How To: Repair a Life-Size Gemmy Santa or Snowman with a rubber-band! (sold by Wal-Mart) 

Awesome, you're very welcome!!

There’s a speed dial somewhere in the Santa if you turn it up he should dance faster

Very welcome, hope it helps!

You are so welcome!

My pleasure! Hope you find it helpful.

So awesome to hear! I've heard you can get some bands in the plumbing section of most hardware stores. I've not personally tried them, but if the band breaks try one from the hardware store. It may last a bit longer that way. Again, great news and great job!

Hi, I got a motion sensored dancing singing Santa. When I plug him in he dances immediately and won't stop. He will sing but only after you push the button But when done singing he continues to dance and won't stop Thoughts please ?

I had someone tell me the same about mine, when I initially made this video I didn't realize they neck and head should move as well. May open it up again and see if I can fix that, if I do I'll upload a new video about it. May want to subscribe, just in case I figure it out (click the bell button to get notified if I do).

You have a skeleton!

Looney Bird And Rolfe yeah I got it at a flea market for 20 bucks. It's completely broken except for the eye lights and sound so I have a lot of work to do.

@@SPCAnimatronics COOL!

@@WagnersTechTalk OK

Very welcome! Another thing you could possibly find at a local hardware store are these Faucet O-Rings: amzn.to/2YwgmsI Someone mentioned it long after this video was released that may work better (I've personally not tried them).

The rubber band worked, but yeah an O-ring is likely a better long-term option. Amazon has various assortments, mine are in storage so don't have the sizes that work available. But picking an assortment oring kit will likely work. I just ordered this kit to test next month: amzn.to/3fjLM9s (not sure if these sizes are correct). If they are, I'll update the video description.

@@WagnersTechTalk Haha! I just ordered pretty much the same one here in the UK. Thanks!

Thanks for your input, I may revisit this at some point in the future. I appreciate your feedback!

Thank you buddy!

Would you sell the snowman I’ve always wanted one

I could not find the wire on my Santa I picked up the leg pant leg under the other material

Hi Ryan, I don't have a schematic of the circuit board. In fact, I tried finding an official o-ring to replace mine with and came up with nothing. At the time I made this video, there was virtually nothing I could find on the Santa nor the Snowman. I did find a power supply that seems to work (in the video description), perhaps check yours to make sure it's getting power. Wish I could help more.

@@WagnersTechTalk I appreciate the answer! Its so hard to find stuff for these now, which surprises me a bit due to popularity. The power supply on mine seems good, but the capacitor blew to hell. I resoldered a new one in and still nothing. Everything on the board looks ok but hard to tell I guess. So expensive to replace so was hoping to tackle it myself like you did.

Hi Susan, I don't know the answer. I tried locating replacement belts and came up with noting.

You're welcome!

That's awesome that you have it setup in your child's room! My youngest is 14 but even the older kids love having it around :)

I haven't had this particular issue. Sounds like something with the springs, perhaps it's off track or the springs themselves are broken. I won't be much help since it's not something I encountered.

I don't know off the top of my head, but that wire is likely key to why it's not moving. Look around to see if there are any breaks or solder applied that has no wire and that's likely where it goes. Then, just re-solder it and that will likely fix it. You can also check out the YT channel ru-vid.comvideos they have a lot of videos there on similar characters. Maybe drop them a not asking, they'll likely have better information than I. Hope this helps!

You probably made the speaker blow out which you will need another speaker. The component also might be fried

Ouch, 42v dc may have fried something. As HHP mentioned, you could try replacing the speaker but there could be something else on the PCB damaged as well.

@@WagnersTechTalk Thanks for the video! I have the same issue where larger adaptor was used on Dancing Santa and have blown the transistor on the circuit board. Do you happen to know what the spec of the transistor in Q3 position is, as I need to get a replacement but can no longer read the numbers! Appreciate if you can help! 🎅😎

The Santa still works, the Snowman stopped and I added another rubber band (it snapped). However, going to hit a hardware store in the plumbing section they may have smaller (stronger) bands. That is based on a few recommendations I received in the comments.

There’s a lever in the back of its head and press it and remove

The only thing I could find is this link, I hope it's helpful for you: www.gemmy.com/help_answer.asp?ID=10

Lakewi44 did

Could be the power supply or it could be the main board has some defect (short, blown capacitor, etc.). In this instance, I'm not going to be much help.

I wish I could say, I only have these two that I found on the side of the road. I don't have anything else to compare them to.

