked on a Franklin guitar.
If you ran naptha through the changer and it started, (lowers bar moving off stop bar during raise). And you lubed the fingers from the top.
Sounds like all the lube got washed out of the rivet area on Raise and Lower bars.
Turn the guitar over, Can you see the rivet area where the lower and raise bars are connected?

Lube the rivet area, Move pedals and knee levers to to help lube work into the rivet area and area between the raise and lower bars.

Good Luck in removing this problem.

[Jim Pitman]

I have had similar trouble after changing to a different raise hole at the changer but i don’t recall what i did about it.

[Glenn Demichele]

Thanks, keep those comments coming. I believe I got some tri-flow into the rivet area from the bottom, but I'll give it another shot. Tri-flow is still OK with everyone? Also:
Does the choice of raise hole affect the tension required of the lower return spring to keep the lower from moving?

[Glenn Demichele]

So: I took two videos of my experiment, but it will save GigaBytes of natural resources if I just explain in a text:
Setup:
I'm doing this on string 1 on the E9:
No rods are in the raise or lower holes.
The lower return screw is as loose as I could make it.

No Load conditition:
I loosened the 1st string to make if floppy. When I push the lower with a screwdriver, it moves away from the stop, and snaps right back with no stickyness, even with the returns screws as loose as possible. Feels great.

Load condition:
I tuned up the first string to pitch. In a perfect world, I would expect the loosened spring to either hold it at the stop, or have it smoothly move away from the stop to an equilibrium position. I would expect that if I move the lower with my screwdriver, it would feel smooth, then return to the equilibrium position when I stop pushing it with my screwdriver.
What happens however is when I push the pull lever with my screwdriver and let go, it just sticks there where I moved it. I can move it around with the screwdriver to any intermediate lower position, and when I let go it just stays where I left it. It's like sticky. What is this mystery friction?

Maybe this is related to the root cause of why my raises activate my lowers. I know it's the reason that I really have to crank the lower return springs to pull the string back in tune after a raise.