I appreciate your comment Chase. Keep in mind, I found these on the side of the road (headed for the dumpster), I spent nothing on them :) I looked on ebay and Amazon for belts, couldn't find a link (if you have one, let me know please). So, I went with what I had and it worked fine. Is it perfect, probably not. Will it last, maybe not but it's easy enough to repair. Now, I could have used a higher-tension rubber-band that would probably last much longer but I made do with what I had on-hand and was quite pleased with the results. Thanks for the split gear idea, I'll check it out in Nov. when we go to set them up again. If it's a gear that is cracked/split I'll just 3D print one and put my design on thingiverse for others. Thx again!

Wagner's TechTalk m.ebay.com/itm/2mm-Hole-Plastic-Belt-Pulley-Gears-Combination-Modulus-Package-Rubber-Belts-Band/253768377383?epid=15016995464&hash=item3b15c62427%3Ag%3ArW8AAOSw5dlaE3xS&_nkw=rubber+belts&_from=R40&rt=nc

mitcdale672 LDS can you just like stop asking for the santa every time you see one?

TheVintageKing7 ikr

Not sure I'll be much help as I'm not familiar with that model. Unplug it, remove the screws from the bottom and make sure the power connector isn't bent/broken. If it is, you'll have to hunt for a replacement part. It would be great if the manufacturer supported these units better with replacement parts. If they do, I've sure not found it.

Yes, I agree it's probably a better idea to use belts from a hardware store instead of a rubber band. At the time I made this video, I didn't know they could be found in a hardware store and the Mfgr. never responded to me. Did the best I could with what I knew at the time. This video sill demonstrates where the belts go and the rubber band will work (probably, just not as long). I couldn't find a video that demonstrated this, so wanted to try to help others as best I could.

@@WagnersTechTalk ya np, it's a good video nonetheless. I try to do repair videos on these things when I can, I'm a part of that group channel, gemmy master animatronics

Dude, just checked out your channel, you've got a ton of great content/info there! You've got an awesome subscriber base too, congratulations that's fantastic! I also subbed, going to fun to learn more about animatronics.

@@WagnersTechTalk thank you so much! We definitely have a variety, and lots of item knowledge on what tends to be faulty on items and all that, because we grew up with that stuff as kids when they were new, so we have a whole life experience. This is something we never made a video on though, so it's good this is out there two. We get comments all the time about "how do I replace the gear "where do I find and how do I replace the belt" "how can I fix this" with no explanation on what the issue is. It's hard assuming just by saying "its not working" so ots hard to help. My key thing is do you hear the motor running? Its either the belt broke or a gear. If you cant hear the motor then it's either a wire off the motor or the motor its self. If its something that's suppose to move 2 directions but it's only moving 1 like the head for example it's a component the board. If it's not doing anything at all either a power wires is off or the whole thing is shot and there's board issues. If the audio isnt working, it may be a wire off the speaker, the speaker might be blow or if it's something that's really old that's adapter powered, its sound chip os probably dead from be over voltaged or something. Anyways ya, wed like to make a lot of helpful video, but sometimes people still dont know what to do, or listen to what that parts are called, so it's hard helping someone of they dont know what certain parts are called and how they work. As long as the new 2020 youtube doesnt destroy us, we plan on being around as long as we can.

Those are some Awesome tips right there! If you have a website, maybe you could make a flow diagram to show exactly what you're talking about and how to diagnose the source of the problem. Just an idea, you have tons of knowledge where a flow diagram might be helpful to others. If you don't have a website, I'd be happy to host the diagram for you, if you wanted. Just e-mail me at wagnerstechtalk [at] gmail.com, if needed. What is it in 2020 that is a problem? Does that have to do with the new rules for children?

Likely a tighter band, check the video description for some options. You can also likely pick them up locally instead of using rubber bands.

I don't know where to get replacement motors, it's not something I've had to do yet.

Hi Bobby, sorry I don't know where to find a replacement. You may be able to pull the existing one, locate any numbers on the motor and attempt to hunt one down based on that. I'd definitely not power it on until you locate a replacement.

You could probably press him down, then set him on the sleigh bench (I would think).

You might have to push really hard the first time. Mine is a road-side find, so not sure about the stiffness of a new one. Just put your hands on each shoulder push down and let it pop up. If that doesn't work, maybe the springs are off the track? Should be able to just pull the skirt up and take a peak (that didn't sound right lol)

@@WagnersTechTalk lol

I (think) I pinned a post with some bands that should work better.

@@WagnersTechTalk yes with O rings, loom bands also work though

Are they bolted to the base, did they break? Might need to stand it up and see where the instability is coming from. Sorry, I'm probably not much help but it's hard when you can't see the issue.

@@WagnersTechTalk thank you much for even responding! The poles inside the spring aren’t bolted but it doesn’t look like they ever were. The have white plastic pieces at their ends but neither fits securely inside the pieces they sit on top of. If something broke I’m not sure what exactly but I can’t find jagged edges. Can I email you a pic?

Definitely something internal to the electronics in the base. I honestly don't know what (bad ram chip perhaps).

No, sorry. I've not done anything with the PCBs.

Not that I'm aware of, you'd probably have to pull the motor out and search for a similar replacement. I couldn't even find "official" belts for the repair :)

I’m looking for a motor too, did you find one?

You can find the motor on aliexpress

Instead of rubber bands, you could also use some belts like this: www.ebay.com/itm/2mm-Hole-Plastic-Belt-Pulley-Gears-Combination-Modulus-Package-Rubber-Belts-Band/253772873728?epid=20030921566&hash=item3b160ac000:g:rW8AAOSw5dlaE3xS . Yours may require a few more belts.

@@WagnersTechTalk so the belts in him are not snapped his motors are fried

This sounds like an issue with the electronics itself, sorry I don't have any recommendations.

Not sure, I only have these two.

Yes it will

Sorry, don't know the answer. Could be the board, the power supply, etc.

Likely the springs are off the track, haven't had that happen myself but may have to press them in manually to get it back on the railing.

We have the same problem with ours- would love to get his mouth moving. Have you had any luck?

I'd try unplugging it from the power, then remove the screws on the bottom and check the wires going to the speaker. Perhaps one of them came loose or may need to be re-soldered. Could be other things too, but that's the first thing I'd check.

If I remember right, they were stapled. I used a butter knife to pry them up.

o-rings are probably a better idea, no doubt. But, this is another solution that works but probably not as long. The steps are the same, regardless.

Push it's shoulders down, it will compress to about half the size. Keep in mind, the one I have did not come in a box (found on the side of the road), so maybe I'm missing something?

My Santa is roughly 4ft, does yours look like the one in this video? If not, not sure without a picture.

The motor is likely wore out. I'm not sure where to get a replacement motor. There doesn't seem to be any on-line source for parts.

I bought a motor replacement in a shop where they sell things like speakers, motors, and electronic pieces

Good to know, may have to take this thing apart again :) They did seem to just dangle.

See at 05:53 , right under the long red handle is the motor (small white round plastic piece is connected to the motor) Hope that helps you out.

Not sure, the voice was working on these two. You can remove the bottom cover and see if there are any loose/broken wires there. Just make sure it's unplugged if you attempt to take a look.

May be that the springs have weakened or have come loose, hard to say.

@@WagnersTechTalk thanks

That's likely going to be the wires to the actuator in the mouth area (broken wire or actuator). Not something I've run into and won't be too helpful with.

The Santa has staples around his waist. You can pry them off with a butter knife. Then take a look and see what's catching.

Not sure, I didn't take the head apart.

Is the motor spinning?

I didn't have a need to take the head apart, I don't have an answer for you unfortunately.

I don't know where to get replacement parts. But if it's smoking, definitely don't plug it in.

The motor burned up, you can probably find the motors online somewhere

Probably need to unplug the power, remove the screws from the bottom of the base and see if there is a loose wire. If there is, may need to be re-soldered. Don't know exactly, just a thought.

Or the speaker is broken

I've not had that issue. I'd start by making sure it's unplugged and remove the panel at the base and see if any wires have come loose.

It might be the springs came off the railing or have broken.

Please see the video description for the one I'm using.

@Wagner's TechTalk I saw the one you're using.. what does the other side plug into?

Looks like some kid grabbed his eye glasss too

I totally missed that! I'd like to see the dancing santa return to the stores.

On mine, you just press down on the shoulders and it pops up. Not sure about other models.

@@WagnersTechTalk yeah i just pressed down on shoulders and it pops up...problem now is santa only dances...no sound

Make sure the volume is turned up at the base of the machine, power supply is functioning properly, aside from that I'm not sure.

I don't think you need to hack it, there is a mic input that you could use to connect your audio source. Not sure how well that would work with a musical sound track though I do remember using a Mic with it and the mouth would move when we spoke into it.

@@WagnersTechTalk That's super helpful! Thank you.

Hi Kathy, no I'm sorry I'm not aware of anyplace to send it or where to get replacement parts. Maybe someone will reply here that does know. Wish I could be more helpful.

Have you tried any switches or dials on the base? If none of that helps, I'm not sure. I haven't done anything with the electronics, only the bands.

Much appreciated, hope you enjoy my other content!